# Which wood to use for my farmhouse style table?



## craftedbyadam

Ok guys and gals I am new to woodworking but have a bunch of projects under my belt now. I'm taking on a farmhouse table which isn't very difficult to make but the cost for nice lumber is… 
I just did a kitchen island with some african sepele that was just fabulous but I'd like a different grain on this table.

Table will be 60"x38" and 1.5-2" thick.

What species of wood do yall recommend? Yes I'm from the south… 
I have a good supplier that can get just about any type of wood that is legal to purchase. I don't want to spend a fortune But I'd like to know roughly what you guys think it should cost in lumber for the species woOd that you recommend


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## ThomasChippendale

White Oak for around $6/pmp. Its hard, durable, rustic and beautiful. The top will run around $200.


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## Pezking7p

Hard to go wrong with white oak or hickory. Both should be maybe 4$/bdft


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## conifur

I am not from the South but what about some Southern pine or Cyprus?


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## DonBroussard

+1 to conifer's suggestion of cypress. It's a bit soft, so if you go with cypress, you can expect to see some dents and dings in the tabletop.


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## AlaskaGuy

*Not sure what look you want* but I've seen some cool looking tables made from "pecky woods and mesquite that were quit nice. Pecky Cyprus is interesting.


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## rwe2156

My experience with oak is very durable but can be a major PITA to surface plane because very prone to tear out and notorious for grain direction changes, particularly with quarter sawn.

I built a kitchen of hickory. Its extremely hard and can also be difficult to work with. When selecting, it can be difficult to match board grain/color plus it tends to have sapwood mixed in (which gives its character but may be objectionable to some)..

Its a matter of personal choice, but I don't think you can beat the look of Walnut or Maple for a dining table.
Prices can vary quite a bit depending on quality.


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## Tennessee

My vote would go for Southern Black Cherry, since you are in the South.
Beautiful wood, durable, easy to work and should not be too expensive if you find the right supplier.


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## craftedbyadam

Awesome recommendations and really appreciate the help.

We do want this super strong on top and not able to easily take dings and scratches so I want to stay away from soft woods.

I was thinking oak because of the "farmhouse" look but really like the black cherry idea and my next call is to my favorite lumber shop, Case woodworking in Savannah Georgia.

Here's a big question everyone could help with as well. The base of the table would be pine to save on cost. Then the top a hardwood. Will my table look bad with a pine base that is stained and a different species hardwood on top like black cherry or maybe even an oak??

Please let me know what you think with the mix there. I noticed a lot of higher end tables were all the same species of wood.


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## geekwoodworker

Mixing wood species is a great idea. Saves money and looks great still. Instead of staining the base to match the black cherry why not make it contrast by leaving it a light colour.

I look forward to seeing the finished table.


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## craftedbyadam

I agree with the light color stain for the base. Do you guys think I can still spend under $300 for the top if it's 66" long x 36" wide AND about 1.5" thick? Most boards seem to sell at 1" thick…


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## geekwoodworker

Not sure on cost for your area as I am in Canada. However the thicker the more expensive it gets. Maybe use the 1" boards but make it look thick by glueing on a thick edge around it.


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## bondogaposis

Will my table look bad with a pine base that is stained and a different species hardwood on top like black cherry or maybe even an oak??

I don't like pine that is stained dark because of it is prone to blotch and grain reversal. The grain reversal is quite unnatural looking. I would consider poplar for the base. It is prone to blotch as well but so is cherry, so you are going to have to use a sealer of some sort anyway. With poplar you can stain it any color you want and you won't have to look at reversed grain pine. Clear poplar is as cheap as clear pine and easier to work.


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## AlaskaGuy

Dye is a much better option if you must color pine or poplar.

Read this.

http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/aw-extra-101013-staining-pine

For the conditioner substitute the Charles Neil conditioner.


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## HokieKen

> I agree with the light color stain for the base. Do you guys think I can still spend under $300 for the top if it s 66" long x 36" wide AND about 1.5" thick? Most boards seem to sell at 1" thick…
> 
> - craftedbyadam


My lumber dealer has 8/4 White Oak listed at 6.70/bf right now. That would put you at about $220 for a 66×36 top (doesn't include any waste) so I'd think you could get out for <300$.


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## ThomasChippendale

6/4 white oak is common at our yard, its a good thickness to build doors. It also will give you a better looking table than the eternal 3/4 inch finished size, you can easily finish at 1 1/4 thick which and get a nice look especially since the table is not that large. For the base, I would personally go for oak but if I had to be cost conscious, I would choose a cheaper hardwood, Birch, maple or what is common in your area with a discrete grain texture to contrast the oak. Trying to imitate will look like… trying to immitate.


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## Fredscreationsinwood

Adam, I used reclaimed oak barnwood. Makes a nice authentic farm table. A bit more money and a bit more of a challenge, but worth it. Fred!
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa140/flytwins/DSC_0647.jpg!


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## a1Jim

If you want to keep the cost down You can use kiln-dried Southern yellow pine and do the finishing like AlaskaGuy suggested.


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## craftedbyadam

Man I am so happy I joined to this forum. You guys are great and also very helpful. I didn't know I could do the base with a poplar and not spend a lot on that portion. I won't touch base with each of your suggestions but they are all so helpful with pointing me in the right direction!

I'm still very new and nieve so thanks for taking it easy on me  Thank goodness I know to search and read my way through this. But nothing beats hearing it from experienced people.


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## jdh122

Personally I wouldn't mix different woods on the top and base. Unless you are using some kind of highly figured wood (curly, fiddleback, tiger, etc), all of the types of wood you're contemplating are domestic and unlikely to be insanely expensive. The base of a table does not have a lot of lumber in it, and it seems to me that mixing wood species to save $40-50 (or even $100) on a table in which you're going to invest several hundred dollars and dozens of hours of your time is not a wise idea. Save secondary woods for places they're not seen.
Just my opinion, of course…


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## craftedbyadam

I respect you saying that and appreciate it. I'm going to give my cut list to my lumber supplier and see where he can get my price to.

I'd prefer to use the same wood but was thinking it would be double the cost..


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## AlaskaGuy

I've seen many tables with different wood for the base and the top. I've seen tables with painted bases and wood tops. Most of them looked good.


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## AlaskaGuy

Something like this is attractive (my opinion).

A painted base could be easier than stain and might even look better.


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## toddbeaulieu

I don't see how it could be considered unwise to use a mix of species. It's been done for centuries in the finest of furniture found in museums.

Beech is a lovely wood for tops. I like red oak more than white, because of the character and appearance. I made a white oak mini bench that's awesomely solid but has little character unfinished. Oak's great to work with IMO. Poplar a pleasure to work with (burns easily) and is inexpensive, stable and attractive enough. Maple!

Gee, there are SO MANY GREAT woods you could choose and never regret it. I don't think you should sweat it.


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## jdh122

To clarify - I think OP should use whatever wood(s) he wants to. I was just pointing out that the amount of money you would save by using pine on the base rather than white oak, hickory, cherry or maple would be negligible in comparison to the investment of money and time in the overall project. So I suggest that the decision to use one or two types of wood should be based on preference and the look he is shooting for.


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