Walnut and Curly Maple Occasional Table

[Joshua Layne]

beautiful work John.
someday I'll post my "bunch of rectangular prisms connected in random ways" work... but it isn't anything of this caliber.

[John Michaels]

Very nice John! I really like the lower shelf, very pleasing design. What a great compliment to your hutch.

[Brad Wood]

wow John, that is really nice. You do fantastic work.

[Sam Layton]

Hi John,

Your table is outstanding, maple and walnut look great together. In addition to your great craftsmanship, your ability to design is remarkable. I am looking forward to seeing your table completed.

Great job John, Sam

[Jim Pritchett]

Great start to what promises to be an unbelievably unique piece. I especially love the suspended shelf and brackets. Extraordinary design work: can't wait to see the completion photos. Jim Pritchett

[John Keeton]

"John--ny Reb"! A pint of "Rebel Yell" might aid the task but... don't break the seal until after the shop chores are done for the day!

BTW.. you're not the only one having some fun with this one it appears! Guilty as charged... your Honor!

Sarge, seems we both have a rebellious spirit - has to be a Southern carryover! Like you, I enjoy the design phase of a project nearly as much as the actual build. And, again like you, my plans are generally a couple of pencil drawings with no real measurements. Other than the turning of the legs, the only real measured cuts on this table were the dimensions of the top. Everything else was just marked from there. And, some of it evolved as the work progressed - that is half the fun!

Can you describe how you joined the shelf brackets to the legs? Nice turnin' on the HF lathe.

Thanks, Shawn, for the supportive comment on the lathe work. I hope to improve my skills after this project!

As to the shelf brackets, I had originally intended to use 1/4" dowels in to the tapered and faceted legs. However, this would have made the glue up extremely involved as the shelf would have had to go in during the main glue up and I would not have been able to do any subassemblies - save for the front/back aprons and drawer runners. The antique table that is being replaced by this one (Victorian oak) used pocket screws from the underside, and that looked like the best method. Midstream, I was able to buy a used Kreg jig from another creeker to do this job. The portion of the bracket that connects to the leg BARELY left me room for the pocket holes. Worked great!
BRACKET 1.jpgBRACKET 2.jpg

Because any variance in the glue up of the legs/aprons could have affected the leg positions by as much as 1/8" or more, I waited until that task was done. The grain direction on the suspension brackets was not great for use of pocket screws, and I was afraid to "draw" those connections tight with the screws. So, the shelf assembly had to be a tight fit. The use of the pocket screws allowed me to affix the suspension brackets first, and then mark and cut the middle section of the shelf to an exact fit. This pic shows the brackets in place, and marking of the middle section.
MARKING SHELF.jpg

Thanks again, to all that have looked and commented. I appreciate so much the support of this group. It pushes me to continually improve my skills and refine my projects. Honestly, the character of my woodworking has changed significantly since becoming a creeker, and I owe it to this austere group of craftsmen and artists!

[John Thompson]

You're definitley one-up on me J.K. as I don't have a lathe. But... I have a buddy up in Kentucky that apparently added one to his arsenal recently. So... I'm farming any turnings I need to him in exchange for real-deal Vidalia onions.

On a serious note which is rare for me... extremely nice build going on there. Keep it up!

Regards...

Ya southern cousin....

[John Keeton]

So... I'm farming any turnings I need to him in exchange for real-deal Vidalia onions.

Regards...

Ya southern cousin....

DEAL!! I love REAL Vidalias.

Just don't expect all them turnin's to look like kin!!

I just roughed out some blanks for the drawer knobs. Ken Fitzgerald has warned me that they are tougher than the legs - got me kinda nervous on this one! We will see how they go!

Thanks for the comments, Sarge!

[Walt Caza]

Wow, Coming along great John!
I'm amazed how quickly you managed to turn a handsome set of table legs!
You have a keen eye, and must be a quick study!

Surprising you are new to Kreg jig, as this is the craftiest application of
pocket-hole screws I have ever seen!
I too had wondered about the bracket to leg joints, thanks for showing.

Keep up the good work,
I guess I better build something in walnut,
if I hope we might be friends?!?

great project and great thread,
thanks for the peek,
Walt

[John Keeton]

Thanks, Walt!! The legs did not come easy - there were some tense moments, and as I posted in the Turner's forum, a couple of "skating parties" to which I was immediately invited!

I was familiar with the Kreg jigs, but never had a need for one until this project - pretty slick!!

Yep, you need to get with the walnut program - you will love it!

[Don C Peterson]

I like the general design and proportions of the table. I'm not normally enthralled with contrasting woods, but you pulled this off nicely.