Thread: Recycled Oak Extension Dining Table - WIP

Actually, that last picture was a dry fit, I've rounded all the edges off since.

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Router cutting the tenons. This did my head in as I'm a clean freak! I did manage to burn out my router tho. Another thing for the shopping list.

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Done. I gave them a touch up with my shoulder plane.

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Table ends glued and draw bored with 2 x 1/2" oak dowels in each joint. That should keep the joints in place!

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Ready to start attaching the top to the base. I used figure 8 thingos.

Slide mechanism in next posting...

Okay dokey...slide mechanism.

Bear in mind that this table weighs 122kg without the slides and extra steel. I'm using 1500mm extra heavy duty draw runners which are rated at 200kg. So, here's how I'm doing it:

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Angle steel is bolted to the slide and fixed to the table top with 35mm coach bolts.

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Not all the coach bolts are in, remember that I'm taking it apart to apply the finish

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Call a couple if friends over to help, and you have a heavy table on its legs.

Oh...forgot to mention, the side stretchers are held in place with 1/2" dowel.

Next: wood expansion/contraction questions answered (well to the best of my ability!). Finishing woes...I'd really like some help with this bit please...did I say 'pretty please'?

Finishing woes...I'd really like some help with this bit please...did I say 'pretty please'?

Looking good sir.

I've done a few things with similar recycled native wood and I usually just go for "danish oil" / "scandanavian oil" of some sort. I used to like cabots but they changed their formula, i now use feast and watson. Good stuff. The result is a satin sheen that still has a non-plastic feel and is fairly durable.

My method is slightly different to what the manufacturer recommends though. I apply three coats, 24 apart for each coat. After i've applied it with 000 steel wool I will wait 15-20min depending on how it's drying and then I will wipe off the excess and leave to fully cure before doing another coat. Comes out great and doesn't require any fancy application technique.

I expect you will be filling the holes with epoxy first? Or just leaving them bare? You could also try plugging them with custom sized offcut pieces.

Thanks for your feedback. I'm planning on filling the bolt holes with cut off bolts and fill over them with clear epoxy. I'd planned on rusting them slightly to take the cleanly cut look off them. But the other thought I had was to fill the holes with ebonised oak dowel. The big circles and the square plate I was also going to fill with rusted steel as I've still got these bits lying around.

Not sure if oil will be suitable. I like the idea but I'd like a practical table also. I have 2 little princesses, so cleaning mashed potato out of the crevices doesn't sound appealing.

Initially I'd planned on coating to entire top in self levelling epoxy. Great idea until I worked out that if need about $500-$600 worth of epoxy. My new plan is to use 2 pack poly.

But if someone has a better idea I'm all ears, I'm definitely a novice at finishing!

Progress update: I hit a snag! I managed to extend and contract the table a few times with no problem. So I happily set about sanding the living daylight out of the top. Then suitably satisfied, tried to extend it so I could work on the middle leaf...and couldn't budge it! Not even an inch.

So I did what every woodworker would do...cup of hot drink and I googled my problem. I decided to add a winding mechanism. I made a call to price one, and, after picking myself up off the floor ($500), I decided that it can't be that hard to make one. Rather than try to explain the whole process, here are some pics. The threaded rod is 20mm zinc, mild steel, 2.5 pitch thread.

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Trial run to see if it works

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I found some bearings. I had no idea that you could buy them complete with housings/mounts

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This is take 2! Initially I'd welded the nut on crooked, the threaded rod went in fine...I just couldn't get it back out! It works fine now. Good thing I bought an extra 6 nuts just in case!

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Yes, I'm aware that traditionally extendable tables had winding handles, but they didn't have lithium powered cordless drills back then...gotta keep with the times! (I can actually put this in my brace for when the zombie holocaust happens)

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Pretty much finished, at least to the point where you get the idea. Since taking this picture I've tried it out. It works perfectly. I'm going to add some heavy angle to act as a more stable stay for the far end of the table to extend off. I'll post a pic this week to explain.

At the end I've welded a nut on the end of the threaded rod. Not sure what to do about the zinc look tho. I'm thinking about using gun blueing solution to make it darker and fit into the look if the table better.

Total cost, $120 including a new 30mm socket. I've planned to paint the mechanism Matt Black. Unfortunately, now I can't store the middle leaf under the table like initially planned. Any ideas (other than putting it in the laundry) on on board storage?

In the previous post I'd made reference to a heavy angle bracket. Here's a picture. If you go to one of the last pics, this angle is mounted between the 2 bearing blocks. That way 1 half of the table moves by the pipe that's been coach screwed down, and the 2nd half moves off this bracket. Make's senses?

If it's still unclear I'll try to take another picture.

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I'm planning on painting all the screw mechanism (except the threaded rod obviously!) black.

Work has commenced on the top! (Finally...because it's starting to bug me about how much room of my shop this table is taking up)

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As briefed over previously, I'd planned on using the original metal brackets and bolts in this table top. Here's some unfinished work...I've run out of epoxy, so tonight I was bored and decided to update this blog.

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A couple of bolt holes. 1 is filled with epoxy. It doesn't shop in the pic too well, but I'd rusted the bolts using 1 part vinegar to 2 parts bleach to add patina to this rustic build.

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A sheer plate (no idea what it is, I think it's a super heavy duty washer?). Again unfinished, but you get the idea.

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1 of the original countersunk heavy plate steel washers. The rusted bolt is in the middle.

I'd appreciate feedback if anyone sees any issues that I'd missed.

Crap, crap, crap!

I ran out of 'west system' epoxy so a trip to the marine shop resulted in me buying a slightly cheaper, easier to mix, brand of epoxy. Sounds good so far? Well, the damn stuff dries opaque not clear! So my rusted steel features are now covered in hard opaque muck. I'm starting to wonder if I should ask my parents if my name really is 'murphy'!

Here's a pic. The clear epoxy is only west system, the other is my new problem...

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Now what? Not much choice but to chisel the stuff out. I'm now doing the bolt holes with black epoxy. As for the steel plates? Not sure. I'm thinking of removing them completely and filling the holes with wood. Either way, I've now lost 3 days work. Not sure this will be done by the end of the month (have family staying with us)

Here's 1 of the plates with the epoxy chiseled off (with my cheap chisels I must add!)

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At least I now know how to remove rust from steel!

Any ideas?

Well that last mistake cost me a week of lost time and 3 or 4 hours on a Dremel to remove all the opaque epoxy. Another trip to the marine shop resulted in a tin of 'Liquid Glass' to fill the plates and bolts. That worked fine...NO MORE SHORT CUTS!!

The table is hereby deemed finished!

The final specs are:

• 150kg total weight
• Seats 8 very comfortably, or 10-12 if you need to
• Easily extends and contracts with a drill
• 2400 x 1100

I chose 2 pack epoxy for the finish, and brushed the base. I used a short nape roller to roll the top, and although the manufacturer said that it would self level any roller imperfections, it didn't. So I ended up rolling 2 coat, and then had a friend who works as a spray painter come around and spray the final coats for me.

It does look great, although the original idea was to store the leaf under the top. Unfortunately, given the added screw mechanism, I'm really not sure what to do with the leaf now...but that's not really a build problem...more a "where do we put this now" problem!

I even had a friend bring a Branding Iron home from USA for me!

Thanks for looking

Don't know how I missed this!!

No matter, I've caught up and must say I am impressed!!


This is a great example of recycling and ingenuity. Well done good sire!!!bravabravabrava

Thank you

I found a small piece of wood that is an example of what it looked like before machining:

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sweet

Wow. I totally missed this whole threat until now. Great stuff. Table looks fantastic. I love recycled timber and I really like the rusted bolts in the holes. I'm really glad you drilled out the black epoxy.

One thing I'm not clear about is why the top seized up? If it worked a few times, why did you need to move to the screw thread system? Apologies if I'm really dense or missed something.

Trav