Maple Night stand

I AM IMPRESSED. A VERY WELL DONE PIECE. i AM IN THE PROCESS OF MAKING A BED SIDE TABLE FOR A FRIEND. WHAT ARE THE DIMENSIONS? TOP SIZE? TOTAL HEIGHT? DRAWER SIZES?
THANK YOU IN ADVANCE. RALPH—-OH WOODEN EYE

-- Woodeneye, Michigan, www.rdrouare@provide.net

Great job on that Chief. Crisp design, beautiful workmanship. Good luck with the finish. Can’t help you there but will learn with you.

-- mtnwild (Jack), It's not what you see, it's how you see it.

Excellent job from the goat locker! Your daughter will love and cherish it since it was made by Dad.
As for the finish, I guess it would depend on the other furniture in her room. I like using Danish Tung Oil to bring out the grain and then use a wipe on poly for a final finish.

-- "You get what you inspect, not what you expect"

Nice work Joe, Looks like you did a real nice job fitting those drawers. As far as staining, maple has a tendency to blotch when stained so it is often toned rather than stained (adding a little pigment to the lacquer finish). I’ve had good luck with water based stain on maple with no blotching, but whatever method you use I would definitely make some practice boards, it would be a shame to mess up such a fine project. I might also suggest a good book ( I call it my finishing Bible), Bob Flexner’s “Understanding Wood Finishing” if it isn’t in that book than it hasn’t been done. I met Bob and he is one smart cookie. Let us know how you make out.

-- Paul Sayre Creativity is a drug I cannot live without. Cecil B. DeMille (1881 - 1959)

Looks like a pro did it!!!
I like it very much!

-- spanky46 -- Never enough clamps...Never enough tools...Never enough time.

Great job. I think about three coats of wipe-on satin polyurethane is all you need to make this a real beauty. I often use an oil finish first to help bring out the grain, as Pat suggested. If you do, make sure to let it cure several days before applying the poly.

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

Beautiful piece, Chief!

Very reminiscent of the Shaker style.

Beautiful table..I like the double drawers and the gentle curves around the bottom skirts. You certainly did a great job fitting those two drawers ! There are so many finishes to chose from it is hard to offer just one . I like to keep my projects as natural looking as possible , especially Maple . If you want to keep it light and natural , then go with a water-borne poly , or if you like it to look yellowish ,you could use the oil-based poly instead. Tough choices to be made. Have fun : )

-- You know you're getting old when you know the difference between you're (you are) and your (belonging to you) AND how to use them in a sentence .

Thanks for all the kind word. I may just finish it without a stain. Two years ago I bought an unfinished maple bed. I put golden oak stain on it (I don’t know why). I wanted the table to match but I would hate to ruin this table by applying stain. Is there a finish that will darken it with out using stain?

-- Senior Chief

Can you obtain Osmo Poly X in the US? It’s an Oilwax product which you wipe or brush on then buff off more or less imediately. Only put on the bare minimum and apply as many coats as you want. It leaves a beautifull finish, originally meant for use on wooden floors so tough as old boots!

Oh! forgot to say the item is really nice and in great proportion!

Wow, you did a great job, especially at being your first piece like this.

-- Dennis Zongker

Excellent work Joe. If you do plan on staining this, maple is typically a bear. I just finished a maple nightstand and it turned out very nice following the steps in the below link:

http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_base/Staining_and_Blending_Difficult_Woods.html

Follow these steps as much as you can. You will need an hvlp system for the toning. :(

-- Thepps, Grand Rapids, MI

Nice project Joe – well done.

And a nice tip and link, Thepps, thanks.

-- Chris

Sweet!

-- Drink once, cut twice. New website up.... lazylarrywoodworks.com.au