Bistro Table

This was a commissioned piece, based on an existing Pottery Barn stool. I took one home, took measurements, and drew it up in AutoCAD to scale, next to the drawing of the stool. The angles are all the same, and the proportions are consistent. After getting approval from the customer, I tore into the Ipe (Brazilian Walnut) he had left over from the hardwood flooring installation in his bar/billiards room. Ipe is unbelievably tough, so I machined it as little as possible, which was built into the design (e.g. no planing, etc.). Also, Ipe makes the most annoying yellow micro-sawdust which permeates every pore and orifice. Other than that, it’s a very durable hardwood, which has an interesting dense, dark grain. I delivered the piece unfinished, so the customer could finish it with the same stuff he used for the floor to give it a tough finish. Ipe is also unbelievably heavy, so it took both of us to lift this little table into the back of the pickup. Overall dimensions are: top=24×24, height=42.

As a side note, this was my first foray into loose tenon joinery (ala David Marks). I used my new Hitachi M12V and an assortment of bits to make templates in MDF, which made making the mortises pretty easy. In my humble opinion, if you’re making perpendicular mortises, then integral tenons are just fine, but if you’re doing any kind of angles, then loose tenon joinery is a must. The reason being is that you can cut the aprons to the correct angle with no weird geometric concerns about the tenons. When you mill the mortises perpendicular to the faces of the mating parts using your template, they will automatically align with the tenons you insert, and the depths are consistent. It was also my first use of the figure-eight table top fasteners, which I’m now a big fan of. Much easier to install than the clips.

-- You can't control the wind, but you can adjust your sails