Attaching the slides on a Dining table

[Alex Zeller]

I'm thinking of building a dining room table with a leaf or two. I see lots of people who are hacks and talk about using 2x4 construction lumber and others who are clearly a step above. The ones who understand wood movement plan for it when they attach the apron but I haven't seen anything about wood movement and attaching the extension slides. I don't have a design in mind so right now it's just looking around to see what I like but also have an idea on how to pull it off. I also haven't seen how to attach the slides to the tabletop. If it's only 3/4" wood anything more than a 1/2" long wood screw would be an issue. I was planning on making it thicker, probably using 6/4 wood. That's still only a 1" long screw. How much weight will that hold? Would it be better to use threaded inserts glued into the top?

[Steve Jenkins]

The only weight the screw hold is the weight of the slides. The top is supported by the slides.Actually the slides are supported by the base so the screws don’t really carry any weight at all.

[Jamie Buxton]

You can make the table top from wood which is 3/4" thick, but glue on lumber to make the panel thicker only where you want to use longer screws. That is, you don't need to use 6/4.

[Alex Zeller]

Steve, the designs I have seen show them just screwing to the bottom of the top, not to the apron. I was thinking if using heavy duty slides like these and wrapping them in wood. I don't think it would be too hard to attach them to the apron.

Jamie, I was thinking of 6/4 simply to give it more mass.

[Jamie Buxton]

There are many ways to do expanding tables. Some have stationary bases, like Steve is thinking. Another approach has legs at the corners, with slides carrying the weight of the top plus everything loaded on the table. Another approach has leafs at the ends of the main table top. And there are other approaches. Not surprisingly, the slides and their attachments are different in these many designs. Alex, I think I see what you're thinking of, but we might do better if you'd post a sketch of what you're thinking. No need for computer-generated drawings - a hand-drawn sketch will do.

Alex, I haven't priced those slides you posted, but I have looked at ones like them from Accuride. They are very pricey.

[Alex Zeller]

My plan right now, but is subject to change, is to make a table that's between 5' to 6' when closed and possibly expand up to an extra 4'. Each end will have legs attached to it and move apart when the table is expanded. It seems like when the current table gets used it's for between 4 or 5 people or it's for a very large gathering. So being able to seat 10 would occasionally useful. Where the table will go is a bump out with side walls that are at 45 degrees. A rectangle table will not go well in that spot so the table will either be octagonal or oval. Since that cuts down on available table space is one of the reasons while I was thinking of making it slightly larger. When expanded it'll be turned 90 degrees and there's plenty of room in that direction.

Width wise it'll be between 36" to 42" wide. The current table is 42" and is often pushed up against the window when not in use which tells me that it's slightly too large. I'm leaning towards 36" x 70" with 50" slides. That would be close to 10' long but most likely I would only make two 18" leaves. I'm also trying to figure out the apron height. The link I posted above are for 3" tall slides. If I wrap them in wood they'll be at least 3 1/2" if I only wrap the top. I think that would work, 17" seat height, 30" table height, 1 1/4" thick table top and a 4" apron should be about an 8" gap for legs to fit.

Hopefully that gives a clearer picture as to what I'm thinking.

[Jamie Buxton]

Drawer slides like your link can work for what you're doing. In the world of table slides, Poettker (Germany) is a very good source. Lee Valley sells some of their slides.

[Steve Jenkins]

I really like Watertown metal slides. I get them from Moin Hardware in NY.

[Alan Kalker]

The kind of slides you use will determine the manner with which they are attached. I used Pottker extension slides recently that open from a center pedestal to reveal hidden table extensions. These are super smooth to use, are built to last longer than the user and are convenient to use. As a practical matter, table extensions that you have to put away and bring to the table are inconvenient, a pain to use and therefore used less often. The disadvantage of hidden leaves is they take up room and the extnesions are much more costly. The ones I used were $350 including shipping (they are very heavy). The customer loved them.

To attach them, I created a frame that was then attached to two curved legs to creat a pedestal. The frame and legs were stained black and the top was of leopardwood.