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Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

author-gravatar Graeme Aug 12, 2018

Some times it looks better in your head and on paper than what it looks like after you have completed your build. It is the prototype, so you know what works and what needs to be changed (re-work)  As I only had 3 boards of Cherry that were 2x8x1.5 and 8 feet long I needed to come up with a way to build a coffee table that is  4' x 2' and 20 inches tall.  

Yes I know that I need to clean up the work shop, but it is a work shop. 

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

This was a dry fit to aline the table top to the base, I was going to add a shelf to it but it did not look nice from a distance, but up close it work, but wood working is like food - you eat with your eyes first, and when you see something for the first time, you either like it or you do not. 

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

Once I had the table top alined I mark the under side to know where to drill for the screws and bolts to go. It is very important to note that I have all of the wood grain going in the same direction. So yes I can bolt the top to the frame. I had a block of cherry that was a 3"x4" x 3' long that runs along the bottom of the table and I left it out doors in the sun and as you can see it aged the wood 

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the metal screws bolts inserts on the top of the back leg support

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

Front let support

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

this is on a 20 deg angle and slotted in to the bottom brace / foot support

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

see the difference in the wood - I ended up putting all of the table parts out in the sun for a couple of days so the wood would age

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

how the back leg stays in place

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how the table top is attached to the base frame, you only see 2 of the 8 bolts

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

As you can see the under the table top the wood support is going in the same grain direction as the legs and table top. So all the wood grain is going in the same direction. wood will not crack with the change in moisture. 

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

Table top after a couple of days in the sun. I put in a half inch by half inch of mahogany that I had all around the table top, that stuff was hard as a rock to bend as the table top at its widest point is 24 inches but at the end it is 20 inches. I also had the 2 legs keep the same design but not with the inlay. 

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

nice shot of the table top to show the curve of the table and of the inlay.

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

this is what it looks like with 1 coat of shellac and 5 coats of tung oil.

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

As this is a prototype the next one will be only one leg and have a cantilever top as I think that it would look a lot better.  

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

from the back and see the curve of the legs - same as the table top

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

from the front. Please note that I found out the hard way that if you leave the wood out in the sun and the temp is 35 to 40 c which is why the wood started to warp but after a few days in the work shop out of the sun it level out. Please do not make the same mistake like I did. I was lucky that the table top almost turn back to normal / flat.

Photo of Coffee Table Out Of Cherry

from the top. nice colure of the wood. I also filled all of the knots and cracks with epoxy 

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