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I recently completed a trestle table for my daughter-in-law and delivered it this last Saturday. Oak, dyed with Transtint to match a new set of chairs, and finished with General Finishes Arm-R-Seal.

The finish gave me fits, never worked with oak before & it soaked up the wiping varnish like a sponge with water. I came to LJs for advise on this, and ended up following the expert advise of Charles Neil, "simply wait". You can view all the great responses by fellow LJs here.

The legs are very hefty, solid 8/4 oak, with feet & upper cross members almost as wide as the top's 43", and secured with 1/2" oak dowel pins - top & bottom. The top is secured by wooden buttons, or clips as shown in the last photo above, to help keep it flat. Breadboard ends also add to keeping the top flat, with 1/4" oak dowel pins as shown here:



I started finishing this table with the top first as described above, and took the advise of fellow LJs by using Zinssr's Seal Coat shellac sanding sealer first on the legs and stretcher, then the wiping varnish - work like a charm.

When I put the tenons on the leg uprights, I used my router sled that I typically use to flatted boards. This can be seen here, and it too worked well on this thick stock.



Well, thanks for looking, and I hope what I've learned and described here will help others.

Gallery

Comments

· Registered
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841 Posts
Great looking table with nice write up and photographs. Congratulations on a job well done!
 

· Registered
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29 Posts
Beautiful table. You did an excellent job…well done.
 

· Registered
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10,033 Posts
Man that looks nice.
Fine job!
 

· Premium Member
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3,654 Posts
Nice work OT. The finish work really turned out nice. Congrats!
 

· Registered
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259 Posts
Gorgeous dining table! Like the great design and build especially legs and the joinery, a great heirloom piece for sure. Great work!
 

· Registered
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47 Posts
really nice work - beautifully finished
 

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31 Posts
Beautiful, I love the look of Trestle style tables. Amazing work.
 

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73 Posts
Beautiful trestle dining table.
 

· Registered
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4 Posts
Great looking trestle table, you could have fooled me, the grain on the table is beautiful, doesn't even look like oak, and a great finish
 
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