History
History
We had a maple kitchen table that was very nice, but not the style we wanted for our house.
After I made the mahogany coffee table, I was feeling confident to tackle something larger.
Kristin and I enrolled in a "work completion lab" at the community college.
I looked through several plans. I really wanted to make one with curved stretchers and a top that was held on by massive sliding dovetails. (I still want to make it). We decided it was beyond our skills.
So we picked a basic Stickley trestle dining table, but scaled it down for our living room. It features a massive top and through/keyed tenons.
I spent one day running to Bonhoff Lumber to buy the rought 8/4 1/4sawn oak material.
Here it is so far:
Challenges
To come
We stopped working on it because we needed to find the right finish. (Plus, see all my other excuses on prior post). I have been experimenting with a billion different stains. I also acquired ammonia (the real stuff) from a parent in my class who runs a blueprint shop. I have not had time to fume some samples. I am also not sure what type of clear finish to put over the whole thing. Shellac is out due to the sloshing beer/wine problem. Any advice? (Yes I have seent the twelve step process).
I will post some of my 50 stain samples sometime.
By the way: I have a new policy. No starting a project until a finish schedule is in place.
History
We had a maple kitchen table that was very nice, but not the style we wanted for our house.
After I made the mahogany coffee table, I was feeling confident to tackle something larger.
Kristin and I enrolled in a "work completion lab" at the community college.
I looked through several plans. I really wanted to make one with curved stretchers and a top that was held on by massive sliding dovetails. (I still want to make it). We decided it was beyond our skills.
So we picked a basic Stickley trestle dining table, but scaled it down for our living room. It features a massive top and through/keyed tenons.
I spent one day running to Bonhoff Lumber to buy the rought 8/4 1/4sawn oak material.
Here it is so far:
Challenges
- Chopping the through tenons by hand as the thickness of the legs prohibited the use of the mortiser. The chips were flyin.
- Keyed tenons
- Learned to resaw: Veneered quartersawn oak to two faces of each leg so that all faces are quartersawn.
- Jointing huge pieces
To come
- Sand top
- Ease edges and corners of top
- Sand tenon keys
#Apply Finish - Attach top
We stopped working on it because we needed to find the right finish. (Plus, see all my other excuses on prior post). I have been experimenting with a billion different stains. I also acquired ammonia (the real stuff) from a parent in my class who runs a blueprint shop. I have not had time to fume some samples. I am also not sure what type of clear finish to put over the whole thing. Shellac is out due to the sloshing beer/wine problem. Any advice? (Yes I have seent the twelve step process).
I will post some of my 50 stain samples sometime.
By the way: I have a new policy. No starting a project until a finish schedule is in place.