Flatten Table Top

[jeff phillips]

I am beginning work on a new dining room table, and I am looking for some advice on flattening the top.

Overall the table will be about 72"x40" with the grain running lengthwise. It will be all quarter sawn red oak.

I'll admit, this is not going to be a 100% hand tool project... maybe 50%. Its a bit of a learning experience in that on each project I do, I tend to try something new with hand tools to increase my comfort level and proficiency. The big thing on this one, going to be flattening the top. I am not sure of the correct procedure.

First I was going to clean up each board so I can see the grain and decide which face to use, I was going to target getting them close to eachother for their thickness, but not exact as I would think I would waste too much of the wood thickness by essentially planing it twice.

Cleaning up the boards first will also give me a flat refence face so that I can use biscuits and edge glue the boards together to get my slab.

Once the slab is glued up, I need to flatten it. I'm not sure if I use a jack at this stage, or my #8. In the past for much smaller slabs I have run my jack diagonally across the slab until flat, then lengthwise to clean it up, and finish off with the #4 smoother. In thise case, am I better to use the jack for the diaganol strokes and the jointer to go with the grain, or do I use the jointer for both stroke directions? This is where I really start getting hung up.

Also, how do you guys deal with workong on that big of a slab? It will be difficult to reach all the way accross for the diaganol strokes. For the lengthwise strokes do you take shorter strokes, or would you just walk it down the length?

Thanks for the help.

[Michelle Rich]

Have you considered making it in 2 pieces and planing only 20 wide and getting them very close, then gluing those together and only struggling to clean up the seam? That's the way I would do it

[Daniel Kennedy]

Jeff,
Take a look at these two threads.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=138561
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=127919

I think many of the questions you asked will be answered in there. If not, then I will answer what I can.

Overall though, say:
1. clean up enough to see your grain
2. arrange the boards the way you want them & mark location
3. edge join your boards
4. flatten
a. go across the grain with jack if you have it, then jointer
b. go with grain with jointer
c. repeat if necessary
5. smooth
a. take any high spots down with short strokes
b. mark table with pencil grid
c. take final passes with light full length passes until the grid is gone


That's basically what I did. I am sure that there are much more knowledgeable and experienced people out there that would do it differently, but this worked for me. Good luck, and let's see some pictures when you are done.



Dan

[Mark Roderick]

To begin with, congratulations for trusting yourself and the hand tools. You'll be glad you did.

You want each individual board to be flat and properly edge-jointed. I've always jointed by hand, then put the boards through my power planer. Just get them so the faces are flat and parallel - don't try to approach the final thickness.

The individual boards don't have to be the same thickness before glue-up, although if you're using a power planer there's no reason for them not to be.

Then glue them up into a panel. The glue-up doesn't have to happen all at once. You can just glue one board at a time if you want to.

When you join a bunch of boards edge-to-edge, you see how important it is that each board is edge-jointed at exactly 90 degrees.

I make a perfectly flat surface from plywood to make sure the panel stays flat as I'm working on it. You can test the surface for flatness by using two pieces of string, each running diagonally from corner to corner. They should just kiss one another where they meet in the middle.

There is no hard-and-fast rule for which plane to use in which order. You use whatever works. With that said, I usually find it easiest to use my jack plane with a serrated blade, followed by my jointer. I usually plane diagonal to the grain first, then parallel, then diagonal again. As long as you're just taking off wood, which will be most of the time, do NOT worry about taking full strokes across the whole width or length of the table. Just take normal strokes, then move along the board. I use a four-foot straightedge to see what I need to plane.

All you're really doing is taking off high spots. If you can take a full length stroke with a jointer and get a thin shaving the whole way, you're done with that part, unless you left the boards too thick off the power planer.

You will be amazed at how quickly the wood comes off. So check frequently to make sure you don't make the top too thin.

Once it's all smooth and flat you move on to the smoothing plane, a scraper, and probably sandpaper.

Like others, I've found that flattening a table top by hand is one of the most enjoyable and rewarding things I can do legally in my shop. Have fun!

[Harlan Barnhart]

Also, how do you guys deal with workong on that big of a slab? It will be difficult to reach all the way accross for the diaganol strokes. For the lengthwise strokes do you take shorter strokes, or would you just walk it down the length?

Thanks for the help.

The largest panel I have flattened was 21"x65" but even then I couldn't reach all the way across but it is still possible. I started by planing an "X" corner to corner with a narrow plane with a crowned blade. Once the plane cut consistently the full length of both legs of the X, I assumed that depth to be flat and planed the remaining triangles to that level. It worked out well. Use a long straight edge and keep working at it.