Hello All,
My Wife wants a dining room table and I have been working on a design for her that is basically about 7′ by 5′ with 4 4×4 legs with 5/4 to 8/4 ( haven’t decided what I need yet ) arched aprons, in a roughly mission style. I was planninng on a 5/4 QS top that attached to the top via normal manner to allow movement.
I was planning on adding two additional support pieces parrallal to the short approns and equally spaced between the short aprons. I would put these in for support and to attach the top to. There would then be no attachment points to the long aprons.
Does this seem like a reasonable design??
Don
Replies
Usually a design is in the eye of the beholder.
It doesn't seem like you really to me like you need the center legs though. I don't know how you are planning to attach them, but maybe you could leave it for a later option if you find out that your thanksgiving feast is so heavy that the table sagged.
I would think about the 5' width. I built a 7' x 5'6" table for some clients about 12 years ago and it was too wide to pass things across the table.
Hal
http://www.rivercitywoodworks.com
Thx,
I wasnt talking about center legs, but rather 2 center strechers parrallal to the short side aprons
I understand about passing things accross the table, but the boss wants to seat more people than the room will hold. I talked her down to a table that was designed for 10 people and you could easily squezze 12
Don
The 5/4 top sounds a little thin, especially with the 4 x 4 legs.
Hey Don,
Oh, sorry that I didn't understand about the center stretchers. It makes sense now. I don't know why I thought you might be putting in legs.
Hal
Don,
You are proposing a huge table. The length is not that excessive, but the length combined with the width are. Even a 40 inch wide table is a very large table in most rooms and 48 inches is unmanageable. It would be a good idea for you to mock up the size with a cardboard template and lay that on the floor of the room that is going to contain the table.
Remember you also need room for people to move their chairs back from the table, plus space for other furniture in the room, perhaps a sideboard or other table.
Rich
Edited 10/18/2006 2:50 pm ET by Rich14
What I usually do is mock it up with 3/4 inch particle board.
He could make a top the size he needs, put in on top of his old table, cover with a cloth, have a big dinner and see how it works.
I also know that usually the smart thing to do is just build what the wife wants. If it's wrong, the guy can usually live with it. If he designs and builds something different and it doesn't work so well, he'll never hear the end of it.
Hal
"I also know that usually the smart thing to do is just build what the wife wants. If it's wrong, the guy can usually live with it."
No, no! A thousand times, no! That's not how it works. It goes like this:
"Gee, honey. I know you thought your idea would work. Too bad, but don't you worry, I can fix it. No problem. I'll just need to upgrade to a [12"joiner] [20" planer] [18" bandsaw] [sliding table Felder TS] - insert appropriate selection(s).
This is the backside of the initial ploy which goes, "Sure you can have the dream kitchen you want. It would normally cost us $40,000 to bring in a contractor, but I can build it for $25,000 including all the new equipment I'll need. See, it'll be less expensive and it's like I'm getting the machinery for free!"
Watch and learn.
Edited 10/18/2006 3:42 pm ET by Rich14
Thx for all of your warnings!
I arrived at the size by doing a mockup with .25" plywood and 4x4's for the legs, using our existing table for the main support.
Her requirements are as follows - seat 12 in a formal setting pleanty of room to walk behind the chairs and pleanty of room to access the sideboard.
With the mochup I was able to show her that 10 was the most we could do for a formal setting and there would not be a lot of room behind the chairs on one of the narrow ends of the table.
This design gives us a 2x3x2x3 seating for formal dining and 2x4x2x4 to squezze in with family. You will certainly usually pass things around the edge of the table instead of accross the middle, but it is possible to pass dishes across the midle for us longer armed folks.
I am curious about the comment that 5/4 sounded a little thin, what thickness would you make the top? I am certainly concerned about the weight of the top when it is time to move it ( god forbid! )
BTW this QS oak as a material
Thanks, Don
Don,
The comment about the 5/4 was not mine.
It really sounds like you need to do a house remodel - larger table, larger room. Plenty of opportunity there to acquire all kinds of new equipment!
Vroom!
Rich
LOL-
I am doing pretty well on that front - the last year has brought me an MM16 BS a Delta Unisaw, A grizz 8" jointer (GO586) and a bevy of clamps....... It has been a good year. Honestly the onlythings i need are a planner upgrade ( i have a delta portable ) and maybe a drum sander. after that better heat would be nice - but dont want to get greedy :-)
my wife actually gave me the bandsaw and cabinet saw as a gift
So what do you think - 5/4 okay for the top??
Don
Don
I think 5/4 QS oak is going to be fine. It depends on the other aspects of the design of the top.
Rich
I wouldn't worry too much about the 5/4 being too thin comment.
I have used 5/4 quartersawn white oak for a large table and it was just fine strength-wise and design-wise. If you want to look I am pretty sure it is somewhere on my web site, maybe under furniture. It is the Queen Anne style table, which I know you aren't building, but at least it is the same thickness top. (Sounds like I need to take a look at the old web site myself once in a while!)
If you buy the material in the rough, you may even bet 7/8" out of it, which I think would be ideal.
Hal
http://www.rivercitywoodworks.com
"Sure you can have the dream kitchen you want. It would normally cost us $40,000 to bring in a contractor, but I can build it for $25,000 including all the new equipment I'll need. See, it'll be less expensive and it's like I'm getting the machinery for free!"
It's an old ploy, but it works. Wife got a new kitchen, I got some new tools and stayed out of trouble for several months of weekends. It only works for us amateurs if the old kitchen is still functioning. I'm not very good, but I'm slow!
5/4 sounds too thin to me for the style and for the size of the table. If you got finished thickness at 5/4 then maybe.
Edited 10/19/2006 10:16 am ET by CStanford
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