Splay Leg Table - Waiting for the Shellac to Cure

The table is basically complete as I am only waiting for the shellac on the legs and aprons to cure. But before I show the completed table, I will show how I got to the end. Last time I posted I was ready to finish plane the legs. Here is result of that.



Next, shellac the legs and aprons and then glue it all up.

Didn't those turn out nice?

I used dewaxed extra pale shellac from Homestead Finishing. I padded the shellac on the legs and aprons. Enough so that when I glue the table up any glue squeeze out will be easy to remove.



The table ended up with just a little wobble. I was able to get rid of that by planing the offending leg a little.




Next, making the cockbead for under the aprons.

Now for a little fun. I took some left over ebony and used a relatively new tool to make the cockbeading that will be glued under the aprons. First I need to plane everything nice and flat, ready for the beading.



A couple of passes with the beading plane and you are done.



With the splay leg table you always need to remember that everything is not square. I need to adjust the end angle of the cockbeading so that it fits correctly between the legs. Then we glue it up with a few clamps.

The finishing has been fun, but at the same time frustrating, as I totally underestimated the amount of time that is required. I am probably not the only woodworker that has done that. Basically I applied very thin coats of about 1 1/2 lb cut of dewaxed shellac that I prepared from shellac flakes. I understand that most people who pad use a 2 lb cut of shellac, but since I have not padded before, I thought I would make it a little easier for me even though it took me longer because of the thinner coats. Once I built up the shellac with some light sanding between shellac sessions, I then leveled it with 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper and mineral spirits. The final step was rubbing it out with 0000 steel wool, mineral oil and wax after the shellac had cured. The result is how the table top looks. The legs and aprons are waiting a couple more days until they cure before I do the final rub out step.



This project was always a practice piece. All of this started with Garrett Hack's class last fall. I purposely selected poplar so that I would not focus on the outcome and worry about screwing up some nice wood. I thought this would free me up to get more out of the class. It worked for the most part, but I could not help myself as I probably went too far for a practice piece. I should have used better wood and of course take the grain in consideration more, but at the time of wood selection I did not realize that I would become so obsessed.

I will probably have some final thoughts in another day or so. I will do an evaluation of what I did right and what I could improve.

Sweet!

well done Bill, well done.

Impressive work Bill

That's a fine looking table, Bill. The finish looks great!

Bill i totally admire and respect your approach to not only this project but working the hand tools. I think what you doing is admirable, wish i had the patience. There is no fast track instant gratification route to building the craftsman skills with hand tools. As we get told by our spouses and friends enjoy the journey.

Thanks for the kind words, Dave, Don, Bob, Bill and Rob. This project was actually a watershed moment for me. I have been spending the past few years developing certain skill sets that would push my woodworking to another level. This project was the first where much of that effort has come to fruition. Rob, hand tools play a important part of all of this. I am using machines to do the heavy lifting and hand tools to push the fit and finish to a level that it is hard for machines to match. It is not 100% hand tools but a blended approach.

Holy cow Bill, a practice piece Love it for sure So with this being a "practice" piece, what is the real piece going to be made from???

well done, Bill, i can see you paid attention in class the socks do add to the piece and the cock bead detail as well..your finish begs to be touched and maybe some day i can

That's quite a practice piece, Bill.

Tom Niemi said:

So with this being a "practice" piece, what is the real piece going to be made from???

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That is a good question. I have been thinking cherry or walnut or then again maybe something else. I am thinking I just need to browse the wood store and see what catches my fancy. The legs need to be made out of 5/4 rift as a bare minimum and 6/4 would be best. It is amazing the amount of wood you need to buy in order to get just the right figure.

larry merlau said:

your finish begs to be touched and maybe some day i can

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Well, I am giving this away as a gift, which did not go so well with the wife. I had to promise the next one was hers.

Vaughn McMillan said:

That's quite a practice piece, Bill.

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Thanks Vaughn!

Wonderful little table Bill. I'm with you on browsing the lumber yard and seeing what catches your fancy. Thanks for taking the time to post all the progress and technique pics too.

Glenn that can be a very costly experience in my neck of the woods if you see what my local lumber yard has to offer. Most of it is way above my work ability grade so i just walk on by or i would have a shop full of wood.