LumberJocks Woodworking Forum banner
11K views 36 replies 9 participants last post by  Islandwoodworker 
#1 ·
An Old Drop Leaf Table

My wife and I found this old drop leaf table at a local antique fair. I thought it was a nice size for a breakfast nook or a sitting table in the office. I was intrigued because it was obviously quite old and showed signs of being made with hand tools. I don't know what wood it is made from, maybe just pine. It uses swing arms to support the table leaves and the drawer is nicely dovetailed. I could see gauge marks, hide glue and roughly sawn stock on the underside.

Table Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


Furniture Table Cabinetry Writing desk Drawer


Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Beam


The table had lived a long life and had some repairs. It seemed that the top had a piece inserted with tongue and groove, perhaps because it broke from pressure on the swing arm. The drawer knob had been replaced with a rather old and crudely cast brass pull. The legs had loosened up over time and it looks like cut nails were used across the tenon to reinforce it. The top was screwed through into the top of the legs to help hold it down and maybe as more reinforcement for the frame. The screws and nails were patched over and the whole thing was re-finished to help hide the repairs.

Wood Drawer Cabinetry Chest of drawers Handle


Brown Wood Window Plank Hardwood


Brown Wood Wood stain Automotive exterior Table


Brown Table Wood Amber Rectangle


I decided to remove the top so that I could shore up some of the problem areas a bit more, but also to understand the joinery. I used an oscillating saw to cut the screws holding down the top. I also removed the original screws in the rails which were set into chiseled notches in the old tradition. Although a couple were loose, I could not separate the mortises due to the nails that were added. There is some irregularity in the M&Ts as one shows on the top of the leg, while the others do not. The drawer rails appear to be a bridal joint on the top rail and I assume a M&T joint on the bottom rail.

Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Wood stain


Brown Wood Building material Gas Hardwood


Wood Composite material Metal Plywood Titanium


Here are the tops of the M&T legs. You can see the tenon show through the top on one leg and nothing on the other. I think it was originally built this way, so maybe it was done quickly or by an apprentice. Seems like a mistake to me.

Wood Gas Rectangle Metal Hardwood


Brown Wood Door Wood stain Hardwood


The drawer rail joints seem to have held up well and are quite tight.

Wood Gas Brick Metal Tints and shades


On the underside of the rails, you can still see the mortise gauge marks in several locations.

Brown Water Wood Amber Tints and shades


Lastly, the hinges were installed in the traditional way using saw cuts and chiseling. The hinges were set with a variety of screws, some with points and some without. Maybe it was repaired this way or they are really old pointless screws, I don't know.

Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Font


Brown Rectangle Wood Amber Brick


The drawer is nicely dovetailed and slides on rails that are attached with cut nails.

Brown Rectangle Wood Wood stain Hardwood


Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Hand Wood Hand tool Wood stain Finger


I plan to remake this table as a learning opportunity. I will use only a limited kit of period hand tools. Stay tuned. :)
 

Attachments

See less See more
42
#2 ·
An Old Drop Leaf Table

My wife and I found this old drop leaf table at a local antique fair. I thought it was a nice size for a breakfast nook or a sitting table in the office. I was intrigued because it was obviously quite old and showed signs of being made with hand tools. I don't know what wood it is made from, maybe just pine. It uses swing arms to support the table leaves and the drawer is nicely dovetailed. I could see gauge marks, hide glue and roughly sawn stock on the underside.







The table had lived a long life and had some repairs. It seemed that the top had a piece inserted with tongue and groove, perhaps because it broke from pressure on the swing arm. The drawer knob had been replaced with a rather old and crudely cast brass pull. The legs had loosened up over time and it looks like cut nails were used across the tenon to reinforce it. The top was screwed through into the top of the legs to help hold it down and maybe as more reinforcement for the frame. The screws and nails were patched over and the whole thing was re-finished to help hide the repairs.









I decided to remove the top so that I could shore up some of the problem areas a bit more, but also to understand the joinery. I used an oscillating saw to cut the screws holding down the top. I also removed the original screws in the rails which were set into chiseled notches in the old tradition. Although a couple were loose, I could not separate the mortises due to the nails that were added. There is some irregularity in the M&Ts as one shows on the top of the leg, while the others do not. The drawer rails appear to be a bridal joint on the top rail and I assume a M&T joint on the bottom rail.





Wood Composite material Metal Plywood Titanium


Here are the tops of the M&T legs. You can see the tenon show through the top on one leg and nothing on the other. I think it was originally built this way, so maybe it was done quickly or by an apprentice. Seems like a mistake to me.

Wood Gas Rectangle Metal Hardwood


Brown Wood Door Wood stain Hardwood


The drawer rail joints seem to have held up well and are quite tight.

Wood Gas Brick Metal Tints and shades


On the underside of the rails, you can still see the mortise gauge marks in several locations.

Brown Water Wood Amber Tints and shades


Lastly, the hinges were installed in the traditional way using saw cuts and chiseling. The hinges were set with a variety of screws, some with points and some without. Maybe it was repaired this way or they are really old pointless screws, I don't know.

Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Font


Brown Rectangle Wood Amber Brick


The drawer is nicely dovetailed and slides on rails that are attached with cut nails.

Brown Rectangle Wood Wood stain Hardwood


Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Hand Wood Hand tool Wood stain Finger


I plan to remake this table as a learning opportunity. I will use only a limited kit of period hand tools. Stay tuned. :)
Very nice pics and story, it felt like I was there as you were taking it apart!
 

Attachments

#3 ·
An Old Drop Leaf Table

My wife and I found this old drop leaf table at a local antique fair. I thought it was a nice size for a breakfast nook or a sitting table in the office. I was intrigued because it was obviously quite old and showed signs of being made with hand tools. I don't know what wood it is made from, maybe just pine. It uses swing arms to support the table leaves and the drawer is nicely dovetailed. I could see gauge marks, hide glue and roughly sawn stock on the underside.

Table Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


Furniture Table Cabinetry Writing desk Drawer


Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Beam


The table had lived a long life and had some repairs. It seemed that the top had a piece inserted with tongue and groove, perhaps because it broke from pressure on the swing arm. The drawer knob had been replaced with a rather old and crudely cast brass pull. The legs had loosened up over time and it looks like cut nails were used across the tenon to reinforce it. The top was screwed through into the top of the legs to help hold it down and maybe as more reinforcement for the frame. The screws and nails were patched over and the whole thing was re-finished to help hide the repairs.

Wood Drawer Cabinetry Chest of drawers Handle


Brown Wood Window Plank Hardwood


Brown Wood Wood stain Automotive exterior Table


Brown Table Wood Amber Rectangle


I decided to remove the top so that I could shore up some of the problem areas a bit more, but also to understand the joinery. I used an oscillating saw to cut the screws holding down the top. I also removed the original screws in the rails which were set into chiseled notches in the old tradition. Although a couple were loose, I could not separate the mortises due to the nails that were added. There is some irregularity in the M&Ts as one shows on the top of the leg, while the others do not. The drawer rails appear to be a bridal joint on the top rail and I assume a M&T joint on the bottom rail.

Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Wood stain


Brown Wood Building material Gas Hardwood


Wood Composite material Metal Plywood Titanium


Here are the tops of the M&T legs. You can see the tenon show through the top on one leg and nothing on the other. I think it was originally built this way, so maybe it was done quickly or by an apprentice. Seems like a mistake to me.

Wood Gas Rectangle Metal Hardwood


Brown Wood Door Wood stain Hardwood


The drawer rail joints seem to have held up well and are quite tight.

Wood Gas Brick Metal Tints and shades


On the underside of the rails, you can still see the mortise gauge marks in several locations.

Brown Water Wood Amber Tints and shades


Lastly, the hinges were installed in the traditional way using saw cuts and chiseling. The hinges were set with a variety of screws, some with points and some without. Maybe it was repaired this way or they are really old pointless screws, I don't know.

Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Font


Brown Rectangle Wood Amber Brick


The drawer is nicely dovetailed and slides on rails that are attached with cut nails.

Brown Rectangle Wood Wood stain Hardwood


Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Hand Wood Hand tool Wood stain Finger


I plan to remake this table as a learning opportunity. I will use only a limited kit of period hand tools. Stay tuned. :)
Tom,

We're looking forward to accompanying you on your adventure!

L/W
 

Attachments

#4 ·
An Old Drop Leaf Table

My wife and I found this old drop leaf table at a local antique fair. I thought it was a nice size for a breakfast nook or a sitting table in the office. I was intrigued because it was obviously quite old and showed signs of being made with hand tools. I don't know what wood it is made from, maybe just pine. It uses swing arms to support the table leaves and the drawer is nicely dovetailed. I could see gauge marks, hide glue and roughly sawn stock on the underside.

Table Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


Furniture Table Cabinetry Writing desk Drawer


Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Beam


The table had lived a long life and had some repairs. It seemed that the top had a piece inserted with tongue and groove, perhaps because it broke from pressure on the swing arm. The drawer knob had been replaced with a rather old and crudely cast brass pull. The legs had loosened up over time and it looks like cut nails were used across the tenon to reinforce it. The top was screwed through into the top of the legs to help hold it down and maybe as more reinforcement for the frame. The screws and nails were patched over and the whole thing was re-finished to help hide the repairs.

Wood Drawer Cabinetry Chest of drawers Handle


Brown Wood Window Plank Hardwood


Brown Wood Wood stain Automotive exterior Table


Brown Table Wood Amber Rectangle


I decided to remove the top so that I could shore up some of the problem areas a bit more, but also to understand the joinery. I used an oscillating saw to cut the screws holding down the top. I also removed the original screws in the rails which were set into chiseled notches in the old tradition. Although a couple were loose, I could not separate the mortises due to the nails that were added. There is some irregularity in the M&Ts as one shows on the top of the leg, while the others do not. The drawer rails appear to be a bridal joint on the top rail and I assume a M&T joint on the bottom rail.

Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Wood stain


Brown Wood Building material Gas Hardwood


Wood Composite material Metal Plywood Titanium


Here are the tops of the M&T legs. You can see the tenon show through the top on one leg and nothing on the other. I think it was originally built this way, so maybe it was done quickly or by an apprentice. Seems like a mistake to me.

Wood Gas Rectangle Metal Hardwood


Brown Wood Door Wood stain Hardwood


The drawer rail joints seem to have held up well and are quite tight.

Wood Gas Brick Metal Tints and shades


On the underside of the rails, you can still see the mortise gauge marks in several locations.

Brown Water Wood Amber Tints and shades


Lastly, the hinges were installed in the traditional way using saw cuts and chiseling. The hinges were set with a variety of screws, some with points and some without. Maybe it was repaired this way or they are really old pointless screws, I don't know.

Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Font


Brown Rectangle Wood Amber Brick


The drawer is nicely dovetailed and slides on rails that are attached with cut nails.

Brown Rectangle Wood Wood stain Hardwood


Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Hand Wood Hand tool Wood stain Finger


I plan to remake this table as a learning opportunity. I will use only a limited kit of period hand tools. Stay tuned. :)
Applause!
What a great project and what a fine old table. Will you be using hot hide glue?
 

Attachments

#5 ·
An Old Drop Leaf Table

My wife and I found this old drop leaf table at a local antique fair. I thought it was a nice size for a breakfast nook or a sitting table in the office. I was intrigued because it was obviously quite old and showed signs of being made with hand tools. I don't know what wood it is made from, maybe just pine. It uses swing arms to support the table leaves and the drawer is nicely dovetailed. I could see gauge marks, hide glue and roughly sawn stock on the underside.

Table Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


Furniture Table Cabinetry Writing desk Drawer


Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Beam


The table had lived a long life and had some repairs. It seemed that the top had a piece inserted with tongue and groove, perhaps because it broke from pressure on the swing arm. The drawer knob had been replaced with a rather old and crudely cast brass pull. The legs had loosened up over time and it looks like cut nails were used across the tenon to reinforce it. The top was screwed through into the top of the legs to help hold it down and maybe as more reinforcement for the frame. The screws and nails were patched over and the whole thing was re-finished to help hide the repairs.

Wood Drawer Cabinetry Chest of drawers Handle


Brown Wood Window Plank Hardwood


Brown Wood Wood stain Automotive exterior Table


Brown Table Wood Amber Rectangle


I decided to remove the top so that I could shore up some of the problem areas a bit more, but also to understand the joinery. I used an oscillating saw to cut the screws holding down the top. I also removed the original screws in the rails which were set into chiseled notches in the old tradition. Although a couple were loose, I could not separate the mortises due to the nails that were added. There is some irregularity in the M&Ts as one shows on the top of the leg, while the others do not. The drawer rails appear to be a bridal joint on the top rail and I assume a M&T joint on the bottom rail.

Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Wood stain


Brown Wood Building material Gas Hardwood


Wood Composite material Metal Plywood Titanium


Here are the tops of the M&T legs. You can see the tenon show through the top on one leg and nothing on the other. I think it was originally built this way, so maybe it was done quickly or by an apprentice. Seems like a mistake to me.

Wood Gas Rectangle Metal Hardwood


Brown Wood Door Wood stain Hardwood


The drawer rail joints seem to have held up well and are quite tight.

Wood Gas Brick Metal Tints and shades


On the underside of the rails, you can still see the mortise gauge marks in several locations.

Brown Water Wood Amber Tints and shades


Lastly, the hinges were installed in the traditional way using saw cuts and chiseling. The hinges were set with a variety of screws, some with points and some without. Maybe it was repaired this way or they are really old pointless screws, I don't know.

Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Font


Brown Rectangle Wood Amber Brick


The drawer is nicely dovetailed and slides on rails that are attached with cut nails.

Brown Rectangle Wood Wood stain Hardwood


Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Hand Wood Hand tool Wood stain Finger


I plan to remake this table as a learning opportunity. I will use only a limited kit of period hand tools. Stay tuned. :)
Pointless screws.
They might have cut the points to avoid them poking through the surface. they seem of a larger diameter. maybe the original ones (with point) were loose.
 

Attachments

#6 ·
An Old Drop Leaf Table

My wife and I found this old drop leaf table at a local antique fair. I thought it was a nice size for a breakfast nook or a sitting table in the office. I was intrigued because it was obviously quite old and showed signs of being made with hand tools. I don't know what wood it is made from, maybe just pine. It uses swing arms to support the table leaves and the drawer is nicely dovetailed. I could see gauge marks, hide glue and roughly sawn stock on the underside.

Table Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


Furniture Table Cabinetry Writing desk Drawer


Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Beam


The table had lived a long life and had some repairs. It seemed that the top had a piece inserted with tongue and groove, perhaps because it broke from pressure on the swing arm. The drawer knob had been replaced with a rather old and crudely cast brass pull. The legs had loosened up over time and it looks like cut nails were used across the tenon to reinforce it. The top was screwed through into the top of the legs to help hold it down and maybe as more reinforcement for the frame. The screws and nails were patched over and the whole thing was re-finished to help hide the repairs.

Wood Drawer Cabinetry Chest of drawers Handle


Brown Wood Window Plank Hardwood


Brown Wood Wood stain Automotive exterior Table


Brown Table Wood Amber Rectangle


I decided to remove the top so that I could shore up some of the problem areas a bit more, but also to understand the joinery. I used an oscillating saw to cut the screws holding down the top. I also removed the original screws in the rails which were set into chiseled notches in the old tradition. Although a couple were loose, I could not separate the mortises due to the nails that were added. There is some irregularity in the M&Ts as one shows on the top of the leg, while the others do not. The drawer rails appear to be a bridal joint on the top rail and I assume a M&T joint on the bottom rail.

Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Wood stain


Brown Wood Building material Gas Hardwood


Wood Composite material Metal Plywood Titanium


Here are the tops of the M&T legs. You can see the tenon show through the top on one leg and nothing on the other. I think it was originally built this way, so maybe it was done quickly or by an apprentice. Seems like a mistake to me.

Wood Gas Rectangle Metal Hardwood


Brown Wood Door Wood stain Hardwood


The drawer rail joints seem to have held up well and are quite tight.

Wood Gas Brick Metal Tints and shades


On the underside of the rails, you can still see the mortise gauge marks in several locations.

Brown Water Wood Amber Tints and shades


Lastly, the hinges were installed in the traditional way using saw cuts and chiseling. The hinges were set with a variety of screws, some with points and some without. Maybe it was repaired this way or they are really old pointless screws, I don't know.

Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Font


Brown Rectangle Wood Amber Brick


The drawer is nicely dovetailed and slides on rails that are attached with cut nails.

Brown Rectangle Wood Wood stain Hardwood


Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Hand Wood Hand tool Wood stain Finger


I plan to remake this table as a learning opportunity. I will use only a limited kit of period hand tools. Stay tuned. :)
Pointless screws - I agree they are probably cut off. That said, I think the repairs are actually quite old, so it could be that they used whatever they had around the shop.

Hot hide glue - Probably not on this first attempt. Maybe on the top glue up. I did consider the liquid hide glue in a brown bottle. We shall see…
 

Attachments

#7 ·
An Old Drop Leaf Table

My wife and I found this old drop leaf table at a local antique fair. I thought it was a nice size for a breakfast nook or a sitting table in the office. I was intrigued because it was obviously quite old and showed signs of being made with hand tools. I don't know what wood it is made from, maybe just pine. It uses swing arms to support the table leaves and the drawer is nicely dovetailed. I could see gauge marks, hide glue and roughly sawn stock on the underside.

Table Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


Furniture Table Cabinetry Writing desk Drawer


Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Beam


The table had lived a long life and had some repairs. It seemed that the top had a piece inserted with tongue and groove, perhaps because it broke from pressure on the swing arm. The drawer knob had been replaced with a rather old and crudely cast brass pull. The legs had loosened up over time and it looks like cut nails were used across the tenon to reinforce it. The top was screwed through into the top of the legs to help hold it down and maybe as more reinforcement for the frame. The screws and nails were patched over and the whole thing was re-finished to help hide the repairs.

Wood Drawer Cabinetry Chest of drawers Handle


Brown Wood Window Plank Hardwood


Brown Wood Wood stain Automotive exterior Table


Brown Table Wood Amber Rectangle


I decided to remove the top so that I could shore up some of the problem areas a bit more, but also to understand the joinery. I used an oscillating saw to cut the screws holding down the top. I also removed the original screws in the rails which were set into chiseled notches in the old tradition. Although a couple were loose, I could not separate the mortises due to the nails that were added. There is some irregularity in the M&Ts as one shows on the top of the leg, while the others do not. The drawer rails appear to be a bridal joint on the top rail and I assume a M&T joint on the bottom rail.

Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Wood stain


Brown Wood Building material Gas Hardwood


Wood Composite material Metal Plywood Titanium


Here are the tops of the M&T legs. You can see the tenon show through the top on one leg and nothing on the other. I think it was originally built this way, so maybe it was done quickly or by an apprentice. Seems like a mistake to me.

Wood Gas Rectangle Metal Hardwood


Brown Wood Door Wood stain Hardwood


The drawer rail joints seem to have held up well and are quite tight.

Wood Gas Brick Metal Tints and shades


On the underside of the rails, you can still see the mortise gauge marks in several locations.

Brown Water Wood Amber Tints and shades


Lastly, the hinges were installed in the traditional way using saw cuts and chiseling. The hinges were set with a variety of screws, some with points and some without. Maybe it was repaired this way or they are really old pointless screws, I don't know.

Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Font


Brown Rectangle Wood Amber Brick


The drawer is nicely dovetailed and slides on rails that are attached with cut nails.

Brown Rectangle Wood Wood stain Hardwood


Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Hand Wood Hand tool Wood stain Finger


I plan to remake this table as a learning opportunity. I will use only a limited kit of period hand tools. Stay tuned. :)
This looks like a well made table and might even be a genuine antique. I doubt it is made of pine. Maybe it's cherry. Well worth restoration in my opinion. I would point out that I am no expert or anywhere near that, but it might be worth your time to have someone who is have a look at it.
 

Attachments

#8 ·
An Old Drop Leaf Table

My wife and I found this old drop leaf table at a local antique fair. I thought it was a nice size for a breakfast nook or a sitting table in the office. I was intrigued because it was obviously quite old and showed signs of being made with hand tools. I don't know what wood it is made from, maybe just pine. It uses swing arms to support the table leaves and the drawer is nicely dovetailed. I could see gauge marks, hide glue and roughly sawn stock on the underside.

Table Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


Furniture Table Cabinetry Writing desk Drawer


Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Beam


The table had lived a long life and had some repairs. It seemed that the top had a piece inserted with tongue and groove, perhaps because it broke from pressure on the swing arm. The drawer knob had been replaced with a rather old and crudely cast brass pull. The legs had loosened up over time and it looks like cut nails were used across the tenon to reinforce it. The top was screwed through into the top of the legs to help hold it down and maybe as more reinforcement for the frame. The screws and nails were patched over and the whole thing was re-finished to help hide the repairs.

Wood Drawer Cabinetry Chest of drawers Handle


Brown Wood Window Plank Hardwood


Brown Wood Wood stain Automotive exterior Table


Brown Table Wood Amber Rectangle


I decided to remove the top so that I could shore up some of the problem areas a bit more, but also to understand the joinery. I used an oscillating saw to cut the screws holding down the top. I also removed the original screws in the rails which were set into chiseled notches in the old tradition. Although a couple were loose, I could not separate the mortises due to the nails that were added. There is some irregularity in the M&Ts as one shows on the top of the leg, while the others do not. The drawer rails appear to be a bridal joint on the top rail and I assume a M&T joint on the bottom rail.

Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Wood stain


Brown Wood Building material Gas Hardwood


Wood Composite material Metal Plywood Titanium


Here are the tops of the M&T legs. You can see the tenon show through the top on one leg and nothing on the other. I think it was originally built this way, so maybe it was done quickly or by an apprentice. Seems like a mistake to me.

Wood Gas Rectangle Metal Hardwood


Brown Wood Door Wood stain Hardwood


The drawer rail joints seem to have held up well and are quite tight.

Wood Gas Brick Metal Tints and shades


On the underside of the rails, you can still see the mortise gauge marks in several locations.

Brown Water Wood Amber Tints and shades


Lastly, the hinges were installed in the traditional way using saw cuts and chiseling. The hinges were set with a variety of screws, some with points and some without. Maybe it was repaired this way or they are really old pointless screws, I don't know.

Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Font


Brown Rectangle Wood Amber Brick


The drawer is nicely dovetailed and slides on rails that are attached with cut nails.

Brown Rectangle Wood Wood stain Hardwood


Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Hand Wood Hand tool Wood stain Finger


I plan to remake this table as a learning opportunity. I will use only a limited kit of period hand tools. Stay tuned. :)
Mike - I agree the it is genuinely an old antique table. We probably should retire it from daily use, which I might do if my remake turns out nice. I also think it is probably something other than pine. Maybe cherry or even mahogany. I need an expert to determine though, I'm not good at identifying wood in old furniture.
 

Attachments

#9 ·
Building the Frame

I am going to remake the old drop leaf table using hand tools that I think are appropriate for the age of the piece. I have not made a table like this before, so this will be a learning experience for me. It will be nice to have the old table as a reference. I decided to use oak boards from the home center. They are kind of pricey, but they are nicely machined and planed, so I can concentrate more on the joinery and less on the bull work of preparing the material. For now, I will just start with the frame material and see how it goes. It does not require a lot of wood for the frame.

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Wood stain


This table has two long rails on the drop leaf sides, a short rail on one end and two horizontal rails to frame the drawer. First I will lay out the mortises for the long rails and one short rail on the legs. I struggled a bit on the initial layout. On the original table, the long rails are not full height so as to leave space for the swing arm. They glued blocks to the ends to act as stops for the swing arms.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Beam Plank


Initially, I was going to try and accommodate the different height rails, but I eventually decided to use full height rails on the long sides and I will cut out for the swing arm later. This allowed me to use equally sized mortises all around. I evened up the bottom of the legs and clamped them together to mark the reference knife lines for the mortise ends.

Table Wood Rectangle Tool Wood stain


Table Wood Tool Office ruler Wood stain


The mortise will be 5/16" wide and 1-1/8" deep. I used a mortise gauge between the knife lines to mark out the mortises on each leg. It is a reasonably tall mortise, about 4.5", so I will leave a webbed section in the middle to maintain strength in the leg. It will have an angled haunch that will be hidden on top, but add a little extra protection from twisting.

I tried a couple variations on chopping out the mortise, but the best method for me was to start in the middle above the webbed section and work from both sides down to 1/4" deep, then I worked out to each end with the bevel leading the cut and worked both ends to depth.

Wood Table Office ruler Wood stain Rectangle


Table Hand tool Wood Wood stain Office supplies


Table Wood Office ruler Ruler Wood stain


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Shotgun Plank


I was a bit undecided on the height of the mortise, so, I adjusted them to be 3/4" from the top of the leg and cut in the angled haunch.

Wood Floor Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Wood Table Wood stain Plank Hardwood


Wood Rectangle Plank Wood stain Beam


With all six mortises chopped out, I then started work on the rails and tenons. First I carefully sized my rails and squared the ends. I was not as worried about the ends being perfectly square, but I gave more care to have the top and bottom edges true and parallel because I will be squaring my tenon shoulders off of those edges.

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Musical instrument accessory Audio equipment


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Varnish Tool


Once I had the rails trued up, I clamped the two long rails together and marked knife lines for the tenons 1-1/8" in from the ends to match the mortises.

Tool Wood Table Hand tool Wood stain


Using the knife marks on the edge as a reference, I laid out each tenon with the knife and square. Here I notice a challenge. When marking with the kind of knife that I use, there is a tendency to move the square as you get farther from the edge. To adjust for this, I pressed the work and the square into a bench hook so that it was firmly held in place. Then I started the knife line with a gentle cut and worked the line deeper with progressively heavy cuts. It's also important to square off the same edge for both sides on the rail when you flip it.

Wood Wood stain Flooring Floor Sharpening stone


Wood Gesture Wood stain Finger Flooring


Next, I marked the tenon with the mortise gauge set to the same 5/16" width, but I adjust the fence to have the rail set back from the face of the legs by about 3/32".

Wood Wood stain Flooring Floor Hardwood


To cut out the tenon, I will saw down to the gauge marks and split off the cheeks with a 1" chisel. Then I will pare it with the chisel and test it in the mortise until I get a nice fit, snug but not too snug. I used the chisel to create a channel against the knife line, and sawed down to the gauge marks with a crosscut tenon saw.

Rectangle Wood Flooring Floor Plank


Then I split off the cheeks and pared.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Creative arts


Wood Natural material Hardwood Wood stain Tints and shades


Table Wood Wood stain Flooring Plank


I custom fit each tenon into a matched mortise. I test the corners of the tenon for fit, then mark and trim it out for the web and haunch. I also trim up the shoulders of the tenon with a chisel so that it sits flush against the leg.

Table Wood Wood stain Floor Hardwood


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Plywood


Ruler Wood Office ruler Hand tool Tool


Wood Tire Automotive tire Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Plank


I'm pretty happy with the results. The tenon fit nicely and all the legs are sticking out in the same direction. The few gaps are minimal and toward the inside.

Wood Floor Automotive exterior Flooring Vehicle


Now I have 3 sides of my table fitted up. Next I will need cut the excess off the legs and work on the horizontal rails for the drawer.
 

Attachments

#10 ·
Building the Frame

I am going to remake the old drop leaf table using hand tools that I think are appropriate for the age of the piece. I have not made a table like this before, so this will be a learning experience for me. It will be nice to have the old table as a reference. I decided to use oak boards from the home center. They are kind of pricey, but they are nicely machined and planed, so I can concentrate more on the joinery and less on the bull work of preparing the material. For now, I will just start with the frame material and see how it goes. It does not require a lot of wood for the frame.

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Wood stain


This table has two long rails on the drop leaf sides, a short rail on one end and two horizontal rails to frame the drawer. First I will lay out the mortises for the long rails and one short rail on the legs. I struggled a bit on the initial layout. On the original table, the long rails are not full height so as to leave space for the swing arm. They glued blocks to the ends to act as stops for the swing arms.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Beam Plank


Initially, I was going to try and accommodate the different height rails, but I eventually decided to use full height rails on the long sides and I will cut out for the swing arm later. This allowed me to use equally sized mortises all around. I evened up the bottom of the legs and clamped them together to mark the reference knife lines for the mortise ends.

Table Wood Rectangle Tool Wood stain


Table Wood Tool Office ruler Wood stain


The mortise will be 5/16" wide and 1-1/8" deep. I used a mortise gauge between the knife lines to mark out the mortises on each leg. It is a reasonably tall mortise, about 4.5", so I will leave a webbed section in the middle to maintain strength in the leg. It will have an angled haunch that will be hidden on top, but add a little extra protection from twisting.

I tried a couple variations on chopping out the mortise, but the best method for me was to start in the middle above the webbed section and work from both sides down to 1/4" deep, then I worked out to each end with the bevel leading the cut and worked both ends to depth.

Wood Table Office ruler Wood stain Rectangle


Table Hand tool Wood Wood stain Office supplies


Table Wood Office ruler Ruler Wood stain


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Shotgun Plank


I was a bit undecided on the height of the mortise, so, I adjusted them to be 3/4" from the top of the leg and cut in the angled haunch.

Wood Floor Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Wood Table Wood stain Plank Hardwood


Wood Rectangle Plank Wood stain Beam


With all six mortises chopped out, I then started work on the rails and tenons. First I carefully sized my rails and squared the ends. I was not as worried about the ends being perfectly square, but I gave more care to have the top and bottom edges true and parallel because I will be squaring my tenon shoulders off of those edges.

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Musical instrument accessory Audio equipment


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Varnish Tool


Once I had the rails trued up, I clamped the two long rails together and marked knife lines for the tenons 1-1/8" in from the ends to match the mortises.

Tool Wood Table Hand tool Wood stain


Using the knife marks on the edge as a reference, I laid out each tenon with the knife and square. Here I notice a challenge. When marking with the kind of knife that I use, there is a tendency to move the square as you get farther from the edge. To adjust for this, I pressed the work and the square into a bench hook so that it was firmly held in place. Then I started the knife line with a gentle cut and worked the line deeper with progressively heavy cuts. It's also important to square off the same edge for both sides on the rail when you flip it.

Wood Wood stain Flooring Floor Sharpening stone


Wood Gesture Wood stain Finger Flooring


Next, I marked the tenon with the mortise gauge set to the same 5/16" width, but I adjust the fence to have the rail set back from the face of the legs by about 3/32".

Wood Wood stain Flooring Floor Hardwood


To cut out the tenon, I will saw down to the gauge marks and split off the cheeks with a 1" chisel. Then I will pare it with the chisel and test it in the mortise until I get a nice fit, snug but not too snug. I used the chisel to create a channel against the knife line, and sawed down to the gauge marks with a crosscut tenon saw.

Rectangle Wood Flooring Floor Plank


Then I split off the cheeks and pared.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Creative arts


Wood Natural material Hardwood Wood stain Tints and shades


Table Wood Wood stain Flooring Plank


I custom fit each tenon into a matched mortise. I test the corners of the tenon for fit, then mark and trim it out for the web and haunch. I also trim up the shoulders of the tenon with a chisel so that it sits flush against the leg.

Table Wood Wood stain Floor Hardwood


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Plywood


Ruler Wood Office ruler Hand tool Tool


Wood Tire Automotive tire Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Plank


I'm pretty happy with the results. The tenon fit nicely and all the legs are sticking out in the same direction. The few gaps are minimal and toward the inside.

Wood Floor Automotive exterior Flooring Vehicle


Now I have 3 sides of my table fitted up. Next I will need cut the excess off the legs and work on the horizontal rails for the drawer.
Tom,

You've made some pretty good progress already.

Will you be restoring the antique table when you complete this one?

L/W
 

Attachments

#12 ·
A few details before....

Before I launch into the next stage of my table build, I thought I would share a few learnings and insights from the mortise and tenon work.

Only a few tools

I think it is interesting how few hand tools I needed to create the mortise and tenons. Just a few chisels, a crosscut tenon saw and some basic layout tools.

Wood Tool Table Wood stain Hardwood


The mortise chisel is 5/16" wide, which is a really nice size for tenons with 3/4" boards. It falls right between 1/3 and 1/2 of the board thickness. It is also the size on the original table. This size allows you to use a 1/4" bench chisel to clean out the mortise, which is also nice because it has some clearance and helps avoid wallowing out the sides of the mortise. I used an old 1/4" square edge chisel and it felt sturdy and worked great.

Another chisel that I really enjoyed using is the 1" square edged chisel. I guess you can call this a framing or firmer chisel, but it was very versatile. It is sturdy enough for the mallet but also works well for paring. I seem to have better luck with the square edge chisels when trimming my joints. It seems to guide my eye and I get better results. I guess if a person can have a favorite chisel, this would be mine.

Wood Tool Hardwood Varnish Wood stain


Before I started cutting the tenons, I tried a few different saws on the shoulder cut. First I tried my dovetail saw. The results were acceptable, but I tended to cut out of square and it was a little rough. I also tried the rip tenon saw. This was nice because it cut quickly, but it was too aggressive and tended to chew up and cut into the shoulder line. Finally, I settled on the cross cut tenon saw. This saw is a bit taller, so I had better luck staying square in the cut. It has a narrower set and cut a crisp shoulder which minimized paring. The downside is that it cuts more slowly than the others, so it takes quite a bit more strokes to cut down to depth.

Smoothing plane Plane Hand tool Block plane Wood


A bit of practice

My mortise and tenons came out with a nice fit. But full disclosure, I practiced before I did the actual joinery for the table. I used an offcut from the rail boards and cut several tenons, maybe 5 or 6 times. This allowed me to better understand how close to pare to my gauge lines. I settled on trimming the narrow cheek right down to the gauge line. Then trimming the thicker cheek close to the gauge line and pared and tested until I got the fit. By the time I finished fitting the tenons, I was hitting the fit on the first try.

Brown Wood Rectangle Wood stain Plank


Control and sensitivity

One last technique issue that I had to overcome. When I was splitting off the tenon cheeks, I noticed that I had a tendency to put too much downward pressure on the chisel. I personally am inclined to use too much muscle when I work and I have had to learn sensitivity. Anyway, this oak splits quite easily. If you put too much downward pressure on the chisel, it will blow through the split and push down into the tenon shoulder when you tap it with the mallet. This will possibly damage the shoulder line or even the face of the board. So only gentle pressure is needed to position the chisel.

Now on to the rail joinery for the drawer end….
 

Attachments

#13 ·
A few details before....

Before I launch into the next stage of my table build, I thought I would share a few learnings and insights from the mortise and tenon work.

Only a few tools

I think it is interesting how few hand tools I needed to create the mortise and tenons. Just a few chisels, a crosscut tenon saw and some basic layout tools.

Wood Tool Table Wood stain Hardwood


The mortise chisel is 5/16" wide, which is a really nice size for tenons with 3/4" boards. It falls right between 1/3 and 1/2 of the board thickness. It is also the size on the original table. This size allows you to use a 1/4" bench chisel to clean out the mortise, which is also nice because it has some clearance and helps avoid wallowing out the sides of the mortise. I used an old 1/4" square edge chisel and it felt sturdy and worked great.

Another chisel that I really enjoyed using is the 1" square edged chisel. I guess you can call this a framing or firmer chisel, but it was very versatile. It is sturdy enough for the mallet but also works well for paring. I seem to have better luck with the square edge chisels when trimming my joints. It seems to guide my eye and I get better results. I guess if a person can have a favorite chisel, this would be mine.

Wood Tool Hardwood Varnish Wood stain


Before I started cutting the tenons, I tried a few different saws on the shoulder cut. First I tried my dovetail saw. The results were acceptable, but I tended to cut out of square and it was a little rough. I also tried the rip tenon saw. This was nice because it cut quickly, but it was too aggressive and tended to chew up and cut into the shoulder line. Finally, I settled on the cross cut tenon saw. This saw is a bit taller, so I had better luck staying square in the cut. It has a narrower set and cut a crisp shoulder which minimized paring. The downside is that it cuts more slowly than the others, so it takes quite a bit more strokes to cut down to depth.

Smoothing plane Plane Hand tool Block plane Wood


A bit of practice

My mortise and tenons came out with a nice fit. But full disclosure, I practiced before I did the actual joinery for the table. I used an offcut from the rail boards and cut several tenons, maybe 5 or 6 times. This allowed me to better understand how close to pare to my gauge lines. I settled on trimming the narrow cheek right down to the gauge line. Then trimming the thicker cheek close to the gauge line and pared and tested until I got the fit. By the time I finished fitting the tenons, I was hitting the fit on the first try.

Brown Wood Rectangle Wood stain Plank


Control and sensitivity

One last technique issue that I had to overcome. When I was splitting off the tenon cheeks, I noticed that I had a tendency to put too much downward pressure on the chisel. I personally am inclined to use too much muscle when I work and I have had to learn sensitivity. Anyway, this oak splits quite easily. If you put too much downward pressure on the chisel, it will blow through the split and push down into the tenon shoulder when you tap it with the mallet. This will possibly damage the shoulder line or even the face of the board. So only gentle pressure is needed to position the chisel.

Now on to the rail joinery for the drawer end….
Tom, good advice all around. I'm enjoying watching your build since I'm in the midst of making a contemporary side table using hand tools only. Thanks for the blog.
 

Attachments

#14 ·
Back to the Table

Finally getting back to my table project. Work, family, holidays, etc. I think one of my biggest challenges is stepping away from a project and then getting my head back into the process from where I left off.

So with the three rails completed with mortise and tenons, I can work on the drawer rails. On the original antique table, the top rail appears to be a bridle joint. I could not tell how the lower joint was constructed, but my guess is a mortise and tenon.

Wood Gas Brick Metal Tints and shades


Brown Wood Plank Wood stain Rectangle


I decided to do mine slightly different with a lap dovetail on the top rail. The bottom rail will have one 3/8" mortise. The first thing is to cut the extra off of the top of the legs. I knifed all the way around and cut off the excess with a hand saw. Then I laid out for the lower rail. I reset my mortise gauge for a 3/8" mortise with the 3/32" set back and marked the leg mortise. This is relatively small and deep (1-1/8") mortise, so I decided to bore it out with a 5/16" auger and trim it to the knife lines with the 1/4" chisel. A square side chisel works really well for this. I inserted one of my practice tenons to help prevent blowout where the mortises intersect.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Table


Wood Finger Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Wood Flooring Floor Hardwood Table


Wood Table Rectangle Floor Flooring


Wood Wood stain Gas Hardwood Plank


Brown Table Rectangle Wood Wood stain


Next I laid out the tenon by adjusting the mortise gauge again for the set back. The back side of the rail overhangs the back of the leg and forms a bridle for extra support. I used a regular marking gauge for the bridle. Then I just sawed and trimmed it out working to the gauge marks and knife lines.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Rectangle Plank


Wood Wood stain Flooring Floor Plank


Brown Rectangle Wood Floor Flooring


Wood Flooring Wood stain Floor Plank


Wood Tool Wood stain Hardwood Gas


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Tool


Where the tenons intersect, I cut out the side rail to accommodate the drawer rail.

Wood Wood stain Flooring Floor Hardwood


For the top rail, I laid out and cut the dovetail, and transferred to the top of the leg. Then I chopped out the socket and I trimmed to fit. One of my dovetails is a bit loose, so I will have to put a slip of wood in there to tighten it at assembly time. But I think it will be fine. I can also add a screw which is not uncommon.

Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Tool Wood stain Table Hardwood


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Gas Rectangle


Wood Tool Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


Wood Gas Wood stain Plywood Hardwood


It's tempting to glue this up now that the joints are ready, but there is more to do on the frame…
 

Attachments

#15 ·
Back to the Table

Finally getting back to my table project. Work, family, holidays, etc. I think one of my biggest challenges is stepping away from a project and then getting my head back into the process from where I left off.

So with the three rails completed with mortise and tenons, I can work on the drawer rails. On the original antique table, the top rail appears to be a bridle joint. I could not tell how the lower joint was constructed, but my guess is a mortise and tenon.

Wood Gas Brick Metal Tints and shades


Brown Wood Plank Wood stain Rectangle


I decided to do mine slightly different with a lap dovetail on the top rail. The bottom rail will have one 3/8" mortise. The first thing is to cut the extra off of the top of the legs. I knifed all the way around and cut off the excess with a hand saw. Then I laid out for the lower rail. I reset my mortise gauge for a 3/8" mortise with the 3/32" set back and marked the leg mortise. This is relatively small and deep (1-1/8") mortise, so I decided to bore it out with a 5/16" auger and trim it to the knife lines with the 1/4" chisel. A square side chisel works really well for this. I inserted one of my practice tenons to help prevent blowout where the mortises intersect.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Table


Wood Finger Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Wood Flooring Floor Hardwood Table


Wood Table Rectangle Floor Flooring


Wood Wood stain Gas Hardwood Plank


Brown Table Rectangle Wood Wood stain


Next I laid out the tenon by adjusting the mortise gauge again for the set back. The back side of the rail overhangs the back of the leg and forms a bridle for extra support. I used a regular marking gauge for the bridle. Then I just sawed and trimmed it out working to the gauge marks and knife lines.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Rectangle Plank


Wood Wood stain Flooring Floor Plank


Brown Rectangle Wood Floor Flooring


Wood Flooring Wood stain Floor Plank


Wood Tool Wood stain Hardwood Gas


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Tool


Where the tenons intersect, I cut out the side rail to accommodate the drawer rail.

Wood Wood stain Flooring Floor Hardwood


For the top rail, I laid out and cut the dovetail, and transferred to the top of the leg. Then I chopped out the socket and I trimmed to fit. One of my dovetails is a bit loose, so I will have to put a slip of wood in there to tighten it at assembly time. But I think it will be fine. I can also add a screw which is not uncommon.

Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Tool Wood stain Table Hardwood


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Gas Rectangle


Wood Tool Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


Wood Gas Wood stain Plywood Hardwood


It's tempting to glue this up now that the joints are ready, but there is more to do on the frame…
Your making good progress Tom.

What's your plan for attaching the top?
 

Attachments

#17 ·
A Few Things before Glue

With the table joints done, I have a few things to take care of before glue up. I need to taper the legs, cut out for the swing arm and put in the notches for the screws for the top. I did the leg tapers first. They taper down to 1" square. Layout is an important part for me. I really need to stop each time and make sure I am tapering the inside of the legs. Pretty straight forward, I saw and plane the tapers. It is a lot of exercise! When I get near the end of the sawing, I add a backer to avoid splitting off the waste. I work down the cut with a jack plane. I finish it with a ridiculously long 28" jointer plane. It's the first time I have used it on a project, but it really worked well for this.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Varnish Plank


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Flooring Varnish


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Lumber


Wood Table Hardwood Machine tool Wood stain


I also cut out for the swing arm in the long rails. The ends are angled to allow the swing arm to turn freely. I made a series of saw cuts down to 3/4" deep every 1" or so. I knocked out the bulk of the waste with a chisel. Then I clamped a straight edged board in the vise as a reference surface and worked down the recess with the chisel and plane.

Wood Hardwood Tool Wood stain Machine tool


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Flooring


Table Wood Burin Tool Hardwood


Wood Table Wood stain Plank Hardwood


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Machine tool Gas


Then I fitted a 3/4" x 1-1/2" board and screwed it in place so that the swing arms can be perpendicular without interference.

Furniture Table Wood Machine tool Workbench


Wood Saw Workbench Hardwood Flooring


Wood Table Tool Workbench Engineering


Finally, I cut the notches for the screws to hold the top in the traditional way. No magic here, just lay it out and work it down with chisels. The hole for the screw will be angled to match the notch and a little oversized to allow for expansion of the top.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Material property Hardwood


Table Wood Wood stain Hardwood Tool


Wood Gas Sports equipment Hardwood Satellite phone


Wood Musical instrument Wood stain Tool Plank


Now I can glue it up and move on to the table top.

Wood Flooring Hardwood Cabinetry Gas


Wood Wheel Tire Hardwood Plywood
 

Attachments

#18 ·
A Few Things before Glue

With the table joints done, I have a few things to take care of before glue up. I need to taper the legs, cut out for the swing arm and put in the notches for the screws for the top. I did the leg tapers first. They taper down to 1" square. Layout is an important part for me. I really need to stop each time and make sure I am tapering the inside of the legs. Pretty straight forward, I saw and plane the tapers. It is a lot of exercise! When I get near the end of the sawing, I add a backer to avoid splitting off the waste. I work down the cut with a jack plane. I finish it with a ridiculously long 28" jointer plane. It's the first time I have used it on a project, but it really worked well for this.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Varnish Plank


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Flooring Varnish


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Lumber


Wood Table Hardwood Machine tool Wood stain


I also cut out for the swing arm in the long rails. The ends are angled to allow the swing arm to turn freely. I made a series of saw cuts down to 3/4" deep every 1" or so. I knocked out the bulk of the waste with a chisel. Then I clamped a straight edged board in the vise as a reference surface and worked down the recess with the chisel and plane.

Wood Hardwood Tool Wood stain Machine tool


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Flooring


Table Wood Burin Tool Hardwood


Wood Table Wood stain Plank Hardwood


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Machine tool Gas


Then I fitted a 3/4" x 1-1/2" board and screwed it in place so that the swing arms can be perpendicular without interference.

Furniture Table Wood Machine tool Workbench


Wood Saw Workbench Hardwood Flooring


Wood Table Tool Workbench Engineering


Finally, I cut the notches for the screws to hold the top in the traditional way. No magic here, just lay it out and work it down with chisels. The hole for the screw will be angled to match the notch and a little oversized to allow for expansion of the top.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Material property Hardwood


Table Wood Wood stain Hardwood Tool


Wood Gas Sports equipment Hardwood Satellite phone


Wood Musical instrument Wood stain Tool Plank


Now I can glue it up and move on to the table top.

Wood Flooring Hardwood Cabinetry Gas


Wood Wheel Tire Hardwood Plywood
Very nice work. I wish I had stuck to handwork instead of buying a lot of machine tools when I first started woodworking. That was before I found out that the work process was more fun than having a finished project. I have learned handwork since, but regret all the years of pleasure wasted. Of course now that I am old I am glad to have those machines, but handwork is so much more fun with less sawdust and noise.
 

Attachments

#19 ·
A Pembroke and The Season?

Well it happened. The season arrived at our house. The cold and flu season along with the holiday season. Work, travel and illness really put a dent into my table build schedule. But it is time for some vacation and the illness has pretty much passed. I have started preparing the table top, but before I get into that, I need to learn how to make a drop leaf rule joint with some old tools. I have never made a rule joint before, and of course I want to do it with hand tools.

I need some supplies. I am going to cut my joints with period tools. In this case it will be with a hollow and round plane, a moving fillister plane and a rabbet plane. Fortunately, I found a local purveyor of antique tools (thanks Doug!) and he was able to get me a couple hollow and round planes in the size that I needed which is to make 3/8" rule joint similar to the original. Also Doug was kind enough to send me an old article from Fine Woodworking magazine circa 1979 that explains laying out and cutting the rule joint with hand tools.

Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Rectangle


I also need the hinges so I went in search on the internet. I don't really want to spend a lot of money on hinges for this table as it is mostly a learning experience for me. They have some options at Lee Valley and Woodcraft. I was checking out Gramercy tools and noticed this item for plans to make a Pembroke table which looks a lot like the table I am trying to build. So maybe my table is a Pembroke table? Interesting. I am not really knowledgable about the various kinds of furniture.

Table Furniture Rectangle Font Line
Table Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


I found these inexpensive hinges at Woodcraft. They are not exactly right and not exactly wrong. But I think they should work OK for my table. the main thing is that I think they are supposed to be pretty much flat on one side. On these, the hinge barrel protrudes a bit, but I don't think it will cause any interference if they are placed carefully.

Wood Tool Wood stain Hardwood Eyewear


I decided to practice on some poplar board scraps. Laying out the rule joint was pretty straight forward using the article. I set up a couple marking gauges to scribe the layout lines, working hard to keep my face sides oriented properly. One gauge is set to the depth of the hinge pin center which happens to match the thickness of the hinge wings. I set up another gauge to the radius of my rule joint arc which is 3/8". I used a compass to lay out the arc on the ends. I used the fillister plane to cut down to the layout lines and then the rabbet plane to remove the bulk of the waste. Starting the hollow cut is helpful to use a gouge and mallet to help it track. I simply worked with the hollow and round to work down the joint and I did some testing along the way. I did not bother to make a scratch stock since I am using the planes, but I did prepare a sanding block with a round side and a hollow side so as the clean up and micro adjust the joint. It worked well.

Tableware Wood Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


Wood Hand tool Nail Tool Metalworking hand tool


Wood Wood stain Floor Hardwood Flooring


Wood Rectangle Outdoor furniture Wood stain Floor


Wood Table Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Floor Hardwood


Wood Sleeve Rectangle Flooring Hardwood


Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Audio equipment


Installing the hinges went pretty well. I used a 1/4" chisel and gouge to cut out for the hinge barrel. I sawed the sides of the hinge as was done on the original in the old tradition. Then I just chiseled out the waste and tested with the hinge. It turned out pretty well except you need to be careful when cutting into the edge of the board as some of it can be seen and it is best to have a clean line. On mine, the gap for the right hinge looks a little bit better than the left. So I will keep that in mind when I make the real thing.

Wood Flooring Floor Plank Wood stain


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Wood stain


Wood Table Tool Rectangle Ruler


Wood Wood stain Rectangle Hardwood Tool


Table Wood Rectangle Hardwood Wood stain


Wood Table Desk Flooring Hardwood


So my practice is done. Now I need to try it on bigger boards and in oak. We shall see!

Merry Christmas!
 

Attachments

#20 ·
A Pembroke and The Season?

Well it happened. The season arrived at our house. The cold and flu season along with the holiday season. Work, travel and illness really put a dent into my table build schedule. But it is time for some vacation and the illness has pretty much passed. I have started preparing the table top, but before I get into that, I need to learn how to make a drop leaf rule joint with some old tools. I have never made a rule joint before, and of course I want to do it with hand tools.

I need some supplies. I am going to cut my joints with period tools. In this case it will be with a hollow and round plane, a moving fillister plane and a rabbet plane. Fortunately, I found a local purveyor of antique tools (thanks Doug!) and he was able to get me a couple hollow and round planes in the size that I needed which is to make 3/8" rule joint similar to the original. Also Doug was kind enough to send me an old article from Fine Woodworking magazine circa 1979 that explains laying out and cutting the rule joint with hand tools.

Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Rectangle


I also need the hinges so I went in search on the internet. I don't really want to spend a lot of money on hinges for this table as it is mostly a learning experience for me. They have some options at Lee Valley and Woodcraft. I was checking out Gramercy tools and noticed this item for plans to make a Pembroke table which looks a lot like the table I am trying to build. So maybe my table is a Pembroke table? Interesting. I am not really knowledgable about the various kinds of furniture.

Table Furniture Rectangle Font Line
Table Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


I found these inexpensive hinges at Woodcraft. They are not exactly right and not exactly wrong. But I think they should work OK for my table. the main thing is that I think they are supposed to be pretty much flat on one side. On these, the hinge barrel protrudes a bit, but I don't think it will cause any interference if they are placed carefully.

Wood Tool Wood stain Hardwood Eyewear


I decided to practice on some poplar board scraps. Laying out the rule joint was pretty straight forward using the article. I set up a couple marking gauges to scribe the layout lines, working hard to keep my face sides oriented properly. One gauge is set to the depth of the hinge pin center which happens to match the thickness of the hinge wings. I set up another gauge to the radius of my rule joint arc which is 3/8". I used a compass to lay out the arc on the ends. I used the fillister plane to cut down to the layout lines and then the rabbet plane to remove the bulk of the waste. Starting the hollow cut is helpful to use a gouge and mallet to help it track. I simply worked with the hollow and round to work down the joint and I did some testing along the way. I did not bother to make a scratch stock since I am using the planes, but I did prepare a sanding block with a round side and a hollow side so as the clean up and micro adjust the joint. It worked well.

Tableware Wood Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


Wood Hand tool Nail Tool Metalworking hand tool


Wood Wood stain Floor Hardwood Flooring


Wood Rectangle Outdoor furniture Wood stain Floor


Wood Table Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Floor Hardwood


Wood Sleeve Rectangle Flooring Hardwood


Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Audio equipment


Installing the hinges went pretty well. I used a 1/4" chisel and gouge to cut out for the hinge barrel. I sawed the sides of the hinge as was done on the original in the old tradition. Then I just chiseled out the waste and tested with the hinge. It turned out pretty well except you need to be careful when cutting into the edge of the board as some of it can be seen and it is best to have a clean line. On mine, the gap for the right hinge looks a little bit better than the left. So I will keep that in mind when I make the real thing.

Wood Flooring Floor Plank Wood stain


Brown Wood Rectangle Flooring Wood stain


Wood Table Tool Rectangle Ruler


Wood Wood stain Rectangle Hardwood Tool


Table Wood Rectangle Hardwood Wood stain


Wood Table Desk Flooring Hardwood


So my practice is done. Now I need to try it on bigger boards and in oak. We shall see!

Merry Christmas!
Tom,

Thanks for showing us your technique for making that tricky joint. Christmas blessings to you and yours.

L/W
 

Attachments

#21 ·
Working the Top

The holiday season really sucks up the free time, but I have been working the top for the past couple weeks. It's a fun process, but the rule joint is quite a challenge and a bit time consuming if you do it with hollows and rounds. I can't really recommend it if you need to make this joint on a regular basis. In the end, I am pretty satisfied with the result. Yes, it could be cleaner and tighter, but it's fine. I have a few old, antique drop-leaf tables in my home and some of them are quite similar in fit to the one that I made.

I decided to tongue and groove the top. It's not really necessary, but it is in keeping with the old tables from that era. Since the boards are a bit bigger, I moved over to my new Moravian bench which is located in my unheated garage. But it was a nice December day in New Jersey and made for a pleasant afternoon. I jointed the boards with the long plane and cut the T&G with a couple match planes that I worked pretty hard to sharpen and set. The planes jammed up several times, so it was a bit of a pain to clear out the shavings. The joint cut well enough, but the planes are really set up for flooring, so I had to do some trimming to tighten up and remove the gaps. Then I glued and clamped from both sides, trying hard to maintain a flat panel.

Wood Creative arts Wood stain Hardwood Flooring


Wood Flooring Wood stain Floor Hardwood


Wood Natural material Wood stain Floor Hardwood


Wood Flooring Hardwood Wood stain Natural material


Wheel Tire Bicycle Wood Wood stain


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Rectangle


Wood Tool Rectangle Flooring Gas


The result was a decent panel for the top which I cleaned up and flattened a bit more with a smooth plane and card scraper. I was not seeking perfection, just a reasonably flat top. Lastly, I trimmed the board to size and squared up the ends.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Flooring Floor


Table Building Wood Interior design Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Wood Flooring Floor Table Rectangle


Wood Table Rectangle Floor Wood stain


Wood Table Varnish Plank Hardwood


Wood Table Art Flooring Hardwood


Making the rule joint was the same process that I shared in the previous blog. It was challenging on the longer boards and required a lot of test fitting and trimming to get a decent match. Here are a few pictures for your amusement.

Wood Rectangle Table Wood stain Flooring


Table Wood Flooring Wood stain Floor


Wood Gas Machine tool Hardwood Office equipment


Table Wood Wood stain Floor Flooring


Wood Rectangle Table Flooring Floor


Next I will install the hinges and attach the top to the base. Getting close now!
 

Attachments

#22 ·
Working the Top

The holiday season really sucks up the free time, but I have been working the top for the past couple weeks. It's a fun process, but the rule joint is quite a challenge and a bit time consuming if you do it with hollows and rounds. I can't really recommend it if you need to make this joint on a regular basis. In the end, I am pretty satisfied with the result. Yes, it could be cleaner and tighter, but it's fine. I have a few old, antique drop-leaf tables in my home and some of them are quite similar in fit to the one that I made.

I decided to tongue and groove the top. It's not really necessary, but it is in keeping with the old tables from that era. Since the boards are a bit bigger, I moved over to my new Moravian bench which is located in my unheated garage. But it was a nice December day in New Jersey and made for a pleasant afternoon. I jointed the boards with the long plane and cut the T&G with a couple match planes that I worked pretty hard to sharpen and set. The planes jammed up several times, so it was a bit of a pain to clear out the shavings. The joint cut well enough, but the planes are really set up for flooring, so I had to do some trimming to tighten up and remove the gaps. Then I glued and clamped from both sides, trying hard to maintain a flat panel.

Wood Creative arts Wood stain Hardwood Flooring


Wood Flooring Wood stain Floor Hardwood


Wood Natural material Wood stain Floor Hardwood


Wood Flooring Hardwood Wood stain Natural material


Wheel Tire Bicycle Wood Wood stain


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Rectangle


Wood Tool Rectangle Flooring Gas


The result was a decent panel for the top which I cleaned up and flattened a bit more with a smooth plane and card scraper. I was not seeking perfection, just a reasonably flat top. Lastly, I trimmed the board to size and squared up the ends.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Flooring Floor


Table Building Wood Interior design Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Wood Flooring Floor Table Rectangle


Wood Table Rectangle Floor Wood stain


Wood Table Varnish Plank Hardwood


Wood Table Art Flooring Hardwood


Making the rule joint was the same process that I shared in the previous blog. It was challenging on the longer boards and required a lot of test fitting and trimming to get a decent match. Here are a few pictures for your amusement.

Wood Rectangle Table Wood stain Flooring


Table Wood Flooring Wood stain Floor


Wood Gas Machine tool Hardwood Office equipment


Table Wood Wood stain Floor Flooring


Wood Rectangle Table Flooring Floor


Next I will install the hinges and attach the top to the base. Getting close now!
Tom,

Nice work! It looks like you achieved a perfect joint!

L/W
 

Attachments

#23 ·
Winterthur, Hinges and a Quick Drawer

Really starting to wrap up the work on this drop leaf table. Over the holidays, I visited Winterthur for the Yuletide mansion tour. It is really interesting to see all the furniture on display. Meanwhile, they have a nice gallery display of the Dominy workshop and some furniture pieces on display that were made at the shop. One of the items was a "Breakfast Table" aka Pembroke table. Somehow, I missed a picture of the actual table which was similar to mine, but a bit more refined. I did get a picture of the plaque which I found interesting:

Font Wood Rectangle Art Event


This piece really has a lot of names. Moving on to the hinges, I changed my method from the practice piece. Because my hinges are not tapered and kind of thin, it made it difficult to get a refined cutout for the hinge on the face of the joint. So my order of work changed a little bit. Instead of starting by cutting out for the barrel and then chiseling out the mortise, I decided to use a router plane to create a level mortise with a clean cutout. So the steps are:

1. Lay out the mortise location with the barrel in line with the gauge mark.
2. Make the shallow saw cuts for the sides of the mortise.
3. Clean out the bulk of the waste with the chisel.
4. Level the mortise to depth with the router plane.
5. Chisel and gouge out for the hinge barrel on the main table top.

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Hardwood


Wood Table Rectangle Tool Wood stain


Wood Table Tool Wood stain Hardwood


Table Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Table Hand tool Wood Wood stain Tool


By using this method, the cutout area for the hinge (which tends to show in the finished joint) looks fairly crisp and clean.

Brown Table Wood Flooring Floor


The last good size item is to fashion a drawer. I simply matched what was done on the original table. The process is basically the same as my drawer in my Moravian workbench blog. I used 3/4" oak for the front from an offcut and 1/2" poplar for the rest of the drawer. I really enjoy beveling and fitting the bottom boards. Here are some pretty pictures:

Wood Floor Flooring Table Hardwood


Rectangle Wood Table Wood stain Plank


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Plank


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Flooring Plank


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Flooring


Rectangle Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


Rectangle Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


Just a few small items to finish up the table. I am feeling pretty good about my first attempt at table making with hand tools. But it does take me a long time working in fits and starts.
 

Attachments

#24 ·
Winterthur, Hinges and a Quick Drawer

Really starting to wrap up the work on this drop leaf table. Over the holidays, I visited Winterthur for the Yuletide mansion tour. It is really interesting to see all the furniture on display. Meanwhile, they have a nice gallery display of the Dominy workshop and some furniture pieces on display that were made at the shop. One of the items was a "Breakfast Table" aka Pembroke table. Somehow, I missed a picture of the actual table which was similar to mine, but a bit more refined. I did get a picture of the plaque which I found interesting:

Font Wood Rectangle Art Event


This piece really has a lot of names. Moving on to the hinges, I changed my method from the practice piece. Because my hinges are not tapered and kind of thin, it made it difficult to get a refined cutout for the hinge on the face of the joint. So my order of work changed a little bit. Instead of starting by cutting out for the barrel and then chiseling out the mortise, I decided to use a router plane to create a level mortise with a clean cutout. So the steps are:

1. Lay out the mortise location with the barrel in line with the gauge mark.
2. Make the shallow saw cuts for the sides of the mortise.
3. Clean out the bulk of the waste with the chisel.
4. Level the mortise to depth with the router plane.
5. Chisel and gouge out for the hinge barrel on the main table top.

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Hardwood


Wood Table Rectangle Tool Wood stain


Wood Table Tool Wood stain Hardwood


Table Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Table Hand tool Wood Wood stain Tool


By using this method, the cutout area for the hinge (which tends to show in the finished joint) looks fairly crisp and clean.

Brown Table Wood Flooring Floor


The last good size item is to fashion a drawer. I simply matched what was done on the original table. The process is basically the same as my drawer in my Moravian workbench blog. I used 3/4" oak for the front from an offcut and 1/2" poplar for the rest of the drawer. I really enjoy beveling and fitting the bottom boards. Here are some pretty pictures:

Wood Floor Flooring Table Hardwood


Rectangle Wood Table Wood stain Plank


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Plank


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Flooring Plank


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Flooring


Rectangle Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


Rectangle Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


Just a few small items to finish up the table. I am feeling pretty good about my first attempt at table making with hand tools. But it does take me a long time working in fits and starts.
- I like the historical "pocket screws" to attach the top.
- well done with the hinges and the rounding.
 

Attachments

#27 ·
Nails and a Knob

A few items to finish up. The drawer needs glides to ride on and keep it centered. The original that I based this on had slips of wood that were nailed together in place. So I did the same thing. It was kind of a simple pleasure to use nails for furniture assembly. Screws seem to be the go to option these days. I used Tremont cut fine finish nails and nailed them with the grain to minimize splitting potential. I also used glue. Careful not to nail through the sides! I glued a couple blocks on the end for drawer stops.

Wood Office ruler Rectangle Table Floor


Wood Wood stain Material property Hardwood Table


Wood Tool Wood stain Hardwood Plank


I need a knob for the drawer. Many of these tables have brass pulls of some sort, but mine is a pretty basic version, so I decided to turn a simple mushroom shaped knob from a scrap of leg cut off. I am not an experienced turner, so I followed the process used by Roy Underhill in his Turning Shaker Knobs episode of the Woodwright's Shop. Except that I turned a straight shaft instead of a taper so that I could mount it in a drill chuck for finishing the top of the knob.

Wood Gas Metalworking hand tool Tool Metalworking


Wood Machine tool Gas Machine Metal


Wood Metalworking Machine tool Gas Engineering


I left a 1/2" round section on the bottom of the knob to sink into the drawer front and then screwed it on from the inside of the drawer. I think it looks quite nice.

Wood Musical instrument Hardwood Tool Folk instrument


Table Furniture Wood Desk Writing desk


The last little bit is to add the corner detail on the top. I chose to keep it simple again and put a 4" radius curve on each corner. I cut those out with a coping saw and used a rasp to smooth the curve. The top is attached with screws in pockets on the end and holes in the top drawer rail. The holes are oversized to allow some expansion and contraction of the top.

Table Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Wood Table Rectangle Outdoor furniture Writing desk


The build is done. Now I will give it a nice sanding, add some finish and post it as a completed project. Thanks for joining me on my adventure! All the best!
 

Attachments

#28 ·
Nails and a Knob

A few items to finish up. The drawer needs glides to ride on and keep it centered. The original that I based this on had slips of wood that were nailed together in place. So I did the same thing. It was kind of a simple pleasure to use nails for furniture assembly. Screws seem to be the go to option these days. I used Tremont cut fine finish nails and nailed them with the grain to minimize splitting potential. I also used glue. Careful not to nail through the sides! I glued a couple blocks on the end for drawer stops.

Wood Office ruler Rectangle Table Floor


Wood Wood stain Material property Hardwood Table


Wood Tool Wood stain Hardwood Plank


I need a knob for the drawer. Many of these tables have brass pulls of some sort, but mine is a pretty basic version, so I decided to turn a simple mushroom shaped knob from a scrap of leg cut off. I am not an experienced turner, so I followed the process used by Roy Underhill in his Turning Shaker Knobs episode of the Woodwright's Shop. Except that I turned a straight shaft instead of a taper so that I could mount it in a drill chuck for finishing the top of the knob.

Wood Gas Metalworking hand tool Tool Metalworking


Wood Machine tool Gas Machine Metal


Wood Metalworking Machine tool Gas Engineering


I left a 1/2" round section on the bottom of the knob to sink into the drawer front and then screwed it on from the inside of the drawer. I think it looks quite nice.

Wood Musical instrument Hardwood Tool Folk instrument


Table Furniture Wood Desk Writing desk


The last little bit is to add the corner detail on the top. I chose to keep it simple again and put a 4" radius curve on each corner. I cut those out with a coping saw and used a rasp to smooth the curve. The top is attached with screws in pockets on the end and holes in the top drawer rail. The holes are oversized to allow some expansion and contraction of the top.

Table Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Wood Table Rectangle Outdoor furniture Writing desk


The build is done. Now I will give it a nice sanding, add some finish and post it as a completed project. Thanks for joining me on my adventure! All the best!
Looks perfect.

Any leaf sagging?
I have seen on underside of leaves of such tables, a thin wedge glued where the swinging arm arrives when the leaves are extended. It provides also some form of locking.
 

Attachments

#30 ·
#31 ·
No trouble with the links.
I had a question:
why did you choose angled haunches (not on the drawing by the way) and not straight ones (like Paul Sellers in his six episodes videos "how to make a table")?
 
#33 ·
A Cowardly Finish

I am pretty wimpy when it comes to finishing my projects. It stems from a total lack of knowledge and experience. In the past, I have used oil based stains, brush on polyurethane, oils, shellac, etc. Some woods do not take oil based stain very well. I did a cabinet in maple which took me a long time to build using my hand tool methods. I tried to stain it to match another piece and it was a blotchy mess. I had to rework the finish for days to get a decent look. Staining poplar has also not been a great experience.

My preference is to use no stain at all and keep it natural. But sometimes you want to bring out the grain or darken the piece. So I have gravitated to using tinted Danish oil and then a couple coats of wipe on polyurethane.

For my drop leaf table, I used oak which is actually pretty forgiving wood for staining and finishing. I considered no staining and just the clear coat, but I decided to use a couple coats of medium walnut Danish oil. It is super easy to apply and it gives the wood a rich look and a very even coloring. The only thing required is a bit of patience to allow the coats to dry. I am going with 2 coats of the Danish oil and a couple coats of clear wipe on poly. This kind of finish will be very easy to repair.

I usually coat the top on both sides. For some reason, I seem to think that will help with the wood stability which is probably a bunch of hogwash.

Does anyone else have an easy finish recommendation for a rank amateur? I'd like to know about it.

Wood Wood stain Floor Hardwood Flooring


Tableware Table Kona coffee Drinkware Dishware


Light Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Wood Table Flooring Wood stain Floor
 

Attachments

#34 ·
A Cowardly Finish

I am pretty wimpy when it comes to finishing my projects. It stems from a total lack of knowledge and experience. In the past, I have used oil based stains, brush on polyurethane, oils, shellac, etc. Some woods do not take oil based stain very well. I did a cabinet in maple which took me a long time to build using my hand tool methods. I tried to stain it to match another piece and it was a blotchy mess. I had to rework the finish for days to get a decent look. Staining poplar has also not been a great experience.

My preference is to use no stain at all and keep it natural. But sometimes you want to bring out the grain or darken the piece. So I have gravitated to using tinted Danish oil and then a couple coats of wipe on polyurethane.

For my drop leaf table, I used oak which is actually pretty forgiving wood for staining and finishing. I considered no staining and just the clear coat, but I decided to use a couple coats of medium walnut Danish oil. It is super easy to apply and it gives the wood a rich look and a very even coloring. The only thing required is a bit of patience to allow the coats to dry. I am going with 2 coats of the Danish oil and a couple coats of clear wipe on poly. This kind of finish will be very easy to repair.

I usually coat the top on both sides. For some reason, I seem to think that will help with the wood stability which is probably a bunch of hogwash.

Does anyone else have an easy finish recommendation for a rank amateur? I'd like to know about it.

Wood Wood stain Floor Hardwood Flooring


Tableware Table Kona coffee Drinkware Dishware


Light Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


Wood Table Flooring Wood stain Floor
Tom,

I'm an amateur when it comes to finishing so I stick with what works for me. Your finish looks great! Poly is a pretty durable finish for a table top; I think you made a good choice. I have pretty good results with poly so I'm hesitant to try other finishes.

L/W
 

Attachments

This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top