Constructing a table with no apron

[Edwin Santos]

Here is an article on how the IKEA designers came up with a method for constructing a sturdy knock down table with no apron. I thought this was ingenious and worth sharing.

As CNC-enabled as this is, the basis is the time honored technique of wedging. Say what you might about IKEA but it's hard to deny that they are clever indeed.

http://www.core77.com/posts/59321/How-Ikeas-New-Joinery-is-Advancing-Their-Design

[Andy Giddings]

Cool looking modern table and interesting article - thanks Edwin

[Mel Fulks]

Thanks for posting ,it is interesting. But I do not agree with them that the champher helps much in slimming with that light color. Good idea with more angle and two colors . Or two shades. Think they should a "completed one",too.

[Andrew Hughes]

Knock down yes sturdy no way.Even tables with aprons and corner blocks with metal brackets get loose.
Wouldnt that be funny if the trend went from heavy farm tables to light airy tables that move when you open a door.:):confused:

[Phil Stone]

It looks to me like my current favorite joint, the tapered sliding dovetail, could be used in a similar fashion. No CNC required, either, though I haven't figure out how to do them without a router yet.

I agree with Andrew that I wouldn't want this joint in any table that would take much load.

[Wayne Lomman]

It will only go loose over time if the wedge is bottomed out from the start. If you have space for the leg to go deeper in its tapered socket, it will remain ok over time. Also, apologies, but note the lack of breadboard ends... Cheers

[Mike Henderson]

It will only go loose over time if the wedge is bottomed out from the start. If you have space for the leg to go deeper in its tapered socket, it will remain ok over time. Also, apologies, but note the lack of breadboard ends... Cheers
Breadboard ends would look odd on that design table. And the table is actually pretty thick so I doubt if it's going to warp much.

Mike

[Frederick Skelly]

It's certainly clever!

[John Lankers]

I like it a lot.
The top consists of 3 or more layers (softwood?) laminated together to make for a strong, stable slab.
The legs appear to be made from hardwood, solid mechanical connection to the table top wedged in place, splayed and if locked in place with glue (long grain to long grain) indestructible IMHO.
I don't think aprons connected to the legs with sliding dovetails would hold up much better and the sleak modern design has a lot going for it.
However, duplicating the joint in a woodshop using common tools would be, at least for me, impossible :-(

[john lawson]

Brilliant!

[Wayne Lomman]

Fumble fingers.... Guess it must be punishment for starting to rant about breadboard ends. I will desist. Cheers

[Mel Fulks]

"Sturdy" is just a non technical relative term. The table is certainly stronger than the fine tea tables with pierced galleries and pierced strechers that cost a lot of money and are used to hold also expensive silver and China. Alas neither type of table is strong enough to be at a Super Bowl party.

[Mark Gibney]

Here's a picture of a dining table I made a few years back - I wanted to have just legs and a top, no apron.

It doesn't knock down, but it very strong. I used ash for it's strength and relative lightness. The trumpet end on the legs fit into a round mortise on the underside of the top.

352535

[Edwin Santos]

"Sturdy" is just a non technical relative term. The table is certainly stronger than the fine tea tables with pierced galleries and pierced strechers that cost a lot of money and are used to hold also expensive silver and China. Alas neither type of table is strong enough to be at a Super Bowl party.

Just curious, would you feel any differently if the IKEA joint was glued?

[Edwin Santos]

Here's a picture of a dining table I made a few years back - I wanted to have just legs and a top, no apron.

It doesn't knock down, but it very strong. I used ash for it's strength and relative lightness. The trumpet end on the legs fit into a round mortise on the underside of the top.

352535

That's very light and elegant.

The shape of the legs reminds me of the columns Frank Lloyd Wright devised for supporting the roof of the famous SC Johnson building in Racine, Wisconsin. The building commission had never seen a tapered column so they demanded proof of the load bearing capacity because standard load calculations suggested his columns should be no higher than 7 feet high where his design called for them to be 21 feet high. So they did a field demonstration using bags of sand loaded on the top of one test column and it successfully carried 60 tons before cracking, five times the design requirement