It all started with a small accent table..

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bainin
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It all started with a small accent table..

Post by bainin »

Boy I didn't know how complicated this project would become. Been working on it pretty solidly for a month or two.

The lady had been asking for a "table" to could cover our Ottoman so as to better support food and drink, mostly drink in my case :)

She had liked the stain result I had on these small accent tables and wished to mimic the look if possible.
accent-tables.jpg
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Well- as some of you know-this lead me down the path of first figuring out how to taper legs for this new ottoman table to match the existing accent table, you've seen that on a separate thread.


At this point-we had been in negotiation about exactly what this ottoman tabletop should be capable of doing. Of course-we negotiated ourselves into a project scope that exceeded our capabilities on a number of fronts. We didn't learn from project creep incurred by the tapered leg requirement :)

1. Table should cover the ottoman
2. Table should "look" like the accent table if possible
3. Table should be able to be split in two and used as separate TV trays on the couch
4. Table split line should be curved-because..well because straight is boring !

So naturally-we started with the table split line curve. The lady made a curve she liked on a 2x4 and cut it...she has a much steadier hand than I.
cutting-the-curve.jpg
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With this done, I needed to find a way to transfer this 2x4 curve to the Birch Plywood tops. Drawing the curve on the plywood wasn't the issue, but I had to cut the ply in half and place the curve on the edge of the 2 plywood rectangles-so I had enough throat on the bandsaw to follow this curve (I couldn't cut the curve thru the middle of a single half sheet of plywood on the bandsaw).

This worked reasonably well, but realized after cutting these curves, the 2 pieces didn't match up well-there were odd gaps in the curve. Further digging led me to understand the idea of complementary curves and correcting for this using a router and offset bearings to undo the error introduced by the kerf of the cutting itself.
tabletop-curve1.jpg
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Not a perfect match but pretty close- considering we still had to add veneer/etc.
tabletop-curve2.jpg
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Doing veneer was also new to us. I had picked up a 100 ft roll of red oak veneer with adhesive that was on the sale shelf. I figured with 100 ft of it, we could figure out how to do 10 ft of it well on the tables !

The curved edges were difficult to work on both the adhesive step as well as the veneer cutting step as the veneer knife I had purchased was unable to follow the curve...so i made a narrow veneer blade jig to allow for the cutting. Some issues and cosmetic defects-but overall good enough for us.
stain+veneer2.jpg
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Assembling the underside of the table included using the curve master 2x4 and additional pieces to provide a frame and support for legs. In order for the tables to also be used as TV trays the way we wanted, the legs on 1 side of the table needed to fold in to allow the table to rest on the couch surface.
unfinished leg fold.jpg
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Final assembly/staining/shellac'ing and light sanding.

Placed over the ottoman with legs folded under-it simply rests on the ottoman surface.
finsihed-ottoman.jpg
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It does free-stand though as well - though i do see that left leg is dangling a bit !
finished-free-standing.jpg
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And as TV trays for either end of the couch.
finshed-on-couch.jpg
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Finally-the real test- did we Mimic the Gold Standard Small Accent table? I think its pretty good !
matchup to accent.jpg
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A long project. I think I learned a few things along the way though.


b
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jsburger
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Re: It all started with a small accent table..

Post by jsburger »

Bainin wrote:
This worked reasonably well, but realized after cutting these curves, the 2 pieces didn't match up well-there were odd gaps in the curve.


The way to do that is with a templet. Use 1/2" MDF, cut the curve and sand it smooth to the shape you like. Trace the curve in both your pieces and rough cut on the band saw. Clamp the templet on the line and use a router with a flush trim bit to cut the curve. Perfect match.

That table is beautiful BTW!!! :D
John & Mary Burger
Eagle's Lair Woodshop
Hooper, UT
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JPG
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Re: It all started with a small accent table..

Post by JPG »

OMG!!!

You are attempting to get 10 (TEN) legs the same. HA HA HA HA No way!!! :D

Very NICE!!
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john
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Re: It all started with a small accent table..

Post by john »

Nice Job!

The double duty function is great, I like the TV tray idea.

John
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edflorence
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Re: It all started with a small accent table..

Post by edflorence »

Clever design and an ambitious project that turned out very nice!
Ed
Idaho Panhandle
Mark 5 of various vintages, Mini with reversing motor, bs, dc3300, jointer, increaser, decreaser
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chapmanruss
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Re: It all started with a small accent table..

Post by chapmanruss »

Nice tables and I love the versatility.
Russ

Mark V completely upgraded to Mark 7
Mark V 520
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algale
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Re: It all started with a small accent table..

Post by algale »

Wow! Great designs and execution!
Gale's Law: The bigger the woodworking project, the less the mistakes show in any photo taken far enough away to show the entire project!

edma194
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Re: It all started with a small accent table..

Post by edma194 »

Just great! Both style and functionality. Very impressive.
Ed from Rhode Island

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Hobbyman2
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Re: It all started with a small accent table..

Post by Hobbyman2 »

Very nice !! love the contrasting colors .
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megank
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Re: It all started with a small accent table..

Post by megank »

It's a very smart design you have created. I like the utility part of the table. Super good.
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