Pedestal Table - Maloof-like

[glenn bradley]

I took the Maloof tour back awhile and the subliminal exposure took root when it was time for a living room side table. I had a general understanding of some of the joinery. I needed to do some mock-up work to make a decision on the leg profile so I did the pedestal too to allow me a test run.

I use setup blocks and semi-completed parts for measuring more and more. The pedestal post is a common Maloof construction as are the legs themselves.

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I've selected the leg vertical profile on the right in the pic (as opposed to the more vertical profile on the left) and chose this foot from my three variations.

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This is why my 6" jointer was always too small.

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A gratuitous clamp shot.

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There were not that many angle cuts so I used the miter gauge where I would normally use a sled.

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The 24t Lietz rip blade did well for ripping and on the semi-crosscut angles.

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[glenn bradley]

The Mortise Pal makes quick work of the mortises.

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Here's the run results in walnut.

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I'm all tuckered out now so I will start the glue ups tomorrow after work. I am still staring at some boards trying to decide where to take my pieces for the top.

[Gene Howe]

Nice shoot of some very nice work.
Keep 'em coming.
What kind of top are you contemplating?

[glenn bradley]

Nice shoot of some very nice work.
Keep 'em coming.
What kind of top are you contemplating?

7/8" thick by about 19" diameter round. Pedestal is 3" square before sculpting, leg parts are 1-1/2" thick. It will replace an older round table that stands by the love seat.

[Van Huskey]

I like it, what would do you plan to use?

[glenn bradley]

The material is black walnut. I spent more time in the yard this weekend getting ready to put in a shed than I did in the shop. Still, a bit of progress. The legs are glued up, cleaned up and ready to have the long tongue milled into the back.

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The top is done with glue up although this pic shows two halves.

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The Lietz 40T blade crosscuts 3" of black walnut like glass; I really like having the Lietz blades in the rack.

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As is my custom, I use a dado stack that is narrower than the desired end result and expand to the final width. This method gives me a 3/4" x 3/4" slot perfectly centered on each face.

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[John Keeton]

Glenn, the table is coming along quite well! From the mockup, it appears the middle post is concave between the legs - will you do some of that prior to gluing the legs in the slots? Just curious, as sit looks like it would be challenging hogging out that material.

This is going to look great in walnut!

[glenn bradley]

Thanks John. Yes, I will cut the coves prior to attaching the legs. I used other methods on the mock up but rapidly became convinced that a 3/4" radius cove bit is the way to go. I have done some test runs with one and it is definitely a more predictable and easier first step in shaping that transition point. I hope to get that and the leg rabbets done tonight after work.

[glenn bradley]

This shop made depth gauge comes in handy for setting the fence.

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Got the coves on the post and the rabbets on the leg backs done.

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Looks awful clunky before all the waste is removed.

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Next steps are to rough cut the legs to shape on the bandsaw and then template route them.

[John Keeton]

Glenn, I am impressed with your shop made gauge!! Looks like progress is being made, and looks like clamping that last pair of legs is going to push the capacity of the clamp depth!

[glenn bradley]

I've gotten the legs roughed out on the bandsaw.

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And template-routed to give me a reliable reference edge for the hand shaping.

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Here's a preview of the leg to post joint prior to and shaping or smoothing in. Quite a bit less clunky now.

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I am going to have to take a serious look at my hand-me-down rasps. I don't have a "real" woodworking rasp to my name; maybe I should pick up a Nicholson No. 49 and 50 for myself for Father's Day . . . hmmmm.

[John Keeton]

Glenn, good tutorial pics! I agree on the rasps, but could you also use a couple of spokeshaves, and perhaps a pullshave or chairmaker's scraper?

[glenn bradley]

I've watched Garret Hack mark out limit lines to help him know when to stop stock removal. Its been working for me while hand planing and scraping; I gave it a try on this non-flat stuff and it seems to work out well.

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I cut out the little footballs with the bandsaw and rough out the general shape with rasps, files and sandpaper. I quickly moved through the grits on one side of this leg to give myself an idea of where I'm heading. I keep the mock-up leg nearby for a visual reminder while I am working out the rough shapes.

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This is where apparent progress really slows down as there is just a lot of shaping and sanding involved. I'll have a good idea of just how long this will take by the end of the day :).

[Prashun Patel]

Shaping's about 50% of the time on this kind of work!!! Nice stuff!

Some budget tools that work really well for me:

10" Dragon Rasps from Stewmac.com
Small/Medium contour planes from Lee Valley.
Microplane with removable coarse, flat blade.

Will you need to do any fairing of the inside cove to the legs?

[glenn bradley]

Thanks for the tips on the tools Shawn. Seeing some of your work I can bet you've got a feel for tools that work in this type of a build. I'm going to check those out. I did break down and order a Nicholson #50 at a good price. I've been faking it with a four in hand and a beautiful old Simmons half-round that got handed down.


Will you need to do any fairing of the inside cove to the legs?

I got a tip during the tour of Sam's; they leave the legs just a bit wide so that they overhang the cove by the smallest amount. This allows fairing the legs into the cove prior to assembly so that only the slightest smoothing is required to finish it up to that seamless look they get without distorting the curves. On the mock up I did this final dressing with a gooseneck scraper which worked OK. Any other ideas?

[Prashun Patel]

Seeing some of your work...
That sounds funny...I've done this only twice. So take my advice with a big hunk of salt.

Looks like a lot of things will take the small lip off. Scraper, smoothing plane, ROS. Your joint looks flawless.

Shaping tools are personal. Everyone's gotta find their own arsenal.

I too used a 4-in-1 rasp to make a plane tote. Worked fine. Then I discovered a 'real' rasp, and it was like discovering fire. IMHO, the only reason NOT to use rasps is bkz it's tricky to get all the marks out.

If you really wanna drool, check out the Airou rasps...

Can't wait to see more!

[Tom Welch]

Glen thanks for sharing. It is turning out nice. Looking forward to seeing the finsihed table.

[glenn bradley]

The shaping went faster than I anticipated considering my shaping tool arsenal. All legs shaped and sanded to 220. I'm off to visit mom and dad today so if I'm lucky I'll get the other two legs glued up tonight (yeah, right). This leaves me all weekend to blend the leg to post joints and final sand.

[John Thompson]

I just got a chance to read this thread Glenn as I have been somewhat busy which is a what's new for me.. You're coming along very nicely with this indeed! I have to put my nose back to the grinder again today with honey do's so I will catch any additional postings when I can. I look forward to the finished product and kudo's for posting a tutorial type thread as that is very time consuming and requires much patience which is not a bad quality to have in this hobby. ;)

[glenn bradley]

Thanks John. As I've come this far I may as well blather on . . . I'm trying to make the most out of this extended weekend. The base came out of the clamps and gets to wait around for the final shaping and sanding:

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I used my circle jig version 3 (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=140699) to cut out the top.

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Like most of my jigs I made the circ jig to work on multiple tools. Here its on the router table.

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There is an access hole in the jig to allow my lift's crank to be used to line up the center-line marks I put on the fingernail bit and the blank I glued up for the top.

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This gets the basic table top edge shape knocked out pretty quick. I'll hand sand the edge till I'm happy, then do the top itself. Then if I have any energy left I'll do the final shaping and sanding on the base.

[glenn bradley]

The final shape is done. Now I just have to run through the finer grits and take care of any missed spots or errant scratches going the wrong direction. I just set the top on the pedestal for the pics and notice it is a bit off center. I'll try to avoid that when I screw it down :rolleyes:.

[Bruce Page]

Very nice Glenn. I'm looking forward to seeing it finished.

[glenn bradley]

It will take a few days to build the finish up to match my test pieces. The gloss seems to kick in around the fourth coat. Here's a sneak peek after the first coat.

[John Keeton]

Well done!! This has been an interesting trip, Glenn!

[Prashun Patel]

Nice lookin' table! Can't wait to see it fully finished.

[Cody Colston]

That's a beautiful table, Glenn and a very interesting build. Thanks for the documentation of the steps involved. I may try my hand at one of those after seeing your excellent techniques.

[John Thompson]

Nothing muddy about that finish Glenn. I really like it the way it sits. Are you shooting for a super glossy finish with the style. I suppose I'm a rubbed out satin kinda guy.. you know... sort of dull! :)

Looking good...

[Bruce Page]

Oh that is going to be gorgeous!

[glenn bradley]

Are you shooting for a super glossy finish with the style. I suppose I'm a rubbed out satin kinda guy.. you know... sort of dull! :) Looking good...

Thanks all. I should have mentioned that I am shooting for a good build but a satin finish. On the test pieces I built up a good gloss and then on the last coats, I applied the finish and then wiped it down hard after about 15 minutes. This gave me a nice satin sheen that I hope to duplicate :rolleyes:. We'll see ;).

[gary Zimmel]

Sweet build Glen. Thanks for taking the time to do it.
Great finished product.
Well done again....