Michigan Chocolate Table

[gee-dub]

A friend in Michigan grows walnut and maple on his land.  I was lucky enough to get a slab of walnut (which he calls chocolate) a little over 3 years ago.  It arrived ready to work but has rested against the wall over by my drum sander so that I can contemplate it and try to figure out what it is to become.  Here it is now that I have moved it over to the bench area.

I realized about a week ago that it was a Hallway Table or Sofa Table . . . the names describing the form, not necessarily the placement.  It will go along a wall in the new master bedroom.

I have been getting better about not hurting myself over-lifting.  My son in law dropped by and helped me lift it onto a work surface.  He also helped me put some 8/4 maple up into the overhead rack as the cutting board project I will use that for got bumped by SWMBO . . . she wants the table first. 

You have all seen plenty of live edge videos.  I will knock the bulk of the bark off with a beater-chisel and a mallet.

 

Then break out a shave to clean things up.

I'll keep you posted as I move along.

 

 

[Chet]

Do you know at this point how much of this you will actually use - length, width and thickness wise for the table top?

On 9/26/2025 at 10:09 AM, gee-dub said:

Then break out a shave to clean things up.

I have a shave and claw hammer that were both made by my great grandfather back in the day when one had to make their own tools when they started an apprenticeship.

 

[gee-dub]

My hope is to split it approximately down the middle.  I would like to use near-full-length for the top; flat side against the wall, live edge out front, crosscut at the ends.  I would then like to take the leftovers and make a shorter shelf for below, flat against the wall, live edge out front, cross cut at the ends. 

I may also put a drawer box under the top but it will be pretty well out of sight.  It is a functional feature, not necessarily part of the design aesthetic.  If I end up with enough leftovers I will try to incorporate them into LOML's vanity that will set against a perpendicular wall in the master bedroom.  If not . . . I'll do something else 

[Coop]

Dang, that’s a chunk of walnut! How thick is that bugger?

One of my hw suppliers has a pretty good supply of hw slabs like that and yours would probably sell for 2k or so. Or he would price it at that, whether or not he sells them? 
Gonna be a neat project to watch! 

[gee-dub]

It is about 2-3/8" on average.  It is mobile mill sawn so there is some irregularity.  Regardless there should be plenty of thickness for me to mill the top and shelf from the slab without issue.  I have not done a SketchUp of the design that is in my head but it should become clear pretty quickly.  It is not all that complex ;-)  I know I usually give a diagram or rendering of what I am shooting for so I apologize for the mystery.  It is not intentional . . . I just don't feel like drawing out the live edge forms due to sheer laziness. 

[Coop]

Will you be using a router and sled to level the top surfaces? 

[gee-dub]

Once I decide on the dimensions I am sure neither piece will be wider than my planer. The planer sled should serve me on this I hope.

[Mark J]

Looking forward to following the design and build.

[Chet]

On 9/26/2025 at 8:26 PM, gee-dub said:

The planer sled should serve me on this I hope.

That is going to be a good workout running the slab portions and sled back and forth through the planer.

[gee-dub]

On 9/27/2025 at 8:33 AM, Chet said:

That is going to be a good workout running the slab portions and sled back and forth through the planer.

Thank goodness for top rollers but yes, it will kick my butt.  Just debarking the thing is kicking my butt .

The general idea is something like this.

I don't know who's this is but it is one of a dozen or so tables that I have looked at for ideas.  Mine will hopefully be a single piece top, not a glue up.  It will depend on how the layout progresses.  I have a check at one end of the slab.  I am hoping to do the layout so that I cut along that line.  If not i will lay in a bow-tie.  So many of these decisions (for me) require standing around with a cup of coffee and staring at things. 

[gee-dub]

Before I forget . . . love the fact that I added a hose and gate drop for occasional use. Also glad I save all those random pieces of Velcro.

I was doing a lot of hand work and making pretty slow progress.

I am surprised sometimes with all the tools I have that I will sometimes find myself stalled for lack of a tool. I don't normally work on slabs so my tools for those are a bit thin. I had removed much of the bark with a mallet and chisel followed up with an angle grinder and an Arbortech Turbo-plane. After that a shave. The Turboplane left a pretty rough surface probably due in the most part to my inexperience.

At any rate I was about to head off to the tool store for a flap-wheel sander to help smooth things out when I remembered . . . About 20-odd years ago my daughter bought me a Dragster belt sander. Despite being a B&D product these things got rave reviews and I asked for one for Christmas.

I was able to finish up the last 4 feet of edge in less time than the first 2 feet took me. Merry Christmas.



The profile will undoubtedly change as the piece comes together but I wanted to have a solid starting point since I am kind of doing this by the seat of my pants.

[wtnhighlander]

I have that same sander, and the narrow front end makes it surprisingly versatile.

[Coop]

When my kids and grandkids give me tools or even a DQ gift card, I always acknowledge having used it and I bet you’ll do the same with your daughter, even after 20 years. Lets them know you appreciate them and most importantly, it helps keep you on their gift list!

[Chet]

On 9/27/2025 at 9:46 AM, gee-dub said:

require standing around with a cup of coffee and staring at things.

There isn't a dang thing wrong with that technique.

[Coop]

On 9/27/2025 at 8:40 PM, Chet said:

There isn't a dang thing wrong with that technique.

Until you go in the house for a second cup and forget what you were doing in the shop. Not that I’m guilty. 

[gee-dub]

On 9/27/2025 at 7:46 PM, Coop said:

Until you go in the house for a second cup and forget what you were doing in the shop. Not that I’m guilty. 

We call that "living in the hereafter".  We walk into a room and think "what did I come in here after?".

[gee-dub]

After a quick consult with the client (SWMBO) the layout was finalized. The top will come from the left side and the shelf from the right.

I used a scribe tool (Fast Cap's Accuscribe) with a piece of chalk in place of the usual pencil. This let's me follow the natural edge of the material without me getting too "artsy" in the process. My original artificial edges proposed to the client were not accepted.

My tracksaw (or my Porter Cable Mag-saw for that matter) will not make it all the way through the slab so I cut from one side . . .

. . .use a handsaw to cut all the way trough at each end and then use those kerfs as markers to lay the track to allow me to cut from the opposite side.

I can't believe that worked. We get to babysit the new grandson while the other grandkids and their parents go to a Truck Rally so I need to clean up the shop a bit and hop through a shower. I'll get some more time in tonight or tomorrow.

[Coop]

Came apart very well. What kind of stands are you using to support the two pieces?

[gee-dub]

On 9/28/2025 at 5:45 PM, Coop said:

Came apart very well. What kind of stands are you using to support the two pieces?

One is an adjustable Jaw Stand.  The other is a modified roller stand but really anything would have worked.  I just wanted to be sure the halves didn't try to separate via gravity when the partial cut was completed.  The main support is an adjustable height "Husky" roller table that I picked up during a Christmas sale.  It worked out so well I picked up a second one later on.

[gee-dub]

Yet another shout out to the Shinto Rasp. They come in a 200mm and 250mm length as well as a sort of "plane" configuration with an additional handle. I have never found the "plane" format all that useful but it seemed like a good idea at the time. At any rate, inexpensive, double sided and really handy.

I keep a couple of my work surfaces in the shop level with Mother Earth.

This makes them handy as reference surfaces when doing odd or awkward things.

The "jig saw as cut off saw" steps in.

I have not used the sled in a while so I give it a quick bit of wax.

I level the planer sled and then level the material on it. This lets me remove as little material as I have to.

I use the adjustable height roller tables as infeed and outfeed support.

I think this material is going to look pretty good.



Can't wait for the finish to hit it.

[gee-dub]

Should have mentioned . . . I take a rough measurement of the greatest height so I can set the planer bed quickly.

In this case starting at 5-1/8" including the sled.

The irregularities of rough sawn slabs cause the thickness to eventually normalize.

Top and shelf both done planer-wise.

Time to joint the wall-side edge and form the "show" edge.

[Coop]

I’m impressed and need to go back and review the build of your sled. 

[gee-dub]

On 9/29/2025 at 6:18 PM, Coop said:

I’m impressed and need to go back and review the build of your sled. 

Other than letting the glue dry overnight it only took a few hours to build.  I've been using it since 2009.

[Coop]

And in 2009, you apparently envisioned the length of this table!  Well done! 

[gee-dub]

I have a small square that I keep on the jointer. This lets me quickly confirm that things are where they should be when I reposition the fence. I frequently move the fence in and out depending on material width. This keeps me from wearing one spot on the cutterhead.

The square happens to have a hole in it so is stashed on this protruding bolt head and stays secure.

There is a bit of what may be wind shake damage. I could just rip another 1/4" off of the top slab but I thought I would try to save it. I can always rip it off later if things don't work out. I use some epoxy . . .

. . . and some CA once the epoxy has set overnight.

I have probably shown this doo-dad before. It is just a piece of poplar scrap with a couple of notches cut to straddle the twin vise screws.

The round hole is just for hanging it on the wall.

This keeps your material from touching the lube on the vise screws.

Ta-da!

The spoke shave is your friend on these irregular curved edges.

This is the natural edge curve but I may want to smooth it out a bit more for appearances sake.