Egg Plate

[Dean Center]

I've wondered for some time how to make something that seems simple, but I can't quite figure it out. An egg plate.

The idea is that you have a plate/tray/platter in which there are egg shaped indentations which is designed to present deviled eggs at a meal, often a church social or pot luck, or hot dish to you North Dakotans. My understanding is that these are essential components of any proper family kitchen in the South, but perhaps I don't have the name correct for such an important institution of good social graces.

Making the tray itself is straightforward, but how would you cut/carve/make the egg shaped depressions?

Thanks for your suggestions.

 

[Gerald Lawrence]

Arbor tech can do it but consistency and reproducibility is the problem. That failing carve them . And one last off center turning

 

[David Wrate]

Thinking out loud here... it's basically the shape of scoop right? I wonder if a jig could be made with a curved platform so that a router with large cove bit could enter and exit the cut following the curve. Would take some trial and error but I've seen a similar method used to carve a chair bottom.

 

[Russell Nugent]

I'd use a carving gouge and a template to lay out the egg shapes.

 

[hockenbery]

Some of the depressions are simple ovals like this flat board

You could cut them with a router and a template.
Could fix the template in the banjo or clamped to the ways then you can use the index on the lathe to lock the plate for each cut.

A carbide plunge ball bit, oval cut in the template and a guide attached to the router base should do it.
Then sand with round balls

Could use a wide carving gouge from each end…
.
Could just free hand it with a 1/2” carbide ball burr. Cutting the outline groove with a palm vee or a small rotorary ball will help keep the big burr where it belongs. For a a rustic look - They don’t have to match
If you hand carve skip around the plate rather than going around. This will give a better look. If you go around the first and last are likely to be the most different because of some subtle drift in your technique.