Thread: WIP Shaker Side Stand

Yes Rob, I'd be interested in any sensible alternative. This is the first time I've tried anything like this. I should have really screwed on the higher fence I use for resawing. I did use a certain amount of safety thingies, I applied a feather board and added another side to my planer push block I repurposed for this job so there was always a least 20mm of wood and another 50mm of air between my flesh and the blade. It seemed weirdest having the fence on the other side of the blade for the cut and I didn't like the feeling of reaching over the blade to finish the cut. I doubt I would use the same setup again.

I had better pictures somewhere But they are lost atm .

This is the 5 degree one, used on the left side of fence . The other one looks the same but is parallel . It is for use on the right side like you did and the blade tilts away. The two boards is so it can be clamped to the fence and give a fence to work off.
I use the 5 degree one when I keep the fence on the right of blade and don't tilt the blade. This 5 degree one has a aluminium small ledge at the bottom as well .
With the parallel one , I also have a feather board arrangement that covers the blade as well as keeping everything tight to the fence. That's the best one for safety . Ill get a pic at a later stage .
This pic is the 5 degree one . The Walnut door panel on the right was done on the other parallel one a week ago . Its getting cleaned up with the badger plane after that. Not something I normally do on drawer bottoms. I used all these on my smaller saw but have to convert them for the larger saw which cuts so much nicer. They both just clamp to the fence of the larger saw but the safety feather board thing I have will need to be re made .

IMG_7466.JPGIMG_7467.JPGIMG_7288.JPG

Rob

Here's the guarded one . First pic is saw as normally used with fence on the right of blade. Second pic shows the tall Parallel fence fitted and clamped to right of saw fence with the saw fence now to the left of blade. Pic three shows the feather board guard brought up to the blade . Two clamps hold this on . The fine adjust moves the fence to the right and the feather boards are adjusted to let the panel pass but its tight up against the fence and the blade cant be seen . The fence has a Aluminium strip at its base as well so nothing can slip down between the blade. The feather board has a strip of wood glued front and back so it slides left and right on saw top until clamped. It works very well and I could fit this up to a saw and let other guys saw panels and drawer bottoms without the fear of them loosing fingers and me losing my house . The worst thing that would happen is the panel off cuts could build up inside the guard and occasionally shoot back out at you . They were light weight feathers of timber though but you wouldn't want to be bending over looking in there , which is a general no no any way. Especially without face protection . To push the wood through I use a large flat push block with a handle .

IMG_7470.JPGIMG_7471.JPGIMG_7472.JPG

Rob

This project was put aside for a while, but I'm finally back on the job.
Drawer made. Now I just need to fit it, turn an knob and oil and wax the whole thing.

drawer.jpg

Looking good so far and here's for a good finish (pun not intended, well not entirely).

A few days needed before it will be dry enough to buff and wax, but here is the finished table after 2 coats of Danish Oil.

table1.jpg table2.jpg table3.jpg table4.jpg

I'm pretty happy with the results considering it was essentially made using up small offcuts from the shorts bin. I was initially a bit worried about how the proportions were going to work, but the delicate legs still feel sturdy and it's a joy to have a piece of furniture that is easy to move for a change.

Looks fantastic. The wood turned out great, especially for shorts! The color is reminiscent of US Cherry, which is pretty appropriate for Shaker furniture.

I built a couple of similar tables a couple of years ago and I agree, the legs scared me a bit when I saw just how thin I'd gotten them, but they're plenty sturdy. I don't think you've got much to worry about there.

Great job!

Cheers,
Luke

Looks great and much better polished than painted as well . Different had it been cheap knotty stuff maybe ? You must be very satisfied with rescuing the wood from off cuts. The inverted bevel to the top is interesting . I like that . Have you seen that on much Shaker stuff before ? I don't think I have . I'm just wondering if its a one off or if they did a bit of that. Rob

Thanks Guys! My scholarship on Shaker furniture is pretty well limited to Thos Moser's book and Mr Goolge's image search. Moser has a few other tables in his book but they all tend to have breadboard ends. I think this piece is the only one in his drawings that uses a beveled top. BTW Thos Moser is still producing this design to order in the States. The bevel certainly makes the whole thing look lighter. I tossed up on whether to do the pins in the joints this time, but decided against it - it wasn't actually noted on the drawings.

From the little I've seen in person, I think the Shakers were pretty easy going with mix and match of timbers and carcase pieces might have been made regularly using pine for the bases with another timber as the show top. The pine then being painted to suit.

I find it pretty confusing when it comes to "Shaker" furniture. I saw a bit of genuine stuff when I lived over that way, but it's been a very long time since any significant furniture was produced by Shakers. I thought the Skakers had died out some time ago (a significant risk when part of your creed is to be celibate), but Google tells me there are still three left. Anyway, my point is that people have been copying & building "shaker-inspired" furniture for a very long time, and sneaking in little variations that aren't strictly "Shaker". Like Rob, I have seen very little in the way of edge treatments on Shaker furniture, the emphasis was supposed to be on simplicity & functionality, so plain square edges were the usual fare. Anyway, "genuine" Shaker or not, I do like 'under-bevels' on table tops on some designs - they are decorative in a very subtle way & set the top off very nicely. Well-done again Fuzzie....

Cheers,

Hi Franklin, the table looks great, i love the delicate proportions. I'd love to have a go at making this - do you have plans that could be sent through at all? I'd be really appreciative of any help you might be able to offer on plans so i don't have to start from scratch.

Thank you, Josh.

PM sent.

That's a very nice table... I read through the posts and I'm glad that you didn't **paint** the legs. However there are some dark red, brown and even black stains that you can then finish with either lacquer, polyurethane or even "drying oil" These all look great and the final result is still translucent enough to reveal the grain. The clear oil finish is a wonderful choice though.

Originally Posted by Fuzzie

I fretted about getting the cuts right for shaping the legs. Thankfully when they were held together off the saw everything still looked to be in the right place.
Attachment 431054

After cleaning up the saw cuts with a hand plane the transition is a bit lower than I intended, but it doesn't seem to be obvious.
Attachment 431055

The top rail and the drawer runners will be the next to go in.

..yes the 5/8" square bottoms of the legs do look a little light on in that picture. Whilst researching my current build of the same table I also questioned the plans in various books, including Moser. But as someone has said this is typical of this style of furniture so who am i to question it

Cheers,
Mal