A Coffee Table for Christmas?

[steven c newman]

That is what one grandson wants Grandpa to build....and, he wants a drawer in it, too:rolleyes:

Picked up a few Ash planks today....one of the 1 x 6s was 10' long....barely fit in the van..
398284398285
Also a couple 1 x 6 x 6' and a 2 x 4 x 8' Somehow managed to get the ten-footer to the shop....made two cross cuts...was going with 40" long...didn't quite work out
398286
By the time these 3 were squared up to each other....top was just over 36" long...and will be around 16" wide...got out the jointers
398287
Used both the #7c and the #8...
398288
Wanted to get the edges glue-up ready...took awhile...was finally able to spread some glue, add the clamps and cauls..
398289
Need to decide which face looks the better....this one, or..
398291
Will find out in the morning...maybe I can start the legs....aprons will be after that....no bottom shelf to worry about.....going to try to make the drawer front from the from apron...might be "fun" to do? Have a deadline, this time around....
398292
Put the planes away, sweep the floor....done enough for one day. Leftovers from the 2 x 4 x 8' will be used for the vise rehab....Ash might make decent jaws?

Stay tuned..:D

[steven c newman]

Ok, clamps came off today...
398316
3 hours of shoptime, today...hauled the 2 x 4 to the shop...
398317
2 blanks, 17" long...needed these ripped down a bit..
398318
4 leg blanks needed tapered..
398319
set these aside...needed to bring the better of the two 1 x 6 x 6' planks to the shop.
398320
2 long aprons, 2 short aprons...had to bring one of the short scraps to the shop, trim to match the other short apron.
398321
kept the best of the long off-cuts, since I had ripped the aprons down to 4", these will be bread board ends.
398322
Have other plans for this long apron....stay tuned..

[steven c newman]

Hmmmm, kind of hard to type, one handed....and eat lunch.

"Front Apron" needs a drawer...so
398323
I made 2 rip cuts...while keeping things in the same order..
398324
Then a couple cross cuts...centering the opening..
398325
And glue 4 of the parts back into an apron...set it aside, for now..
398326
Figured I could work on the other 3 aprons..
398327
Lay out a few tenons....
398328
6 out of 8 tenons are now milled...waiting on the last 2...
Will have to rip to final width..to match the drawer apron..saw kerfs. Legs were cramping up..time to close up for the day...
Stay tuned...

[steven c newman]

Bread board ends are now installed....via sliding dovetails...film when I get around to it....

Mortise jig has been set up, awaiting shop time on Sunday. the 3 wide aprons now match apron #4 in width....saw kerf from each edge.

[steven c newman]

Mortise jig was set up...
398392
Used the tenon that will go here...to lay out the mortise..
398393
Then chop for a bit..
398394
Usual suspects.
398395
The big mortise chisel is a Buck Brothers, cast steel, 3/8" chisel...as some of the mortises were a bit too big for the 8mm one. Was one other tool in use..
398396
Single point...easy to just reset as needed..Pays to mark the insides of the aprons..
398397
So I can keep track of which end goes where...
Was finally able to do a dry fit..3 hours, to do 8 mortises?
398398
Getting slow in me old age? Also managed to rough cut parts for the vise rebuild...then cleared the top of the bench off..
398399
Need to set up a jig ..or three...have work for another type of plane..
Stay tuned..

[steven c newman]

Ok..while the bench was cleared off..I checked two chunks for size..
398400
New jaws for the vise...AFTER the Coffee Table gets done..
Next plane to get used?
398401
Have some bead work to do....

Why is it, every time I start a mortise...a knot gets in the way? 3 of the mortises had a knot going either along one side..or right straight across...Narex lost a chip when it hit one of them...:mad:

Fun part will be later...drawer runners need made and installed...with nothing showing on the outside of the aprons....thinking a 1/2 blind dovetail....then add the guides after...

Finger joints for the drawer front...Grandson seems to like them...:cool:
Stay tuned....this may turn out to be...fun:rolleyes:

[steven c newman]

Paying the price for going back to the shop.....ow...back is stiffened up...legs are crampy....oh well..
398420
Aprons now have a bead along the bottom edge..
398421
Then the legs got the double bead detail. First, a couple of them needed cleaned up..
398422
lots of skip-plane marks as well...
398423
Same leg..after the Stanley #3 got done..
398424
Figured IF I get any shop time, tomorrow...I can glue the base together....so..
398425
Cordless Mitersaw....needed 4 corner blocks...
398426
Hmmm..more like this..
398427
Then drill a few pilot holes...
Then countersink....all set up for the assembly Then, maybe a start on the drawer?

Stay tuned...

[steven c newman]

Boss had errands to run this morning ( I get a free lunch!) and I needed to pick up a couple packs of screws....

Trimmed a couple tenon shoulders for a better fit....add glue and clamps..
398467
Added the corner blocks...
398468
Then, laid a square and a straight edge along one side..
398469
which showed I was about 1/2" out of square...diagonal clamp and a caul, to pull things into square..
398470
Somewhere in that forest of clamps...is the base to the Coffee Table...
Letting this sit until tomorrow....then drawer work...
Stay tuned...

[steven c newman]

Clamps came off today...part of a 5 hour "shift" in the shop...Had to haul the last 1 x 6 x 6' to the shop...crosscut a few pieces...ripped a few...needed parts made
398515
2 guides, 2 runners, and a kicker. All go into sockets.
398516
Used the dovetail bit in the router..to mill the sockets....was almost done cutting tails to fit...bandsaw blade broke:mad:
Got the kicker fitted. then worked on the runners..
398517
And all glued into place...then the guides..
398518
Fun part was going around the otherside, drill and install a few screws....checked for square as the clamps were installed
398519
End was flush with the drawer opening..tighten that clamp...squared? Tighten to other clamp....repeat for the other guide rail.
398520
Next was a drawer...ripped a few pieces down, to match the drawer front...back will get cut for length later.
398521
First off, I need to clear the bench off. BTW...I gave that new jaw a test run...drawer front was a tad fat....Millers Falls No. 11 to joint the edges until the blank fit the opening..seemed to hold parts nicely

Stay tuned..a lot more to come...was a busy 5 hours, today...right elbow is very tired...even set up the Stanley 45 as a plough plane...took about..5 minutes to get from a bead cutter plane, to where it will plough a groove for the drawer's bottom...
https://sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=398522&stc=1&thumb=1&d=1544582066 (https://sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=398522&d=1544582066)

[steven c newman]

Plough plane can wait until tomorrow. Letting the elbow rest up, for now. Used a 6mm mortise chisel to lay out finger joints....then backsaw to cut a few lines..
398523
Same chisel to chop half way through..
398524
Then flip over, and complete the chopping....used this to lay out the matching fingers..repeat...then keep going until the front and the two sides can be dry fitted...
398525
Back piece had been rough cut for length...did a rebate layout for it...
398526
Used the mitersaw to make a cut for the rebate shoulder...
398527
One cut. Cheek cuts? With the bandsaw down...clamped each side in the vise..
398528
Mark a line across the end...then..
398529
Backsaw to make the cuts..helps to rub the plate with the candle....dry fit the drawer in the opening..
398530
Drawer back was a tad too long...just enough for the Mitersaw to trim off...
Stay tuned..May try to post a view of the drawer front..

[steven c newman]

And a view from the front...not sure what handle will get used..yet
398531
Now you know why the elbow is a bit sore...what is with posting a photo, tonight? Had to edit these posts, just to get the pictures to show...
Tomorrow..plough a few grooves, cut the plywood bottom to size...glue the drawer up...might even work on the top of this table...stay tuned..

[William Fretwell]

Steve I bet your latest attachments were too large!

[steven c newman]

You'd lose...attachments were the same EXACT sizes as always posted.....been yelling at the site people about this issue for almost a year now....

[steven c newman]

Try my luck again....posted a picture from today's shop time...came perfect here....so. we'll see...
398608
Jigged up...
398609
Grooves milled. Took 3 tries to get a plywood panel the correct size
398611
Pilot holes drilled for the back to be attached
398615
And countersunk....then clamps and glue
398617
Let this sit overnight...maybe tomorrow, I can start on the top of the table?
398618
May try to round the corners a bit..
398619
2" radius curve. We be getting there..slowly..

[steven c newman]

I double checked...all photos I loaded up to this site..were resized to 640 x 480 size...BEFORE I loaded them here. Same size I always use....

[steven c newman]

The drawer is out of the clamps...and cleaned up. Have it almost fitted to the opening...still a tad sticky. A knob has been installed. Bench has been cleared off....almost ready to "grind" the table's top flat..tomorrow. I'd post a few pictures....but....:(

[steven c newman]

Drawer:
398679
Was hanging up on the kicker...
398680
Back of drawer had a high spot,,,,sanded that down. Kicker?
398681
Keeps the drawer from tipping down...
398682
Only knob I had on hand...
Top had a few "issues"
398683
One edge had a curve to it....
398684
Needed a wee bit of work, today...
398685
Might do the trick?
398686
Also, needed to cut some corners...
Stay tuned..

[steven c newman]

So far, so good....picture-wise?
Got things close to flat, on both faces..
398687
All the edges were jointed
398688
Used both the No. 7c, and the M-F No.11
398689
Came in handy.....was getting almost flat..
398690
With a slight tear-out to fix...
398691
Used the better looking of the two faces as the "Top"...set that face down on the bench, corner blocks in the base got slotted holes drilled. base flipped onto the top. 2 screws installed, once the base was centered...washers under the screw heads
398692
Had to use a clamp..
398693
To pull the other side into alignment...add the other two screws..while the feet were up in the air..
398694
Metal foot pads were installed...then the table was flipped over, placed back on the top of the tablesaw, and a router ran around putting a small cove detail around the top edge of the "Top"

So..how did YOUR day go?

[steven c newman]

I made a mess in the shop.
.398695
Even before the router was run..
398696
Still need to sand the top a bit more....will leave it sit here, for now..
398697
Stay tuned

[Stew Denton]

Steven,

I am enjoying the build, and I have to say, you are not letting any grass grow under your feet. The build is really coming together quickly.

Stew

[steven c newman]

Table needs to be ready to haul to the Christmas Eve Party....so...I have a "Deadline" to meet.

May try to get a finish applied this weekend.....may even post a PIP?

After this project is done, and out of the shop....have a vise to rebuild, a couple planes need sharpened up, and maybe a chisel or three...

[steven c newman]

Top has been smoothed down...sanded to 220 grit...time for a PIP? It does have a coat of brushed on Minwax Dark Walnut....brush on...wipe down with a rag ( then tossed the nasty thing out into the backyard)
So...walk down the steps to the shop, if you will...
398775
Tablesaw makes a nice stand to do a finish on...and if I dribble onto the saw...meh.
398776
View of the top..no varnish yet,,,still have to go out and buy some...
398777
Old Birch knob had some funny grain..might be the style he likes...
398779
Waiting to see what the clear gloss poly does to the colour...
Used my late Dad's sander, the one he used when he refinished all the doors in his house..
398780
Had this runnng on "Straight Line" motion, gear shift the pencil is pointing to, is where I can shift to "Orbital Motion" Was running 220 grit...
398781
Just hope the grandson likes this little table..will post when the poly is done...IF anyone wants.

[Stew Denton]

Steven,

Looking forward to seeing the finish, and am thinking it will spruce up some and bring out the grain. Good job, and you are going to meet your deadline!

Stew

[steven c newman]

Varnish and a brush or two have been bought....I don't do "wipe-on finishes" nor am I set up to spray them.....don't feel like spraying things in the same area as a gas furnace and a gas water heater...

Will see what the first coat does....may need a second one...hope to have it buffed out and dry by next weekend.

Which leads to the infamous question.....how do I wrap this as a present...:D

[steven c newman]

OK..hauled this thing out of the shop...wanted to see how it looked in front of the sofa...
398934
Was still a bit tacky around the drawer...so it is now sitting opened, to let it dry better..
398935
Grain in the top did "pop" a bit, though..
398936
Going to buff this out a bit...then figure out how to wrap it up......don't have enough shavings to make a bow...

[Stew Denton]

Hi Steven,

The finish did bring out the grain very nicely.

Instead of wrapping it, can you just sneak it under the tree after he goes to sleep? It may take a pretty good sized tree to be able to sneak it under though.

I am sure he will like it.

Stew

[steven c newman]

Table getting delivered today....may post photos later...after Grandson #2 receives it, Monday...Grandson #3 is taking down to his Mom's...where the Party will be...

May wind up having to build a second one.....after his Mom sees this one...

[Stew Denton]

Hi Steven,

Main question you mentioned earlier. I.E.: How to wrap it. Come up with anything? (I am cluesless, and can be of no help whatsoever, except to say that when we bought a bicycle for our older daughter when she was pretty little, my wife covered it up with a blanket. I don't remember whether she put a bow on it or what. Keep us clued into this important topic....how to wrap the table!)

Stew

[steven c newman]

Just place a large gift bag on it...then tell him the table goes with it...:cool:
399492
He just has to haul it home to Columbus, OH.....:D