Outdoor Table

[wdwerker]

It's coming along beautifully ! Organized, methodical work like yours is key to fitting that many parts together accurately .

[Dknapp34]

9 hours ago, TIODS said:

Wow does that make me appreciate my domino!  Nice work!  A lot of it but, nice job!

Thanks!  I'm definitely starting to see the appeal of the domino.  I've made some large tool purchases this year, so the tool budget is tapped out for the time being, but I can see myself getting one at some point.  I'm glad I'm doing this one the hard way though.  I've done M&T plenty of times before using different methods and with varying degrees of success, but this is the first time since getting my new TS, which unlike my old one has a reliable miter gauge, a new dado blade that actually works, and some reliable marking/measuring tools.  I figured since I've now settled on some good tools, I should do a project that would allow me to really lock down my technique and work-flow so that I can produce good results from now on without having to think about it much.

8 hours ago, wdwerker said:

It's coming along beautifully ! Organized, methodical work like yours is key to fitting that many parts together accurately .

Thanks, Steve!  I won't lie, i'm usually take more of a fly by the seat of my pants approach, which generally ends up ok, but has led to a lot of waste and unnecessary headaches along the way.  This is the first project where I've spent the time to do a sketch up first and really plan out everything in detail before making any sawdust.  Laying out and marking each of the parts for the top only took about 15 minutes, but its time well-spent.

I'm really trying to step up my planning and work-flow game on this project.  I can't promise it will be the best thing I've ever made (especially given that I had to compromise on the wood choice), but this project is all about improving my process.

[Chestnut]

This outdoor table is looking awesome. It also reminds me i started building one out of redwood like 2 years ago and haven't finished it. That's a really impressive amount of mortise and tenon work.

 

7 minutes ago, Dknapp34 said:

Thanks!  I'm definitely starting to see the appeal of the domino.  I've made some large tool purchases this year, so the tool budget is tapped out for the time being, but I can see myself getting one at some point.  I'm glad I'm doing this one the hard way though.  I've done M&T plenty of times before using different methods and with varying degrees of success, but this is the first time since getting my new TS, which unlike my old one has a reliable miter gauge, a new dado blade that actually works, and some reliable marking/measuring tools.  I figured since I've now settled on some good tools, I should do a project that would allow me to really lock down my technique and work-flow so that I can produce good results from now on without having to think about it much.

I totally agree on the saw part. I know a tool is a tool and a true craftsman can make thing with any of them but it's easier and faster with good tools. My old saw couldn't take a dado stack nor could i really even use a miter gauge because it was so small and tippy. I don't know what the Saw Stop miter gauge is like but the powermatic one is AWESOME, i don't know how i worked with out a miter gauge before now.

[Dknapp34]

So I'm trying to figure our what to do for a finish.  I know I want to use an outdoor oil-vanish blend (leaning towards General Finishes Outdoor Oil), but I think I may also want to do a dye or stain to even out the color variation in the Cypress and make give it a little darker color (not too dark, I'm thinking more a light-medium brown).  Does anyone have experience staining or dying Cypress?  My thought was that dye might be less prone to splotch, but I haven't worked with softwoods much, so I'm not really sure what direction to go in.  I'm also not sure about using dye for outdoor furniture.  

Obviously, I'll do test boards of whatever I pick, but I'd rather not have to spend a ton of money buying a bunch of stuff just to figure out what I ultimately want to use.  

[bushwacked]

looking great! 

So what did the electrician say was wrong?

[..Kev]

Epifanes would be a good finish option for an outdoor table.

 

[Coop]

The table is looking great! I like the idea of the jig for the mortises. I've used on a cedar gate and also on cedar and cypress Adirondack chairs " Australian Timber Oil" by Cabot. It says it's a combination of linseed oil, long-oil alkyds and pure tung oil, for what that's worth? It also says to apply only one coat, for some reason. It tends to orange up the wood a tad but still looks good after 3 years. 

[Guest]

Dye blotches more than pigment, so if you are trying to minimize blotch you want pigment.  Also, dye fades in the sun much more quickly than pigment.  Personally I would skip the color, it is an outdoor table and color variation is the hallmark of real wood furniture.  Any kind of stain will look crappy and faded after some time in the sun. 

Epifanes is a great finish, just be sure to follow the instructions on the can precisely.  You do not want an epifanes finish to fail prematurely because it is a pain to remove.

I like penofin marine oil.  It is easy to apply and reapply, but you will need to reapply a few times per year.  

[Dknapp34]

22 hours ago, bushwacked said:

looking great! 

So what did the electrician say was wrong?

Thanks! When I bought it, the guy told me it was wired for 110v, so put a 110v plug on it.  Turns out It was wired for 220v the whole time, just couldn't tell because the wires weren't color coded correctly so it didn't match the diagram.  So he basically just put a 220v plug on it and capped off a loose wire in the switch box (it was red so I assumed it was live, but turns out it was neutral).  I felt kind of stupid since it was so easy to fix, but electrical stuff is not my thing, so I'm glad I called someone.  

22 hours ago, TIODS said:

Epifanes would be a good finish option for an outdoor table.

 

I'm considering that.  I guess its a choice between something that will last for a few years but be more work to refinish versus something that is less work but will need to be reapplied once or twice a year.  Epiphanes probably would be more protective from dings and scratches than a straight oil finish, right?  The Cypress is pretty soft, so maybe that's a good idea.  On the other hand, I'm lazy and I like the sound of reapplying a thin coat of oil once or twice a year rather than having to sand the entire thing every few years.

8 hours ago, Mike. said:

Dye blotches more than pigment, so if you are trying to minimize blotch you want pigment.  Also, dye fades in the sun much more quickly than pigment.  Personally I would skip the color, it is an outdoor table and color variation is the hallmark of real wood furniture.  Any kind of stain will look crappy and faded after some time in the sun. 

Thanks, guess I had it backwards. In my head when I think of stain, I think of the blotchy rustic DIY pine/2x4 nonsense that is everywhere now, so that must be where I got it from.  I generally prefer the natural color of the wood, but I usually work with hardwoods that have a nice natural color.  It's not that the cypress looks like butt -- in fact the light color is actually pretty nice -- but there are streaks of a darker yellow color that I'm not a huge fan of.  I would have been more selective in the stock I used to get more consistent grain and color, but I literally bought every single board my hardwood dealer had in stock and I have nothing but a pile of small cut-offs left over, not even enough for another short slat.  At the end of the day I'll probably just leave it alone and do a clear coat-- either epiphanes or an outdoor oil.

[Dknapp34]

So it's been a while since I've posted anything about this build.  A little over a month ago my mom passed away from pancreatic cancer.  She was diagnosed just a few weeks before she died.  I still can't believe how fast it all happened.  My mom was an amazing woman.  She was the most self-less and caring person I've even known and I miss her. 

Unfortunately, my mom won't get to see the table when it's done.  One of the reasons why my wife and I wanted a new outdoor table was so that we had more room to eat outside for when my parents came over.   Now there's always going to be an empty place at the table.  

I haven't been in the mood for woodworking the past few weeks, but I got back down into the basement tonight and it was pretty therapeutic, actually.  Hopefully I'll have an update on the table to post soon.   

 

 

[drzaius]

So sorry to hear about your mom. Mine had pancreatic cancer too, but was one of the very, very few to survive it. Go to your shop & make something that will remind you of her.

[..Kev]

Thoughts and prayers for your family!  We lost my MIL in a similar fashion.  

Your family is the most important thing you have!  The woodworking will come back when the time is right for you!

[wtnhighlander]

Very sorry about your Mom, you and your family will be in my prayers.

[Chestnut]

Sorry to hear about your mom @Dknapp34. My grandfather passed away from the same cancer before i was born. I remember him through the stories my dad has told, even though i never met him. I hope that you can eventually fill the empty table space with good stories and fond memories.

[estesbubba]

Sorry to hear about your mom and my thoughts are with your family. My mom passed away from cancer and shortly after that I got into woodworking. Several years later my wife and I were talking and realized that woodworking was my way to cope with losing her. Every time I go into the shop I think of her.

Even though your mother will never sit at your table she will look down every time you sit at it and be proud of you. 

[Cliff]

On 6/9/2016 at 9:31 PM, Dknapp34 said:

So it's been a while since I've posted anything about this build.  A little over a month ago my mom passed away from pancreatic cancer.  She was diagnosed just a few weeks before she died.  I still can't believe how fast it all happened.  My mom was an amazing woman.  She was the most self-less and caring person I've even known and I miss her. 

Unfortunately, my mom won't get to see the table when it's done.  One of the reasons why my wife and I wanted a new outdoor table was so that we had more room to eat outside for when my parents came over.   Now there's always going to be an empty place at the table.  

I haven't been in the mood for woodworking the past few weeks, but I got back down into the basement tonight and it was pretty therapeutic, actually.  Hopefully I'll have an update on the table to post soon.   

 

 

Lost my mom from lung cancer a couple of years ago. It was 7 months from diagnosis. Part of me wished it had been a couple of weeks because it's a horrid process. I hated that she had to go through that. 

I didn't start woodworking until a year after, and my stepdad always comments how proud my mom would be because she was very hands on learn stuff by her self type person. Half the tools I started with were hers. 

[Dknapp34]

Thanks for the kind words everyone.  It's been a rough couple of months, but getting back down in to the basement and doing some woodworking has helped make things seem normal, at least a little bit.  I've managed to get in the shop for the past few nights and make some progress on the table. 

I laminated some boards and milled them to size for the stretcher for the base.  I decided to cut the tenons on the stretcher before I cut the through mortises on the legs.  Not sure why I did it that way -- I usually do mortises before tenons -- but for some reason I had it in my head that I should the tenon first this time.  Anyway, I had no good way of accurately cutting the tenons on the stretcher since it was so big and unwieldy (and I don't trust my hand sawing skills), so I used that as an excuse to upgrade my miter gauge (also picked up a Woodpeckers square...the color matches the flip stop on the Incra, so it was a no brainer):

  

I marked the mortises off of the tenons and then make them slightly smaller than the marks so that I could fine tune the tenons to fit after the mortises were cut.  I drilled out most of the waste on the drill press and chiseled the rest:

Dry fit looked pretty good:

So then I cut the wedges for the tusk tenons using a 5 degree angle.   I traced the angle on the side of the tenon and used that as a guide to cut the mortises.  Same procedure -- drilled out most of the waste and finished with a chisel.  I cut the mortises slightly oversized so that they extended slightly (maybe 16th of an inch) into the leg mortises.  This way, when I hammer the wedges in, it will draw the leg into the shoulder of the stretch and make a nice tight fit (at least in theory).  Did a dry fit and it looks pretty good:

 

 

[..Kev]

That's looking awesome!  Good therapy!

 

[Janello]

Real sorry to hear you lost your Mom. The table looks amazing. Try to keep your chin up, buddy.

[Ronn W]

I hereby dub you master of the M&T.

[Cliff]

Looks great, congrats on the new tools. That Woodpecker square is probably the best money I've spent on woodworking. 

[pkinneb]

Looks great!! You won't have to worry about it blowing over

 

[Dknapp34]

On 6/14/2016 at 9:14 PM, Ronn W said:

I hereby dub you master of the M&T.

Don't know if I'd go that far, but I certainly have done a bunch of them!

So I glued up the legs and reassembled the base with the tusk tenons.  I think I'm not going to glue those, so the whole thing can be knock down in case we ever need to move it.  I dry fit the top together and put it on the base to see what it looks like all put together:

Looks like a table! I'm actually surprised by how sturdy it is.  Even with top not being glued up yet I can lean on the middle and there's barely any flex (and I'm a pretty heavy guy).  

Next up is gluing up the top.  Definitely going to be a stressful one with all those M&Ts.  I'm using West Systems epoxy with the slow hardener though, so hopefully I'll have plenty of open time to work with.  Also, I don't have any clamps long enough to clamp the whole thing end to end, so I'm going to have to get creative.  Haven't really figured that part out yet...any suggestions would be welcome.

[Just Bob]

The table looks great.

34 minutes ago, Dknapp34 said:

Also, I don't have any clamps long enough to clamp the whole thing end to end, so I'm going to have to get creative.  Haven't really figured that part out yet...any suggestions would be welcome.

 

what type of clamps do you have?  I just bought 2 of the Bessey extenders, they worked out well.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0014A44Y8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[Dknapp34]

1 minute ago, Just Bob said:

The table looks great.

 

what type of clamps do you have?  I just bought 2 of the Bessey extenders, they worked out well.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0014A44Y8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have a few of everything, including some Besseys.  I might just have to try that.