# joinery for farm dining table



## farmall (Jan 8, 2012)

Hello fellow wood working junkies. I am in the process of building a farm table from pin oak. I hope to finish gluing up the top today. the dimensions are going to be 42" wide by about 10' long. The boards for the top are going to finish out at about 1" thick and consist of 7 random-width boards to make up the 42" I am planning to make 4 square legs glued up from several 1" thick boards and taper cut with a basic apron to support things. I will want to assemble this in the house since it will be very heavy and hard to handle with the legs attached. (Is that a bad idea?) Anyway, I am wondering what is the best way to attach everything to have a sturdy table? I can imagine a wobbly table but really don't want that. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*That's a long table!*

The subject of "table leg brace" has come up here before. You have the option of using metal or make you own out of wood. Here's a good thread for those:
http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f5/table-leg-bracing-20431/

Making the braces:
http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f2/leg-brace-alternative-method-challenge-33352/#post277829


and here:
http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f13/farmhouse-table-made-my-shop-wood-stash-43246/

The best joinery will use mortises and tenons along with the brace to secure them. The depth/width of your apron is also a factor. Too deep and you`cant get your legs under, too shallow and it won't give enough support for that length. You may want to double it for added strength. and make it 2" or so thick, by gluing 2 pieces together. If you do that you can let one piece run long for the* tenon* ...for free! Just make it too long and trim each end for the depth of the mortise. You can make a free mortise by using 3 boards and staggering the center board down leaving a gap for the tenon. That works only on the side of the leg where the boards are glued, however. The other face side will need to have a mortise cut in....

A cross brace or 2 won't hurt either.
The beefier the leg the better. Racking is your worst threat to the joint, so the more material you have in the mortise, the better. :yes:


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

farmall said:


> Hello fellow wood working junkies. I am in the process of building a farm table from pin oak. I hope to finish gluing up the top today. the dimensions are going to be 42" wide by about 10' long. The boards for the top are going to finish out at about 1" thick and consist of 7 random-width boards to make up the 42" I am planning to make 4 square legs glued up from several 1" thick boards and taper cut with a basic apron to support things. I will want to assemble this in the house since it will be very heavy and hard to handle with the legs attached. (Is that a bad idea?) Anyway, I am wondering what is the best way to attach everything to have a sturdy table? I can imagine a wobbly table but really don't want that. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.


When you say a glue up of"several 1" boards, what will the leg size be?


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## farmall (Jan 8, 2012)

cabinetman said:


> When you say a glue up of"several 1" boards, what will the leg size be?


 I am thinking about 4 x 4 finished size but am open to suggestions.


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## farmall (Jan 8, 2012)

Thanks for the info woodnthings. I took your advice for the free mortise. I used (2) boards for the apron, glued together, with the rear board protruding 1.25" on each end. The apron is 5" tall, and 1.5" thick. I glued up the legs with 4 boards, each about 1". I will probably end up around 3.75" square by the time I clean them up. I plan to cut the 3/4" tennon with the router 1" to 1.75" from the face of the leg and then incorporate the corner brace. Thanks for those links. I got to spend about 8 hours on it yesterday (man I love woodshop therapy) and I need to start looking into a finish system. I am not sure if the bride is going to want it stained or not. I like the look of a painted apron and legs and natural top but I would hate to paint this wood with so much meaning. Any ideas on a good finish system for an eating table?


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*you're welcome*

How about some photos?

....any ideas for a finish for an eating surface .... Yah, glass. :laughing: Maybe an oil so it can be "replenished" easily ?

Did I say "free mortise?" I meant to say free tenon, although I have made a free mortise using 3 boards, not 2. Just stagger the center board down for the mortise and leave a gap for the tenon. Like these:









 

From here:
http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f2/mission-headboard-build-37911/


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## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

Are the top and legs the only items of which the table will consist? No skirt? Or other type of bracing or decorative wood? This can make a difference when deciding how to fasten the legs.

George


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## farmall (Jan 8, 2012)

oops woodnthings. I guess I made up the mortise part. You said tenon. I will try to get some pics today. George, I will have a skirt/apron connecting the legs. It is currently 5" tall, 1.5" thick, ((2) 3/4 inch thick boards glued together), and will be located at about 5" from the perimeter of the tabletop. I am a floor finisher by trade and am considering using a 2 part waterbased finish that I use a lot of. It is called Bona Traffic. I am really getting excited about getting this finished up! This 480 board feet of lumber has been in my shop for over 2.5 years. It looks like I need to plan more projects. This table didn't make much of a dent in it. Thanks so much for all the help.


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## farmall (Jan 8, 2012)

I am going to try a few pics. (never done this before)...Ok...I guess I cant figure out how. Can anyone help?


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## farmall (Jan 8, 2012)

This is he message I got. I hate that I am "challeneged". Does this mean anything to anyone?

Your submission could not be processed because a security token was missing.

If this occurred unexpectedly, please inform the administrator and describe the action you performed before you received this error.


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## Noek (Jan 26, 2013)

I had something similar, mailed the admin, and it's fixed


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