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Thread: Leveling Pedestal Bases
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4th July 2014, 09:42 AM #1GOLD MEMBER
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Leveling Pedestal Bases
Hi,
I recently made my first piece of furniture. It's this Huon Pine pedestal table.
After joining it all up, there is a slight wobble from side to side at the base.
I know that I can just slowly and patiently sand it strategically to level it, but does anyone have any "Tricks" for getting this kind of thing done a bit more quickly?
Thanks in advance for any advice.
Oh yeah, here's the table:
image(1).jpg
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4th July 2014 09:42 AM # ADSGoogle Adsense Advertisement
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4th July 2014, 10:41 AM #2SENIOR MEMBER
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Hi Luke, this video might help: Video: Level the Feet of a Chair or Sawbench | Popular Woodworking Magazine
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4th July 2014, 02:11 PM #3
I just wanted to say well done on your pedestal table.
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4th July 2014, 02:36 PM #4
First make sure you are checking it on a flat surface as most floors will have hills and hollows. Top of the table saw is my choise.
I usually put a strip of sandpaper under the long feet and with some pressure bearing down rub a bit off that foot or even the 2 longer feet. Not often a lot has to come off but a block plane could be used if more is required. Having done that there is nothing can be done with uneven floors apart from turning the table 90*.
Regards
John
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8th July 2014, 10:10 AM #5Retired
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pencil and sandpaper trick
Wonderful. I love Huon pine.
I make zillions of kids coat racks. There is always a little nano-wobble to ruin my day.
Using a pencil, I lightly zigzag over the whole bottom, put down a sheet of ~120 grit A4 sandpaper on MDF and give it a very light sand (with the stand made up). This shows me the high spots. Then using a very finely set plane (I use a half-decent Japanese finishing plane) slice of an absolute hair from where the pencil was removed. Do these pencil trick again for test.
It seems it only takes a few atoms for the bugger to rock on a 4 legged item.
Even on the worst this works very quickly. I can true up 3 stands just prior to delivery in about 5 minutes - not because Im good (Im crap) but its simple.
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8th July 2014, 07:12 PM #6GOLD MEMBER
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Thanks, guys!
I had thought about that trick with sandpaper on MDF but didn't think of it as a way to identify high spots as much as a way to just sand the whole thing even. Good idea with the hand plane.
Cheers!
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8th July 2014, 09:08 PM #7Senior Member
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Three legged seats/racks/benches/any things were invented because of this problem with four feet wobbling.
pedestal table with three legs on an even OR uneven floor will never wobble. Hence wherever possible I build with three legs.
however thanks to the link from joez I might try four legs for a change.
cheers
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