LumberJocks Woodworking Forum banner

Fixing table top ding

1K views 11 replies 10 participants last post by  TungOil 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
I have a small ding in a Sapele table top I just built. It is half an inch long and about 1/16th of an inch wide. It is at a point where to boards came together during glueup. I have researched wood filler and wood putty and it sounds like wood filler is a better option. Am I correct? How would others fix this defect? The table is sanded but I have not applied finish yet. When I do finish I plan to use arm r Seal semi gloss
 
#3 ·
Photos help. An area of expertise of mine is defect repair. Like Herring suggested, if it's a dent, you can steam it out. If it's a gouge, you need to fill it.

Since it's on a table top, soft fills won't stand up to use. Like I said, without a photo, you won't get much help.
 
#5 ·
If all else fails there is always the option to patch, I resized an entertainment center during the build forgetting that I drew it at the first size because of some defects in the stock for the top. Wound up cutting templates and putting 3 heart shaped patches into the top, they're now my favorite part of the piece.
Brown Rectangle Textile Wood Floor
 

Attachments

#6 ·
I dropped a maple box off my table saw that I was ready to apply finish to. really bad crush on one corner. I was ready to scrap it and thought,, might as well soak the corner with water and apply heat to it and see what happens.. to my surprise it worked really well. re sanded it and looked great.
 
#9 · (Edited by Moderator)
Since it is a small indent I am wondering if it will simply be filled in by the multiple coats of arm r Seal and grain filler that I will be applying.

- Neophyte74
I can't help you with so little information. "A small dent" could mean anything. As has been pointed out, if it's really a dent, meaning something hit it, you can steam it out. If it's a gouge, where something removed the wood, steaming won't work.

The idea behind steaming a dent is that a simple dent involves the wood cells being compressed. Steam will make them swell again and eliminate all or part of the dent.

Obviously, if the wood has been gouged out, that won't work and a filler is required. There are several different types of filler, and some are totally inappropriate for a table top. But the subject is too broad to cover in detail here.
 
#10 ·
#12 ·
I've been working with nothing but Sapele for the past 2 years. Sapele steams really well, start with that. If you find you have to use a filler the best match I found is Famowood walnut. White glue and sawdust will work if you are not staining the piece, but the glue will not stain the same so avoid that if you are staining.
 
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