Cut to tabletop

[Keith]

I am going to create a tabletop that I will attach to a metal arm mounted on the wall, and on it, place an LCD screen, keyboard, and mouse.

I have a solid birch countertop for the purpose, but the question is how to work with it. It is currently 610mm deep and 1200mm wide, with a rounded front edge. When finished, it should be irregular in shape, like a kidney roughly.

I wonder if anyone can tell me the best way to achieve this without having to take it to a workshop. Once I've drawn the shape on it - which saw should I use and how do I round off its edges?

 

[ByggaNytt]

Use a jigsaw to cut out the shape (kidney), then a router to smooth the cuts/round off the edges!

 

[Mats]

The alternative to the router is a heck of a lot of sanding, so I would also say the router, if you have one.

 

[boppe]

I wouldn't recommend making the desk as described above with a top that is only 61 cm deep. The standard measurement for an office desk is 80 cm, which allows you to cut out a kidney shape and still maintain a recommended viewing distance to the screen.
It also looks quite silly with this shape on such a narrow desk; I cut my desk from masonite to get a sense of how it would look. I ended up keeping the straight top according to your measurements, routing the edges with a hand router.
So, get a deeper top or keep the desk straight!

//Boppe ergonom

 

[banana]

The standard measurement for an office desk is 80 cm and then you can cut out a kidney while still maintaining a recommended viewing distance to the screen.

//Boppe ergonomics

hmmm, if you use an LCD screen you should be able to reduce the "standard" measurement by about 30 cm, right?
Otherwise, I probably need a desk that is 140 cm for my big screen ;D