| Demilune Table -- Tabletop Veneer and Curved Apron |
From "Wood Works"
episode WWK-201 |
|
|
|
advertisement
|
In this episode of DIY Wood Works, host David Marks builds an elegant demilune table. The table features a four-way taper on the cherry wood legs and distinct bridle joinery. The curved front-apron is made using a bent-wood lamination process. The tabletop is covered in a beautiful madrone-burl veneer, and is joined to the wood substrate using a vacuum press technique. Materials: Cherry stock
Madrone stock for veneer
MDF (medium-density fiber board) and cork-board for form
Table saw
Jointer
Power planer
Band saw
Belt sander
Finger board
Yellow wood-glue
Resin glue
Clamps
Chalk or carpenter's pencil
Safety glasses or goggles
Note: Cut sizes may vary. For exact measurements, please contact David Marks through his Web site -- information below under Resources. Safety Alert: Always wear safety goggles or safety glasses when working with wood, saws, drills, routers, etc. Madrone Stock The madrone wood used to create the tabletop veneer is cut from a single five-foot slab (figure A) from a great tree that once lived in a forest along the Oregon coast. The tree from which this cross-section came probably lived to be more than one hundred years old. Beautiful pieces of stock cut from the rough slab become the focal point around which the fine table is crafted. Using a circular saw -- and with a great deal of respect -- the wood slab is cut according to markings (figure B) laid out to yield usable planks. The planks will then be used to create the veneer for the tabletop. The wood not only features a fantastic burl pattern, it also has a unique marking known as spalting resulting from a fungus that invades the wood after the tree has died. In this case, the result is an unusual undulating pattern (figure C) that will make for a unique feature in the finished tabletop. Madrone Veneer and Cherry Apron Steps: - Once the madrone stock has been cut from the rough slab, the face of the board is jointed flat. Slowly pushing the board through the jointer, on an angle (figure D), helps minimize chip-out.
- Using the jointed face as a reference, the plank is then run through the power planer to cut a flat, parallel surface on the opposite side.
- At the band-saw, two thin slices of the madrone plank are cut. Each slice -- or veneer -- is 3/32-inch thick. It's a good idea to use finger-board to help secure the stock as it passes across the band-saw blade (figure E).
- The band-saw cut results in beautiful book-matched veneers (figure F).
- After applying glue to the edges of the veneers, use clamps to pull them together, and add bricks to keep them flat as the glue dries (figure G).
- With the burled veneer complete, the next step is to cut the cherry stock to make the curved apron. Cherry boards that are 3-1/2 inches wide are cut to make seven thin strips.
- The strips of cherry are bent using a curved form (figure H). The form is made by stacking five sheets of MDF together to equal the 3-1/2 inch width of the apron stock. A semi-ellipse is cut into the form by making two passes on the band-saw. The separation between the curved portions of the form (figure I) is 3/4-inch -- matching the thickness of the finished apron.
- The inside curve of the on the outside face of the form is covered in cork to serve as a cushion (figure J) in case there are any imperfections in the form. The cork will fill in the gaps, and help ensure a uniform glue line.
- Using a slow-setting plastic resin glue, the faces of the strips are glued (figure K), and the strips are stacked, to form a laminate "sandwich".
- The laminate is placed into the form, and pressure is applied to bend it (figure L).
- The form is clamped together to hold the laminate in the curved shape (figure M) as the resin glue hardens. The strips are allowed to dry for 24 hours.
- Once the resin dries, the form can be removed to reveal the finished, curved apron (figure N). Because the laminate strips were cut so thin, the curved apron holds its shape well.
- Rough edges are removed from the apron using a belt sander (figure O). Hold the belt sander parallel to the surface, and make short, even strokes to avoid damaging the edge of the laminate.
- Once the rough edges are smoothed off, the curved apron is run over the jointer -following the arc of the curve -- to produce a flat edge (figure P).
- It is then run through the power-planer (figure Q) to make the opposite edge perfectly flat and parallel.
- With the laminated apron milled, it is trimmed to length. First, it is put back into the form so that it can be marked for cutting (figure R). It's important to use the form to hold the apron at the proper curvature so that the layout marks are accurate. Since the apron is curved, the end of the curved piece -- where it meets the straight back apron -- won't create an exact 90-degree joint. In our case, it was off by 2 degrees. Adjustments will need to be made in the cuts for the straight back piece to compensate for this variance.
- Using the band-saw, the edges of the apron are cut off at an angle of 90 degrees (figure S).
- Cherry stock, in a width of 3-1/2 inches, is cut to length on the table saw to make the back apron. The cuts are made with the table-saw blade set at 2 degrees to ensure at tight fit where the curved apron and straight back-apron meet (figure T).
- The curved piece and straight piece of the apron are joined together using biscuit joinery. The pieces are glued, clamped securely together and allowed to dry -- forming the complete apron (figure U).
Sponsored Resource
> Click here to order your tools and materials for this project from Woodcraft!
RESOURCES :
The Complete Manual of Woodworking
Author: Albert Jackson
Publisher: Knopf
ISBN: 0679766111
American Woodworker Magazine
American Woodworker
Website: www.americanwoodworker.com
David Marks Website
David Marks, DIY's Wood Works host, is a master woodworker. For more information on cut sizes and project details, please contact him via his Website at www.djmarks.com
The Complete Illustrated Guide to Woodworking
Author: Lonnie Bird, Andy Rae and Gary Rogowski
Publisher: Taunton
ISBN: 1561586021
The Complete Woodworker's Companion
Author: Roger Holmes
Publisher: Watson-Guptill
ISBN: 0823008665
The Complete Book of Wood Joinery
Author: Robert J. Decristoforo
Publisher: Sterling Publishing Co.
ISBN: 0806999500
Advanced Woodworking
Model: 0783539126
Author: Editors of Time Life Books
1998
Time-Life Books Inc.
Website: www.timelife.com
Popular Woodworking
F & W Publications, Inc.
Website: www.popularwoodworking.com
| 
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
