Something about Shaker design.

[Steve Inniss]

For me - you see it and you have to build it. When it's around you have to touch it.
I have seen lots of these over the years of course, but saw the cover of a recent magazine, had to stop all activities and make one - nice interpretation my thanks to the author. 90% from maple from a tree on my property, milled on my bandsaw, air dried 2 years. Got a chance to use a new scraper set - lovely to touch. So far, just a couple coats of BLO.

-Steve

I'm curious if anyone has built a jig to rout the dovetail mortises? I've had some requests for the table but would rather not do too many by hand. Thanks

[Jim Becker]

That's nice, Steve! A great table with some really special wood. I've been using material off the property, too, and it's nice to look at something and be able to say not only "I made that" but also know that it came from the land close at hand.

If your question about the dovetail mortises refers to the dovetail slots that the legs fit in...a simple jig on the lathe to hold the router while you use a guide bushing to, um...guide the machine and use of the indexing feature takes care of it. (If your lathe doesn't index, you can make an indexing system from a round disk of plywood and some simple hardware) Route the slots slightly undersized with a straight bit and then complete them with the dovetail bit. Fit the legs AFTER you cut the slots. If you want to do them with a machine, put the same bit in the router table and use the fence to carefully sneak up on the right setup, just loose enough to slide them in when there is glue on them. The nice thing about this method is that it's just an extension of completing the turning.

[Alan Turner]

Shaker is not usually my favorite, but I do like your table. The edge/corner treatment of the top is simple and precise. Very attractive. I am not that fond, normally, of shaped edges. And, this detail is also a bit mirrored in the drawer hangers. I think it is the crisp innercut on the corner that I am liking. Nice job.

[Richard Wolf]

Nice table! Mario Rodriguez had a tilt top Shaker table in Fine Woodworking about three months ago with the same legs. He shows you how to build a jig with out a lathe. I built the table and incooperated in jig onto my lathe to make indexing easier via Jim Becker's method of plywood discs.

Richard

[Martin Shupe]

Steve, excellent work! You know how I love Shaker style furniture!

Which magazine was it? Canadian? I have not seen this particular design, and would like to get a back issue if one is available.

Wonderful execution of a classic Shaker design. Bravo!

[Michael Pfau]

Beautifull table Steve. I too build shaker, and love it. If you go back to page 18, I posted a table I buildt very similar to yours out of maple, and dovetails. The thread is titled "Allow me to introduce myself". Nice job!

[Ken Waag]

Steve,

Beautiful piece. Exceptional grain. I love Shaker and this is a real standout. And you built it from tree to table, no less. Kudos on a great job!
Ken

[Jeff Sudmeier]

Steve that is a wonderful looking table! It seems to float in mid-air to me.

What really completes it is that you made it from start to finish.

[Dan Forman]

A really interesting design, and the wood is gorgeous, love the spalting on the drawer faces. The execution is excellent, kudos.

[Mark Singer]

Very nice work and design....well done

[Steve Inniss]

If your question about the dovetail mortises refers to the dovetail slots that the legs fit in...a simple jig on the lathe to hold the router while you use a guide bushing to, um...guide the machine and use of the indexing feature takes care of it. (If your lathe doesn't index, you can make an indexing system from a round disk of plywood and some simple hardware) Route the slots slightly undersized with a straight bit and then complete them with the dovetail bit. Fit the legs AFTER you cut the slots. If you want to do them with a machine, put the same bit in the router table and use the fence to carefully sneak up on the right setup, just loose enough to slide them in when there is glue on them. The nice thing about this method is that it's just an extension of completing the turning.

Thanks for the reply Jim. My Lathe does index and I figured this was the best approach. I guess I'm going to have to turn down to a diameter to allow an entryway for the bit at the bottom.

[Steve Inniss]

Shaker is not usually my favorite, but I do like your table. The edge/corner treatment of the top is simple and precise. Very attractive. I am not that fond, normally, of shaped edges. And, this detail is also a bit mirrored in the drawer hangers. I think it is the crisp innercut on the corner that I am liking. Nice job.


Thanks Alan. I was going to leave out the corner detail at one point but decided what you mentioned -the corner detail and the drawer hangers - is what probably attracted me to this particular design.

-Steve

[Steve Inniss]

Nice table! Mario Rodriguez had a tilt top Shaker table in Fine Woodworking about three months ago with the same legs. He shows you how to build a jig with out a lathe. I built the table and incooperated in jig onto my lathe to make indexing easier via Jim Becker's method of plywood discs.

Richard

Thanks for the tip Richard, I'll try and find it.

[Jim Becker]

Steve, if you have or can get a copy of Taunton's In The Shaker Style, there is a sidebar on page 59 that shows the technique and router carrying jig that I used to build the Shaker Round stand in the article that starts on page 54. (The one thing I did different than Becksvoort on that table project was to taper the legs using a belt sander rather than the jointer...the latter is too scary for me! Pic below is right after finish several years ago and before the color equalized between the legs and the body)

[Steve Inniss]

Steve, excellent work! You know how I love Shaker style furniture!

Which magazine was it? Canadian? I have not seen this particular design, and would like to get a back issue if one is available.

Wonderful execution of a classic Shaker design. Bravo!

Hey Martin - thank you.

I'm sorry, it was not on the cover - guess it was to me as that is all I remembered. I took a color photocopy of the table design at the library to build it. Checked by the bookstore today - it is April 2005 Woodwork.

-Steve

[Steve Inniss]

Thanks for the kind comments everyone.

Michael, I saw your table and those other pieces. Thanks for redirecting me - beautiful work.

-Steve

[Steve Inniss]

Steve, if you have or can get a copy of Taunton's In The Shaker Style, there is a sidebar on page 59 that shows the technique and router carrying jig that I used to build the Shaker Round stand in the article that starts on page 54. (The one thing I did different than Becksvoort on that table project was to taper the legs using a belt sander rather than the jointer...the latter is too scary for me! Pic below is right after finish several years ago and before the color equalized between the legs and the body)

Thanks for the source Jim. Hey, that's a sweet little table you popped in there.

[Jason Tuinstra]

Steve, very nice table and excellent use of that figured maple. I agree with you, there aren't many Shaker pieces that don't call out to be built.

It's interesting that I saw your post, as I was just going through Kassay's book of Shaker furniture for another project and I noticed this piece (pg. 204-205). I've seen it any number of times, but tonight was the first time I saw the edge detail on the top. And now, low and behold, I see your's has the same top. Kassay refers to it as having "ovolo corners." Man, I guess I'm totally out of the loop. Martin may have to revoke my membership to the Shaker club, because I never saw this or heard of this before.

Anyway, I wouldn't typically think of this as being Shaker, as they loved their 90 degree angles. But I guess this form follows function. At least it would for my youngest son, whose head right now seems to be attracted to all those nasty corners right now. :o

[Steve Inniss]

...Anyway, I wouldn't typically think of this as being Shaker, as they loved their 90 degree angles. But I guess this form follows function. At least it would for my youngest son, whose head right now seems to be attracted to all those nasty corners right now. :o

Jason,

At first I wasn't going to do the ovolo corners, exactly because they didn't seem Shaker - no gift to be simple there. I was however, somewhat obsessed by the picture of the table and decided that it was the entire design that was captivating to me. Therefore, I had to make it as presented.

I envisioned that ovoloes were a product of a more expressive/creative Shaker builder/designer. Even though the continuum - from rigid to expressive would be a super short one in any Shaker community - I guessed that people are people, and a little bit of frippery sneaked out now and then into a piece. I hadn't thought that there may have been a reason for the corners. I wonder what...

Kids heads and corners really like to connect, don't they?
-Steve