Thread: A brace of Walnut tilt-top tables

Originally Posted by Woodwould

I thought the circular top was covered by those oysters and the whole lot was sitting on a bench. I just noticed the curvature of the Elm top in the image. It's hard to get an idea of scale.

Can I scale it up so it's finished?!

Originally Posted by Peter36

I read in an article on oystering that diluted horse sauce was suitable for sizing. If this was used would the oyster then be able to be bleached?

I wouldn't use any glue but horse sauce for sizing and as it's water based/soluable, the wood can also be bleached afterwards.

If I didn't mention running out of suitably sized (shaped/thickness) oysters; I did. I wheeled out the mighty Triton bandsaw for boxing day and engaged in some batch cutting, and brought a few other needed odds down to size.

Yes, these have been sized on both sides, and well chewed by some grub or other!

HF! They really have been chewed. Still, with trimming them to interlock, hopefully you'll be able to eliminate most of the damage.

What is the timber that the second lot of oysters were cut from. They different look to the oysters already stuck down. Will that be a problem ?

Originally Posted by Woodwould

HF! They really have been chewed. Still, with trimming them to interlock, hopefully you'll be able to eliminate most of the damage.

Some of the first batch were this chewed too - only this time I ruined insect xmas...there was some 'lubrication' on the Triton julienne blade several times during slicing. They'd avoided grubbing the heartwood at least.

What is the timber that the second lot of oysters were cut from. They different look to the oysters already stuck down. Will that be a problem ?

Actually, they're all from the same log , so any mismatching will be all my own work!

Sixty five bits of wood later and the top is laid. Having to patch and work around grub holes was less than ideal, and probably doubled the pieces required, and quadrupled the work .

Currently, the top looks like some of the roads I encountered in New York (albeit well sized ones), as I am yet to plane out variation in oyster thickness. As the Elm ground has been playing up, I won’t do this until I’ve veneered the underside (with nice big bits of Walnut - bliss)! No more oystering until I get a load of hearty, weevil-free Olive or Walnut for a chest of drawers.

I might add that Jim will have finished the second set of spindles by now. He got cracking on these after I started using his lathe last weekend, and offered to do them myself...dire threats indeed!

Looking good BD.
I am at the bottom of the learning curve on oystering so have some questions .
Did you stick the oysters directly to the elm top?
If you did what filled in the spaces between the oysters .
I understand that oystering is a bit like marquetry but as the oysters have natural bark I imagine that the marquetry process would be very time consuming and difficult .
Cheers

Originally Posted by Blue-deviled

I might add that Jim will have finished the second set of spindles by now. He got cracking on these after I started using his lathe last weekend, and offered to do them myself...dire threats indeed!

Suddenly he wants them yesterday!
Cheers,
Jim

Delicious! Extra bacon and BBQ sauce?

Originally Posted by Woodwould

Delicious! Extra bacon and BBQ sauce?

I'm actually an HP tragic, but will be wondering why I get urges for a fry-up every time I look at the top (akin to my bun yearnings after you made that chest of drawers)!

Did you stick the oysters directly to the elm top?

Indeed I did.

If you did what filled in the spaces between the oysters .

There shouldn't be any, aside from deficiencies in my patchwork skills!

I understand that oystering is a bit like marquetry but as the oysters have natural bark I imagine that the marquetry process would be very time consuming and difficult .

Most of the time was spent working around the grub holes, and making patches for where I couldn't. With nice, decent sized unmasticated oysters it's a breeze. I pruned the oysters down to roughly the correct shapes with a tenon saw or large chisel (whichever was closer), and made the final adjustments with a block plane. I'd flipped my bench-hook to provide a rough shooting board, and this worked well.

cheers,
B-D

I managed to scrape a few minutes in the shed after work yesterday, and while contemplating the poor behaviour of eating a dozen mince pies (not all at once, over several days) intended for a fellow forumite, wheeled out the Mighty Triton bandsaw and cut some veneer to stabilise, and possibly bling-up the underside of the top.

The wood is a nice chunk of Walnut that Jim relinquished during christmas festivities

Originally Posted by Blue-deviled

[...] while contemplating the poor behaviour of eating a dozen mince pies (not all at once, over several days) intended for a fellow forumite [...]

That is a lickerish act of the lowest order!