• Cut out the top board.

Dither dither.

I felt like I'd done enough experiments and preparation. I threw down some sacrificial particleboard, marked the centre of the board and drilled a 12mm hole, then set up my jig and went for it.

Huzzah!

Barely cut into the particle board underneath.

It looks great!

A sand around the circumference with some 180 grit sandpaper removed the burrs. I am very extremely happy with the result. There are two or three small voids around the edge. I picked up some wood putty of approximately the right colour and smooshed it into them. I am confident it will sand up very nicely.

• Glue the offcuts and cut out the base,
• Drill the hole in the centre of the top,
• Attach the bands to the base.