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Dutch Pullout Table From Reclaimed Fir

14K views 5 replies 3 participants last post by  gfadvm 
#1 ·
Parameters

Here's what the client wanted:
A large table made from reclaimed fir beams, which he would select and have resawn.
Large would mean about 8 feet.
It should expand to twice its size. That, yes indeedy, would be 16 feet.
Something that would go in his house of lots of reused wood things, mostly softwoods.
No crack in the center where leaves would go.

My first suggestion was a trestle table with ends that pullout to include a leaf. Not enough net gain of real estate.

I cast about for other ideas and came up with nothing until I recalled a Tage Frid article in FWW about a Dutch Pullout. I researched on the web and found only a few pictures. Here's a beauty.

I found the article in Winter 77-when FWW came four times a year. I recalled reading that article 25 years ago and thinking, "I'll never be able to make something that cool." And it is indeed cool.

I see now there is a more thorough treatment of his project in Book 3 of his sublime woodworking series. What was in the magazine article-four pages-was enough to get me through.

Here is the longer article, p. 56.

Client signed off on the idea and delivered the material.
 
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#2 ·
Basic Bones

The legs are approaching 4 inches, glued up from four pieces but laid out so that it looks like 3. Tapers were eyeballed on one and transferred to the other three and sanded.

Rails are 5/4 (finished) reclaimed pine, just a few knots.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Gas Hardwood
 

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#3 ·
Moving Parts

This evolved but underused design is quite simple, in a way, but kind of boggling at the same time.

The essential element here is that the slide must rise from zero (flush with the top of the skirt) to the thickness of the top (15/16") in the exact distance of the length of the leaf. That's the basic part.

What's more interesting is how the two ends interact. That's not to mention that the slides must be dead solid identical. Frid suggests a fixture for the table saw, and I did as he said (he's never let me down).

I used glued up 12mm Baltic for the slides. I think they would have had less flex if I'd used something like cherry or maple. But they work fine. I waxed all the surfaces. Fine tuning can be done in the depth of the slots in the end skirt pieces. All that was done by hand with a pull saw and a chisel.

Wood Floor Flooring Automotive exterior Engineering


Wood Floor Automotive exterior Flooring Hardwood
 

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#4 ·
The Top and the Leaves

The client liked the idea of bookmatched top. Four boards would make it 42 inches wide. That meant, to get balance in the knot patterns, that the two outboard boards would be matched and likewise the two interior ones. It came out quite nice.

There were nailholes that had been split, and they were blackened. I used a mixture of epoxy and carbon to fill those. Other knots that were loose and had been removed for planing were replaced and superglued in. In some cases I sliced pieces off those knots and used them to fill where knots had shattered or were gone. Other areas were reinforced with epoxy/local sawdust.

Fir is hard to sand flat because of the contrast of hard areas and soft. I took advantage of that by hand sanding with a random orbit and getting a graceful swooshy feel to it. Well used.

There were small areas of planer tearout, often right upstream or downstream from a knot. Those I just dented deeper with the head of a carriage bolt. Enough finish will get down there so that attention won't be drawn to it.

These became the top. Final dimensions, 41Ă—81

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The leaves net 33 inches apiece. The whole table extends to a respectable 12 ft. 3 in.

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Road surface


And here's the finished, unfinished look:

Table Furniture Outdoor table Rectangle Wood


The actual top has two large dowels in the bottom which register in holes in the center panel. It has to be a little movable for the leaves to escape.

The first time I pulled out a leave with the top on, I was stunned: zzzzzzzzz clunk! The two surfaces lined right up. Way cool. Same on the other end.

The table has been delivered to the client who is doing his own finishing. He is pleased. Me too. I signed it under the fixed center panel.
 

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#5 ·
The Top and the Leaves

The client liked the idea of bookmatched top. Four boards would make it 42 inches wide. That meant, to get balance in the knot patterns, that the two outboard boards would be matched and likewise the two interior ones. It came out quite nice.

There were nailholes that had been split, and they were blackened. I used a mixture of epoxy and carbon to fill those. Other knots that were loose and had been removed for planing were replaced and superglued in. In some cases I sliced pieces off those knots and used them to fill where knots had shattered or were gone. Other areas were reinforced with epoxy/local sawdust.

Fir is hard to sand flat because of the contrast of hard areas and soft. I took advantage of that by hand sanding with a random orbit and getting a graceful swooshy feel to it. Well used.

There were small areas of planer tearout, often right upstream or downstream from a knot. Those I just dented deeper with the head of a carriage bolt. Enough finish will get down there so that attention won't be drawn to it.

These became the top. Final dimensions, 41Ă—81

Cabinetry Wood Table Office equipment Office supplies


The leaves net 33 inches apiece. The whole table extends to a respectable 12 ft. 3 in.

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Road surface


And here's the finished, unfinished look:

Table Furniture Outdoor table Rectangle Wood


The actual top has two large dowels in the bottom which register in holes in the center panel. It has to be a little movable for the leaves to escape.

The first time I pulled out a leave with the top on, I was stunned: zzzzzzzzz clunk! The two surfaces lined right up. Way cool. Same on the other end.

The table has been delivered to the client who is doing his own finishing. He is pleased. Me too. I signed it under the fixed center panel.
Another example of the breadth of your ability. Very nice, well thought out and well executed. It would be fun to see it with the finish on.
 

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