I am making a few pens that will be half 30-06 cases and half wood.  Similar to the picture below, but half shell, half wood.

The wood I need to use is mahogany from an old 2”x24”x36” table top my father made many years ago.  It needs to be that particular piece of wood for sentimental value.

Here is problem.  I don’t want to destroy the table.  My thought is to get a 3/4”x3/4”x12” piece from the middle of underside so it’s not seen.  It doesn’t have to be exact because it will be used for blanks and turned on a lathe.  Of course, since I don’t want the cut out to be noticeable it can’t be done from the edge.

I can use a router or circular saw with the depth set at 3/4” to make the two parallel cuts 12” long, 3/4” apart. I can make the end cuts the same way.  I’ll have the 3/4” wide by 12” long rectangle, but the underside wouldn’t be cut.  The tricky part is to get underneath to cut the bottom. I was thinking maybe a chisel and hammer to crack it out?  Maybe route out a channel next to the rectangle so I can get an oscillating tool underneath for the cut?

This is probably a simple answer.  I’m sure you guys know what it is.

The pens will be similar to this.  The 30-06 part are the blank shells from the three volley salute at my fathers funeral.  The wood top, as mentioned, will be from a table he made that sat in our livingroom for most of our lives.  The pens will be given to my brothers.  But, I still need to figure out this cut.

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The cases, which will be polished and engraved.

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I would router out the blank as you said. Then drill an appropriate size hole next to your cuts and grab a keyhole bit to undercut as much of the piece as you could. should be able to pop the piece out with whatever tool you want. Might have to set up a guide fence to keep the bit running straight.

A 3/8 bit would cut it right out but that is a lot of material to cut in one pass. I think I would use a 1/4 inch bit with a 1/4 inch shank and go slow.
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I have never tried this . Follow all safety rules...yada yada yada. You're on your own if you get hurt.

Cut a triangle out of the bottom.  Two passes with the saw intersecting in the wood.  You don't need a square to turn it round, just enough meat in the inside of the triangle blank.  

Just a thought.

Cut the rectangle like you said, then chisel a ramp at one of the narrow ends so you can get a chisel under the piece you want. Pat attention to the direction of the grain when you choose the side to place the ramp. I wouldn't try to cut them as one piece, take a couple of smaller ones, make them bigger than you think you need. If you have one of the oscillating saws, I would use that instead of the chisel.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-4-Amp-Corded-Oscillating-Multi-Tool-R28700/316341817

Pics of table area not loading, but vibe saws are awesome for sneaking out pieces of wood in otherwise unreachable locations

I'd probably slice the table right down the middle, taking a 3/4" strip out of the center,  and glue the top back together.  Refinish and nobody will ever know the difference.

I’ve given this a lot of thought.  It may be the easiest.  There is already a joint down the middle.

If I have the exposed middle edge, I could do two perpendicular 3/4”x12” cuts, one on the bottom and one on the edge, and remove the piece I need from the bottom center then reglue the joint.  Maybe if I keep the glue joint clean I wouldn’t have to refinish it.  It’s pretty “rustic” with a cigarette burn or two that I’d like to keep.

Taking a strip of the middle isn’t a big deal, but, because of the existing seam it would be a total of 1.5” in order to reglue it with the seam in the center.

This.
And depending on how deep you have to cut, maybe glue a matching triangle piece back in to the groove for strength / stability of table top.
Also, the triangle will result in less material being cut.

Good idea. I’ll do some measuring and see if it would work.  It should.

Yeah, I just responded to it above.  The cuts would have to be a little deeper so the distance from the bottom of the V to the top is just a little bigger than the diameter I’ll eventually turn it to. But it should work. Thanks.

I’m leaning towards this.  It doesn’t require  a new router bit or messing with the existing top.

All good ideas.  Thanks everyone.  I’ll let you know what I decide, but it will be one of those for sure.

Here it is. Ugly, rough and not much to it, but sentimental.  He probably made it in the early 1970’s while smoking Pall Mall’s and drinking a lot of Budweiser.  Once I get the piece I need for the pens, I’ll likely put some metal legs back on it and find a place for it in my office.

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I decided to split it along the seam and get the piece from the bottom center.  I replaced the cutout piece with a random piece of walnut I had laying around.  I’ll reglue it with dowels, then a light sand and oil finish.  Should look as good as……well, old.

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Edited title.  Since I’m here and finished the cut successfully, I figured I’d continue on with the entire pen process.

I priced engraving my father’s name and years of life on each of the nine cases; $200 total.  The engraver recommended I finish polishing and installing the hardware before engraving so I don’t end up sanding the engraving out.

The cases were deprimed and sized, mainly to make the mouth diameter consistent.  The mouths were trimmed, chamfered and deburred similar to actual reloading.  Since the cases were blanks they have little tears in the mouth and are uneven, unlike normal cases.  The processing cleans that up a little.  I’ll get a picture later.

After the minimal processing, I drilled the primer holes out to 7mm.  Painters tape holds the cases from spinning in the self centering pen jig.  After being drilled, I tossed them in the dry tumbler for a few hours.

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After drilling the primer pocket and a quick tumble, the next step is to install the 7mm tube. For the 30-06 case, the tube needs to be cut to length from a long tube.  On a side note, if I were using 308 cases the common Penn State Industries slim line pen kit tubes fit without cutting.

I use a bushing between the case mouth and the tube to take up the extra space.  All of the parts are glued with CA glue, trying not to get too much squeeze out because it’s a pain to clean off the brass.  This sometimes requires pressure.

There is a bushing sitting in the bottom two pictures, it’s extra. In those pictures the required bushing has been installed.

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The remaining parts for the bottom half, but I’ll put it on the lathe first and lightly sand/polish the case before fitting it together.

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I visited my Dad’s grave on Christmas.  Gave me some motivation to get these done.

The front of the pen was posted above.  The back will be from a piece of the monogamy from the table that started this thread.  The block was cut to approximate length, about 1.5” or so then center drilled with a 7mm bit.  The brass tube (from a slimline one kit for those that use Penn State kits) was glued into the wood with two step/five minute epoxy.  I could have used CA, but I like epoxy.

Once the tube is in the wood, I use a jig and the band saw to cut the corners off of the wood.  It makes for less work on the lathe.  Then, with another jig on the disc sander, I sanded the ends down to the length of tubes.  This also squares the ends up so the kit parts fit flush. There are a few ways to do this, I like the sander.

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The next step is turning.  I put the wood on a 7mm mandrel.  I need to turn it to .46” diameter to match the diameter of the 30-06 case.  I found some Gatsby Jr. Bushings that serve dual purpose.  The larger side is .47” and the smaller diameter is about the size of the pen clip cap.

The blank on the mandrel (that table the wood came from is the background)

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This is a quick, easy turn.

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After turning to the shape and sanding just with 320, it was ready for finish.

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About 10 coats of thin CA was applied.  I usually use medium, but I was out.  After the CA, I wet sanded it then used a plastic polish while it was on the lathe.

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I put the 30-06 case on a mandrel then wet sanded it.  That cleans it up quick, but leaves alot of sand marks.  I have a two wheel buffing system on a 7mm mandrel that has an abrasive wheel and a polishing wheel.  I buffed the case length wise and it shined right up, no scratches and bright!

I put the parts in the lower portion/case using a press then put the clip and cap in the top portion/mahogany also with the press. The clip is 24k from Penn State.  Although it might look silver in the photo, it’s bright gold.

Here is the finished prototype. It is ready for engraving.  Eight more to do, but they will be quick. I don’t know if I mentioned it, my father was a Vietnam Veteran.  That’s the reason for the three volley salute at the funeral and where the cases came from.

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Great job! Also an awesome tribute! They will look Marvelous!!