Walnut Coffee Table

Jim DeLaney

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Location
Austintown, Ohio
Been working in this one for a while.

Walnut, 18" wide; 48" long; 16" high.

Cut the top's curves on my 16" bandsaw, and cleaned up the curves with planes and spokeshaves.
The top seemed a bit thick on the edges, so I used a panel-raising bit at the router table to soften/contour it a bit.
Legs were a bit of a challenge. Had to make a bandsaw jig to cut the acute angle on the ends. Attached the 45° angles with 4 Dominoes each, and the acute angles with #20 biscuits. They came together quite well.
Legs are attached to the top with pocket screws. The pocket cavities are filled with walnut pegs made from the same stock as the legs.
All glue joints were done with liquid hide glue - Old Brown Glue to be specific.
Finish is a couple coats of Garnet Shellac, cured for a couple days, then scuff sanded, followed by about six coats of Target EM8000cv conversion varnish. It still needs to cure for a few more days before I 'color sand' it to 2500 grit, then wax it.

It goes to the local County Fair next week.

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Pictures continue in next message.
 
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Very nice Jim. If you want an add-on, consider a shelf on top of the triangle pieces, small enough that the triangles still show.

Hmm... Perhaps stood off a couple inches above the triangles using a dowel atop each triangle? A two foot long, eight inch wide shelf with curvature to mimic the top's?

Nice suggestion.
 
Gorgeous Seems, with the space between the leg triangles that there may be a little weakness in the legs. A little shelf there would add a lot of strength.

No weakness. The vertical parts make floor contact as well as the ends of the triangles, so there are six contact points. The triangles just add 'interest' as much as they do structure.
 
Very nice table Jim. Thanks for posting it and the journey. I particularly like the edge on the table. That must have been some routing job. Ahhh the penny just dropped. Was about to ask how you held the edge down on that large a piece. Then remembered the pic of your table. Had wondered why you posted the pic. Lol thanks you just educated me. Thats an excellent use for a raised panel bit.
Also like the creativity on the legs. Great post.
 
She's a beauty. Using the profile underneath to make the edge look lighter balances really well with the stout and well-grounded base appearance. Wonderful material and choice of parts/figure as well. Always a pleasure seeing your work Jim.
 
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