Thread: A brace of Walnut tilt-top tables

My van used to be lined with this very same plywood...

I would have thought that velour or fur (faux, of course) would have kept the antiques in better condition (let alone electrostatically buffed), but your good taste triumphed

You really are feeling for the chap who's missed out on the mince pies!

Originally Posted by Blue-deviled

You really are feeling for the chap who's missed out on the mince pies!

I just abhor abject cruelty. I know, from my days in the poorhouse, what it's like to go without at Christmas.

Bugger the insects! Those oysters look good enough for me to eat!!

Originally Posted by Blue-deviled

Indeed I did.


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

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

Thanks for the reply but I will need to rephrase my question
I am looking at the 4 oysters in the very center of the top and I can see where you have mitred the 4 pieces , leaving a "star in the very center . As the oysters are 2-3mm thick this leaves a "hole" in the center. Have you cut a piece to fit exactly in this space.

As I said I am still at the bottom of the learning curve.

Originally Posted by Peter36

Thanks for the reply but I will need to rephrase my question
I am looking at the 4 oysters in the very center of the top and I can see where you have mitred the 4 pieces , leaving a "star in the very center . As the oysters are 2-3mm thick this leaves a "hole" in the center. Have you cut a piece to fit exactly in this space.

As I said I am still at the bottom of the learning curve.

No patch in the centre. The star is formed by the four triangles of paler wood at the pointy end of each of the quarters. That learning curve rockets skywards a few minutes into laying the first oyster

Originally Posted by Blue-deviled

No patch in the centre. The star is formed by the four triangles of paler wood at the pointy end of each of the quarters. That learning curve rockets skywards a few minutes into laying the first oyster

I see it all now said the blind man I had thought that the darker wood in the photo in post 98 was bark , but I now see that it is not, but is the darker wood in the center part of each of the oysters .

Lots of work in that top.

Oysters, what an apt description for what it is

Nice work gentlemen

Originally Posted by Sawdust Maker

Oysters, what an apt description for what it is

Nice work gentlemen

Thanks. It's turning into one of those edible pieces; walnuts, oysters, bacon and apple!

Originally Posted by Blue-deviled

Thanks. It's turning into one of those edible pieces; walnuts, oysters, bacon and apple!

I wondered why he called it a brace of tables. I should have realised it's food on the brain.
I'm afraid two might be an understatement. I bought some elm recently, the same elm that BD has been using as a dinner plate. I glued up enough for two tops and started turning them down to size. Then the rain came - five and a half inches and still coming - and completely changed the dimensions of the rough turned tops. Wood always lets you know who's boss. I think I'll be leaving them for a few days until the humidity drops to something sensible.
Just to let the elm know I've a few weapons of my own I waded through the moat around the shed and sharpened some saws while muttering, "firewood".
It really is a beautiful wood and hopefully will be worth the effort.
Cheers,
Jim

Again paddled to the shed and squirted wd40 on tools. Nine inches of rain now since Tuesday night. How on earth are they coping in Queensland?
Cheers,
Jim

Jim

what sort of lathe is that?

Originally Posted by Sawdust Maker

Jim
what sort of lathe is that?

A very old Woodfast Nick,
Cheers,
Jim
ps it has '64 stamped on it.

With Jim on go-slow (go-slower) after nine inches of rain last week, and wood bending all over the place with the humidity, I’m leaving him, his new moat, and the ‘shop lizard be. I have heard that this is ideal climatic conditions for saw sharpening

My shed spree was short today, with a bout of tree climbing, pruning, and the inevitable trailer-load of green waste eating into the intended planing. However, the bottom of the top has remained flat, and is now finished, sized, and looking like the interior of a well appointed bongo-van. Honing plane irons, and sharpening scrapers is in order before the final finishing of the top.

The bottom looks great . A pity it won't be seen except by the grand children rolling around on the floor