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I was driving around with a buddy and we found this bin that said free wood. It didn't really have much to offer just a bunch of rotten old scraps from some fencing and decks. After checking it out we continued driving up the road to find more scrap wood. We came across an auto glass place that had a huge pile of scrap and pallet wood. When looking at it I could tell that there was a bunch of poplar in the Heep, All still really clean, and pretty much milled into 4 foot lengths. There was a lot of staples in the pieces, they were pretty easy to get out, but when cleaned the poplar looked great. I went back a couple of times to fill up my trunk, and cleaned the wood in a couple of hours. The next day I milled the pieces nice and square with my jointer and planer. After being able to see what I could work with I decided to make a coffee table. My planer is only 15" so I made 5 15" slabs at about 4 feet in length planed them smooth and then biscuit jointed them together to make the table top. I glued a couple pieces together to make the legs thicker, I then cut and tapered the legs to give a nice clean look. After I attached the apron to the legs with pocket screws and then the apron to the table. I put a 1/4 round as the profile for the table, I would have liked to use a table edge bit but don't have one. And there you have it a table from rags to riches. My next step is to put a finish on it. I don't now how stain will take to such a soft wood like poplar, but I figure if I use a dark stain and a conversion varnish clear it should come out looking real nice. If that is a fail then I will have to paint it and use some distressing tech to get a more rustic look. Let me know what you think. I thought this was a great wood score for being in San Diego, finding hardwoods is difficult especially down here.

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If you just put Laquer on it 'No Stain' it will Turn out Yellow with some black streaks in it.

 

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Really nice I like the inlay. Thanks I think this is the way I will go with it. Your table is much nicer one day I will get there. Thanks for the input.
 

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Looks great! Sometimes when I am driving, I will see pallets and think about what kind of projects I can do. I was given a planer and have yet to fire it up for a project! This table is great inspiration!
 

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If you put on a seal coat of shellac first (Zinser Seal Coat at HD) it will keep the Poplar from blotching when you stain it.
 

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Excellent! An auto glass store, eh? Hmmmm…... might have to take a drive…..lol…..
 

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Nice! Ill check out zinser seal when I go to stain it. Auto glass install and repair place should have a bunch of nice pallets. Shipping windshields calls for clean quality packaging.
 

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+1 for Texas Jim

Great table Zach and a good use of resources.
 

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Very nice find, save and job.
 

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nothing beats free wood !!!!!!!

Except maybe free beer and tools! My best score was a Penn State Industries 3.5 hp dust collector with canister filter. Free! Retails for over $1,200!
 

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Wonderful project, nicely done, thanks for sharing
 

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Very Nice Project Indeed! Well Done!

Rick
 

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...holy pallet pile Zach, that should feed your need, at least for a little while. :)

Nice looking table, and a Wink and a Nod from Mother Nature for saving that lumber from a fate worse than death.

Work Safely and have Fun. - Grandpa Len
 

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Scrap wood is the way to go! Looks very nice, even just a clear coat of some poly would look nice. Let that wood age and age to get a nice natural look. God bless.
 

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Cool table, well done. I found some nice pallets at a office furniture store nearby recently. After driving truck for 20 yrs I've seen some horrid pallets. If the pallet comes from overseas its been fumigated, they treat the load and the pallets are just along for the ride. Being on a tight budget I'm starting to really like poplar.
 

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I'm going to finish some birch plywood soon, and from what I read it blotches with the worst of them. So far, the solutions I've found are to use dye rather than stain, or use a pre-stain conditioner. There's a lot of info about it at http://www.cn-woodworking.com/, and he sells a conditioner that man LJs seem to worship. Hope that might help. Now where's my nearest auto glass repair…
 

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Nice find. I hate to admit how many times I've passed a stack of wood like you found and just saw it as firestarter. Good job on the table.

I haven't tried to stain poplar, but I have had good results staining birch and other softwood plywoods with the Zinser Seal coat, thinned 1:1 with denatured alcohol. Just wiped it on with a rag or brush, let it dry, then stain and finish as you normally would.
 
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