Joinery/Expansion Question

[Christian Hawkshaw]

I am thinking about building a Stickley side table such as one this one: https://www.stickley.com/furniture/living-room-furniture/tables/round-end-table/

The table has a shelf that is pinned to the legs, but the top of the legs are attached by cross rails that are mortised into the legs. Is there enough flex in the legs to compensate for expansion/contraction of the shelf? I assume there is, as this is a fairly old Stickley design.

[Bob Lang]

If you make it with quartersawn white oak absolutely no worries. Any other hardwood it should be OK.

Bob Lang

[Christian Hawkshaw]

If you make it with quartersawn white oak absolutely no worries. Any other hardwood it should be OK.

Bob Lang


Thanks for the info...I do plan on using quarter swan white oak.

[Jim Morgan]

It really depends on how much the humidity changes seasonally in your locale. I would guess that in NE Florida, it is fairly humid year-round. At a 9% change in EMC (quite extreme), QSWO moves about 1/64" per inch of width. The shelf of table you referenced has a width of about 22", so a maximum of 11/32" movement. This Stickley design has been around a long while, so it will most likely hodl up without difficulties. As a precaution, you might want to pin the through mortise & tenons connecting upper stretchers to the legs.

[Doug Dawson]

I am thinking about building a Stickley side table such as one this one: https://www.stickley.com/furniture/living-room-furniture/tables/round-end-table/

The table has a shelf that is pinned to the legs, but the top of the legs are attached by cross rails that are mortised into the legs. Is there enough flex in the legs to compensate for expansion/contraction of the shelf? I assume there is, as this is a fairly old Stickley design.

There are entire books full of the exact designs they used, so you can see how it was originally done (if there's any doubt.) They didn't have central air back then, so they tended to be accommodating of wood movement.

[Christian Hawkshaw]

It really depends on how much the humidity changes seasonally in your locale. I would guess that in NE Florida, it is fairly humid year-round. At a 9% change in EMC (quite extreme), QSWO moves about 1/64" per inch of width. The shelf of table you referenced has a width of about 22", so a maximum of 11/32" movement. This Stickley design has been around a long while, so it will most likely hodl up without difficulties. As a precaution, you might want to pin the through mortise & tenons connecting upper stretchers to the legs.

Thanks...While it is humid here, we tend to run the heat pump a lot which de-humidifies the house....

[Christian Hawkshaw]

There are entire books full of the exact designs they used, so you can see how it was originally done (if there's any doubt.) They didn't have central air back then, so they tended to be accommodating of wood movement.


Thanks. I actually have "Making Authentic Craftsman Furniture: Instructions and Plans for 62 Projects". That is how I new the shelf was pinned to the legs. There a quite a few Stickley designs that use this technique, so I was always curious about wood movement issues.