{

THEARTOFWOODWORKING

HOMEWORI$HOP

WORKSHO GP UIDE
SAFETY TIPS
POWER TOOTS
. Wearappropriate safetygear:safety glasses, a faceshield for extraprotection, protection. and hearing lf thereis no dust collection system, weara dust mask.For exoticwoodssuchas ebony, usea respirator; sawdust maycausean allergic reaction. Wearworkgloves whenhand l i n gr o u g h lumber. o Drape the power cord of a portable power tool overyourshoulder to keep it out of the way. . Concentrat e o n the job;do not rush. ' Never workwhenyou aretired,stressed, or havebeendrinking alcohol or using medications that induce drowsiness. o Always k e e py o u rw o r ka r e ac l e a n and tidy; clutter can leadto accidents, and sawdust and woodscraps can be a fire hazard. o K e e py o u rh a n d s w e l la w a y f r o ma turning blade or bit. . Do not usea tool if any part is worn or damaged.

HAND TOOLS . Use theapproprrate toolforthejob; do nottryto make a tooldosomething forwhich it was notintended. o Clamp your workpiece to free both hands foranoperation. o Cutaway yourself from rather than yourbody. toward . Donotforce a tool; if possible, try removing less pass. stock oneach . Keep theedges of cutting tools sharp.

GLUING UP LEG BLANKS

Face-gluing Formany youwill need table anddesk legs, thicker stock thanis commonly available. Thesolution your is to make ownlegblanks byfacegluing thinner stock. Start bypreparing thestock slighily larger than thef inalsize of the leg. Toensure a seamless fit, jointthemating surglueup theboards faces. Then face to face, alternating theendgrain of thepieces andarranging thestock grain to maximize andcolor. The process (page is identical to edge-gluing boards intopanels 93),except thatC clamps should beused. Asshown at right, space theclamps at 3- to 4-inch pressure intervals to provide constant across theentire ioint.

J(lINERY ADHESIVES
TYPE White glue
Yellow glue

CHARACTERISTICS . Strong Polyvinyl-acetate based; nottoxic orflammable bonding; working time3 to 5 o Setting minutes timeabout r Dries 30 to 45 minutes; cures fullyin 24to 72 hours r Does clear andcolorless notsand glue aswellasyellow

USES General woodworking

o Betterimmediate Aliphatic-resin based; not toxic or flammable adhesion for faster General woodworking grabthanwhiteglue; . Setting working time3 to 5 minutes timeabout 30 to 40 minutes; o Dries (faded curesfully in 24 Io 72 hours yellow); opaque moreheat-resistant for better properties sanding thanwhiteglue Resin and hardener mustbe mixedpriorto use;not flammable but maybe toxic o strong, waterproof bonding; working time 5 minutes to 2 hours(depending on type) r Setting (depending time 5 minutes to 2 hours on type);curesfully in 24 hours

Epoxy glue glue Hide

Bonding acidic woods such as oak;useon exotic woods that poorly bond glues withother

Protein-based; available o Strong in granular or liquidform;nottoxicor flammable bondCabinet construction, antique r Settingtime ing,workingtime o Sandable, restoration, 3-5 minutes t hour; cures'fullyin24 hours veneering, andfine dries a darkcoloro Notwater-resistant, gluebondcan besoftened withwater for disassembly woodworking Urea-formaldehyde-based, available in powdered form;not f lammable but toxic ' Strong . Setting bonding, working time 20 minutes time 4 to 6 hours; cures fully in 3 dayso Water resistance higher thanthat of aliphatic glues, doesnotstainacidic w000s, sanos cteanlv

Plastic resin

Veneerin gm , inatin la ag n,d edge-gluing hardwood

THEARTOFWOODWORKING

TABTES ANDDESI$

THEART OF WOODWORKING

TABLES AI\IDDESI$

TIME-LIFE BOOKS VIRGINIA ALEXANDRIA. ST.REMYPRESS MONTREAL. NEWYORK

THE ART OF WOODWORKING was produced by ST. REMYPRESS PUBLISHER KennethWinchester PRESIDENT PierreLdveill6 Series Editor Series Art Director SeniorEditors Art Directors Designers Research Editor PictureEditor Writers Research Assistant Cont r ibuting Illu strators PierreHome-Douglas FrancineLemieux Marc Cassini(Text) HeatherMills (Research) Normand Boudreault,Luc Germain, Solange Laberge Lina Desrochers, H6ldneDion, Doiron,MichelGigudre Jean-Guy Iim McRae Christopherfackson Andrew Iones,Rob Lutes Bryan Quinn GillesBeauchemin, RolandBergerat, Michel Blais,Jean-Pierre Bourgeois, RonaldDurepos,facques Perrault, lamesTh6rien NatalieWatanabe MichelleTurbide Roy Jean-Luc RobertChartier,ChristianLevesque Dominique Gagnd Judith Yelon ChristineM. Iacobs

THECONSUTIANTS
and freelance writer fon Arno is a consultant,cabinetmaker, who livesin Tioy, Michigan. He alsoconductsseminars on wood identificationand earlyAmericanfurniture design. I(am Ghaffari is a freelance writer and editor. He hashis own business in RhodeIslanddesigning and building one-of-akind and limited production furniture. Kam'sbackground alsoincludesworking professionally in furniture reproduction and fine carpentryand studyingwith furniture patriarchsWendellCastleof the U.S.and England'sFred Baier. Giles Miller-Mead taught advanced cabinetmakingat Montreal technicalschoolsfor more than ten years. A nativeofNew Zealand, he hasworked asa restorerof antiquefurniture.

Administrator Production Manager System Coordinator Photographers A dministrative As sistant Proofreader Indexer

Thbles & Desks p. cm.-(The Art of woodworking) Includesindex. ISBN0-8094-9s12-0 l. Thbles 2. Desks3. Furniture making I. Time-Life Books. II. Title: Thbles and desks. III. Series. TT197.5.T3T33 1994 684.r'3-dc20 93-49732 CIP For information about any Time-Life book, please call l-800-621-7026, or write: Reader Information Time-Life CustomerService P.O. Box C-32068 Richmond,Virginia 23261-2068 @ 1994Time-Life BooksInc All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronicor mechanical means,including information storage and retrievaldevices or systems, without prior written permissionfrom the publisher,exceptthat briefpassages may be quoted for reviews. Firstprinting.Printedin U.S.A. Published simultaneously in Canada. TIME-LIFE is a trademarkof Time WarnerInc. U.S.A.

Time-Life Booksis a division of Time Life Inc., a wholly ownedsubsidiaryof THE TIME INC. BOOK COMPANY

TIMELIFEINC.
President and CEO Editor-in-chief JohnM. Fahey JohnL. Papanek

TIME-LIFEBOOKS
President Vice-President, Directorof Marketing Executive Editor Executive Art Director Consuhing Editor Production Manager lohn D. Hall NancyK. )ones RobertaConlan Ellen Robling lohn R. Sullivan MarleneZack

CONTENTS
6 INTRODUCTION 12 14 16 18 19 2L 22 28 30 32 33 4L 54 56 57 58 59 60 63 66 68 69 72 TABLEAND DESK BASICS Wood movement Selecting and orderingwood Lumberdefects Preparing stock Designing tablesand desks Tableand deskstyles DESK CASEWORK TWotypesof deskcasework joints Casework Buildinga carcase Buildinga frame-andpaneldesk LEGSAND RAITS Legstylesand hardware joints Leg-to-rail Tiipod table Pedestal table Thpered legs Cabriolelegs Ttrrnedlegs Pedestal legs legs Octagonal joinery Leg-to-rail 88 90 92 93 96 101 II2 116 118 I20 131 133 138 TOPS Inventory of top designs Hardwareand accessories Preparing a top Attachinga top Adjustable tops Decorative elements DRAWERS Anatomy of a drawer Drawerjoinery Drawerhardware Mounting drawers Drawer stops

140 GTOSSARY I42 INDEX I44 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

INTRODUCTION

SimonWattstalksabout

HIS RECYCLED DESK

houses, andsmall furniture, building worked withwoodfor ahalf-century, f have However, asI possibilities of thematerial. attheendless I boats andstillI marvel hada career woodthathasalready getfewer, I prefer to use getolderandthetrees if youcount being a treeasthefirst. aboat, or abuilding-two careers, asabridge, the woodstretches with recycled I'vefoundthatworking Farfroma limitation, isthegreatest chalboatlumber ingenuity. Used andtakes considerable imagination fastenings. spaced it iscurved andfull of closely lenge because Douglas-fir apartment using Francisco in thephotofor mySan I made thedesk fastenings, I wireallvisible yard. Afterremoving wrecking reclaimed froma local planer. no attempt I made though athickness andrantheboards thesurfaces brushed previous life; of thetimber's iron stains, andotherevidence bolt holes, to conceal I incorporated themintothedesk. instead, The downcompletely. pieces I make now thisoneknocks Likemost of thelarger strucandthesupporting withoutglue doweled together fourboards of thetopare jointsanddrawpins.Drivingthetapered pegs of mortise-and-tenon tureconsists thelegs andsecured Thestretcher istenoned through pulls thejointtogether. home wedges. with loose a working is no point in making of grandeur, there youhave delusions Unless a reach whensittingdown.Thatmeans larger thanyoucancomfortably surface of thisdesk. thanhalfthatin depth-thesize longandno more maximum of 6 feet writingmatein thedrawers: I associate withdesks I prefer to keep onlytheitems printers, and monitors' paper stapler, andsoon.Computers, clips, rials, stamps, in a separate unit.I don'tlike housed I think,much better are, associated equipment monua piece of furniture frrllof filesmake filestorage built into a deskDrawers filingneeds change, soI Also, in aDpearance. a person's intimidating, mental, even or replace a desk. fileunitsthanto remodel to addor change thinkit isbetter turned andthewoodagain itsusefulness will outlive It may happen thatthisdesk jointsandno hidden fastenings, thatwouldbe else. Withno glued intosomething will Thedesk nature of thepiece. perhaps therecycled suitable considering easy-and in thenextcentury. bemygiftto awoodworker

He nowlivesin writer,and teacher. is a woodworker, SimonWatts classes in wooden nationallyrecognized wherehe offers SanFrancisco Woodworker American Coast editor He isalsotheWest boatbuilding. for manuals. threeboat-building and lastyearpublished magazine

INTRODUCTION

Kam Ghaftaridiscusses

DESIGNING TABLES
every typeof furniture, fromdecorative high-sryle chairs I nu* built practically I to kitchen cabinets, but I'm fascinated bytables. Boththefirstpiece of furniture I made andthefirstoneI designed were tables. It'sanundeniable challenge to createa beautiful chairthat is alsocomfortable, or anelegant entertainment center designed specifically around thesizes andfunctions of its contents. Butfor sheer simplicity anddesign freedom, youcan't beat a table. Sooner or later, manywoodworkers wantto startdesigning theirownfurniture. It'ssomething I strongly encourage; designing greatly increases thesatisfaction derived fromwoodworking. A table is a great place to start. A table hasrelatively fewstructural elements andtechnical requirements: If you've gota flattop anda solidsupport system to holdit up,youhave gota functional table. Therest isup to you.Take intoaccount strength requirements, use, planning andsize when thepiice. Will thisbea heavy-duty kid-proof kitchen table or a delicate decorative halltable, for example? Thenbringin forms andshapes thatplease you.Subtle points such as joinery, a delicately shaped leg, decorative a clever handmade mechanism, or a particularly handsome piece of woodcanbeshowcased in a table. Your piece canbesimple or complex, asaustere asShaker or asostentatious asrococo,based on designs of the1930s or the1730s-or something unique andimaginative. Itsdesign canalso address aparticular need notmetbycommercially available furniture, likea telephone table, or abackgammon or chess table. Thetable in thephotowasinfluenced by theclassic Danish designs of Hans Wegner, as wellasbymyappreciation of theaspen leaf, hence thename, Aspen Thble. Thiswasdesigned for streamlined production withoutsacrificing its handcrafted look.I wanted a tablethatknocked downflat for shipping, yetwassturdy when assembled. A light-dury three-legged table isstable if thelegs are evenly spaced and farenough apart. It also doesn't require leveling on uneven floors. I tenoned theturned legs intotheshaped rails, thendevised aremovable grooved metalplate that,with screws goinginto threaded inserts in therails, tiesthemall together. Therails are also countersunk for screws thatfit intothreaded inserts in the stable multi-ply top.Theinlays in thetops are routed witha collar ridingin a female template. Theivory-colored material istinted patching resin for solid-surface countefiops. Thegreen aluminum veins arecomputer milled to ensure a precise fit time after time.Fora single inlay, thispartcould becutwith ajeweler's saw andfile.

Kam Ghaffaridesigns, builds, and writesabout at his studio in Westerly, Rhode Island. furniture

"\

TNTRODUCTION

Tory Searer on

ASPANISH-STYLE DESK
creating a uniqueandpleasing furnitureshop, \ A f henyourun a commercial islistening Foremost in theprocess challenge. canbeaninvigorating Y V design practical andesthetic considerations. andbalancing to thecustomer piece sculptural of furin thephotowanted a handsome Thebuyers of thedesk consideraart objects. Otherdesign niturethat wouldalsoallowthemto display small file drawers aswellasnumerous incorporating threehanging tionsinvolved light source. with a self-contained andcubbies drawers traveling desks wasinspired by the originalvarguefio Thedrop-frontdesign Thecarved motifsandturned of NewMexico. fromoldSpain to thefrontier brought era.Theentire fromtheSpanish Colonial frompieces thatsurvived legs arederived pine,awoodnative to thewestern UnitedStates. piece is made fromsugar making in northandfurniture There isanenduring andrichtraditionof carving exemplifies this centuriesMartinez, sittingat the desk, Ramon ernNewMexico. have mostasashop foreman, Thirtyyears with thecompany, oldHispanic tradition. Ramon made thedesk In building thispiece, himintoatruemaster crafsman. shaped All theprimaryjointsare within thecontext of thedesign. asauthentic aspossible panels floatfor Theraised whichis historically appropriate. mortise-and-tenon, features an inset is hand-forged. Thedesk hardware expansion andthedecorative to concealed boltsthat pad.Theknobson theoutside areconnected leather desk surface canbe padin place. Theboltscanbereleased sotheleather holdtheleather replaced. easily thatadds averywarmandpleasisa compact andfunaionaldesk Theendresult for some years now Thedesk has been in use to theuser's home. ingdesign element of various hand-rubbed oils finishweapplied-a combination andtheantiqued with age. lacquers-has onlyimproved andsprayed

a furniture shopin ownsSouthwest Spanish Craftsmen, TonySearer in Spanish Colonial.Spanish Fe,Nm Mexico,that specializes Sante Previously, he soutlr,vestern styles. Provincial"and its own classic of Nnv Mexico. designed andbuilt exhibi*for theMuseum

F
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DESKBASICS AI\TD TABLE

to purchase the mationyouwill need chapters of thefollowing I tttrough woodfor yourproject. ,t \ thisbookfocus on thenutsand in hand, onecrucial With vourstock construction, boltsof tableanddesk you canstartto before stepremains of furismore to building apiece there preparing put yourworktogether: the niturethancuttingjointsandassem(page l9). Thisprocess includes stock Before anyof this blingcomponents. jointingandplaning rough woodsoit is canhappen, some timemustbespent to andsquare, andcutting stock smooth and thepiece, andselecting designing length andwidth.Forrough, unsurfaced preparing the lumber.This chapter lumber, firstpasoneface acrosthejoinfocuses on the skillsyou will needto producing two surtet thenoneedge, preparatory For steps. carryout these plane faces to each other. Next, the at90o thepreliminaries are some craftsmen, to make it paralotherface of theboard aspects of a among themostenjoyable is square lel to thefirst.Whenthestock project.Hand-picking a mahogany youareready to rip it to andsmooth, or unwrapboardat thelumberyard, If you it to length. widely, even widthandcrosscut Lumberqualityvaries pinga package of exotic woodfrom a whichalready hasboth grade.Takingthe time buyS2S stock, for example, can within thesame mail-order supplier, pass across the carefully faces surfaced, oneedge to examine and selectboards berewarding experiences. jointer,thenrip andcrosscut you obtain it to size. at alumberyardwillhelp youneed thekind of First, to select prewhichhasall itssurfaces S4S stock, thebeststock yourneeds. The thatsuits tableor desk for your project. pared, immecan beripped andcrosscut gallery styles illustrated oftable anddesk such asboards Onlyedges thatwill bejoinedtogether, point in your diately. 22 canprovide a starting on page beginning need to make atabletop, to bejointed. youincorporate being edge-glued Thedimensions for a suitable design. search yourproject Finally, remember thatit isimportant to tackle of thepiece. andsuitability will affect both theappearance Forgreatest efficienry,lay outyourtoolsin the methodically. 21. arediscussed in detail onpage dimensions Standard (or sketched a relatively directroutefrom you have oneyour- shopsothatyourwoodfollows selected a design Once jointedyour Whenyouhave to finalassembly. Thesections on wood roughstock self),it is time to buy thelumber. yourjointsandsand allcom(page fashion andcutit to size, andderiving stock 14), ordering woo d (page16), movement (page assembly. provide before infor- ponents listfroma sketch 17) thebasic a cutting

thetopofa doubleAn orbital sander smoothes pedestal desk. Afterafinal pass withafinegritpaper, thedesk will beready for afinish.

t3

WOODMOVEMENT
andloses moisture as \ [ f ood gains V V therelative humidityof thesurrounding air changes. And as the wood'smoisturecontentchanges, so do its dimensions and weight.These problems changes cancause for a piece of furniture,somemerelyirritating, othersmuch more serious. Knowing how moistureaffects wood and making the appropriate allowances will help vou avoid difficultv. ' The watercontained in a pieceof wood is measured percentage asa of the wood's oven-dry,or water-free weight.For example, if a 50-pound piece of woodweighs 40 pounds when it is oven-dry,the weight of the shed water-10 pounds-divided by the wood'sdry weight---4O pounds-is the moisture contentof the originalpiece: in this case, 25 percent. Wood containswaterin two ways: asfreewaterin its cell cavities and as bound waterin its cell walls.When wood is cut and exposed to the air, it sheds its freewaterfirst. When all free wateris expelled, the wood is saidto be at its fibersaturation point (FSP), which is typicallybetween 23 and30 percentmoisturecontent.Up to this point, asshownin the illustrationat right, therehasbeenno change in the dimensionsof the piece;it simply weighs less. Aswooddriesfurther,however,water is removedfrom the cell walls,and the boardshrinks. Undernormalcircumstances, wood neverregains its freewater, but changes in humidity in the air do affectthe amount of moisturein the cell walls. At 100percentrelative humidity,wood reaches its FSBholdingasmuchbound wateraspossible. At 0 percent humidity, wood is devoid of all moisture. Usuallv, because the watercontentof wood reflects the moisturepresent in theatmosphere, themoisture content of mostwoodsranges between 5 and20 percent. The fluctuationin relative humidityof nearly 80 percent between typicalNorth American wintersand summers can cause substantial wood movement overthe course of ayear. Because of their size,tabletops and desktops proneto moveareespecially ment.A 3-foot-wide touwith thewood grainrunningalongits lengthcanexperience annualmovement of morethan I inch across its width. This cancause serious difficulties for anextension table, for example, which relieson the perfectalignment of various components. You can do several thingsto compensatefor the effectsof humidity changes on wood.In your shop,usea humidifierin winter and a dehumidifier in summerto keepthe humidity level asconstant aspossible. Also,make allowances for wood movementin the construction of your work. With an extension table(page 90),for example, orientthewoodgrainof thetop to run across thewidth of thetable, not along its length.This way,wood movement will not affect alignment of the pieces. The methodyou useto attacha top is equally important. Severaleffective methods areshown starting on page 96. Usingframe-and-panel construction (page 31)for thecasework of a desk will allow wood to expandand contract without affectingthe stabilityof the piece.Somewoodstend to swelland shrinkmorethan others. Yourlumber dealer canhelpyou select dimensionally stable speciis'for your projects.

Moisture content above 30% (no chanqe)

Moiature content at FOF26% (no chanqe)

Moist.ure content at 17% (1" ahrinka7e)

Moiaturecontent.at. 13% (/o" ehrinka1e)

Moiature content at B% (h" ehrinkaqe)

Vhen themoisture content plain-sawn of a 2-by-10 plankof softwood lumber drops below itsfrbersaturation point (FSP), thewood shrinks. At 17percent, the qnother%inch of width boardis',/o inchnqrrower than it wasat lrsFSP; it loses whenkiln-driedto 8 percent. partly on thedensity Shrinkage depends of the wood; generally, a denser species shrinks and swells morethana less dense one.

TABLEAND DESKBASICS

WOOD SHRINKAGE
Tangential and radial shrinkage Wood notshrink uniformly. Asshown does bythethedotted lines in theillustration paralat right, tangential shrinkage-roughly lelto thegrowth rings-isabout twice the radial shrinkage, which occurs across the rings. Thisdifference causes boards and panels when they shrink orswell as to warp Shrinkage along relative humidity changes. thelength of a board is usually insignifiplank, which cant. A Z-by-IO forexample, itswidthmight lose shrinks %inchacross less inchalong an 8-foot length. than%e fortables anddesks, When building tops orient thegrain in thedirection thatwill problems. cause thefewest Quartersawn which hasgrowth rings thatareat stock, rightangles to theface, hasless of a tenchoice fortops. dency to cupandis a good

WOOD GRAIN AND JOINERY

Tanqential

'.{{

.r'

Tan7ential PEne

grain direction 0ptimizing Wood movement canhave aneffect on thestrength of a joint. Orient thegrain pieces of themating of a joint sothey willmove in thesame direction. ln the jornt mortise-and-tenon shown at left, planes theboards'tangential areparallelto each other, Consequently, the wood movement thatoneoiece exoeriences will beclosely matched bythe other andthejointwill notbeweakAssembling a jointwiththetanened. gential planes of thetwopieces at right angles could weaken thejoint or even force it aoart.

15

SELECTING AND ORDERING WOOD

project or desk T umberfor yourtable l-l cancome from several sources, each with its own advantages anddrawbacks. The locallumberyard is the mostobvioussupplier, andoftenthe mostconvenient,but the selection maybe limited to construction woodssuchas pine, spruce, and other softwoods. Though you may find the occasional cache of hardwood, moreoftenthannot youwill haveto venturefartherafield,consulting the YellowPages or woodworking magazines to find dealers who specialize in someof the lesscommonhardwoodsusedfor fine furniture.Youwill paymore,but the qualityof the usually woodshould behighertoo. Thereareotherless costly ootionsfor finding the wood you need. A lumber mill maysellyou boards at a reasonable price, but thewoodwill mostoftenneed to be seasoned and surfaced, which means thatyou mustown a jointerand planer. Also,larger mills areoftenreluctant to fill smallorders. Rerycled boards arebecoming increasingly popularwith woodworkers, a resultof the scarcity of certainwoods.Salvaged wood is relativelyinexpensive and,because it often comes from old-growthtimber,it can be visually andstructurally superior to recently harvested lumber.Regardless of your chosen supply, defineyour needs carefully before ordering wood.Thetips that follow will help you get what you need at a reasonable cost. Being wellpreparedwill alsospeed the process considerably. . Species: Ask for the specific wood species, rather thana broadfamilyname. For example, orderWestern red cedar, not simplycedar. Tobesureyou getwhat

CATCULATING BOARD FEET

Ordering lumber bytheboard foot The"board foot"is a unitof measurement used to calculate thevolume of a given amount of stock. lt is commonly with used hardwood lumber. Asshown in theillustrationat right, the standard board footis equivalent to a piece thatis 1 inch thick, 12 inches wide, and12 inches long. To calculate thenumber of board feetin a piece of wood, multiply itsthree dimensions together. Then, divide theresult by 144 if thedimensions arein inches, or by 12 if iustone dimension is in feet.
l" x 12"x 12"= I 572111urd board foot

NUMBER BOARD FEET OF IN 8 tINEAt FEET DIFFERENT OF SIZED BOARDS

1-by-3=2boardfeet 1-by-6=4boardfeet

Theformula for a standard board: I"x12"x12"+I44=I (or1"x12"xI'+12=I) plank Soif youhada 6-foot-long thatis 1 youwould inch thickand4 inches wide, calculate theboard feetasfollows: 1"x 4" x 6' + 12 = 2 (or2 board feet). Other examples areshown in the illustration. Rememberthatboard feetarecalculated onthe basis of the nominal rather thanactual dimensions of thestock; consequently, the board feetcontained in a 2-by-4 thatactuallymeasures lYz-by-3% inches would be calculated using thelarger dimensions.

1-by12=Bboardfeet

2-by-4 = 5% board feet

2-W-6=Bboardfeet

T6

BASICS TABLE AND DESK

you want,Iearnthe botanical nameof the wood you want and askfor it. . Quantity: When orderingwood, whetheryou want the stockin specify board feetor linealfeet.A linealfoot is merelyan expression of a board's length,regardless of its width or thickness. Theboardfoot is a soecific volume of wood;it is usually necesiary for ordering hardwoods, which areoftenavailable page16for in randomwidthsonly.See informationaboutcalculating boardfeet. . Size Woodis soldin nominalrather than realsizes. so makeallowances for

the difference whenorderingsurfaced l/"'-by-3Y.". lumber.L2-by-ais actually The thickness of hardwoods is often expressed asan improperfractionin cuarters of an inch.A 1Z-inch-thick hardwood board, for example,is expressed asfl4. The nominal and real green dimensions of unsurfaced, boards arethe same. . GradeWthin thehigherhardwood grades, the primary difference between the variousgrades is appearance rather than strength. Considering the difference in price,it isbestto reserve thebest stockfor the visiblepartsof your projects, lower-grade usingless expensive, woodfor hiddencomponents. Consult

yourlumber for achartof thedifdealer ferent grades available. . Seasoning: Lumber is soldeither kiln dried(KD),air dried(AD),or green. Kiln-dried woodisgenerally the most It has stable. a moisture content (MC)of 8 percent, whereas air-dried woodhas aMC of 12to 20percent. Airpreferred dried wood isoften bycarvers. . Surfacing: refers to how Surfacing is prepared thestock at themill before it comes to thelumberyard. Softwood lumber isusually surfaced onbothfaces; hardwood is oftensoldrough. If you have rough aplaner andjointer, buying lumbe.r it yourself will andsurfacing less expenslve. Prove

A CUTTING LIST Making and using a cutting list A cutting listrecords thefinished sizes of lumber needed for piece a particular of furniture. lf oneis notincluded with youpurchase, youwill have your theplans to make own based on a sketch of thedesign. Use theformula shown on page 16 to totalthenumber of board feetforeach comoonent of the project; add20 to 40 percent (depending onthegrade) to account forwaste anddefects in thewood. Also use thenominal C (indicated in parentheses) thickness | l/ in your of thepieces calculations. For thesimple table shown at right, you which totals 25/oboard feet, should ourchase 30 to 35 board feetof lumber. Assign each component for later reference. a letter CUTTING IIST

26Yr' ash 29' ash

1.5 6.0

t7

LUMBERDEFECTS
areflaws that reduce T umberdefects L a board's strength or workabiliry or adversely affect its appearance. Theycan resultfrom the way the lumber is preparedat the mill, the methods of seasoning andstoring, or,moreoftenthan not, the naturalgrowingconditions experienced by thetree. Not all defects areunwelcome. Some naturalimperfections canmakea piece of wood moredesirable for someuses, particularly whentheyproduce avisually stunningfiguresuchasbird's-eye. If their strength is not compromised, defective boards canbeused for concealed parts to greatlyreduce a project's cost. In the end,it is the eventual useof the lumberthat determines what is an acceptable By recognizing blemish. the lumber defects illustratedbelow and inspecting your wood carefully before buyingyou canincrease your chances of gettingthe qualityyou want for the right price.

DEFECTS INW(l()D
CHARACTERISTICS REMEDIES

----4 < V2--Gum

Checks-_=------\

=4

Bow

/-

A tightknotappears asa whorl encircled bysurround- Tight knots canbecutoutor used, ingwood tissue; a dead knotis encircled bya dark asappearance dictates; dead knots gradually ring.Formed asgirthof treeincreases, should beremoved before working enveloping the branches. Live branches integrate withstock. withsurrounding wood; dead branch stumps cannot integrate andformdead knots. Anaccumulation of resin onthesurface of theboard Donotusestock if a quality f inish or in pockets within theboard. Usually develops when is required, asgumwillbleed a treehassuffered an injury, exposure to fire,or through most finishes. insect attack. Lengthwise ruptures or separations in thewood, usuCanbecut off. goright allycaused byrapid drying. Splits through board, fromoneface to theother. May compromise strength andappearance. Anendto-end curve along theface, usually caused Flatten bowed boards onthejointpieces, by improper storage. Introduces internal in stresses er,or cut intoshorter then thewood thatmake it difficult to cut. use thejointer. An edge-to-edge curve across theface. Common on tangentially cut stock, or boards cutclose to thepith. Also occurs during drying if oneface of a board has less contact withtheairthantheother. Cupmay correct itselfif bothfaces areallowed to dryto thesame moisturecontent. Cupped boards canbe ripped intonarrower ones onthe band saw orflattened onthejointer.

End-to-end curve along theedge, caused by incorrect High spots canbeflattened on seasoning or having the pithof a board close to the iointer or cut off ontable saw. board Weakens edge. thewood, making it unsuitable forweight-beari ngappl ications. Uneven warping where or irregular onecorner is not aligned withtheothers. Results fromuneven drying or grain pattern a cross thatis notparallel to theedge. Board canbecut intoshorter pieces.

Lengthwise separation of thegrain, usually between Cutoffshake, allowing forpossibilthegrowth rings. Results fromimproper drying of itythatthedefect maycontinue wood or felling damage. lengthwise under thesurface.

18

PREPARING STOCK
TUMBER SURFACING

Jointing a board lumber, start byjointing one face. lf youareworking withrough a fewinches face down ontheinfeed table Lay theworkpiece two against thefence, andplace from theknives, buttitsedge push centered between the blocks squarely on thetopface, (Use your push hands withangled handles to keep edges. blocks Feed slowly andsteadily across fromhitting thefence.) theboard

,pplying pressurt eo k e e pt h e downward t h e k n i v e s( a b o v e )a f l a to nt h eo u t f e e d table, a n d l a t e r ap l r e s s u rte o h o l dr t board Nextj , o i n ta n e d g e o f t h e b o a r dW . ith f l u s ha g a i n stth e f e n c e . resting a g a i n stth e f e n c e a n dt h e e d g e t h e f a c ey o uj u s tj o i n t e d w i t h a h a n d - o v e r - h atn ed chnique. o nt h et a b l e , f e e dt h e b o a r d two parallel faces. Next,planethe board(stepbelow) to create

Planing stock depth to Xoinch.Stand to Setthe cutting e n d u s eb o t h o n es i d eo f t h e w o r k o i e c a hands t o f e e dt h e s t o c ki n t ot h e m a c h i n e , paralle tlo keepint gh e e d g e s of theboard . nce t h e m a c h i ng er i p s t h e p l a n etra b l e O a n db e g i n s to pullit acrost sh e theboard s,u p p o r t i h e t r a i l i n ge n d t o cutterhead Thenmove keepit f lat on the table (/eff). r n ds u p to theoutfeed s i d eo f t h e p l a n e a p o r tt h e w o r k p i e cw e i t h b o t hh a n d s until it clears the outfeed roller. To prevent p a s s i no gn l y ,void stock f r o mw a r p i n ga themachine; o n ef a c eo f a b o a r d through i n s t e a do .lane thesame a m o u no t f wood from bothsides.

I9

TABLEAND DESKBASICS

CUTTING ST()CK T()SIZE

Ripping a workpiece Ripstock to width onyour table sawusing theripfence asa guide. Raise theblade to about %inchabove theworkpiece. P o s i t i otn h er i p f e n c e f o r t h ew i d t h o f c u t ,t h e nf e e d the pressing stock intothe blade, it against thefence withyour (above). lefthand andpushing it withboththumbs Stand to

t h e l e f to f t h ew o r k p i e c ae n ds t r a d d lte h ef e n c e w i t hy o u r right h a n dm , a k i nc ge r t a i t n h a tn e i t h eh ra n d i s i n l i n ew i t h your theblade. Once fingers approach theblade, usea push (Caution: guard partially stickto complete the pass. Blade retracted forclarity.)

Crosscutting stock Cutyour stock to length onthetable saw. With theworkpiece f lush against themiter gauge a, l i g n t h ec u t t i n g mark w i t ht h e blade. Position theripfence well away from piece thestock to prevent thecut-off from j a m m i nb ge t w e e tn h eb l a d e a n df e n c e , you.Hook your andkicking back toward gauge, thumbs over themiter hold the board against thegauge andflatonthe t a b l et,h e nf e e dt h e b o a r d a c r o sts he (Caution: guard partialtable(right). Blade ly retracted forclarity.)

20

AND DESKS TABLES DESIGNING

of a piece of building I crucialpart its final is deciding on A furniture A desk thatis toohighor dimensions. a tabletop lowwill beuncomfortable; mealits diners will make thatcrowds Once experience. timeanaggravating from style youhave chosen a particular starting oftables anddesks thegallery itsparts. 22,it is timeto size on page forawide range of dimensions Standard
traditionaland moderntableand desk Dining tables below. areprovided styles in width for shouldprovide24 inches from each diner.Allow at leastl2 inches place for each to the center table edge the 4 inches will to 6 an additional setting; Toallow providespace for serving dishes. about7 'linchlegroom,leave adequate andtheunderthechairseat esbetween least 2 feet between top, and at side ofthe the floor andthebottom of the tableor however, that these deskrail. Remember, furniture should figuresareguidelines; fit thoseusingit. A tableor a deskalsoshouldfit into its environment.For desksand dining to allowfor theheight tables, remember chairs.Bedside of the accompanying shouldnot risemorethan6 inchtables the bed. esabove

AND DESK DIMENSIONS TABIE STANDARD

TABTES (night Bedside table) Butler's table lytable Butterf stand Candle table Card Coffee table table Conference table Console Dressing table table Drop-leaf table Extension dining Gateleg table Library table table Occasional Round dining table Tilt-top table table Trestle DESKS desk Computer desk Executive desk Office Pedestal desk desk Secretarial Secretary Typewriter stand

HEIGHT 24',-30" 24',- 36', onuse Depends 2 5 ' -3 1 ' 25',-29'. 12'- 22',
?nn

[ENGTH 18" 36'- 48' Depends on use 28"- 36' on use Depends on use Depends 36',-72', 40'- 48', on use Depends 60" 96";closed: Open: Depends on use 60'- 84' 24',- 28',

WIDTH 18' 20' Depends on use

DIAMETER

12"- L7', 28',-36', 20' Depends on use 16' - 20' 18' - 22', Depends on use 36', 42', Depends on use 24',-36', 24',- 28', on use Depends 24',- 28', At least 40" 24',- 26', 48',- r20', 48"- 50' 72',- 84', 60' 30'- 42', 60'- 66' 30'- 44'
?nil

30' 2 9 ' -3 0 ' onuse Depends 29" 31' 2 9 ' -3 0 ' , 30" 27"- 29', 29',-3r', 26',- 28', 29',- 31', 20' - 26', 2 9 ' -3 0 ' , 29',
?nil

At least 30" 24" -30', 36',- 42',

?nil

30" -86"; Total height:74" 29' - 30' Writing surface:

?nr

18-22" 30"- 32' 18'- 22', 18'

2l

TABLEANDDESKSTYLES
f.f undredsof table and desk L I styles haveevolved throughout the ages, each with its own specificpurpose. Thebutler's table, for example, alsoserves as a serving (page tray.The secretary 26) combines a bookcase, a desk, anda chest of drawers, supplying amplestoragespace for books,papers, and otheritems,and a writing surface that canbefoldedup out of theway when not in use.The following pagesillustrate more than two dozentypesof tablesand desks to inspire your designs.

The knockdowntrestletable is a design that tracesits rootsback to the Middle Ages. The example shown above was built from cherry by Thos. Moser Cabinetmakers in Auburn, Maine.

Card table A aquare table, aomet.imea with dishedcornero for holdtn4 coina. Oneaide ta normally left undecorated and placed aqainet a wall whenthe table ie not in uae.Thetop folds in half and the aide raila fold inward to move Lhe le4ecloeer to4ether

Eutterfly table An Americandropleaf table, uLiltzinq a prvotinqeupport to hold up wideleavee on eiLhereide of a narrow,central tabletop

Coffee table A lowoccaatonal table deeiqned to be uaed with eofa and chaira

Eutler's table A portable table, the eideeand ende of which fold up Lo form a qallery, or fence,and handlea

TABLEAND DESKBASICS

Extenaion table Any table whoaelen7th can be increaaed with one or more leaves;the top eep' enablin7 aratea alonqelidee, a hinqedleaf to ewinqup or a aeparate leaf to be added

Conaoletable A side,or entry, table with two front legethat are eet cloeer Lo7etherthan backleqo; 6ome examplea are aecuredLo a wall with brackets and eupported by only LwofronL leqe Droo4eaf table Kefbra u any of oeveraleLyteeof table with htnqedleaveethat hanqdownwhennot in uae:whenopen,the leavesare eupported in a variety of waya, includin4qate lego, ewin4le4a,or bracketo fastened to the raile

Gateleg table A eLyleof drop-leaf Lable with extenatonleavee eupported by ewin1in4 le4aattached to bottom Ieqatretchere

Handkerahief table A trianqular drop-leaftable; whenthe table ia opened, the top io equare

23

TABLEAND DESKBASICS

Harueat table Any of variouaAmerican otylea of larqe diningtableo, often with leaveeon both aidee of a narrow top

Nest of tablea A aet of occaaional tablea eizedeo that they can be etored oneineide the other when noLin uae

Pedeetal table A table with a top fagtenedLo a central column; the columnie uaually mountedon three (Lripod)orfour le4e

Trestle table A larqe tabletop eupported by Lreetlea; Luektenonajoin leqo Lo aLretcherEallowinq for eaay disaeaembly

TABLEAND DESKBASICS

5tand Any omall table to diedeaiqned play objecta; a candleatand is one example

Tilt-top table A variation of the trrpod pedeatal table fea' turin7 a top that to pivote verEically 9Pace con?erve

Pembroketable A type of drop-leaf table with leavea oupported by brackete hin4edto the table raila;commonIy feat.ureoone or two drawera

Night table A amalloccaeional table uaedto eupporElampeand other bedaideaccesaorrea; ofLen with one or moredrawerqand a ahelfor amall atoraqe compartment

Taverntable Lowrectan7ularor circulartable with etretchera and turned leqo:occathe tabte eionally, hae carvedeupporte at the enda connected by a stretcher

craftsmanHank Seattle Holtzer built the "Morrison table" shown above from walnut. The extension table features a S-footdiameter top that opensto 8 feet. It will seatfrom 6 to 10 people.

25

TABLEAND DESKBASICS

l 4M l lM M I
Iilt --

Fall-front desk A desk with a workingaurface that "falla" downinto the openpoaition, held up by eupporte that btideout of receeaea in the deakfront

9earetary
A otyle of elant-top deek featurin4a fall-front wriLina eurfacewith a cheat of drawera belo-w and a bookcaeewith wood or 4laoa doore above

Pedestal deak (kneeholetype) Featurea a top eupporLedon both aidee by drawer carcaoeacalledpedeotala:the kneehole is cloeedat the backand mav contain a

Writing table Any flat-topped deak with a writinq eurface and drawere below the top

Lap deak A amall lift-top deek held on the lap whilein uae

TABLEAND DESKBASICS

Writing deek Aleo known by the Eriilah term Daven' porL,thie amalldeek 'hau u, an4led,tifLin4 top wrth etoraqe epaceunderit; draw are erq or cuPvoaraq locatedon the Eidee of the carcaee,rather than in thefront Pedeetal deok (partner'e type) pedestal Similar to the kneehole desk,but the Lop ie lar4er and Lhegap betweenthe pedeotala ta lefL open on boLheidea-oriqinally to allowtwo peo' ple Lo uee the deEkat the aametime

Roll-top deok A deak wtth a elidinq cover,or tambour, that can be drawn downto coverthe wrrtin4aurface;the top may be eupporred by pedeetaleor lege

5tanding deek Alao known ae a clerk'edeak,thia ta ll, ela nti n4 |ifL-top desk typrcally hae one or two amall drawera and may havea shelf the wriLin7 eurface below

Suggestive of an open fall-front thepieceshownat left incordesk, porates includotherdesign elements, curvealongthefront inga graceful wasbuilt edge of the top. Thedesk maple by cherry and ludith from Amesof Seattle.

27

DE,SKCASEWORK
on As illustrated andshrinkage. aseworkis the fundamental page frame-and-pan31,individual buildingblockof mostdesks. arejoinedto form a el assemblies It canbe assimpleasa four-sided is in each frame case. Theopening asa frame-andbox or aselaborate in grooves filledbyapanel thatrests as panel cabinet.Suchelements edges of theframe. cutin theinside dividers, shelves,drawers,face pieces glued theframe are Although frames,and dust panelsprovide is thepanel together atthecorners, refinementsthat transform this withoutadhesetinto theframes into a pieceof furniture. casework andshrink. to allowit to swell sive will showyou how This chapter around Thepanel is oftenbeveled techniques to to apply casework decorative touchthat theedges-a the constructionofa two-pedestal into it to fit moreeasily allows requires manyclamps. also carcase Gluingup a large desklike the one shownopposite. itsgroove. bar clamps are ln thesetupshownabove, to build than Carcases are easier for The methodyou choose and with aligned with thepanek of thecarcase Asshown frame-and-panel cabinets. joined to thecarcase acarcase or frame-andsides. assembling thedustframesbeing consist of on page30,all carcases panel will influence thecharjoined to form a box. case on all of thejoints Applyinguniformpressure four panels of yourdesk. acter andindividuality square and solid. will helpmakethecarcase Make surethat the wood grain of joineryoptions areshown Various direcrunsin thesame all thepanels jointworlawellwitheither wood solid rabbet 32.The to swellandshrinkat thesame onpage tion. Thiswill allowthepanels panels. aremoretime-conThrough dovetails or plyr,vood If you assemble a carhumidity levels change. rateasrelative andconsidered suming to make but theyaremoreattractive panels to each othat right angles with the grainof adjacent case assemblies can Frame-and-panel of finecraftsmanship. asign er you risk splittingoneof the panels. or themoredecowith mortise-and-tenons type of casework-frame-and-panel-solves beput together The second joint. for swelling rative cope-and-stick by allowingspace the problemofwood movement

carcases shownat leftfeatures two identical Thedouble-pedestal desk joinedtogether sit by thetop.Thepedestals by rails,whichareconcealed drawers. dust to accommodate and are divided by on molded bases frames

29

TWO TYPES OF DESKCASEWORK

CARCASE CASEWORK
Duet frame (page 56) A frame-and-panel aaaembly thaL adde etrenqth to the carcaee and oupporLadrawera; frame ia connected to carcaeeeides by twin morLiee-and-tenon and blind jointo. A larger frame eupportoa spline-and-qroove middle drawer betweenthe two deak pedeatale 9pline .)

Back Typically%-inch plywood nailedand glued into a rabbet routed around the back edgeof panela;can alao olip into qrooveo routed ineidethe facee of panele \Rear connectin7 rail (pase 53) Connecte Lheback of the two deak pedeatalawith blind morLtge-and-tenon joinLa;alao hidea backof middledrawer

Twin tenon

Cornerjoint (page 33) )ec urea panele togeLher. KabbeLjointia ahown, but through doveLail and plate jointe are aleo popular choicee: for a aelectionof joints, eeepaqe 32 ?topped groove Accepto opline of duELframe \ Dovetail halflap joint \ Panel Ueed Lo form the top, boLtom, or eidee of a carcaae.Canbe madeof plywoodor solid lumber; if aold, typically made from qlued-upboarde

/--l
---------'

Frontconnectins ) rail (paqe 39) ,/ ConnecLa Lhe --/ front of Lhe two deokpedeatale: jotned to the carca9e50y aovetailed half-lapo

Eaee molding A decorative frame of moldedetock beveled at Lheende andjoined witn plate (or biecuit)joinLe. Carcaaeaite in rabbeLa routed around top edqe of frame; brace at back providee oupport

Qaseao)

-__----f
Eraae 9upporto back of carcaae

30

DESKCASEWORK

CASEWORK FRAME-AND-PANEL
Haunahedmortiaeand-tenonjoint Rail Hortzontalmember of frame-and-panel bottom aooembly: railo may feature a decorativearch alon4 bottom edqe

Rear aonneatingrail

Dovetail twtn mora,oeand-tenonioint

Front conneating rail

.'

\
)

/ (
\

A\ // ,/
) t
t

) Middledrawerrail (pase52) ConnecLa two frameand9tile Verticalcomponent of a frame' ana-Panel aeeembly; ettle ehownia parAof both rear and aideaeaembltea paneldeekpedeataleand eupporto middle drawer; joined to pedeetala by twin mortt ee-a nd -te non I ointe

Drawer rail Qaqe a9) Supporte drawere and 7trenqtheng caee;joined to eLilee fo twin mortiae-andjointo f,enon

Panel (page 4) )olid woodpiece that. fite into qroovetn frame:can be flat.or haveita edqearabbet"raiae" ed or beveledto cenLerof panel

Blind mofiieeand-tenonjoint

Decorative bot'tom rail

lnner frame-andpanel asaembly Featurea lar7er Lop rail and than ouLeraoeembly, omaller correopondin4ly panel:rail te lar7e enou4h to accept duatframe below center drawer

Bottom (page 51) Attached to caee by led4eretdpe on raile, or seL into groovecu1, around ineideed4ee of bottom ratla

Ledger etrip (page 51) Ueed to faef,en bottom panel to ca6e; one edqe ie acrewed Lo inatde facea of bottom raila while the other edqe ie screwed to bottom

31

CASEWORKIOINTS

l
Rabbetjoint

(pase33)
Ueedto join carcaae panele toqether; end of one panel fita into rabbet cut in the matin4 panel. Kabbet ia typically routed in carcaae aidee to conceal end 7rarnof top and bottom panela Stopped groove-and- epline (pase 57) Ueedto join etretchere and duaL panele to carcaae aidee.)topped qroovez are routed in both the edaeof the atretcher or the duat frame rail and the ineide face of the carcaae aide; a floatinq eplineallowa .....-: for wood 1!.e* movement

Twin mottiee- and-tenon Ueedto join duat panele to carcaee aides and drawer raila to frame-a nd-pa nel etil ee Stopped tonqueand-dadojoint An alternative to the etopped for 4roove-and-epline atta chin7 atretchera to carcaoesidee;a atopped tonque cut in edgeof stretcher fita into
atopped 7roove cut in carcage ./ ^s\ q '--\.,. . .

Qase5a)

Blind mortieeand-tenon (pase 36) Uaedto aeoemble duet framee and connect deekpedeotala toqether; connecte raila and atilea in frame' and-Panel aeoembliee

Made on connectinq raile to join deek pedeatalo Eeveledplate joint (page 4O) Uaedto aasemble pieceaof baee moldinq Loqethery biecuita of compreaaedwood fit into alote cut in beveledenda of mattnq aurtacee Cope-and-atiakjoint A decorative alternative to blind and haunched mortiaeand-tenonafor frame-and-panelconatruction. A aet of router bile cute matching profilea in raila and atilea; 7roovefor floating panelie cut srmultaneoualy

?late (biaautt) joint Uaed to ioin carcaae panela to4ethei without havi'nq to ahape the piecee:biacuita of compreeeed wood fit into elotg cub in the matinq boards. Slota are typically cut into enda of top and bottom panela

Haunahed mortiee-andtenon (page 41) Uaedto join raila and etilee in frame-and-panel aesemblies: tenon haunchin rail filla panel4rooveo routed tn atilea Through dovetaila (pase 125) Tapered pina on top and bottom panele interlock with an7ledtaile cut into the eide panela:uoed wherethe joinery ie an important element of deoi4n

32

BUILDINGA CARCASE
joined The to forma box: I ourpanels l- carcase isthesunplest andmostbasic ngblockoi furniture buildi construction. provides A carcase therigid framework for itemsasdiverse asa bookcase anda Buildtwo boxes andjoin them drawer. together and you havethe heartof an attractive two-nedestal desk.The sechow to do this. tion that followi shows Carcase Danels canbe constructed from plyruobd, but for fine furniture, made the panels aremost frequently joint into The twin mortise-and-tenon from narrowboardsedge-glued (page and structurwider panels 93).The panels are offersmoregluing surface jointedon oneedge, thenplaned, cutto al stability than a simplemortise-andTo allowthepanels to tenon,and k oftenusedtojoin size, andsanded. stretchers to carcase sides.Here o with changes in contract and expand twin tenon is being test-fittedinto its in a carhumidirythegrainof allpanels mating mortisesin the side of a desk. case is alisnedin the same direction. with several Carcases canbe assembled joint types ofjoints (page 32).Therabbet Thejoint offers is a popularchoice: a largegluingsurface and is simpleto make. As illustrated below the rabbets arebestcut into thesideoanels sothat t h ee n dg r a i no i t h et o p a n d b o t t o m panels Theendgrainof willbe covered. thesides is oftenconcealed bv thetoo. Whenplanning a carcase, ii iswise to takeinto consideration thetypeofshelving or drawers(page116)that will be built into it. For example, the desk shown on page 2B fiatures dust frames(page 34)Ihat both supportthe drawers andprovide strenghto thecarframes case. Theioinervneeds of these mustbe takeninto account before the is gluedup. carcase

PREPARING THE SIDES: RABBET J()INTS

rabbets in thecarcase sides 1 Cutting w t idth I T h er a b b e s h o u le d q u atlh e thickness of thecarcase top;mark a cutt i n gI i n e f o rt h er a b b e to snt h e l e a d i n g panel. edge of one side Install a dado head wider onyour slightly than therabbet table Attach wood fence saw. anauxiliary to the ripfence andraise thedado head to cut a notch in thewood fence. Setthecuttingheight at one-half thestock thickness forthewidth andadlust thefence of cut. Clamp a featherboard to thefence directly above theblade to hold thepanel securely against thetable, thenmake thecuI(left). Cuta rabbet attheopposite endofthepanpanel. el andboth ends of theother side

DESKCASEWORK

r) Cutting grooves for the backpanel L Once vou haverabbeted the carcase you needto prepare sides, the four panels t o a c c o m m o d at h ee b a c k , w h i c hc a n b e set into a rabbet or a groove. Forthe rabbet, repeat step 1, but makethe cut along t h e b a c ke d g eo f e a c hp a n e la n d a d j u s t t h e c u t t i n gd e p t ht o t h e t h i c k n e s s of the back-typically % i n c h .F o rt h e g r o o v e , adjust the dadoheadto a widthof % inch, n e ill t h e np o s i t i o t h ef e n c e s ot h e g r o o v w b e % i n c hf r o mt h e b a c ke d g e of thepanel (left).CUIthe backfrom %-inch plywood t o f i t t h eo p e n i n g in thecarcase a,d d i n g the depthof the grooves to its dimensions.

MAKING DUST FRAMES

Cutting in thefront rails twin tenons 1 I Thedust frames thatwillsupport the pedestals drawers arejoined to thedesk joints (page withtwinmortise-and-tenon 36).Start bycutting in each thetenons front r a i lo ny o u r table s a wt ;h e y w i l lf i t i n t om a t c h i nm g ortise s t h ec a r c a s e in (step your 3).Equip table s i d ep a n e l s witha dado saw head %inch wide, then j ig g i n t h em i t e s i n s t aa l lt e n o n i n r lot. Mark a twintenon at each endof therail, and set thecutting height at X inch. Clamp therailto thejig end-up andshift thejig sideways to align oneof thetenon marks with thedado head. Tomake thecut,push thejig forward, feeding thestock into the (right). blades Turn therailaround to cut theother tenon shoulder. Repeat thecuts at theother endof therailandat both ends o f t h er e m a i n i n ra gi l s .

34

DESKCASEWORK

r) Clearing between tenons thewaste j ig g t o l i n eu pt h e Z . S t r i ttth et e n o n r n between thetwin dado head withthewaste passes until Make several tenons ?ight). wood. cleared awav theexcess vouhave

in thecarcase sides thedouble mortises Q Chiseling forthe f a c e o f t h e s i d ep a n e l r - J M a r kl i n e so n t h e i n s i d e p a n e l . f a c e Place therail d o w no n t h e location o f e a c hd u s t p o s i t i o n i nt g panel, h e e n do f aligning theedges o f b o t ha n d on t h e r a i lf l u s hw i t h t h e t o p l i n e .0 u t l i n et h e t w i n t e n o n s ( a b o v e , p a n e l T o / e f f ) .R e p e a f t o r t h e o t h e rr a i l s . c h o p the . hen, c,l a m pt h e p a n e l t o a w o r ks u r f a c eT outthe mortises gh i s e l , o l da m o r t i s i n c starting a t a n e n d o f o n eo u t l i n e h l n ds t r i k e w i t ha thehandle square t o t h e f a c eo f t h e p a n e a

w i d t ha s t h e m o r t i s e s wooden malletU . s ea c h i s e t lhesame . ontinue di d ei s f a c i n g t h e w a s t eC a n d b e s u r et h a tt h e b e v e l e s reach the sf a b o u t % i n c hu n t i l y o u making c u t sa t i n t e r v a lo o u tt h e lo lever other e n d o f t h e o u t l i n eU . s et h e c h i s e t C h o po u t t h e a d j a c e nm t ortise waste to therequiredepth. ( a b o v er,i g h t )a n dt h e o t h e rd o u b l em o r t i s e s t h e s a m ew a y . w r t ht h e T e s t - f itth e j o i n ta n dw i d e n or deepen themortise r e o u i r e d . c h i s e la .s

35

DESKCASEWORK

Making frames thedust

P r e p a ra e r e a rr a i l ,a f l o a t i n g % "p l y w o o d p a n e la , n dt w os t i l e s f o r e a c hd u s tf r a m e as y o uw o u l d fora non-raise fd rame-and-panel (page assembly 48), sizing t h e f r a m et o f i t t h e i n t e r i oo r f t h ec a r c a s e I. nstead of cutting groove rabbets, routa %-inch-deep around the inside e d g eo f t h e f r a m et o a c c o m m o d a t e s i l l a l s os e r v e t h e p a n e lt;h e g r o o v ew asmortises f o r t h e s t u bt e n o n s t h a tj o i nt h e r a i l s a n ds t i l e s together A . l s or o u ta g r o o v e along t h eo u t s i d e edge o f e a c hs t i l et o a c c e p t h e spline t h a tw i l lf i t i n t oa m a t c h i ng gr o o v e in a carcase sidepanel(page 37).

Kear rail
Ort roove ,r apltne for

Groove for ,/ floaLinq panel

9tile

Float;inq panel

9trte

.9Lub tenon

,r'
_l

Front dust frame ratl

---t

Gluing upthedustframes f, r-,f Sandanvsurfaces of the framethat w r l lb e d r f f r c u lt to r e a c h a f t e rg l u eu p . Spread a d h e s i vo en t h e t e n o n s a n dt h e i r grooves . o n o ta p p l y g l u ei n t h e mating D p a n eg l roove l u s tb e f r e et o t; he panem m o v eG . l u eo n eo f t h e s t i l e s t o o n eo f t h er a i l s , i n s e rtth e p a n e lt,h e na s s e m b l e t h e o t h e ro i e c e sC . lamo t h e d u s tf r a m e a c r o sts h ej o i n t s w i t hb a rc l a m p sc ,h e c k i n gf o r s q u a r e a n du s i n g w o o dp a d st o protect the stock(below).

36

DESKCASEWORK

UPTHECARCASE GLUING

iillllii,illllllJllllililli 'tl lliliiil,illdtlll llilrlll drill du

)HO? Tt?
ng d rawer's uppo rt' 5 crewi frames to a carcase oupporl lf you are ineLalltnq offera quick framea,woolocrews and eaoyway No fix f'hemIo of a carcase,Ueetwo lhe eid,es secure eachframesLile ocrew;L,o clearSorean elongat'ed in place. ancehole(paqe96) for each the etileand inlo ecrew Nhrouqh side,makinq -..' lhe carcaEe
s u r e N h el w o h o l e s for Ihe same elile a r e Ve r -e f c L l ya l i q n e d .

sides thecarcase Grooving to the I Each d u s tf r a m ei s s e c u r e d groove-andsideswith stopped carcase joints t h ef r a m e t h a tw i l l e n a b l e spline n h u m i d i t yE . ach w i t hc h a n g eis to move j o i n tc o n s i s to that d pline sf a h a r d w o os grooves routstopped will sit in matching e d i n t h e c a r c a ss ei d ea n dt h e s t i l eo f in the To cut the grooves the dustframe. s t r a i g hb t it in n s t a la l %-inch c a r c a s ei , y o u rr o u t e r o n eo f t h e s i d e a n ds e c u r e panels inside-fac ue p t o a w o r ks u r f a c e . l ot h e guide t o t h e p a n es anedge Clamp b i t w i l l b e c e n t e r eo dn o n eo f t h e d o u b l e youcut for the drawer rails.For mortises groove rout a stopped frame, eachdust m ortises f r o m t h e a b o u t I i n c h starting ( a b o v ea ) ndstopping a b o u t3 i n c h e s R e p e afto r t h e f r o mt h e o p p o s i t e d g e . s i d e . carcase other

'l

DESK CASEWORK

r) Installing thedust frames L Cuttwo hardwood or plywood splines f o re a c h f r a m eT .he s p l i n es sh o u l b d ea youcut in littleshorter thanthegrooves step1 to allow forwood movement; for maximum strength, thegrain should run across thesplrne's width. Place one side of thecarcase inside-face up on a work glueto thetwinmortises surface, apply a n dt e n o n s , a n ds e tt h ef r a m eis nplace, makins gu r e t h a tt h e yf i t s n u g l o yver (/eft). thesplines

Assembling thecarcase Q \,, With allthedust frames in place and theremaining grooves, splines setin their assemble therest of thecarcase. First glue apply along t h er a b b e ti s no n e side p a n ea l n ds l i d e t h eb a c k a n db o t t o m in (right). position Next, setthetopin place. glue Spread some ontheremaining twin mortise-and-tenons andcarefully lower the panel other side ontopof theassembly, guiding grooves thesplines into their and thetwintenons into their mortises. Install barclamps across thefront of thecarcase, aligned witheach dust frame, andacross both thetopandbottom of theassembly. pads Use wood to protect thestock, Reinjoints force therabbet andtheback with countersunk nails orscrews which canlater beconcealed withplugs.

38

DESK CASEWORK

RAII A CONNECTING INSTALLING

half-laps dovetailed 1 Cutting rail connecting I inthefront are desk. thecarcases ln a two-oedestal r a i l s a n d a d u st b y c o n n e c t i n g loined The drawer. frame thatsupports a central railisjoined to thecarfront connecting joints. To half-lap withdovetailed cases prepare andsaw each rail,cut it to size endwitha half-lao in each a dovetailed (right). saw dovetail

)pline qroove for central dust frame

TwinmorEiaee for central duat frame

r') Cutting themating Z dovetails inthecarcases youcut half-laps Use one of thedovetailed themating dovetail in step1 to outline Then usea saw mortise in each carcase. (/eft). Next, andchisel to cutthemortise (page make a dustframe 36)to fit between andsupport thecentral drawthecarcases grooves andmortises ontheouter.Rout carcases to accommodate the side of both joinery. thecarcases Also cui a railto span of thedrawer at theback andhide theback (page 53).Jointhisrailto thecarcases joints. Assemmortise-and-tenon withblind (page thedesk together 53) bleandclamp

39

DESKCASEWORK

BASE MOLDING
Making thebase molding I T h e b a s em o l d i n s forthecarcase is m a d ef r o mt h r e ep i e c e s of molded stock a n da b r a c eT . o p r e p a rte h e m o l d i n gr,o u t a decorative detailalong oneedgeof each y o u rt a b l es a wf i t t e dw i t h a boardu , sing molding c u t t e rh e a do r a t a b l e - m o u n t e d r o u t ew r i t ha m o l d i n g b i t .T h e nc u t a r a b b e t i n e a c hp i e c e along t h e o p p o s i ts ei d e of thesame e d g et ; h i sw i l l f o r ma l i p t o s u p p o r t h e c a r c a s eS . a wt h e b o a r d s to l e n g t hb , e v e l i nb g o t he n d so f t h e f r o n t piece a n do n l yt h e f r o n te n do f t h e s i d e s . piece A l s os a wa b r a c i n g t h a tw i l l f i t , f a c e up, betweet nh e s i d e s a t t h e b a c ko f t h e m o l d i n gb ; o r ea h o l ef o r a s c r e w through t h e b r a c eT . h es c r e w w i l la t t a c h thebrace t o t h ec a r c a s e T.h em o l d i n g intheillustration isassemble w di t h p l a t e l o i n t sT . he boards will mateend-to-end, except at the b a c ko f t h e m o l d i n gw , here the brace is t o t h e i n s i d e f a ces o f t h e s i d e sA . loined joiner plate withan adlustable fencemakes i t e a s i etro a l i g n t h e t o o lw h e nc u t t i n g the slotsin the beveled ends//effl. 'l

r) Gluing upthebase molding L Workingquickly, glue apply to allthe joint, slots, insert onebiscuit foreach and assemble thebase molding. Secure the brace to thesides witha barclamp, using pads wood to protect thestock; install a webclamp withcorner brackets around . ighten t h em o l d i na gt t h em i t e j ro i n t sT theweb provided clamp, using thewrench (right), thentighten the barclamp. Once theglueis dry,install thebase byapplyingglue only along therabbet in thefront (This piece andsetthecarcase in place. willcause any wood movement in theside pieces to takeplace towards theback of preventing themolding, themiters at the front fromseparating.) Attach thebrace to thecarcase bydriving a screw through the you hole d r i l l e id ns t e p l

40

DESK BUILDINGA FRAME-AND.PANEL

panel offers construction Tl rame-and to theperennialprob-F on. solution is Theprinciple Iemofwood movement. "floats" cut in a groove simple:A panel of a frame.The panon the insideedge el can be flat, asin a dust frame (page "raised," cut alongits with bevels 4B),or edge.The bevelingallowsthe panelto fit into a groovein the frameand prefaceto the public. A sentsa decorative oanelcanbe raisedon the router table (page 44)or the table saw(page45). desk To construct a frame-and-panel 31,you need Iiketheoneshownon page frame-and-panto join four individual (page 47), arearassembly el assembliesi (page drawershdes a front assemblywith 49),foursiderails,andtwo sidepanels. (Thestiles in the front and rearassemfor thesideframes.) bliesdoubleasstiles

"raised," beveled, or were panekfor frame-and-panel construction Traditionally, power like Modern tools, planes-a task. time-consuming hand with specialized simpler. much made this operation a tablesawwith a tilting arbor,have

JOINTS MORTISE.AND.TEN()N HAUNCHED

in therails tenons 1 Cufting a haunch equal to leave /efti.Position thefence rail(above, each frame-and-panel of individual andstiles therails I to toin forthepanel; settheheight of thegroove to thedepth install a dado in width mortise-and-tenons, withhaunched assemblies With the thetenon. %inchinto head to cutabout onyour table of thedado of thetenons thelength wider than head slightly gauge it intothe to guide andmiter use thefence onedge, head to notch stock thedado fence andraise saw. Attach anauxiliary (above, side ontheother to cutthehaunch right). Repeat To cut the blade length. to thetenon it. Setthewidthof cut equal hasno which of thefront assembly, For therails andthe miter of thetenon. against thefence buttthestock cheeks, tenon (page panel, equal 42),making theshoulders cut blind tenons andrepeat the gauge, Turn therailover it face down. thenfeed tenons. thehaunched of thenotch voucut into endof to thewidth cheeks at theother Next, cuttenon side. cutontheother

41

DESKCASEWORK

A TENONING JIG FOR THE TABLE SAW Youcanusethejig shown at right to cut blind tenons on thetable saw. Adapt thedimensions suggested in the illustration to customize thejig foryour saw, if necessary. Cutthejig fence andback from plywood %-inch andsawa 45" bevel at oneendof each board: theoieces should bewider thantheheight of yoursaw's rip fence. Fasten two pieces together face to face to fashiontheback, thenuse countersunk screws to attach thefence andback in an L shape. Make sure thefastene r sw i l ln o tb e i n t h eb l a d e 'o sa t h youuse when thejig.Next, cutthe brace from solid stock, bevel itsends, andattach it flush withthetopedges of thefence andback, forming a triangle. gluMake theclamp byface plywood ingtwopieces of %-inch andcutting theassembly intothe shape shown. Usea hanger bolt, washer, andwingnutto attach the clamp to thejig back, leaving a gap between theedge of theclamp and thefence equal to thethickness of youwilluse. thestock Offset the boltsotheclamp canpivot eccentri(You cally, candrilladditional holes in thejig back soyoucanshift the clamp to accommodate different stock thicknesses.) Next, cuttherunnerfromsolidwood. When attached to thejig fence, therunner willstraddlethesaw fence, eliminating any wobble. youwill For some models, have to milla groove down thelength of the runner, asshown, to fit the r i pf e n c eF . inally c,u t a p i e c e of p l a s t ia c sa b l a d e guard clear and screw it to thejig back f lushwith its frontface.

Kunner 1"x2"x24"

Fence '1"x5/,"x24"

Groovefor rip fence T o t t s et h e i i p . s e t i t o n t h e s a w

l l b ' v v ! | l \

tablein front of theblade withthe r u n n ea r n df e n c e straddlin ger i p th fence. Clamp theworkpiece in thejig andposition theripfence to align the cutting mark ontheworkpiece with

theblade. Feed thejig intothecut(Your tingedge. firstuse of thejig willproduce a kerf in theback.) Flip theworkpiece around andrepeat to (below). cuttheother cheek Remove thejigto cuttheshoulders.

42

DESK CASEWORK

r) 0utlining inthestiles themortises on each locations of the mortises L ltrarV, theaooroximate stile (See oase 52 foran overhead Then use oneof the view.) y o uc u t i n s t e p1 t o o u t l i n t o ft h e h n dw i d t h eh el e n g t a rails flush against of thetenon thecheek Start byholding mortises. of the make sure thattheedge thefaceof oneof thestiles; hf h el e n g t o . u t l i nte r a i li s a l i g n ew d i t ht h ee n do f t h es t i l e O

(above, width, hold the the mortise lefil.f o mark thetenon face of the stile and the marked flush against edge of a tenon (above, ExIend the lines right). of the tenon outline thecheeks (shown lines). Once as dotted face in the illustration the along o u ts l i g h t ld ye e p e r c, h i s et lh e m as r eo u t l i n e d a l l t h em o r t i s e 35). a mortise chisel length, using thanthetenon @age

grooves forthepanels Cutting mark locations and stiles, 0n therails g r o o v e s t h ep a n e l . f o rt h e t h a tw i l lh o l d groove a in two Youwill need to make aligning thecuts of each rear stile, sides youcutin step 2. Then withthemortises your head setup tablesawwitha dado % typically width asthegroove, thesame in therails, ceninch. Tocutthegrooves over thedado of a raildirectly tertheedge against the thefence head andposition Use height to %inch. stock. Set theblade bya support board, a featherboard, braced against thefence to hold theworkpiece in the thecut.Tocutthegrooves during butadjust do notmove thefence, stiles, andsupof thefeatherboard thepositron portboard. Feed thestock witha push stick(/eft).

43

DESKCASEWORK

MAKING A RAISED PANEL ON THE ROUTER TABLE

thefence 1 Setting I Start bycutting the panel to size. Test-fit therails andstiles of theframe, thenmeasure theopening between them. Add%inch to each of thedimensions to allow the beveled edges of the panel to restin thegrooves routed in theframe; thiswillleaue lqinchon each side to allow forwood movement. Then fit a router witha panel-raising bitandmount thetool in a table. Toensure thatthecutting depth position is uniform, thefence in linewith theedge of the bit pilot.Withthetool switched off, place a scrap board along the fence. Adjust thefence untilthebit pilot turnsasthe board touches it (/efil.Set therouter to make a shallow cutatfirst. tvpically %inch.

r) Making thecut L Lower theguard over thebit andturn ontherouter. To minimize tearout, cut the ends first,beveling thetop andbottomof thepanel. Feed thestock intothe bit outside-face down, keeping it butted against the fence(right). Repeat for the twosides. Test-fit the panel in thegrooves (page youcut in the rails andstiles 43). panel lf the sitsless thanYo inchdeep, increase the cutting depthby %e inch pass andmake another around thepanel.

44

DESKCASEWORK

TABLE SAW PANEL ONTHE A RAISED MAKING

theendsof the panel 1 Beveling I C u t t h e p a n e lt o s i z e ,t h e ns e t t h e r e v e lT . he t o y i e l dt h e p r o p eb blade angle "reveal," of a3A-incho r b e v e l ea dr e a usual y ^i n c h e s . t h i c k p a n e lr s a p p r o x i m a l e Il Y groove, beginby marking Fora %-inch-wide corner of the at the bottom square alo-inch p a n e lT . h e nd r a wa l i n ef r o mt h e f r o n tf a c e l hrough of corner the inside of the panet edge thesquare t o a p o i n to n t h e b o t t o m Install a % inchfromthe backface(inset). then y o o df e n c e , 6 - i n c h - w i da eu x i l i a rw a n dt h e p o s i of theblade a d l u st h ea n g l e edge t i o n o f t h e f e n c eu n t i lt h e c u t t i n g raise the l i n e .N e x t , w i t ht h e m a r k e d aligns the beyond bladeuntil onetoothprotrudes a guideblock Clamp frontfaceof the panel. l o i t w i l l r i d ea l o n g t h et o po f t o t h e p a n es t h e f e n c e .M a k ea c u t i n o n ee n d o f t h e p a n e l( r i g h t ) , a n d t e s t - f i tt h e c u t i n a groove. lf the panelrestslessthan %inch to the deep,move the fencea littlecloser . e p e atth e a n o t h ep r a s sR a n dm a k e blade e n do f t h e p a n e l . c u t a t t h eo t h e r

Auxiliaryfence

CutLin4line

r) Beveling thesides y o uh a v e tg h es i d e s after Z- Bevelin minimize helps bevele td h ee n dg r a t n on edge andfeed Setthepanel tearout. flush keeping theback it into theblade, over Turn thepanel against thefence. (left). edge to cut the remaining

DESKCASEWORK

A PANEL.RAISING JIG FOR THE TABTE SAW To raise a panel on the tablesaw without adjusting theangle of the jig shown blade, usetheshop-built at right.Refer to the illustration for suggested dimensions. Screw the lip along the bottom edge of theangled fence; make sure youposition the screws where they willnotinterfere withtheblade. Prop theangled fence against theauxiliary fence at thesame angle asthecut(page ting linemarked on a panel 45), using a sliding bevel to transfer theangle. Cuttriangular supports to fit precisely between thetwofences, thenfix themin place withscrews. Countersink the fasteners so the panel willslide smoothly along the angled fence. Touse thejig,position it onthe saw table withthejointbetween the l i p a n dt h ea n g l e f de n c e approximately %inchfromtheblade. Butt thetable saw's ripfence against the jig'sauxiliary fence, andscrew the twotogether. Turnon the sawand crank up the blade slowly to cut a kerfthrough the lip. Next, seat the panel in thejig andadjust theheight proof theblade untila single tooth trudes beyond thefrontof thepanel. Make a testcut in a scrap board the same thickness astheoanel andthen check itsfit in thegroove; adjust the position of thefence or blade, if necessary. Then cutthepanel, beveling the ends(right,bottomlbefore sawino thc qideq

Anqled fence

12" x 30"

Auxrliary fence I x30'

LiP 1%"

46

DESK CASEWORK

THE BACK FRAME-AND.PANEL ASSEMBLING

in theframe thepanel 1 Fitting youhave you raised thepanel, I Once glue frame-andnow ready to up the are panel thebacks thatprovide assemblies for a two-pedestal cases needed of thetwo the parls(right) desk. Startbytest-fitting f i n a l a d j u s t m e nltfsa .ny a n dm a k e any joints a chisel too tight, use of the are youare wood. Once away some to pare the iedwiththe f it, disassemble satisf will be anysurfaces that frame andsand has once theassembly difficult to reach glued also decide been u p .Y o us h o u l d you willuse to install a top which method (page techniques 96); some of these pocket holes in therails or require boring grooves in therails andstiles. routing

r") Gluing up as thesame width andthickness glue withwood blocks anyadhesive thestock cheeks. Donotinsert L npply to thetenon o fg l u e t n t u r nu n t i a l t h i nb e a d . i g h t ee na c h clamp theframe t h er a i l sT mustbefree to move. Clamp thepanel in thegrooves; (above), protecting squeezes outof thejoints. the rails using barclamps across andpanel

47

DESKCASEWORK

BUILDING A NON-RAISED FRAME ANDPANEL

(page I Lrke dustframes 34), the panels of frame-and-pan de els k s c a nb e m a d e flatinstead o f r a i s e dT . obuild t h i st y p e o uc a nf o l l o w of assembly, a l lt h es t e p s (page for a raisedpanelframe-and-panel
41) cvrenl fnr hpriplino fhc pdooc nf tho

Routins a rabbet around 1 theframe t -

p a n e lA . nalternativ to e placing t h ef l a t panei ln a groove i s t o a s s e m b lte h ef r a m e w i t h b l i n dm o r t i s e - a n d - t e na on nd sr,o u t a rabbet around theframe to receive the pang e l .T o c u t t h e r a b b e t , l u eu p t h e r a i l s a n ds t i l e s a n ds e c u r e t h e a s s e m b lty oa w o r ks u r f a c eI.n s t a la l %-inch raboiloted beting bit in yourrouter. Setthe depthof cutat least % i n c hd e e o etrh a nt h et h i c k your panelto leave ness of roomfor deco(qten rative moldinp 2 ) R o u tt h e r a b b e t around the inside edges of theframe, dg a i n stth e keeping t h e b i t p r l o tp r e s s ea (far stockthroughout the cut left), Ihen square the corners with a chisel(near left).
b \!' vY 4 "

thepanel and O Installing L decoraliue molding l r o mv e n e e r ep do f i t C u ta p a n e f dl y w o o t t h e r a b b e t s(.A s o l i d - w o op da n e lw o u l d provide splitthe frame, since the rabbets n o r o o mf o r w o o dm o v e m e n t S . )p r e a d s o m eg l u e i n t h e r a b b e a t n d s e tt h e p a . o rt h e d e c o r a t i v nel in placeF m eo l d i n g , shape t h e e d g eo f a % - i n c h { h i cb ko a r d long enough t o y i e l dm o l d i n f g o rt h ei n s i d e edges of yourframe;makesurethe board i s w i d ee n o u g h t o f e e ds a f e l y a c r o st sh e tablesawor router tableyou useto shape t h e m o l d i n gR . i pt h e m o l d i n g f r o mt h e ieces .hen board i n t o Z - i n c h - s q u ap re T so f i t t h e i n s i d e c u t f o u rp i e c e t t h ef r a m e , mitering theends. Glue t h et o pa n db o t tomstrips of molding t o t h e f r a m ef i r s t , positionin ge mt o h o l dt h e p a n e il n th p l a c eT . o c l a m pt h e m o l d i n gu , s et h i n strips slightly longer thanthe gapbetween the moldingpieces(right).

,r/,

48

DESK CASEWORK

lnstalling molding sides along thepanel thetopandbottom theglue securing Once t h em o l d has c u r e dg ,lue m o l d i ns gt r i p s (right). of the panel ingalong the sides the to hold A g a i nu , s ec l a m p i ns gt r i p s i n gi n p l a c e . mold

CASE A FRAME-AND.PANEL BUILDING

glue surfaces of thejoints Apply to all thecontacting tenons.) upthefront assembly 1 Gluing across each of the pedestal Install a barclamp theframe. fora desk, begiq' andassemble a frame-and-panel I Toassemble of theassembly thetopandbottom alternating between shown on pag*37, rails, frame. For thedesk bygluing up thefront pressure possible. andprotect the clamping where Todistribute anda rails, twostiles, of top andbottom thisframe consists joined at a Tlghten theclamps a little strips. stock, use twoclamping withtwinmortise-andrails to thestiles of drawer series (.T h e outof thejoints. untilgluesqueezes continuing r a i li s i o i n e d w i t hb l i n dm o r t i s e - a n d - Iime(above), bottom tenons

49

DESKCASEWORK

Assembling thepedestal
l ,u i l ds i d e T oc o m p l e tt e h e p e d e s t ab

assemblies to fit between thefront andrear (page assemblies 47).Each side assembly needs only a panel andtworails, since it w i l ls h a r e stiles w i t ht h ef r o n t a n dr e a r assemblies. For a double-pedestal desk, t h et o pr a i lo f t h ea s s e m bfla yc i n g the s e c o no de d e s t s ah l ould b ew i d e t rh a n theheight of thecentral drawer between (page you thetwopedestals 31).Once prepared have alltheparts, test-f it them, glue then sand inside their faces. Apply to allthejoints-with theexception ofthe panel grooves-and assemble thepedestal. Clamp thepedestal withbarclamps (left); spanning thesiderails usewood pads to protect thestiles.

C h e c k i nl g orsquare Q r - , 1 M e a s u rte h e d i a g o n a lb se t w e e o nppol mediately s i t ec o r n e r o sf thepedesta im a f t e rt i g h t e n i n g t h e c l a m p s( r i g h t ) . I h e y l should i f n o t ,t h e p e d e s t a beequal; is o u t - o f - s q u a rT eo . c o r r e ctth e p r o b l e m , i n s t a la l b a rc l a m pa c r o s s rf t h e l o n g eo t h e t w o d i a g o n a lT si .g h t e n t h i sc l a m p a Irttle a t a t r m e ,m e a s u r i na gs y o ug o u n t i l t h e t w o d i a g o n a la sr ee q u a l .

50

DESKCASEWORK

THE BOTTOM INSTALLING

I n s t a l l i nl g e d g es r trips 1 l e d g es rtrips, l bottom using I T o i n s t a la to fit re o o ds t r i p s c u t f o u r 1 - i n c h - s q u aw of thecase. along t h e r a i l sa t t h e b o t t o m should b u t ta g a i n s t T h ee n d so f t h e s t r i p s t h e s t i l e s .B o r et w o s e t so f c o u n t e r s u n k dl o n g holes i n e a c hs t r i p :o n ec e n t e r e a h e s t r i pt o t h e r a i l , , o r s c r e w i ntg o n ee d g e f a n a d j a c e ne t d g ef o r a n d a n o t h ea r long panelS . t a g g et r he a t t a c h i n tg he bottom each will notcontact holes so the fasteners lpside-down, W i t ht h e p e d e s t au other. p o s i t i oa n l e d g es surface r t r i po n t h e i n s i d e of a bottomrail about1 inchfrom its top of the screw holes Markthe positions edge. . sing w i t h a n a w l a n d b o r ep i l o t h o l e s U s,c r e w clamps t o h o l dt h e s t r i pi n p o s i t i o n to r t h e t h e s t r i p i n p l a c e( r i g h t ) .R e p e a f
nfhpr lpdopr ctrins

r) Installing thebottom p a n etlo f i t t h ec a s e , L Cut a bottom itscorners to fit around thestiles. notching
Tn mnrrni lhp nanpl cpi tho nodpci:l nn

against i t sb a c k . H o l d i n tg h e p a n efl l u s h m a r kt h e s c r e w w i t h o n eh a n d , t h es t r i p s w i t h a n a w l a n d b o r ep i l o t h o l e s . holes (/eft). the bottomin position Thenscrew

DESK CASEWORK

JOINING DESK PEDESTALS

thejoinery 1 Planning pedestals I Once bothdesk areglued join up,you areready to them. The diagram at leftshows thejoinery involved. At the back of thedesk, a rear connecting railis attached to thestiles of thepedestals with blindmortise-and-tenons; thisrailprovides structural support andhides the back of thecentral drawer. At thefront, a conprovide n e c t i nr g ail, which ss uppor ft or joined thetop,is to thestiles withdovejoints. tailed half-lap Directly below this (visible railis a support board in theillustration below) forthecentral drawer. lt is connected to thestiles withtwinmortiseand-tenons.

r) Attaching theconnecting rails L and drawer support Test-fit therear connecting railandthe drawer support in the pedestals. Forthe front connecting rail, cuta dovetailed halflapat each endwitha dovetail saw(page 39).Use thehalf-laps to outline thematingmortises at thetopends of thestiles, thencutandchisel them out.Test-fit the (right), paringthe railin the mortises halflaps if necessary to ensure a tightfit.

52

DESK CASEWORK

jlljtlllilillll llllllllll|| llllllll lltl lllllllllll lllJ llllllllllllillJ

)HO? TI?
Uoingpipeclampsin paira enouqh lo glueup adeok,double are not,lonq lf your'Viipe clamVo Todo thie, uniN, to lunction ao a einqle clampo upIwo shorLer eo the alonq Nhe desk lhe two clampo pooilion laweaL t'heNail etoVo the handle endqriplhe deekwhile t'he unLil TiqhLen oneof the clamVo overlaV. you conLacl,,Ae tail eNoVo .make :-:6-g
n, t h e d e e k c o n N i ne u t i g h b e n i4

Gluinu g pt h ed e s k Q r - , 1 A p p l yg l u et o a l l t h e j o i n t sb e t w e e n r upport a i l sa n d d r a w es t h e c o n n e c t i nrg ls h ed e s k . n da s s e m b lte a n dt h e p e d e s t aa w i t ha l o n g heback Clamp t h e u n i ta c r o sts ,s i n g p i p ec l a m p( a b o v e ) w o o dp a d st o u pipe p r o t e c t h e s t o c k .I n s t a l l a second t t the t h e d r a w es r u p p o ra c l a m pa l o n g theopening Check f r o n to f t h e d e s k . for square by meabetween the pedestals l third acrost sh e c o r n e r sI.n s t a la suring c l a m o .i f n e e d e d .

togebher willbe pulled lueL a ae il you wereuoin7 long clamV. single

LEGSA}{DRAILS
choosing an before of the piece andrailsarethestructural egs legstyle. appropriate anddesls. tables heart of most leg (page Thedelicate cabriole provide vertical legs Thefurniture popular feature of a 63)has been and andtherailsconnect support, for more furniture high-quality whilealsosupportthelegs brace Simple to cut thantwo centuries. thedrawingthetop andframing is the cabriole on thebandsaw, er assembly. to suggest thelegofa leapdesigned mustbein andbeauty Strength legs(page 60) Tapered ing animal. andprohere: Theshape harmony jointer saw or table can becuton a portionof thelegs andrailsmust of for awiderange suitable andare of the otherelements complement They are a simpler tables anddesks. the piece balancing of furniture, (page legs 66). to turned alternative of of thetop andthesize weight A tableis onlyassturdyasthe a turnedlegis simplya matter Smoothing for example. thedrawers, joinery usedfor the leg-to-rail it rotatingon thelatheand allowing of leaving demonchapter Thefollowing joints, such as Traditional assembly. to do itswork.Theprocess thesandpaper for making strates thetechniques (page 34) or themortise-and-tenon with 8}-grit paperand worles typicallybegins types manyof themostcommon joint are reliable. If thepiece grit orfiner. dowel itswayup to 180 including legs, of tableanddesk frequently, commerwill bemoved pedestal, turned, cabriole, tapered, (page thelegs to be hardware 84)thatallows instructions cialor shop-made pieces. bydetailed Thisisfollowed andoctagonal yourtable or In designing option. removed may beyourbest to rails. for joininglegs youwill use the to attach themethod intoaccount take in constructing desk, is usually thefirststep Making thelegs youplanto use woodbuttons If, for example, thanis topto therails. thicker stock mostlegs require Since a tableor desk. in therailsbefore will need to cutthegrooves 98),you stock (page must face-glue thinner youusually commonly available, rail,or stretcher, canbe A lower (see to thelegs. Make sure theyarefastened size into ablankof appropriate frontendpaper). gateeffect; or decorative for extra strength to any table height added to theintended thelenghof theblankisproportional rails to serve asanchoring these bottom mayrequire without legtables enough or desk, andthatit will bestrong of thetable legs. for anyextra use points andplanned Alsoconsider thedesign toobullcy. appearing

joint connects to thelegs of a thestretcher A tusktenon thethrough beyond trestle table.Thetenonwill extend wedge canbeinsertmortise in thelegsothat a tusk-like edto lockthejoint whileallowingit to bedisassembled.

55

LEGSTYLESAND HARDWARE
Cabriole Ieg

(pase63) Ite 9-ehaped curve

imiLatea,the aweep or an antmal le4

Tapered leg (paqe 60) A equareleq with two adjorntn7 facee or all four facea tapered; vtrbually ae atronq ae untaperedleq

Tripod/pedeatal Ieg (pase 68) Typtcally aawnin a ehallow curve;Lop end iejoined Lo a central columnwith oltdin4 jotnt doveLarl

Octagonal leg (pase69)

A etratqhL le4 wr1;h etqht etdee

Turned leg (pase66)

FeaLures decorative beadE and filleLe; ohaped on a lathe

COMMERCIAL tEGHARDWARE

Leg braaee Hinqedatrute that allowleqato fold undert.ableLop

Corner brace Allowa lega Lo be removed;aLtached to leq with hanqer bolt and to raila with ocrewo Tableglide and leveler 9prtn4-loaded nylon feet automaLically levelfurntture on uneven floora:mounted with T-nuL and bolt

Castera Allow leqa to roll; wheele availablein braae, wood, porcelain, nylon, plaotic, or leather mountedtn braaa,wood. or caet-iron brackeLa. Clockwiae from too lefL: equarecup,plate, atem, and clawfoot caetere

Adjustable levelers Flastic feeL screwedinto bottom of leqe f,o levelfurniLureon uneven floore; mountedwith T-nut and bolt

56

LEG-TO-RAIL IOINTS

Elind moraiseand-tenonjoint (pase 76) joint An invieible with excellent in otrenqth. Tenon rail fita into matinq mortioe in leg

;
- - - . ' - _ ,

,.- '- _ - . ) < : -

H ""----','
- : ; 1 - - , . - " " - . -

"'.-.:: thop-made corner brace (paqe O6) Allowa leqo to be removed. corner blockte faa' Wooden tened to le7 and raile; 4roovea and aplineareinforceconnectton between blockand raile

-\, '\,

11.1-'," ? ./' ,/'

joint Dowel (pase74)

A retnforced corner butt joint; dowele extend into leq Commeraial hardware (page 84) Allowa leaa to be removed.Corner brace ia bolted to le7 and ecrewed to raila;to accommodatebrace,Ieq ie notchedand raila are arooved

Tuak tenon joint (page 72) uoedto join f,heleqeand etretcher of a treatle Commonly tuak, or table. Tenonextende beyondthe throuqh morDise; iL to lockjoint and removedto dieaeeemble wedqe, ia inaerf,ed

57

TRIPODTABLE
" .. The simpleappearance of a tripod toblebelies the joinery needed precise to build it. The three legs are to the central column with liding dovefails, ctrt fastened with angledshoulders to sit tight againstthe turned column. The legsmust be exactly120oapart and the column centered under the top. Togive the legs addedstrength, a metalplate can be mountedunder the legs and cohrmn. The top end of the column isjoined to the rail with a round mortise-and-tenon.

ANATOMY OF A TRIPOD TABIE

Dovetatl aocket

Metal

TABLE PEDESTAL
tableare of a pedestal As on thetripod table,thelegs usuto a centrqlcolumnwith slidingdovetails, attached to thecolumnwith with a metalplate.Therailsaresecured ally reinforced edge halflaps and of crossing bridlejoint consisting a typeof interlocking of legs by twosets Thelargetableshownat right issupported mortises. casters havebeen weight, considerable of thetable's Because and columns. to move. easier to makethepiece to thelegs aneched

TABLE A PEDESTAL ANATOMY OF

Detail of dovetaile Mortiae for interlocking bridlejoint Column

Dovetail socket
Leq

Dovetail

TAPERED LEGS
CUTTING A FOUR.SIDED TAPER

TaperatarL line

Thpered and stop-tapered legs like those shownabove arefrequently used on drop-frontand rolltopdesks and a wide assortment of tables. Theylightena piece's appearance withoutseriously diminishingitsstrength.

upandstarting thecut 1 Setting quickly I You cantaper legs andaccurately ona jointer. Start byoutlining thedimensions (above, of thetaper onthebottom gauge of thelegblank witha cutting top).fhen mark lines onthefourfaces of thestock to indicate where thetaper will begin. Install a clamp to hold theguard outof thewayduring theoperation. Setthedepth of cutfor x inch and, holding theblank against thefence, align thetaper start linewiththefront of theoutfeed table. Butta stop block against thebottom of thelegandclamp it to the infeed pass, table. Tostarteach carefully lower the blank onto thecutterhead while (above, holding it firmly against thefence andthestop block bottom). Make sure both hands areover theinfeed side of thetable.

60

LEGSAND RAILS

r) Jointing thetaper L feedthe legacross the cutterhead pushing witha push stick, down on the pressing endof thestock while it trailing (left). your flushagainst Keep left thefence fromthecutterhead. Make as hand away passes many untilyouhave as necessary trimmet dh es t o c k t o t h et a p e o r utline, thenrepeat the process to shape the number remaining faces. Make thesame on each side. of oasses

A STOPPED TAPER J()INTING

Using twinstop blocks where the Mark lines on all faces of the legblank to indicate ro i n t e r ' s w a n de n d .I n s t a a ll clamp o ny o u j taperin gi l lb e g i n outof theway. Seta %-inch depth infeed table to hold theguard against thefence withthetaper line of cut,thenbuttthe blank (The of theoutfeed table. extra about %inchin front of theedge forthefactthat,asthe infeed tableis %inchwillcompensate Butta stop block against lowered later, it willalso slide back.) Next thefootof theblank andclamp it to theinfeed table. align Butta endlinewiththeback endof theinfeed table. thetaper

second stop block against thetopendof theblank andclamp lower it to theoutfeed table. Tomake thefirstpass, theworkpiece onto theknives, keeping it flush against thefence andstop table.Feed theworkpiece using a push block on the infeed to press the blank against the stick (above); useyourleft hand wellclear Make fence. Keeo bothhands of thecutterhead. one pass inchandrepeat oneach face, thenlower theinfeed table% theprocess onall foursides. Continue, increasing thecutting pass witheach untilthetaper is completed. depth

61

LEGS AND RAILS

A JIG FOR TWO.SIDED TAPERS Tapering legs on a table saw canbe t i g .T h e done e a s i lw y i t ht h er i g h j is made from o n es h o w n below plywood, %-inch some solidwood, andtwotoggle clamps. lt is sturdier models; thanmany commercial the clamps ensure thatthestock is held f irmly in place while thecut is being made. Refer to the illustration for suggested dimensions.

Toassemble thejig,setthesaw blade to itsmaximum cutting height, buttoneside of thejig base against theblade, andposition theripfence against theother sideof the base. Lower theblade andmark a cutting lineforthetaper ononeside of your legblank, thensetit on the base, aligning themark withoneedge of thejig. Hold theworkpiece securely guide andbuttthe plywood bar

against it. Press thelipsnugly against theendof theblank. Screw theguide barto thebase andthesolid wood shim to thebar, making certain that their edges arealigned. Attach the t o g g lc el a m pts o t h es h i m C . lamp down to secure theblank to thejig wiihthetaper mark aligned withthe edge of thebase. Screw thehandle to thebase at least 6 inches away from theside thatwillpass bytheblade. T oc u t t h ef i r s tt a p e rc , lamp a featherboard andsupport board to thesaw making table, sure they will (The notinterfere withthe blade. press featherboard should only onthe jig base, notontheworkpiece.) Set theblade height and thejigand slide legblank across making thetable, sure thatneither hand is in line with theblade beloil. Tocutthesecond taper o na na d j a c e n sti d eo f t h e blank, repeat the pass withthetwo untapered sides of theblank against thejig base andguide bar.(Caution: guard Blade removed for clarity.)

62

LEGS CABRIOLE
MAKING A CABRI(ITE LEG

theleg 1 Designing to the same length I Fora template, cut a piece of stiff cardboard or hardboard legblanks. Thedesign at topwillyield a stable and andwidth asyour shown above Begin well-proportioned leg,butyoucanalter thedesign to suityourproject. drawing its length thelegbyoutlining the post block. Make equal to thewidth of therailthat willbeattached to it; thepost block should bewide enough to accept therailtenons. Next, of thelegfromthetoeto theankle using a French sketch thetoeandthefront (above, point, the ankle should measure about twocurve bottom); at its narrowest width.Move sketching a gentle curve fromthe post fifthsof thestock onto the knee, Then block to thefrontedge of thetemplate about 3 to 4 inches below the block. jointheknee line. to theankle witha relatively straight Complete theoutline at the back of theleg, connecting the bottom of the legwiththeback of theankle, then a curve fromtheankle to the bottom of the postblock. Youmayneed to sketching redraw several times untilyouaresatisfied withthedesign. thecurves

Despite its delicate appearance, a cabriolelegprovides excellent strength.A well-balancedleg should be able to stand by itself.

63

LEGS AND RAILS

a ^ L U U IO U ty o u r l e m p t a l e0 n a D a n os a w , t h e n s a n d t h e e d g e st o t h e m a r k e do u t -

r') Transferring thedesign

l i n e .T o t r a c e t h eo u t l i n e o n t h e l e gb l a n k , l a to n o n eo f t h e i n s i d e olace t h et e m o l a tfe faces making of theblank, s u r et h a tt h e ends o f t h et e m p l a t e a n dt h e b l a n ka r e aligned andthatthe backof the postblock isflush w i t ht h e i n s i d e d g e oftheblank.
f rzcp alans ihp pdopc, nf ihp ipmnl:to

T u r nt h e b l a n k over a n dr e o e atth e o r o c e dureon the otherinside face(/efil. At this point, prefer some woodworkers to cut morjoinery. tisesor drill holes for the leg-to-rail ( l t i s e a s i etr oclamp a n dc u t j o i n t s ona r e c t a n g u lla ergb l a n k t h a no n a l e gw i t h cd urves. 0 )t h e r w o o d w o r k e r s Dronounce c u t t h e l e gf i r s ta n dt h e nd o t h ej o i n e r y .

Cutting outtheleg
S e tt h e l e sb l a n k o n t h e b a n ds a wt a b l ew i t ho n eo f t h e o u t l i n e sf a c i n gu p a n d t h e t o e o f t h e l e gp o i n t i n g away f r o my o u . j u s tt o t h e w a s t e Alignint gh e s a wb l a d e s i d eo f t h e m a r k e d line f o rt h e h a c kn f t h e l e p f e e dt h e s t o c k e d p eT r r r n i n t ot h ec u t t i n p o f f t h e s a wa b o u t h a l f w aty hrough t h e c u t a n dr e m o v t eh e b l a n k . T h e nc u t a l o n g t h e s a m el i n ef r o mt h e o p p o s i t e n d .T o a v o i d piece f r o mt h e b l a n k d e t a c h i ntg h ew a s t e a n dl o s r n t gh e m a r k e d outline o nt h ea d j a c e n ft a c e ,s t o pt h e c u t a b o u tZ i n c hf r o mt h e first kerf, leaving a shortbridgebetween the two cuts (above, / e f f ) .R e t r a ctth e w o r k p i e c e , e nc u t a l o n g th t h e l i n ef o r t h e f r o n to f t h e l e g ,a g a i nl e a v i n g bridges T . u r nt h e b l a n ka n d s a w alongthe marked lineson the adjacent side (above, ilghil.fhis t i m e ,c o m p l e t e thecut,letting t h ew a s t e f a l la w a y .

o+

LEGSAND RAILS

thebridges Cutting Turn off thesaw androtate theblank youcutfaces up.Slide sothatthefirstside iniothe theblank forward to feed theblade kerfat thefrontof the leg. Turn on the m a c h i na en dc u tt h r o u gth h eb r i d g t eo piece. Then release thewaste cut through between thekerfs at theback the bridge of the leg(/eff,).

and smoothing theleg f, Shaping r-,f Tof inish legand shaping thecabriole remove blemishes left bythe band saw its surfaces witha spokeblade, smooth andsandpaper. shave, followed bya rasp in your bench Begin byfixing a barclamp v i s et,h e ns e c u rte h e l e gi n t h ec l a m p . hands at Holding a spokeshave withboth thetopof a curved edge of the leg,pull you, toward cutting withthe thetoolslowly (right). grain is Repeat untilthesurface Turn to smooth. thelegin thebarclamp a rasp to clean up theother edges. Use cannot smooth an area thatthesookeshave pushed when reach. This toolworks best Finish diagonally across thegrain. thejob progressively withsandpaper, using f iner grits until thesurface issmooth.

65

TURNED LEGS
TURNING A LEG

Most turned legs for tables,like the one shown at right, feature a squtre section, or pommel, at the top. This enablesthe leg to bejoined to the teblerails without cutting or attaching hardware to the turned segments.

Defining thepommel 1 I Toturna legon a lathe, start byseparating thepommel fromthecylindrical (step section. Thecylindrical section is thenturned 2) and, finally, the beads and (step hollows areadded 3). Begin by marking thepommel onthe legblank, then mount theblank on thelathe andmove thetoolrest asclose to theworkpiece as possible without touching it;thepommel should be long enough to accommodate joinery youwill use. the legto-rail method Next, usea skew chisel to cut a V-shaped pommel notch at themarked line.Bracing theblade against thetoolrest, begin withthecutting point edge angled slightly to oneside sothelong of thetip cuts intotheblank. This willdefine oneside of theV. Now, angle theblade to theother (above). side to define theother side of theV nolch Continue angling the blade fromside to sideuntilyou reach thedesired depth. Asmuch as possible, keep the bevel of theblade rubbing against thestock at all times.

r) Turning thecylinder gouge 1 tlsea roughing-out to round thecorners of theblank below theoommel. With thetip of thegouge tilted upagainst ly gl a n kg t h er o t a t i nb , r a d u a lr aise the handle until t h e b e v eu l n d etrh et i p i s rubbing against thestock andthecutting edge is slicing intothewood. Work from below thepommel toward thebottom of the leg(right). Keep thetoolat a rightangle to theblank throughout thecut.Continue until theblank is cylindrical andsmooth.

66

LEGSAND RAILS

Adding beads a n dh o l l o w s chisT o f o r mb e a d sw , o r kw i t ha s k e w e l a n dl h e s a m e techninrr ue sed to define t h e n o m m e lS l a riln s e a c hc u t w i t ht h e r la t o o la l m o s h t orizonta ,r s e thehandle slices i n t ot h es t o c kC . u to n e until t h eb l a d e t h ec u t side o f t h eb e a d a t a t i m eb yt i l t i n g t i n pe d p e ' i r s1 t oo n es i d e a n dt h e nt h eo t h F.o rt h e h o l l o w s u , s ea s p i n d l e er (above)
onrrop Si:ri p:eh erri :l nno pdop o{ thp

hollow w i t ht h e b l a d e onedge s o t h a tr t s
.nn.2\/p cidp ic f:e ino thp nnnnc.iio pdoo nf

. aise s ot h et i p t h e h o l l o wR thehandle i n t ot h es t o c kT , weep b e g r ns sl i c r n g . h e ns sp p o s i te t h et o o lt o w a r d t h eh o l l o w 'o ed g e , rollint ph e h l a d e s o t h a l ,a t t h ec e n t eo rf t, h e c o n c a vs ei d eo f t h e b l a d e thehollow . e m o vt i sf a c i n g e h eg o u g e and u p ( l e f t )R

rono:l lhp errl frnm thp nnnncitp pdop nf

t h e h o l l o ww , i t ht h e c o n c a v s ei d eo f t h e blade facing toward t h e h o l l o wC . ontinue sweenin ap n dr n l l i n p t h eb l a d e f r o ms i d e t o s i d ea , l w a yw s o r k i nd go w n h i lu l ,n t i l t h e hollow i s s y m m e t r i ca an l ds m o o t h .

PEDESTAL LEGS
The pedestal, or tripod, leg is bestcut on the band saw. The legshavea flat sectionat the bottom and a dovetailat the top that fits into the centralcolumn. Because dovetailsare tnore dfficult to cut in a contoured workpiece,it is bestto prepare the leg blank shapingit. for joinery (pages79and 82) before

CUTTING A PEDESTAL LEG

Sawing thelegontheband saw Cuta dovetail onthetopendof your legblank, using either the tablesaw(page 79)or a router table(page 82).Then, outlrne thelegonyour blank; usea pencil anda French curve asyou would fora cabriole leg(page 63).fhere arethree absolute rules fordesigning a pedestal leg: Thegrain should follow theslope of

theleg, thetopandbottom ends mustbeperpendicular to each other, andthespread of thelegs mustbeless thanthediameter youaresatisfied of thetabletop. Once withthedesign, cutthe firstlegon the band saw(above) anduseit asa template for projects. theothers. Keep a copy of thetemplate forfuture

68

LEGS OCTAGONAL
LEG AN(ICTAGONAL SHAPING

saw Cutting thelegonthetable thesaw, unplug Tosetupthisoperation, setting, and to itshighest theblade crank angle t o 4 5 " .T h er i p a d j u stth ec u t t i n g sothatthe fence should be positioned fromit. Layoneface is tiltedaway blade witha corontheblade of the legblank thenbuttthe onthesaw table, nerresting (above) andlock fence against thestock To make thef irstcut,buttthe it in place. a against theripfence face-down stock Adjust in frontof the blade. fewinches justproheight untilonetooth thecutting thefaceof theworkpiece. trudes beyond straddling into theblade, Feed theblank Rotate the leg hand. withyour thefence thecut on the andrepeat 90' clockwise in fa . ontinu e t h i sm a n n e r adjacen t c eC (right) arecut. unlilthe sides

The attractive octagonal leg is simple to cut on the tablesaw.

69

LEGSAND RAILS

CUTTING GR(|(IVES FOR INLAY

Commercialmarquetry banding adds a decorativetouch to a tapered leg.

Using a table saw groove Tocuta straight for inlay, use a table saw witha dado head thesame width astheinlay. lf youareworking withthickshop-made inlay, setthecutting height to slightly lessthan thethickness of the inlay; forcommercial inlay, setthecutting height to its exact thickness. Make a cut in a scrap board, testthefit, andadjust thewidth andcutting height of the blades, if necessary. Next, mark a lineforthe groove ontheleading endof thelegandalign it withthedado head. Butttherip (above). fence against thestock, thenfeedit across the blades Using a router Tomake a groove thatrequires more than onestraight cut at different angles, use a router guide. witha commercial edge Secure the legto a work surface, thenfit the router witha straight bit the same widthasthe inlay andsetthecutting depth. Remember, thegroove should be slightly shallow forshop-made inlay, but full-depth forcommercial inlay. Outline thegroove on theleg, align thebit over one of thelines thatrunalong thegrain, guide's andbutttheedge fence against thestock. Gripping therouter f irmly, cut thegroove; remember to move thetool against thedirection of bit rotation. Repeat (left). grooves to cuttheother For theshort cutsagainst thegrain, clamp a wooden guide edge across theleg. Finally, square thecorners witha chisel.

70

AND RAILS LEGS

THE INLAY DOWN GLUING

inthegroove Setting theinlay lf inlay to length to f it thegroove. Cutthe you a table inlay, use shop-made areusing forcomin a miter box; saw or a backsaw Toinstall wood chisel. inlay, use a mercial groove make shown, in thefour-sided inlay pieces. the inlay attheends of miter cuts at onepiece to cutanddryJit It iseasiest y o u t h e m i ter gu r e a l i g n a t i m e ,m a k i n s grooves. With of the cutswiththecorners marquetry, tryto match inlay commercial pattern to formone conatthecorners the sr e O a l lt h ep i e c ea t i n u o ud se s i g n .nce glue in of spread a thinlayer cutto size, groove ends of the the andonthemitered While ata time. i n l a y I. n s e ro t n es t r i p withstrips theinlay dries, secure theglue tape. of masking

A LEG DETAILING
detail Routing edge . ark Secure t h e l e gt o a w o r ks u r f a c e M gn de n d lines o n t h e l e gf o r t h e b e g i n n i na l d e c o r a t i vb ei t o f t h e c u t ,t h e n i n s t a la quarter-roun bd it . piloted i n y o u rr o u t e rA bead i s s h o w nt;h i s b l t w i l l r o u ta r a i s e d o f t h e l e g .S e t a a l o n gt h e f r o n tc o r n e r s o theprofile cutting d e p t ha p p r o p r i a t e y o uw a n tt o m a k e t , h e na l i g nt h e b i t w i t h t h e t o o lw i t h b o t h t h e s t a r tl i n e .H o l d i n g g u i d e t h e c o r n eo rf t h e b i t a long hands, o f b i t r o t at h e d i r e c t i o n t h e l e ga g a i n s p l a t e f l a t o n t h e t o p b a s e t i o n . K e e pt h e pilot pressed leg the bit of the and surface throughout the operation the stock against ( / e f f . S t o pw h e ny o ur e a c h theendline, and reposition the legon the worksurface, plate pass, riding the base makea second o n t h e a d j a c e nf ta c eo f t h e l e g .T h i si s usually d o n eo n l yo n t h e l e g ' so u t s i d e c o r n e rc sa na l s ob e c o r n e rb , u tt h e o t h e r routed d e p e n d i no gn t h e l e gd e s i g n .

LEG-TO-RArL IOTNERY
TUSK TENON JOINTS
Marking thelocation ofthewedge 1 (page I Cuta four-shouldered tenon 76) long enough to extend beyond thelegby eu f ifa t l e a s2 t inches ; i sw i l lp r o v i ds th cient stock t o r e s i sb t eing s p l i tb yt h e wedge. Cuta through mortjse to accommodate thetenon andassemble thejoint. T h e nh , o l d i ntg h ep i e c ets ogethe or na work surface, mark a line onthetopof the cheek where thetenon emerses fromthe morlise(lefD.

A nrk tenonioins the stretcher to thepedestal legof the tableshownaltove. Although the tuskjoint is assembled without glue so that the tablecan be disassembled, it is as strongas a glued blind nrortise-and-tenon.

r) Drilling thehole forthewedge Z. Disassemble thejoint andmake a drilling markYta tnch onthe s h o u l ds eird e o f t h es c r i b el d i n e ; t h iw s i l le n s u ra et i g h f ti t w h e n thewedge isdriven gauge intoplace. Seta mortise to one-third the thickness of thetenon anduse thegauge to outline thehole in the middle third of thetopcheek, bordering onyour mark. Using a bit slightly smaller in diameter than theoutline, bore thehole through (above), thetenon onthedrillpress

LEGSAND RAILS

hole thewedge Q Angling and chisel, enlarge a mortise r.J Using youdrilled to accommosquare thehole at a thechisel Holding date thewedge. shoulders, from thetenon away 10"angle bythe as indicated slot, cut a tapered (/eff). Then lines in theillustration dotted h ec h i s e l , o l d i ntg chop o u tt h ew a s t eh thewaste. facing withthebevel

Inserting thetusk wedge, hardwood Cutan angled to fit the called a tusk,that is tapered nstep 3 ; i t sl e n g t h s l o ty o uc h o p p eid width. To thetenon canbe uo to twice into t h et e n o n slide a s s e m btl h e ej o i n t , firmly thewedge andstrike the mortise untilthejointis Iight(right). witha mallet asthisjointis designed Donotuseglue, to bedisassembled.

73

LEGSAND RAILS

D()WET JOINTS
Locating and boring 1 I dowel holes intherails Start bymarking thelocation of thedowel holes. Holding one of therails end-up, set gauge a cutting to one-half thethickness of thestock andscribe a line across theend of theboard. With thegauge at a slightly wider setting, scribe twolines thatintersect w i t ht h ef i r s tl i n eo nt h ee n do f t h er a i l (lef\. f o avoid splitting the stock, use groove d d o w e ln s om o r e t h a no n e - h a l f thethickness of therails. Fita drillpress or anelectric drill with a bitthesame diameterasthedowels andbore a hole at each point; location thedepth should beslightly more than one-half thelength of thedowe l s .U s e t h es a m e techniqu te obore the dowel holes at theopposite endof therarl andin theother rails.

r) Pinpointing mating dowel hotes C- lnserl dowel centers in theholes. Then align thetopof therailwiththetopof the leg(right), andswing the railup sothatits outside face is %to %inchinside theedge l a r kl i k et h eo n e o f t h el e g . A p e n c im s h o ww n i l lh e l p align t h er a i l . Tap the other endof therailwitha wooden maldn d s let. T h ep o i n t e e o f t h ed o w ec l ent e r sw i l l p u n c h impressio on ns t h el e g , providin so r b o r i n t sg t a r t i np go i n t f gh e mating dowel holes. Repeat fortheother rails andless.

LEGSAND RAILS

holes dowel Boring themating

to the same Borethe holesin the legs

more in therails-slightly depth asthose lf of thedowels. one-half thelength than you leg ona drill drilling into a tapered are part press, of the to keep thesquare besure table. legflatonthemachine's

thelegs andrails Assembling

that a n dr a i l s sf t h e l e g s a l i t t l eg l u eo n t h e s u r f a c eo Spread

in of adhesive daba small amount each other, then willcontact scrap. Avoid holes witha smallwood of thedowel thebottom gg lue th ; ey a b s o rm b oisture d i r e c t lo yn t h ed o w e l s spreadin q u i c k la yn dw i l ls w e l lm the d i f f i c u tl o t fitinto hem , a k i ntg nto t a pt h er a i ll i g h t l y t h el e g st,h e n holes I. nser tt h ed o w e lis

(.B ec a r e f ua too l b o u tu s i n g w i t h a m a l l e t o s e a tt h e s h o u l d e r F i t e a c he n do f t h e , h i c hc a nc a u s e a l e gt o s p l i t . ) m u c hf o r c ew with a bar left) andholdthe joint together railontoa leg (above, Alignthe barof the clamp,protecting the legswith woodpads. righil unlil a beadof clampwiththe rail,thentighteniI (above, g l u es q u e e z e os u to f t h ej o i n t .

75

LEGSAND RAILS

HAND.CUT BTIND MORTISE.AND.TEN(lNS

thetenon cheeks 1 Cutting I Outline thetenons ontherails, markinga shoulder line allaround theends so thatthelength of thetenons willbeno more thanthree-quarters thethickness of the leg.Secure one of therails end-up in a vise. Cut along the lines ontheend of therailwitha backsaw; tilt thesaw forward andcutto theshoulder lineof the tenon(lefil.f hencomplete thecut withthesawlevel.

r) Cutting thetenon shoulders L f o remove thewaste fromthetenon cheeks, clamp therail face-up protecting on a work surface, thestock witha wood padC . u ta l o n g t h es h o u l d e l irn eo nt h ef a c e o f t h er a i l ; turn over thestock andrepeat theoperation on theother side (above, left).To cutaway thewaste ontheedges of thetenon,

secure therailend-up in a vise andsaw to theshoulder line on both edges of therail.Finally, clamp therailedge-up andcut through theshoulder lines on bothedges of therail(above, right).Repeat steps 1 and2 to cut thetenon ontheother end of therailandat both ends of theremainins rails.

76

LEGS AND RAILS

themoftises Q Outlining leg r-,1 Mark themortise outline oneach in twosteps, using oneof therailtenons First, hold of the asa guide. thecheek withthetop tenon flush against theleg, withtheendof theleg. of therailaligned of thetenon Draw a pencil along theedges then to outline thelength of themortise, across usea trysquare to extend the lines the leg. Tomark thewidth of themortise, centered flush hold theedge of thetenon cheek against thelegandmark along each (right).With a trysquare, extend themarks interalong theleguntilthetwooutlines sect.Repeat the process on theadjacent faceof the leg.

Chiseling themortises mortise, For each clamp the legto a protecting witha work surface, thestock pad. wood Then, starting at oneendof the outline, holda mortise chisel square to it witha thefaceof the legandstrike . se w o o d em n a l l e tU a c h i s etlh es a m e width asthetenon andbesure thatthe beveled sideof the blade is facing the waste. Make another cut %inchfromthe first.Continue untilyoureach theother endof theoutline, levering outthewaste exceeds the length to a depth thatslightly of thetenon. Test-fit thetenon andwiden or deepen themortise asrequired. Repeat to cuttheremaining mortises. Then spread g l u el i g h t l y i n t h em o r t i s e as n do n t h e Fitthelegs andrails cheeks of thetenons. withthe together, thenclose upthejoints forthedowel same clamping setup used joint (page75).

77

LEGSAND RAILS

TRIP0D TABLE: ASSEMBTING THE LEGS, AND RAIL C0LUMN,

thetenon onthecolumn 1 Turning I Start byturning therailtenon at thetopof thecolumn, as shown at right. Then rout thedovetail sockets forthelegs at the (step column's bottom 2). Next, cut thedovetails in the legs (steps (step 3 and4)andassemble thepieces the il. Mount (page column blank onyour lathe andturnit intoa cylinder 66), leaving a lip andenough stock near for the leg the bottom sockets. Toturnthetenon, usea parting Iool(right), moving theblade fromside to side. Thelength of thetenon should be about one-half thethickness of themating rail.lts diameter should beat least %inch andmatch thatof thebitvouwilluse to drillthemortise in therail.

Faceplata

r) Routing thedovetail sockets (- tJnplugyour lathe andturnthecolumn end-for-end to cut on thefaceplate is vertical andclamp thedrive shaft witha jig consisting (inset). thesockets, using a router anda shop-made of a handscrew Cuteach socket in twopasses, firstusing a plywood %-inch boxclamped to the lathe bed.Make theboxas straight bit,thena dovetail bit.Adjust therouter's cutting depth, plate. wide asthe router base Attach thetworunners sothe align thebitwiththesocket endmark, butta stopblock against plate router bit willcutthesockets plate, withits base sitting onthem. therouter base andscrew theblock to thejig. Holding Next, mark thelocation plunge of thethree sockets onthecolumn; they therouter in both hands, thebit intothecolumn, starting should be I20" aparL Also mark the upper ends of thesockets, at thebottom, andguide thetoolalong therunners untilthe plate about 3 inches fromthebottom of thecolumn. To help align base contacts thestopblock. Repeat withthedovetail bit thecuts, transfer thesocket marks from thecolumn to thelathe (above). Tocutthesecond andthirdsockets, rotate thecolumn faceplate. Now, rotate thecolumn bvhand untilone of themarks sothesocket mark foreach cut is vertical.

78

LEGSAND RAILS

thedovetails Q Cutting r-,1Thedovetails in the legs Thefirstcut to thetable arecut in twosteps: to support theblanks. Also clamp a guide block to is made onthetable saw, andthesecond byhand. lt is easiest theblank; theblock willride along thetopof thefence, help(page ingto guide to cutthedovetails on legblanks before shaping thelegs theworkpiece. Toformthedovetail, make a pass (above), your 68).Adjust table saw's blade angle to match thatof the to cut onecheek thenrotate theworkpiece andfeed youcut in step2. Setthecutting sockets height to slightly less theopposite facealong thefence to saw theother. Once both thanthedepth of thesockets. Outline thedovetails ontheedge cheeks of thefirstdovetail have been cut,check them against holding in thecolumn. of onelegblank and, theblank onendonthesaw table, a socket lf necessary, adjust theblade angle or mark withtheblade. Butttheripfence align a cutting against height or thecutting widthandmake another setof passes. it in place. thestock andlock Clamo a shimmed featherboard Repeat fortheother dovetails.

Cufting theangled shoulders Theshoulders of the legdovetails must becutat anangle sotheylieflush against thecolumn. Once thedovetail cheeks areall cut,clamp a blank to a work surface withthecheek cutsextendingoff thetable. Then use a backsaw to cuttheshoulders to roughly match thecur(/eff). vature of the column Test-f it the dovetail in itssocket andtrimtheshoulif necessary, ders, untilyougeta suitable f it. Repeat fortheremaining dovetails.

79

LEGSAND RAILS

thelegs to thecolumn f, Fastening r.,/ Once all thedovetails fit in theirsockets, trimoff thetop w i l lh i d e %i n c h ofeach d o v e t aT i lh . is t h et o p s o f t h ed o v e t a i l s when fromview theyarepushed all thewayintotheir sockets. (page youareready Now to cutoutthelegs 68)andattach them t o t h ec o l u m n S . p r e ag dl u e e v e n lo ynt h ed o v e t a ia ls n di n t h e h e nh , o l d i ntg h ec o l u m n u p s i d e - d oo w n n t h ef l o o r , s o c k e tT s. intoplace andtapthemintofinalposition witha slide the legs wooden mallethbove). Tostrengthen adda threetheassembly, (page plate armed cut fromsheet metal 58),Next, cut therail B.o r e n t h a tw i l lc o n n e c th t ec o l u m t n o t h et a b l e t o o a m o r t i sie thecenter of therailto accept thetenon at thetopof thecolumn. Usea router fittedwitha rounding-over or chamfering bit to thebottom edge of therailalltheway around. Finally, stand shape glue spread fit thetable upright, onthetenon andin themortise, (righil. thetenon, therailover andscrew the railin place

80

LEGSAND RAILS

TABLE: UPTHE LEG ASSEMBTY PEDESTAL GTUING

forthelegs thecolumn 1 Preparing near I Mark a lineacross thecolumn the bottom to define thesquare section thatwillbejoined to thelegs; thearea a st h ew i d t h o ft h e should b ea sl o n g head table legs. Install a dado onyour height sawandsetthecutting at rough gauge, ly %inch. Using themiter make across thecolumn to several Dasses remove thewaste fromall foursides of (above). thecolumn

r) Cutting thedovetail sockets lnstall L plo*a dovetail socket on each side of thecolumn ontherouter table. a router andmount thetoolin a table. Mark a lineforthesockets straight bit in your align a socket mark withthebit,buttguide boards against down thecenter of each side, Feed across thetable to cut thestock, andclamp theboards to thetable. thecolumn thefirstsocket, stopping thecutwhen thebit reaches theendof thesquare section. Leave in place, turnoffthetool, andclamp a handscrew asa stop block thecolumn Repeat thecutontheother sides of thecolumn, stopagainst theendof thecolumn. pass ping when contacts thehandscrew. Complete thetask witha second thestock on each sideusing a dovetail bit (above).

Preparing thetopofthecolumn
0 n c et h e d o v e t a i la sr ec u t ,t u r nt h e c o l u m n ona lathe, leav-

Fuehatick

therails anda inga square section at thetopto accommodate to conceal thetops of lipjustabove thebottom square section rails w i l lf i t i n t o t h el e g s(.T h e l i p i s v i s i b lo en p a g e 82.)The twointersecting mortises cut in thecolumn's square section. Mark lines forthemortises down thecenter of each side cutting width beone-half thethickof thecolumn; themortise should ness height to thewidth of the of therails. Setthesawblade railsless theedge recess shown in step7 (page 83),Tofeedthe push column safely, make a jig to holdit upright. Take a large stick andscrew a piece of wood to theside, forming an L. With in theL, align thecutting mark withthe thelegresting snugly blade andlock theripfence against theface of thepush stick. (it must Lay a spacer ontopof thefence bethesame thickness asthefence) andscrew it to thepush stick; screw a guide board sothejig forms a channel over thefence. Check to thespacer thelegin place, andmake a sequence of thealignment, clamp (left). Repeat cutsuntilthe mortise is wide enough all cutson each face to ensure thatthemortises areoerfectlv centered.

81

LEGSAND RAILS

Cutting thedovetails onthelegs Install a dovetail bit in vour rouier and mount thetoolin a table. Set thecutting depth to make thedovetails slightly shorter you thanthedepth of thedovetail sockets cut in step1. Position thefence sothat projects about one-half of thecutter beyond itsface. With a featherboard clamoed to the table to support theworkpiece, feed a leg blank(page 68) on endacross thetable, (\efl.f urnthe pressing it against thefence blank end-for-end andrepeat to complete thedovetail. Test-fit thejointandadlust t h ef e n c e a n dm a k e a d d i t i o nc au l ts, if necessary. Repeat fortheother legblanks.

thelegs to thecolumn f, Joining r-,f Cutoutthe legs on a bandsaw(page notch 68),then thetopendof thedovetails sothatthey stop short of thesocket This will end. conceal thejoints between glue thelegs andcolumn. Spread onthe dovetails andin thesockets andslide the dovetails intoplace, tapping them witha mallet if necessary. For additional strength, y0ucanmake a four-armed bracket out metal of sheet to fit under thecolumn and legs, andscrew it in place, asshown on page 58.

82

LEGS AND RAILS

Preparing therails
T oa l l o w t h er a i l s t o f i t t h e e r o o v eis n

9top block

in themiddie thecolumn, cutrecesses of both faces of therails. lnstall a dado head onyour table saw andsetthecutting depth t ne-ouarte hr er a i lt h i c k n e s s . t o a b o uo gauge. Screw a ne x t e n s i o to nt h em i t e r Make of scrap to be testcutsin a piece willfit snugly inthemorsure that therails tises. Mark theshoulders of therecesses onone rail sothey are aslong asthewidth at the top of thecolof thesquare section A l i g n m a r k w i t h head umn. a t h ed a d o a n dc l a m p a stop block t o t h ee x t e n s i o n , with flush against therail, Feed therail the gauge, pressing miter thestock against t h es t o pb l o c kF . l i pt h e p i e c e t o c u ta , h e nr o t a t e shoulde or nt h eo t h e f ra c e t tthe t h ep i e c e a n dc u tt h es h o u l d ea rs Repeat other ends of therecesses. onthe other rail, then remove thestop block and remove theremaining waste.

Edgehalf-lap

J o i n i ntg h er a i l s t o t h ec o l u m n I , uta // T oc o n c e a sn c et h e r a i l s a r ei n p l a c e c t lh e m o r t i s eo recess i n t ot h e b o t t o m inch-deep e d g eo f e a c hr a i l ,a l o n gt h e i n t h e f a c e .N e x t ,n o t c ht h e m i d d l eo f t h e length of the recess e d g e sT . h i sc a n b e d o n e w i t ht h e d a d oh e a d ; t h e w i d t hs h o u l d equat l h e t h i c k n e so sf t h e l a p p e d section o f t h e r a i l sA . d j u st h e through t h e r a i l ,t h e n s a wa n e d g e b l a d eh e i g h t o c u t h a l f w a y half-lap in the bottom e d g eo f o n er a i la n dt h e t o p e d g eo f t h e

other, making sure thenotches arecentered between theshoul/eff). Adlust theblade height forthesecond railto ders bbove, fortheedge recess. Once both edge half-laps arecut,round account glue theends of therails ontheband saw, spread some onthe rails, contacting surfaces ofthecolumn and set thecolumn bottom(above, endup on thefloor, andfit the railsin place right).

83

LEGSAND RAILS

COMMERCIAL LEG HARDWARE

therails 1 Preparing I Commercial hardware thatconnects legs andrails should be installed following themanufacturer's instructions. To usethe page, hardware shown onthefacing testassemble the leg,rails, andmounting plate, thenmark thelocation of theplate flanges ontherails. Tocuttheslots forthe flanges, align each mark withtheblade, thenbutttheripfence against therail. Settheblade height to thelength of the flange, adding %u inchforclearance. Feed gauge therailinto theblade withthemiter (left).(Caution: guardremoved Blade for clari$.) Repeat fortheother rail.Slipthe flanges intotheslots andmark thescrew pilotholes holes onthestock. Bore and plate screw themounting to therails.

r') Notching plate thelegforthemounting I Anotch mustbecut at thetopof each plate. legto accommodate themounting Stand the legup andhold the rail-andplate assembly ontopof it, aligning the ends of therails withadjacent sides of the leg.Mark a 45' diagonal lineacross the plate. topof the legalong themounting Next, align thetopof the plate withthe leg topof the andmark a linealong the bottom edge of the plate across the inside corner of theleg, adding Xeinch forclearance. Tocut the notch, setthe legon a band saw andtilt thetable to 45" to align withthediagonal theblade line. Butta board against thelegandclamp it to the table asa ripfence. Feed thelegintothe blade, thenclamp a stopblock in place to (right). help withrepeat cuts Complete the notch using a handsaw.

84

LEGSAND RAILS

bolt Preparing the legfor the hanger Q r a i l-andt h e l e g a n d T e s t a s s e m b l e rJ p l a t ea s s e m b la a n d m a r kt h e h o l e yg a i n bolt provided on the stockfor the hanger y o u rd r i l lp r e s s h a r d w a r k e i t . F i t w i t ht h e b i t a n d b o re a p i l o th o l e w i t ha b r a d - p o i n t ig V u s i n g a s h o p m a d e- b l o c jk f o rt h e b o l t (right).Repeat for the other legs.

uAttx 6" x7"

Fastening thelegto therails lnsert the screw-thread endof the rntheleg. hanger boltintotheprlot hole fasteners, a hanger bolthas Unlike other screw threads at one twotypes of threads: other; it endandmachine threads at the nuts the hasnohead. Screw two onto also them machine-threa n da n dt i g h t e n o t h ew r i t ht w ow r e n c h e s , agains eta c h ead o nt h e b o l t , f o r m i na g t e m p o r ah ry withone of thewrenches Tighten thebolt into theleg, then to drive thescrew threads from unscrew thenuts thebolt. Slipthe rail-and-plate assembly over theboltand thetopof the screw a nuton it. Keeping flush w i t ht h et o po f t h e l e g , tightrails enthe nut (/eff).

85

LEGSAND RAILS

SH()P.MADE LEG HARDWARE Youcanattach a legto rails using a wooden corner block, a hanger bolt, andfourscrews. Begin bymaking the corner block. Cuta oiece of wood thin enough to drive a hanger boltthrough it intotheleg. Then make a 45' miter grooves cut at each end.Next, saw for join s p l i n ew s ,h i c h w i l lh e l p t h eb l o c k t o t h er a i l s I . n s t a la l dado head on your table sawwitha width andcuttingheight equal to one-third thethickness of therails. Screw a board to the gauge miter asanextension, then align the midpoint of oneendof theblock withtheblade. Clamp theblock to the piece extension. Butta waste from the miter cutsagainst theworkpiece to serve asa stopblock andclamp it to theextension. Feed thestock intothe blades, thenturnit over and cut a groove in the otherend(above).

B6

LEGSAND RAILS

on each sideof Next, mark twoholes hole anddrillcountertheclearance page, bottom), holes(facing sinking a smaller bitto drillcleartheninstall forthescrew shanks. ance holes firstfasten Tojointhelegandrails, Spread block to therails. thecorner gluein thegrooves in theblock some andinsert thesplines andtherails, Then in the block. intothegrooves against therails and hold the block (left). Prepare the leg it in place screw hardware forcommercial asyouwould (page a notch outof the 84),cutting a block andboring topforthecorner pilothole bolt.Fasten the fora hanger slipping a legto therails withthebolt, washer between thenutandthecorner unlil Tighten the nut (below) block. fit snugly together. the legandrails

against the rails, Test-f it the block in the andcutthegrooves thenmark m c u tt h es p l i n e s , aking r a i l sN . ow thanthe comthem%.inchshorter Plane of thetwogrooves. bined depth to make sure the splines carefully in thematching thattheyf it precisely grooves. make strength, Formaximum runs thatthegrain of thesplines sure rather thanalong across theirwidth, theirlength. andclearNowbore countersinking forthe hanger boltand holes ance the brace to thatwillsecure screws Install a brad-point thelegandrails. the andmark brt in yourdrillpress edge of the block center of the long the workfor a hanger bolt.Secure piece it to andclamp rna handscrew press with the center drill table, the bore thehole. withthebit.Then aligned

87

'r-,

TOPS
Thestru or desktbeing.
1 1 c e : n u s t ! e I l 1 I 1 n a s | ! l 4 r ! r e I l ! | - l w l l d . J g 2 \ L t l l J t t , l l L d u l t J . I l l L I l L

design ofthe tableor d, piec made of glued-up

(p.age 93) to fromgl-uing upthe-top a under table extenders sliding bymounting wide is made from a single surface (page a base 96). it to attaching you expand the top, can a divided table with to board.Todo this,youwill-need by a tabletop Whileyou qanmake leava. to make room table Thke until yousucced. experiment for additional products as such veneering.sheet planks, for yourtime Fouror five material of choice; remains the building plywood, wood solid litto create canbeflippedind turnedend-for-end ixample, andareoftennot as edge banding require materials sheet combinations. of possible erally scores as solid.w-ood. visually place in great appealing whendiningtook DuringtheMiddleAges, on thefunctionofyour Thetypeof topyoubuilddepends of were ihenorm:Dozens tables huge trestle communilhalls, storwhile-reducing your goal-is maximize seating If to for table. knocked down be could people befedandthetables could gateleg, or 10I) for drop-leaf, s adjustable top private age space, public for and rooms Asseparate afterdinner. itorage !7gSe unusuIf you want t9 addangood idea. are a extension tables adjustable in thel5ttr Gntury,smaller, intovogue dinin! came (page shows 112) elements on decorative thesection drop-leaf altouch, These so-called flapsevolved. tableiwith hinged as elements such contrasting wood with you how to combine modifiOther andtaverns. in coffeehouses wereused tables felt. glass, leather, slate, and for room splitin twoto make tables thatcould included cations

*nhffftrH*ffii;:ffH: ffii#1"*TJl.b';ffHdesls, variety of topsfor tables.and more topmales a table An adjustable the illusionthat the fully to create flexible;

of a tabletopisjust asimportant to its Theedge At left, grain and color. asthe wood's appearance to bit is used a routerfitted with a rounding-over tabletop. of a mahogany edges softenthesquare

89

INVENTORY OF TOPDESIGNS
(pase1o5)
5ix-legged gateleg table

Drop-leaf type table featuring two 1ate le4ain addition to four etationary leqa; receaeeain raila may be required to allow ewin7ing le4eto be tucked out of the way whennot in uae

Four4egged awing4eg table (pase106) Drop-leaf type table with two of four le4e that ewin4out to eupport leavee: ewin7inqle1aare hinqedto raila of table baee

Tabletops do not haveto berectangular and wooden-or pre"Folia dictable. The Table" shown at left,built byRhode Islandcqbinetmaker Kam Ghaffari,featuresa curly mapletabletop dyedblack and green, and cut into a stylistic representation of a leaf.The blackhalf of theleafis lower than thegreenhalf; it is coveredby a paneof cut glass that "veins." rests on stainless steel

TOP SHAPES

E[]E
Kectanqular

Koundedenda

Curvedaidee

/ Round
Oval

Koundedenda and curved eidea

(lFATTACHING METHODS A T(|P

Tabletop raSf,enera

Deektop
TA6Lene16

TOPS

TABTES EXTENSION
Non-dividing extension table (pase lOO) Onlytabletop and decorativeapron io aaeembly divide:leq-and-rail acrewedto gtationarv center geament of table extendera. (Decorative apron removedfor clarity.)

Dividing ertension table (paqe 1O7) Entire table dividee in two: movinqee4menLaof table extendera are acrewed to both halveaof tabletop from underneath;le7emovewhen tabte ie opened Non-dividing treatle table (page 11O) Breadboard ende pull away Tromcenf,eron treatle table alidea

HARDWARE AND ACCESSORIES

Table locke Mounted underextenaton tablea to lock halveein place:lonqarma allow eaoyacceoe.9pring-loaded and levermodels available

Elind pivot, hinae

,z\

Table fork cloaure handlemounted U-ohaped underextenaton tablee to tocktabletop halveain place leaf tablee to ali4n leavea or halvesae they are cloaed

u e e d i np t a c a o7\ ) a dowelin a ,Q1 y pivot rail or \)D/ butLerfly Lable Table leaf latchea Mounted underexteneiontablea to [ockleavesin place;available in brass and steeL Modelshownbelow(lefI) featurea eccentricalot thaL drawa the leaveeanuglytoqether whencloaed

a-

/A\ t=l

Steelfastenera Q/z/n',. UeedLo aL.tachLope.to ./ V teq-ana-rail a'aem2teo.\ f Deektop,or fiqure-eight, V faetener ie tnetalledflueh wtLhtop
Of ratlE and gcrewed intc +t4b +a^. 7-

ehaped Labl eLopf^ *tr ti' i" u"[tr1a to top and maLeewith 0roove6routed along inaideof table raila Table leaf alignment pina Ueedto alian tabletopa and leaveafluai on extenLionf,abtee; braaa, hardwood,and plaatic modela t nuuote a available vauauro I

Cranked hinge Uaedto tnstall the adjuatableleqeof fourlegqedewinq-leqtablea: whencloaed,hinqeholde le1 flueh with table rail joint hingea Rule Ueedto connect leaf and top of drop-leaf table with rulejoint; lonqerhtnae htnqe ioint: lonaer leaf brid4eo the ./the joint

coved half of

6)rN/,Nr/ \)). \)r)"

Drop-leaf aupport Mounted underneathdropleaf tabletop to suppor, leavea. Metal bracket mounta to underside of top; movablewood alide eupporto leaf

-,.1W

NN

-,')

s)t
Treatle table slide Hardwoodolidea with d oublealidi ng dovetail jointe mountedin paire underneath breadboard endo of a LreaLlef,able; typically exLendafrom 26 to 40 inches ,-/

Table extendera Mountedin paira underboth dividingand non-dividin7 extenaion tablea. Outer eeaments,acrewed to eiLher half oftabletop, are puahedaway from each other by rack-and-pinion mechaniam; center eeqmenL rematneetationary. Typical lenqthaare 26 and 3B inchee

PREPARINGATOP
anddesks are osttopsfor tables madeby edge-gluing boards Few areavailable that together. boards arewide enough and mostof those would beunsuitable, because of thetento twistandcup. dency of wideplanks However, by selecting boards carefully andmatching themfor colorandgrain youcancreate theillusion of direction, piece Assess thecolor a single of wood. of lumber byplaning thesurandgrain face lightlyto reveal whatliesunderrough neath a plank's exterior. flat top starts with proper A sturdy, preparation Make youuse of stock. sure kiln-dried woodor woodthathas been longenough in theshop to have stored 8 and 12 a moisture content between percent. A lowmoisture content means thatthewoodwill berelatively stable. Alsosteer clearof bowed or twisted many tops have afinished boards. Since inch,4/4 rough-sawn thickness of % youto stock isanideal choice asit allows plane inch andsand offupto % ofwood. glued Widetopsareseldom up allat it ismucheasier to thickonce because plane panels ness than several smaller you Theglue onelarge one. upsequence will depend followfor yourprojects on thefinished widthof yourtop,andthe Forexample, if you size of yourplaner. andwanta 30owna l2-inchplaner inch-wide tabletop, it isbest to glue up panels three 8-to l2-inch-wide andplane gluingthem themindividually, before intoasingle top.Tohe$ keep theboards some woodaligned duringglue-up, spaced workers usedowels or biscuits every 6 to 8 inches, although thisisnot essential. Unlikestandard tables. the grain for tops for extension tables should to thetable's length. beperpendicular quartersawn Ideally, for these use stock tops, aswellasfor theleaves. Aftertheglue has driedandthepanplaned, been theedges ofthetop elhas (page 95).With dropJeaf can beshaped thisshaping is done andgateleg tables, isthe before thejoinery. Oneexception rounddrop-leaftable; itsleaves should (page 101) before thecircle beinstalled iscutto ensure thatthetable will beperfectly round.

Theedges of a rectangular desktop or to softenits tabletopare oftenshaped with a contours. Herea routeris used jig to roundthecorners commercial of a tabletop. For a galleryof top page90. see shapes,

A TOP MAKING
theboards 1 Jointing I Prepare each board byfirstjointing a faceandan edge, thenplane theother face.Next, roughly crosscut the boards, 1 inchlonger leaving them about than the top's finallength. Ripthestock sothatthe combined width of alltheboards is roughly 1 inch wider thanthefinished top,then jointall thecut edges (/eff). Next, arrange intocontheboards forappearance, taking sideration anyleaves if youaremaking drop-leaf, orgateleg table. anextension, (Leaves glued aretypically up separately from thetabletop.) Tominimize warping, arrange theplanks sotheendgrain of adjacentboards runsin opposite directions. youaresatisfied When withthearrangement, or chalk to mark a referusea pencil This will ence triangle ontopof theboards. youcorrectly forglue-up. help realign them

93

TOPS

Applying theglue your Tohold bar clamps upright duri n gg l u e - u p c,u t n o t c h e w d ood blocks and s e tt h e c l a m p s i n t h e b l o c k sS . pace the clamps at least every 24 to 36 inches. To a v o i dm a r r i n g theedges of the panel w h e ny o ut i g h t e n t h e c l a m p sc , uttwo w o o dp a d sa s l o n ga n d a s t h i c ka s t h e . pply boards b e i n gg l u e dA a narrow bead ofglue t o o n e e d g eo f e a c hj o i n t a n d u s ea s m a l l s , tiff-bristle bd rush to spread t h e a d h e s i ve ev e n l y ontheboard edges ( a b o v e )M . o v eq u i c k l y t o s t e p3 b e f o r e
ihp olrrc hpoinc tn cpt

Tightening theclamps Q r.,l Laythe boards face-down on the bar clamps a n da l i g n their e n d sm , aking sure t h es i d e s o f t h er e f e r e n c te riangla e r el i n e d u p .T i g h t e n t h ec l a m p s under theboards j u s te n o u g h t o b u t tt h e mt o g e t h e T r .o b a l p r e s s u ra en dk e e p ance t h ec l a m p i n g the p a n efl l a t ,p l a c e b a rc l a m p s a c r o sts h et o p l e t w e etn o f t h e p a n eb h e o n e su n d e r n e a t h . Finish t i g h t e n i na gl l t h e c l a m p s inturn (right)until there are no gaps between t h e b o a r da s n da t h i n ,e v e n bead ofglue joints. squeezes out of the Remove excess g l u ew i t ha s c r a p eo r r a d a m pc l o t h .

94

TOPS

A TOP SIZING
Cutting a rectangular top glued Once thetophasbeen up,rip it to width andtrimit to finallength. lf thetop istoolarge to cutonyour table saw, usea router fitted witha straight bit.First, secure work surface andcut it thetooon a broad saw, leaving about roughly using a circular %inch to trimonallsides. Clamp anedge guide to thetabletop near oneside sothat willremove about one-half the therouter waste withthefirstpass; reset thedepth of cut to trim the restof the waste tighil. Repeat fortheother edges.

Making a round top t h ec u tw i t ha S c r i ba e circle o n t h eg l u e d - utp o pa n dm a k e youcanuse comrouter. For small-diameter tops, a commercial jig;to cut larger jig shown pass tops, use theshop-built compass it to in theinset. Make thedevice from%-inch hardboard, sizing suityour router. Cuttherouter endof thejigto thesize and shape plate, ofyour tool's base andmake thearmat least 2 inches wide youwillbecutting. Bore a andlonger than theradius of thecircle hole forthebit in thecenter fix clearance of therouter end. and

thetoolto thejig.Draw a linedown thecenter of thejig armand mark theradius of thetabletop on it, measuring fromtheedge of mark thebit.Drill a hole at thiscenter andscrew thejigto the with center oftheworkoiece. Secure thestock to a work surface cleats anda scrap board underneath. Plunge thebit intothe (above). stock androutthecircle in a clockwise direction Make passes, thecut in twoor more increasing thedepth of cut pass. between each

95

ATTACHINGATOP
a topto a table or desk is a 1\ ttaching f 1" straightiorward task-so longasyou woodmovement. a top consider Screwing for theswelling in place withoutproviding that occurs with humidity andshrinking wood. will result ursplitor cracked changes Because wood expands alongthe grain muchless across it, mosttoDs thanit does withtheplanks running lengtharernade wise. to thisruleisexlension Oneexceotion tables, wherelhegrainmustbe aligned across the width of the tableso that the in width at diftwo halves do not expand ferent rates, theslides to bind. causing popularmethods for securing Several in this toDS to tables anddesks areshown section, including screwing therails to the below) andusingwood buttons rop (see (page 97),screws 98),ledgerstrips (pnge (page holes desktop in pocket 9B), andsteel (pnge100). fasteners For eachof these methods, the rails of the leg-and-rail for thetop assembly need to be prepared andrailscanbeglued up. before thelegs

Itr the Trestletnblesore often desigred to be disasserrrbled. exantple shownabove,tlrc screws nttaclrirrg tlte ltose o.l'thcttble lo The cottntersurtk screwholes the top can easilybe rerrroved. across the groirr. are elongated to allowfor wood rrtoverrretlt

THERAIL T()THE TOP SCREWING

D r i l l i ntg h eh o l e s 1 I T o a t t a c ha t a b l e t o p or desktop to a l e s - a n d - r aa i ls s e m h l v b o r ea s e r i e s of c o u n t e r s u nh ko l e si n e a c hr a i l f o r t h e s c r e w sb , efore t h e l e g sa r ej o i n e dt o t h e r a i l .D r i l lt h e h o l e s o n a d r i l lp r e s s intwo a t 6 - i n c hi n t e r v a l s stepsF . irst, b o r eh o l e s yh r o u g h sf a b o u th a l f w a t t h e t h i c k n e so guide t h er a i l . Clamp a ne d g e t o t h ed r i l l oress t a b l et o k e e o theholes i n l i n e .T o h e m o v e m e no tf thetop, accommodate should b e l a r g etrh a nt h e d i a m theholes y o uw i l l b e u s r n g . heads e t e ro f t h e s c r e w In thesecond s t e p ,b o r ec l e a r a n c h eoles slightly l a r g et r h a nt h e s c r e w shank all the waythroughthe rails (right).

TOPS

llllffiIII lllllll'lltl lIIlil lfll'llll'fil fiI'llll''fi1'"1ll1]ll tlll lllt

1HO?Tt?
Addingledgerotripo lf you havea Labletop or deekLop wilh thin raileLhaI wouldbe weak' you ocrewholee, enedby enlar4ed olripo Io Ihe can ocrewledqer four ineide faces of the rails.Cut, olripo lo fiI alonqNheineide of Lhe rails,and boreIwo holeein oelo of oversized adiacenl edqeeof each .*d.= eNrip(paqe96).)crew ,,..-nl Ihe ledaerstrips to all four ratrs,lhen' atlach 4 Ihe oIriVoNothe IoV.

r) Attaching therails to thetop Z- Setthetooface-down ona worK surface, andcenter theleg-and-rail assemblyon it. Screw onesiderailto thetop fisl (above), using washers to allow the wood Square thetop(page 100), to move. side railin place. then screw theopposite Lastly, screw thetwoendrails to thetop.

TOPS

P()CKET H()LES
D r i l l i nt g h eh o l e s Y o uc a nu s ea n e l e c t r id c r i l la n da c o m m e r cialjigto drillpocket holes forattaching the il topto a leg-and-ra a ssembly F .o l l o w the manufacturer's instructions to adjust the lig t o t h ed e s i r e d e p t h o f c u t a n dc l a m pi t t o a work surface with a backup board against t h e s t o c k .P l u n g e t h e b i t i n t ot h e w o o d , making t h e p o c k e tc u t ( l e f t ) . T h e n ,f i t a d r i l lw i t ht h e b i t s u p p l i ew d i t ht h ej i g a n d bore a clearance holeconnecting the pocket hole t o t h et o po f t h e r a i l ,u s i n g t h ek i t ' s g u i d eb u s h i n g to direct heoperation pocket Space holes every 6 inches. /lnsef). Screw thetop in place asshown on page 97.

\Tocket cut

W()OD BUTT()NS
Making thebuftons 1 I T o a t t a c ha t o p u s i n gw o o db u t t o n s , youwill needto placea woodbuttonevery 6 inches along therails. Begin b yc u t t i n g a groove onthe inside f a c eo f e a c hr a i l a b o u l7 i n c h f r o mt h e t o p . Y o uc a n c u t s e v e r all" - b y I 1 l " b u t t o n s f r o ma s i n g l e boardm ; a k et h e t h i c k n e so sf t h e s t o c k equal to the gapbetween the bottom of the g r o o va e n dt h et o po f t h e r a i l s l,e s s X ei n c h . Cut a rabbet to frt the groove at eachend o f t h e b o a r dt,h e nr i p t h e b o a r d i n t o1 - i n c h strips o n a b a n ds a wa n d c u t o f f t h e b u t tonsabout1%inches fromthe endslinset). T o m a k eh o l e s in the buttons forinstall a t i o nu , s ea n L - s h a p ec do r n e 1 r i gf a s h dn d ioned f r o ma s c r a p o f l - i n c h p l y w o oa twopieces of wood. Clamp t h ej i g t o y o u r d r i l lp r e s s t a b l ea n d s t e a d y thebuttons w r t ha h o l d - d o wfn a s h i o n ef d r o ms c r a p w o o d .B o r et h r o u g h thecenters onthe (rrghf). portions unrabbeted of the buttons

9B

TOPS

llr1lll ljlllllr fiIl llllll[llillllilltllliliJ ill llrirl, lJl illlfiIl

5HO7Tt?
Ueingeteel tabletop faetenere f aesteelNableLop Commercial LenersworklikewoodbuLNonst Theyare screwed Lo Nhe Iabletop and qripa groove from underneath face rouf,ed or cuL in the ineide commercial of the rails.Secauee
f a e t e n e r e a r e L h i n n e rN h a nl i -' w o o d b u L l o n o , l h eq r o o v a

r) Installing thebuttons eg-and-rail L Cente tr h eg l u e d - ulp it to onthetabletop andscrew assembly youcut thewood buttons thetopusing ends of the in step1. Fittherabbeted in one of theside buttons intothegroove Screw rails, spacing them every 6 inches. (above), leavinga Xin place thebuttons gap inch between thelipped ends of the of thegroove to buttons andthebottom thetop allow forwood movement. Square (page at 100) andinstall the buttons side. Lastly, install thebuttheopposite theend rails. tons along

be cut doesnot haveLo blade: iNcan wiLha d,ado be madewiLha strandard eawblade, or with a Nhreewinqeloiting culler in mounledroul,er. a t,ableLengion, make Toensure ?roper the groove a little farLherfrom lhe top lhan',,tou wouldwith the woodbuLlons,

8,ffi;P
fq"*

TOPS

DESKTOP FASTENERS
Installing thefasteners Desktop fasteners area popular choice for attaching tops. lnstalled in shallow notchessothey lieflush withthetopof therail, they arethenscrewed intotheIop(inset). The fasteners canpivot slightly back and forth a st h et o ps w e l l a s n ds h r i n k s T.o i n s t a lt lh ef a s t e n e rrs o,u t o r c h i s eo l ut recesses forthemin thetopof each rail, spacing thenotches every 6 inches. Screw thehardware to therails(/efl), thencenterthe leg-and-rail assembly onthetop it in place andscrew through thefasteners.

SSUARING THE T()P

Checking for square Before screwina g topto a leg-and-rail assembly m , ake sure t h a tt h e s u r f a c e is centered a n d s q u a r eA . b a rc l a m pa n d woodpadswill do this. Place the top goods i d ed o w no n a w o r ks u r f a c es , e tt h e l e g a n d - r a ia l s s e m b lo yn t o p ,a n d a t t a c h one s i d er a i l t ot h e t o p . B u t to n ej a wo f a b a r c l a m pa g a i n stth e e d g eo f t h e t o p a t o n e j a w a g a i n sa e n d ,a n dt h e o t h e r t l e ga t t h e o p p o s i t e n d .U s ew o o dp a d st o p r e v e n t marring t h e s t o c k .M e a s u r t e hedistance between t h e e d g eo f t h e t o p a n dt h e e n d r a i l sa t s e v e r ap l oints a t b o t he n d s .A l l y o u rm e a s u r e m e n so u l d s th b ee q u a ll .f n o t ,s q u a r e t h e a s s e m b lb yy t i g h t e n i n g t h e c l a m p( r i g h t ) . C h e c kt h e m e a s u r e m e n t st,h e ns c r e w t h e o p p o s i ts ei d er a i lt o t h e t o p . R e m o vte h e b a rc l a m pa n ds c r e w t h ee n dr a i l s in olace.

100

TOPS ADIUSTABLE
for alarge has thespace \J ot everyone theextra although l\ diningtable, Onesoluis oftenneeded. surface area top. with an expandable tion is a table to you. open choices There areseveral have long typically Drop-leaf tables parallel with thegrainthat hang leaves Small out of thewaywhennot in use. by a pull-out maybesupported leaves Extension tables leaves thatmorethandouble bar.Large featuredividing tops that openin themiddleto makeroom require swinglegsor area the surface dining leavel Themahogany gate legs to beadded. for spacer slides openusing legs arepart of a four-legged tableshownabove Swing (page ender s installed gate commercial tableext 106); assembly leg-and-rail of thetop.Steel underbothhalves used setof legs legs arean additional (page whenthe eveners locktogether 105).Ifyoa tabletop for support specifically aflush surface. ensuring top is closed, length, extena table's wantto increase feature topsthatsplitopen siontables spacer additional on sliders to accept tables canbebuilt so leaves. Extension (page 107), tableopens thattheentire just (page 108). or thetop made in muchthe tops are Adjusable 93), same wayassolidwoodtops(page Drop exceptions. with a fewimportant up from quarterleaves arebestglued rings are thegrowth wood, where sawn Thiswill to the face. at right angles of thewoodto cup. reduce thetendency less than and swells it shrinks Since quartersawn woodis plain-sawn stock, tables, ideal for thetopsof extension also thewidth where thegrainrunsacross of thetable.

TABLE A DROP-LEAF F(|R A RULE IOINT MAKING

thecove in theleaves 1 Routing make a ruleiointis wav to I Theeasiest piloted cove and set of a matchei byusing install the First, round-over router bits. a router andshape bit in your round-over and the three thetabletop bead around Make thecut of the leaves. outside edges passes, %-inch lip leaving a in several piloted the Then install theedge. around the router in a table. bit andmount cove thefence withthe bit pilotsothe Align thecutter one-half widthof cut eouals at of cutshallow diameter. Setthedepth your passes to reach first;make several gradually. Feed thetable finaldepth theedge of the leafintothe bit, pressing firmlyagainst thefence(/eff). workpiece pass, until test-fit the pieces After each witha andthe leafmesh thetabletoo gapbetween thetwo. very slight

101

TOPS

r) Installing jointhinge therule Z. Position theshorter hinge leaf against theunderside of the tabletop andthelonger hinge leafagainst thetable leaf; the pinshould hinge bealigned withthestart of theround-over cut (inset). pinYzz onthetabletop Offset thehinge inchtoward the

edge of thetabletop for clearance. 0utline the hinge on both t h et a b l e t oa pn dt h el e a f a n dr o u to u tt h ew a s t eC . hise ol u t pins(above), themortises to accept the hinge thenscrew the h i n g eis nplace.

SUPPORTING A DROP LEAF

Using a commercial drop-leaf support Cuta notch in themiddle of therail adjacent to thetable leaf to accommodate the (For support. drop leaves more than 3 feet long, usetwosupports, located about 6 inches fromeach end.) With theleaves installed andthetabletoo attached. set thetable upside-down ona work surface. positioning Slide thesupport in thenotch, i t s ot h a ti t f u l l ys u p p o r t s h el e a,f a n d screwit in place(right).

r02

TOPS

ir;

DROP.IEAF SUPPORTS supports are drop-leaf lf commercial youcaneasily foryour table, toobulky thatwillcomplement make supports your thelegBefore attaching design. cut to thetabletop, and-rail assembly of each in thetop edge twonotches . The a dropleaf siderailadjoining 6 inches should beabout notches to of therailandsized fromtheends youwill make. For frt thesupports fromthe each leaf, cuttwosupports your youused to build stock same should besuffiThesupports table. leaf; theone to hold thedrop cient at rightis cut 2 in the illustrations long from wide and14 inches inches stock. %-inch-thick youneed To prepare thesupports, down themiddle to routtwogrooves screws of eachoneto accommodate halfway Cutonegroove andwashers. wider than slightly through thesupport youwill use(inset); centhewashers groove in thefirstone, terthesecond wider thanthescrew making it slightly the right through andcutting shanks should stop2 Bothgrooves support. fromeach endof thesupport. inches a knobto oneendof the Attach in the it easy to slide support to make rail notch. Setthef ullyassembled on a worksurface, down tableupside intothe notch, and slide thesupport position the leaf. it sothatit supports intothetop andwasher lnstall a screw driving endof thegroove, at theinside thewasher thescrew untilit meets (right, Thisscrew will bethesuptop). port's To mount the outward stop. stop,retract the slidesothe inward is f lush withtherail,and knob-end the screw andwasher install a second bottom). wayasthefirst (right, same

Outwardetop

Support tL"x2"x14"

103

TOPS

PIVOTING DR()P.LEAF SUPP()RTS

illllllllllr ilIl ljlt lllllllllllt t]l] illjtjll llllt]il iltl llllilijtllj lll
9HO7Tt?
Leveling drop leavee OroVleaveo thal droop can be leveled eaeily with a ehallow wedge. Glue lhe piece of woodto the underside of Lheleafin linewith lhe droVleafeuVVort. jack Thewedqe will the leafup when the oupporlie elid inLopooition.

Making andinstalling thepivot rail Analternate method of buttressing drop leaves is withpivoting supports. Housed in a notched section of thetable rail, the pivots support on a dowel to holdthe d r o pl e a fw h e n t h e l e a fi s e x t e n d e d (above, left),thenaligns withthe rail when the leafis notneeded. Begin by cutting thesupports from thesame stock used forthetable: Make onefora drop leaf thatadjoins anendrail, and twofor a leaf adjacet no ta side railT . h es u p ports should beasthick astherails, onehalf their width, and twice aslong asthe distance between therailandthemiddle of thedrop leaf when thetable isassembled. Angle theends of thesupport and notch thetopedge of therailto match. This willallow thesupport to close almost fl u s h w i t ht h er a i l .B o r e a hole i nt h e centers of thesupport andthenotch for t i n g ee a d o w eo l r a b l i n dp i v o h ; ach hole should beslightly deeper than onehalf thedowel or hinge length. Glue the dowel or install thehinge in thehole in place therail(inset), thesupport onthe dowel, andassemble thetable.

t04

TOPS

TABTE A SIX-LEGGED LEGS F()R GATE

legs thegate 1 lnstalling gateleg leaves aresupported thetable tables, I 0n six-legged gatelegs andstretchrails hinged to thetable bytwoswinging leg-andfour-legged has a standard shown at right Thetable ers. installed called stretchers, setof rails, railassembly, anadditional is Thetabletop legs. andtwogate of the legs, near thebottom joints (pages fhe 101-102). withrule to twoleaves connected portion thanon a drop-leaf of thetopcanbe narrower central theheight should notexceed of theIeaves table, butthewidth arenot when they willtouch thefloor ortheleaves of thetable, isjoined to the after thebase legs areattached in use. Thegate (pages rails: twoto jointhe Cutfourgateleg 96-99). tabletop to thelegs gatelegs to connect andtwomore to thetablerails, to hold thegate belong enough Therails should thestretchers. rails to thelegs Join thegate near thecenter of theleaves. legs joints(page to fasten 76);usehinges withmortise-and-tenon rails andtable of thestretchers tight), near themiddle therails thefixedlegs will restbetween thegatelegs making sure aredown. when the leaves

gateleg stops O Installing stops to hold thegate L ,lsewooden arein use. legs in place when theleaves surdown ona work upside Setthetable legs until face open thegate andswrng Butta ontheleaves. they arecentered of wood block against theoutside small gatelegandscrew it to theundereach sideof the leaf(left).

105

TOPS

Swing legswere traditionally attached to table rails with wooden hinges.Sometimes called knucklejoints, thesewere made by cutting interlockingfingers into the hinge rail and the swing-Iegrail. The two rails were then connected by a woodjoints qre still en or metal pin. These usedon reproductionsof antique swingleg tables.On most modern tables,a metal crankedhinge is now used.

SWING LEGS FOR A FOUR.LEGGED TABLE

Hinae " \ rail

n U

9win4leq

Using a cranked hinge In a four-legged swing-leg table, there aretwofixedlegs and (abovd.fo twoswing legs thatpivot outto support the leaves assemble thistable, firstprepare a topwitha rulejoinl(pages 101-102), thenmake fourlegs andrails, making anynecessary preparations youwilluselater forthemethod to attach thetop (page 96-99). Join only twolegs to therails at opposite corners; joinls(page usemortise-and-tenon 76).Setthetwootherlegs aside asswing legs, andjointherails at thetworemaining corners withdovetail or boxjoints. Next, cut the hinge and swing-leg rails, onefor each swing leg.Cutrecesses in the table r a i l st,h es w i n g - l e gi l sa ra , n dt h eh i n g e rails f o rt h e cranked hinge; thiswillallow theswing-leg rails to sit flush against thetable rails. Also cuta notch rnthelegs sothey will wrap around thetable rails when theleaves aredown. Screw thehinge rails to thetable rails andjointheswing-leg rails to joints. theswing legs withmortise-and-tenon Fasten theswing legs in place withcranked hinges, screwing oneleafof the (teft). hinge to thetable railandtheotherto theswing-legrait place Now thetabletop position top-side down, theswing-leg assembly in place, andscrew thetwotogether.

106

TOPS

TABTES EXTENSI()N DIVIDING

extenders thetable 1 Positioning table extension I To make a dividins when thetop that-move withlegs andrails assembuild a leg-and-rail is expanded, thanattaching blyanda top.Butrather table saw. in halfonyour them, cut both (Toensure halves do not thatthetabletop of rates as a result at different expand thegrain of the changes, align humidity the leg-andits width.) Attach topacross making to thetophalves, railassemblies of the rails andtops thecut edges sure p e re f c t l yT alb l e . h ec o m m e r c ita align arescrewed shown onthispage extenders halves. of thetabletop to the underside of theextenders, theposition Todetermine ona work halves upside down setthetable lines onthe underside surface andmark fromtheside of thetoos4 to 6 inches areperpendicuToensure thelines rails. thetop halves, larto thejointbetween (right). square usea carpente(s

r-) Installing thetable extenders of the center of each segment L ltiarV,the posiwitha pencil. Then table extenders facedown ontheundertiontheextenders thecenter aligning side of thetabletop, table halves marks withthejointbetween s e g m e nw ts i t ht h e l i n e s a n dt h e i n s i d e youmarked screwing in step1. Before open themslightly; theextenders down, w i l l b e n og a p ts h a tt h e r e t h i se n s u r e when thetableis thetop halves between halves butted With thetabletop closed. flush, screw theouttogether andends to the sidesegments of the extenders through the predrilled top,driving screws (/eff). holes Cuta leafto f it theopening thetophalves. between

r07

TOPS

NON.DIVIDING EXTENSION TABTES

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thedecorative apron 1 Making I 0n a non-dividin eg xtensio (above, tn a b l e - w i t ht a b l e t o p h a l v ets h a t assembly foreach tabletop halfandscrew each in place (page openwhilethe leg-and-rail assembly remains stationary-the top right), Theaprons andposts areloined 76) and attached to halves areattached to the outside movable segments of the exten- thetop(page 96)inthesame fashion asa leg-and-rail assembly. d e r sa n dt h e r a i l s d a r ef a s t e n e t o crosspiece sa t a r es c r e w e d Fasten th thetable extenders to thetophalves asyouwould fora (page t o t h e m i d d l ef i x e de x t e n d es re g m e n t ( sa b o v e/,e f t ) .S t a r tb y dividing extension Iable 107). At thispoint, theassembly cutting t h e t o p i n h a l f .N o wb u i l da d e c o r a t i va ep r o n - a n d - p o s t islike posts anordinary dividingtable, with corner in place of legs.

r) Preparing the leg-and-rail assembly y o um u s tn o w L t o s u p p o rtth e t a b l e . b u i l da l e g - a n d - r a l s e m b lty ais h a tw i l l f i t inside thedecorativ a e o r o nT . oattach thecrosspiece sa t j o i nt h e a s s e m b l y th t o t h e t a b l ee x t e n d e r s c,u t f o u r n o t c h e s i n t h et o pe d g e o f t h e s i d er a i l s using a chiseland a woodenmallet (right).Make s u r et h e n o t c h e s in oooositr ea i l sa r e p e r f e c t la yl i g n e dS . crew thecrosspieces t o t h er a i l s .

r0B

TOPS

r-,1 assembly to thetableextenders C o m p l e t te h e t a b l ew i t ht h e t o p u p s i d e on a worksurface. Center the leg-anddown r a i la s s e m b liy nside t h ed e c o r a t i v ae pron. T h ec r o s s p i e c e ws i l l r e s to n t h e f i x e ds e g ments o f t h e t a b l ee x t e n d e r s S.c r e w them in place(right). CUIa leafto f it the openi n s i n t h et a b l e .

Attachins theles-and-rail 1 <.

PEDESTAL EXTENSION TABLES

Attaching thebase tothetop Tomake anextension table witha pedestal base, start witha topandanapron-andpost assembly likethatof a non-dividing extension table(page l0B). Attach the o u t s i ds el i d i n s g e g m e no ts f t w ot a b l e extenders to thetoohalves. Youarenow porready to attach thebase to thefixed tionof theextenders. Make sure therails of thepedestal base extend beyond the fixed holes forcounsegments, andbore tersinking screws through therails. Align theholes over themiddle f ixed segments of theextenders andscrew them toeether.

Apron-and-rarl aeaembly

Pedeatal baee ratl

r09

TOPS

INSTALLING LEAVES ON A TRESTLE TABTE

Installing slides trestle table 1 I To install leaves spacer on a trestle table, firstcutandrout two"breadboard" ends using thesame bityouused to shape t h e r e s to f t h et a b l e t o o T. h e n s e tt h e t a b l eu p s i d e down o na w o r k surface, align thebreadboard ends withtheendof thetop,andposition twocommercial trest l et a b l e slidef sa c e - d o w on n t h et o o ' s underside. Theends of theslides' inside segments should bef lush withthejoint between thetable andthe breadboard e n d st;h es l i d e s h o u l a dlso b ep a r a l l e l to thetabletop edges. Screw the inside segments of theslides to thetabletop (left).Before screwing the outside segments t o t h e b r e a d b o ae rd ndso , pen t h es l i d e s l i g h t lty o e n s u rt e h a tt h e r e willbenogaps in thetopwhen thetable isclosed.

leaves thespacer O Installing L Cutandshape spacer leaves to fit between thetooandthebreadboard ends. Make theleaves slightly narrower than the table opening sothey canbe inserted and removed Tohold leafin aligneasily. each when installed, ment usedowels at its breadboard-end edge andtabletop eveners (page 92) at theother edge. Forthe dowels,bore holes in theedge of the breadboard endandthe leaf (page 74), Ihen gluethedowels in the leaf . Screw three oairs of eveners to theunderside of the leafat theother edge andthetabletop. To usethe spacer leaves, extend each breadboard endfully, settheleafin place (right), andpush thetable closed until thedowels fit into their holes andallthe pieces butttogether.

110

TOPS

TABLE.TOCKING HARDWARE

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Aligningtable leaveowith dowelcentero Tokeep Nable leavee aliqned withlable' Vroperly holee LoVe, maLinq for dowele or aliqnmentr Vins mueLlineup precioely, Oowel cenlerl are idealfor Nhie Naek. Forlhe Nable ohown here, in oneedqeof Nhe boreholee leaf and ineerL dowel cenNers.Then alian /-' the leaf leafwith withLhe the Nhe t NoV oVand andbutt butt them them f:: rZffi

Installing a table lock Toorevent anextension from table slidingopen when it is moved, install tablel o c k i nh g a r d w ao re n t h eu n d e r s i d oe f thetop.The table lock shown normally keeps thetop halves together. Bysimplyreaching under theend of thetable a n dp u l l i n g o nt h ew i r e t , h el a t c h is opened. Toinstall thetable lock, center joint. andscrew thelatch onthetable Then extend thewireto oneendand fi x i t i n p l a c e using t h es c r e w a n dc l i p provided (above).

;;11':';ilni^:;'oZnouffi Zi\%if -- -i*"r----::-:: -=.*NRlnil* of r,hedowelcenNerewill ^-impreeeione on Nhe punch edqeof Nhe Nop, providing eLarlinqpoinf,e .,/- ."a' lor borinq Ihe matinqholee.

ELEMENTS DECORATIVE
A glass top canlightenthe Iookof a largetable.Thetop caneitherconsist of a single paneof glass, or incorporate glass asa design element, top of asin theframed-glass the mahogany coffee table shown at right.

A FRAMED.GTASS TOP INSTATTING

theframe 1 Preparing pieces I Prepare thefourframe byshaping their outside edges to hold theglass. Use siock that andrabbeting the inside edges is at least wide. For theshaping % inchthickand2%inches molding router andmount cuts, install a decorative bit in your featherboards theworkthetoolin a table. Use three to suooort piece: twoclamped to thefence oneither side of thebitand (above. face-down onesecured to thetable. Feed thestock

attach an auxiliary wooden fence to bfil.fo cut the rabbets, your head, itswidth to table saw andinstall a dado adjusting width-about height to the therabbet %inch. Setthecutting glass thickness. Using three featherboards to support theworkpiece, position thefence forthewidth of cut andsawtherab(ln bothillustrations, right). thefeatherboard on betshbove, side of thefence hasbeen removed for claritv.) theoutfeed

LT2

TOPS

Gluing uptheframe and installing theglass youhave shaped andrabbeted the Once pieces, frame cutthem to length with45" For miters at their ends. added strength, jointhecorners joints. withbiscuit Clamp the oieces to a work surface andusea j o i n etro c u t m a t i n g plate inthe slots (above). glue mitered ends Insert andone (left) clamp biscuit at each corner and the Next, frame together. attach theframe to t h el e g - a n d - ra as i ls e m bo ly fyour table (page 96).Measure theopening in the glass frame andhave a sheet of tempered %-inch thick cutto f it. To install at least glue of feltintotherabtheglass, strips (inseil, bets to actasa cushion thenset theslass in theframe.

113

TOPS

A LEATHER TOP INSTALLING

panel leather to a base 1 Gluing fortables anddesks canincorpoI Tops Thisexample rateleather in theirdesign. panel features a leather-covered surrounded bya wood frame. Tostart, cut a piece of leather to cover thefaceandedges of a panel, plywood; base typically %-inch using leather thatweighs at least 4 ounces persquare foot(about Xeinch thick) will prevent fromshowthesurface of thepanel ingthrough theleather. Use contact cement to attach thematerial to the faceof the (right).To panel andsmooth it down enable the leather to bond cleanly around squares at each theedges, cutoutsmall (inset). glue Then it the edges. corner to

thepanel in a frame O Installing L tttat<e andglueupa tabletop frame panel fortheleathered asyouwould fora glass-framed top(page 112).Fitthepanel in theframe andsettheassembly upside Fasten down ona work surface. theoanel to theframe, spacing screws at 6- to 8(/eff,). inchintervals

tr4

TOPS

INSTALLING A TILE TOP

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A felr-iopped writing deok felt is nol ae sLift as leaLher, Decauee makin7 a felN-covered deekto?can be a tricky taek. 1larL by receoo culNinq a ehallow in the top for Lhefabric, ueinqa rouherfil.' ted with a etraiqht bft. Cut a pieceof heavy felttc; fitthe recess, ironout any wrinkleo, -''\ .i, and qluethe malerial ]:, ", in olace. Do noI use \-liquidqlue,a6 iNmay bleed throu1hLhefabric: instead,ueea oprayadheeivelormulated Io bondfab' ric t o wood. SmoothouI lhe fabric wilh a veneerroller.

Ceramic, marble, or slatetilescanalso beincorporated into tops or for tables deslcs. Making a tile top is muchlike making a leather one(pagell4). The of 'h-inch tilesaregluedto a substrate plywood, to a whichis thenscrewed tabletop As the tiles are being frame. glueddown,rubberspacers areinstalled to maintaintheproperspacing. dries,thespacers Oncetheadhesive and thegapsbetween are removed thetilesaregrouted.

115

DWRS
and many irtually all desks And no tablesneeddrawers. matter what their use,all drawers

to woodthatis resistant durable maple, and cherwarping.Ash, oak, enough to withry areall strong like species heavy use. Softer stand the same must meetessentially pineandpoplar butonly are usable, you are Whether requirements. cabinetdrawers. Some for smaller drawmaking three or foursturdy woods contrasting makers choose pedestal, liketheone ersfor a desk forthefrontand likewalnut andash 116, or in thephoto onpage shown when to highlight thejoinery sides each a single unit for anendtable, isopened. thedrawer mustfit precisely andwithdrawer andstrength, Beyond appearance stress, whilealso considerable stand A drawmustfit perfectly. a drawer thedesign of the complementing whenit is er thatjamsor chatters it. furniture thatholds more will wear andclosed opened a drawThefirststep in building quiquickly thanonethatwhispers a draweropening Ratherthan measuring Whatwill its use. er is to consider partsthemwaysto etly. There are several Howmuchuse with a tapeor a rule,usethedrawer thedrawer contain? beginmountdrawers, asshown into its Here,a drawersideis inserted selves. matters will These will it receive? 133. Each method is ningon page on the and a cuttinglineis marked opening thetypeof woodand determine preto support thedrawer, designed of theopening. joineryyou in linewith thefront edge stock choose. ventit fromtippingasit is pulled that thedrawer ensure A shimat thebackwill front.It is with thedrawer Start home. and will out, andstopit asit slides than the opening piece, it is slightly shorter visible the most not only frames for bottomPreparing dust the carcase. the back of A not close against most stress. the also undergoes run drawersis shown in the joint is required to solid, durable (page (page Thesection on drawer stops 28). chapter Casework methods are shown it firmly attached to the sides. keep foinery from being stop drawers presents effective ways to J38) several attrac' page The front should also blend 120. on beginning in toofar. outor pushed it. Forstruc- pulled tivelywith thegrainof thewoodsurrounding Theselection finaltouchto a drawer. Hardware adds the run horizontally. grain of the front should the turalreasons, joints; Locks are applied page suggestions. prone 119 offers some shown on produce it will also be grain not solid Vertical will traditionvaluables and to copy for securing to drawers both with moisture changes. movement to greater lockareshown for installing a half-mortise not al pieces. Steps does youusefor thedrawer sides andback Thestock page 131. starting on you choose a for front-provided as the have to bethesame

are half-blinddovetails strength with appearance, Combining joining Here, a dovedrawer a popularchoice frontsto sides. for desk. taileddraweris slid into onesideof a double-pedestal

ANMOMYOFADRAWER
is essentially an openbox, A drawer A consisting of a front,a back, two sides, and a bottom.The front is most oftenmadefrom thickerstock thanthe sides and back;the bottom is typically madefrom Z-inchplywood.Beyond these general similarities, drawers vary in style,methods of joinery,and techniques of mounting. Manydrawer-mak1

ing options areillustrated below andon thefollowing page. Threepopulardrawer front styles are shown directlybelow. Installing a drawer canbe a tricky operation, especially if thedrawer is poorlymade. An out-ofsquare draweriansometimes be conceiledwith a false front,but if it isbadly twisted, it will be almostimpossible to

install sothatit opens smoothly. Several joints for assembling drawers arealso shownbelow;eachpossesses different qualities of strength anddurability, Installing hardware is the final,and usually the simplest, stepin buildinga drawer. The selection of drawerhardwareshownon page119will provide youwith manyoptions.

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Flushfront: Allowsthedrawer tofit entirely within thecarcase; also knownasan inset drawer

Lippedfront: A rabbeted front creates a lip that is useful for concealing commercial runners when thedraweris closed. Lip performs double dutyasdrawer stop

Falsefront:A separate front is attached to thestntctural f'onr; conceals endgrnin of drawersides

DRAWER J()INTS
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Half-blind dovetail Thetraditionaljoint for connectingf,he fronf, to the eidea; conceale end 4rain of eidee.9uitable only for Eolid wood Dado Commonly Lojoin the backto Lhe aidee:for aolid woodor plywood Double dado For any corner of a arawer;conceal1 end 7rarnof eidea, )uitable only for aolid wood

Rabbet For back-to-aide jointe; aloo etronq enouqhfor joininq the frontto Lheeidea tf reinforced wrth ecrewoor natle. 9uiLablefor aalid woodor plywood

Through dovetail )Lronq, decorative joint for any drawer corner;end qrain of drawer aides can be concealedwith falae front. Appropriate for aalid woodbuL not plywood

DRAWERS

HARDWARE DRAWER

Commeraial elide runners Uaed to mount drawera in carcageo; bottom runner (top) and aide runner(riqht). Farticularly ouitable for drawere that will carry heavyloada

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Half-moft,ise loak Mounted in half-mortiae cut into back face of drawer front; bolt extends into mor' tiee cut in rail of carcase

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Drawer handlea one or more are mounrea o, arawer irontr;avatape in stvlee as varied ae Chippendale and thaker to

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Esautaheona ?rotect woodeurroundin4keyhole; plate eacutcheon(letr,tup) and decorativebraaa threaded eacutcheon (lefE,botbom)

METH(lDS DRAWER-MOUNTING Commeraialelide runners .... Metal elideescrewed to drawer eidee mate '1fi"' with runnera acrewed iii,i
. i LO Carjage i i l ,t: "'i l"'t' ' "--;":t' iiji ''\

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side-mounted
Wooden elidea ecrewedto carcaoe eidepanelarun,in qroovearouted in
drawer Eides ;.

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Bottom-run Draweralideaon rail-and-runner wtth or wtthoutduet aeeembly Lenona aL endaof ratle panel.Twin are qluedinto doublemortieeacuL inLocarcaaepanelo:one edqeof runnerecan be rabbetedto fit into groovecut into carcase aideeor joint (paqe37) groovedfor a apline Duet frame ia aesembledwith nonj oInt7 morLi ee-a nd -Le

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Kunner

119

DRAWERIOINERY
hen you havesettledon the size of a drawer, it is time to choose the rightjoinery.Since the corners ofa drawer undergo different stresses, choose your joints accordingly. The front-toside connections endure themoststress joinery.The and requirethe strongest connections between thebackandsides are lessaffected by everyday useand therefore do not have to be assolid. The followingpages present several joinery options.Threeof them-the half-blind (below) andthroughdovetail (page125), and the double dado(page 1271--<an onlybeused with solidwood. jointsis strong Each enough of these to connect the front to the sides, although thedoubledadoshould bereserved for small, light-dutydrawers. Forpllwood drawers, usea rabbetjointfor anyofthe connections, or a standard dadojoint to attach thebackoiece to thesides. Thejoineryoptions you choose will alsoaffect theappearance ofthe drawer. you areinstallinga falsefront, Unless choose ajoint likethehalf-blinddovetail or double dadoto conceal theendgrain of thesides. Drawerbottomsfit into a groove cut in the sides and front.The groove can becut with a saw before theioinervcuts aremade(page 123)or oncethediawer is assembled, usinga table-mounted routeranda three-wing slotting cutter. Before gluingup,makesure you have decided on a mounting method. A sidehungdrawer, for example, needs to have a groove cut in its side before thedraw(page er is assembled 133). Before you begincutting,select the mostattractive faceof eachpart and markit with an X to designate it asthe outsideof the drawer. Reserve the most visually appealing piece for thefront.

Dffirent joints for dffirent needs: joint workswellfor A dado-and-rabbet attaching the back to the sidesof a drawer. Thefront demandsa stronger joint that will conceal the endgrain of the sides-in this case, a doubledado.

HALF-BLIND DOVETAIT J()INTS

Marking thepinboaro I Mark t h eo u t s i dfe aces o f a l l t h eb o a r dw s i t ha nX .T h e n gauge seta cutting to about two{hirds thethickness of thepin board-the drawer front-andmark a lineacross theend, closer to theoutside thanthe inside face(above, /eff). Adjust thecuttinggauge to thethickness of thedrawer sides andscribe a line ontheinside face of thefront to mark theshoulder line of thetails. Next, use a dovetail square to outline thepins onan part e n do f t h ef r o n tt;h ew i d e o f t h ep i n s should b eo nt h e

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inside face of thestock sothefront does notpullaway from guidelines thesides. There arenostrict forspacing dovetail pins, butfor most drawers, a half-pin at each edge andtwo pinsin between evenly spaced makes a strong andattractive joint. Tocomplete themarking, secure thefrontin a vise and use a trysquare anda pencil to extend thelines ontheboard endto theshoulder lineon its inside face(above, right). Mark thewaste sections withXsasyougo.

t20

DRAWERS

r) Gutting thepins with front in a vise L S"rrr" thedrawer you, the stock toward faceof the inside with of thepins theedges thencutalong (left), your way working saw a dovetail (Some edge to theother, fromoneboard prefer the left-hand woodworkers to cutall on to the thenmove of the pins, edges steady Hold theboard edges.) right-hand just thesaw blade to thewaste andalign line; angle t h es a w o f t h ec u t t i n g side intothe to avoid cutting thewaste toward pinsU . se a, llowe,v e n strokes smooth stroke. Conto cutonthepush ingthesaw l ir n et ,h e n tinue t h ec u tt o t h es h o u l d e endof at theother thepins repeat to saw theboard.

outthewaste Q Chiseling up on frontinside-face r.J Laythe drawer to a n dc l a m pa g u i d eb l o c k a w o r ks u r f a c e s i d eo f w i t ht h e w a s t e r t se d g e it,aligning of a t o n ee d g e i n e .S t a r t i n g t h e s h o u l d el r h o l dt h e f l a t s i d eo f a c h i s e l thestock, should ;h e b l a d e a g a i n stth eg u i d eb l o c k t portion of be no widerthanthe narrowest W l erpensection . i t ht h e c h i s e p t h ew a s t e t h eh a n d l e face, strike d i c u l atro t h e b o a r d a %-inchm a l l e tm , aking w i t ha w o o d e n Thenhold deepcut intothe wasle(right). b e v e l - ua pb o u t% t n c hb e l o w thechisel peel away a thin layer face and board the the u n t i ly o u r e a c h of wasteC . ontinue scribed l i n eo n t h e e n d o f t h e b o a r d . s i t ht h e r e m a i n i n g R e p e atth e p r o c e sw anyexcess waste sections, then pareaway (step 4). waste

t2l

DRAWERS

paring Final
Working o n o n et a i l s o c k ea t t a time,

remove theremaining waste frombetween press the pins. First theflatsideof the chisel against the bottom of thesocket with thethumb your of your lefthand; with r i g h th a n d p , ush t h ec h i s etlo w a r d the shoulder line, shaving away thelast slivers (lefil.f henpare of waste away anywaste fromthesides of thepins(inset).

outthetails f, Laying r-,f Setonedrawer sideoutside-face down onthework surface. Hold thedrawe rf r o n t end-dow ni t hi t s i n s i d e w face a l i g n ew di t ht h es h o u l d e l ir ne o f t h et a i l board, making certain theedges of the b o a r da sr ef l u s h O . u t l i nt e h et a i l s wlth (right), a pencil Ihenusea try square to extend thelines ontheendof theboard. Mark allthewaste sections withXs.

DRAWERS

Cutting thetails
U s ea d o v e t a is l a wt o c u t t h e t a i l s

2). wayyoucut the pinsGtep thesame (right), ralher thanthe Angling the board Secure the makes foreasier cutting. saw, edges of the board sothattheright-hand andevenSaw smoothly tails arevertical. stopping at of thetails, ly along theedges in theboard line. Reoosition theshoulder Once edges. to cuttheleft-hand thevise made, remove cutshave been allthesaw 3 and4. witha chisel asin steps thewaste remove about thetails, Toavoid splitting over thenfliptheworkpiece halfthewaste, waste. to chisel outtheremainins

Drawer aide

panel fora bottom drawer J Preparingthe bind; anyspots where ihejoints andmark f Drylitthedrawer to achieve a good small amounts of wood usea chisel to pare (page joints 124).Next, useyour fit. Loose canbetightened to accomin thedrawer front andsides to cuta groove table saw itswidth to Install a dado head, adlusting modate thebottom. (typiyouplan to use forthebottom of thestock thethickness the front andsides; Mark thegroove onthedrawer cally %inch). justabove groove thehalf-pin at thebottom belocated should mark withthedado head and Align thegroove edge of thefront. Adjust the position theedge of thestock. theripfence against (nomore than one-half of thegroove height forthedepth blade the table Feed the drawer frontacross thickness). thestock (Caution: guard forclarity.) Blade removed stick(left). using a push Then install a combination sides. Repeat thecutonthedrawer flush withthetopof the of theback blade andtrimthebottom groove s t h es i d e s w i l la l l o w t h eb o t t o m to a n df r o n t T . his in when thedrawer isassembled. slide intooosition

r23

DRAWERS

Gluing upthedrawer Before assembling thedrawer, cuta panel plywood bottom from%-inch orsolid stock to fit thedrawer opening, adding (less thedepth of thegrooves %e inch) to itswidthandthedepth of onegroove panel andthethickness of theback to its joints, lengh. Toglue updovetail clampingpressure should beapplied to thetail (On boards. thedrawer shown above, the back isjoined to thesides withthrough presdovetails.) Todistribute clamping properly, sure make a specially notched joint. clamping foreach block Each block should b ea s l o n g a st h ew i d t h ofthe stock andnotched soit only touches the pressure tailsanddoes notexert onthe pins. glue Spread evenly onallthecontacting surfaces oftheboards andassemb l et h ej o i n t sI.n s t aa l l b a rc l a m p along pinboard, each then tighten theclamps a littleat a Iimehbovd.Check thedraw(page erforsquare 128) andadjust the pressure, clamping if necessary.

fifi lll iltlllllltfirl rlll illt lllll]It llllillltlll fill lll ilIl illllI]
1HO?TI?
Fixingdovetaile Evenexo erienced woodworkers cul,Nhe occasionat aoveLail thaX fits a liLIle looeely. ln mosl caoeo, emallgape can befilledIo improve the fiL and allearance of the joinL, CuN smallwooden wedqeo from the same woodas Nhe t aperin4 drawer, them eo Nhey w i l le l i d ei n to L h eo p e n i n q e . 1preadqlueon lhe wedqee and use a wooden mallet, No NaV themin place,7and any l u e hw i t h I h e o r o L r u e i o nfe surface of the drawer,

t24

DRAWERS

THROUGH D()VETAILS
Marking thepinboard joint, issimilar to thehalf-blind except I the through dovetail T . ob e g i n d u l l yt h r o u gth h e p i nb o a r d t h a tt h et a i l se x t e n f , ake aces ofallthe m a r k i ntg h ej o i n t sm a nX o nt h eo u t s i dfe gauge of thestock Then seta cutting to thethickness boards. omark the a l i n ea l o n g both ends o f t h eb o a r dts a n ds c r i b e fr o n t or f t h ep i n s a n dt a i l s . N e xs t e c u rte h ed r a w e shoulde in a vise a dovetail square to outline thepins end-up anduse part of thepins should beon ontheendof theboard; thewide dd ovetail t h ei n s i d e face o f t h es t o c kA . sw i t ht h eh a l f - b l i n (page butfor 120), thespacing is a matter of personal choice, at each edge andtwoevenly spaced a typical drawer, a half-pin pinsbetween provide combination of strength and a good (right). Mark thewaste sections withan X asyou appearance go.Finally, allthedovetail use a combination square to extend lines. marks down both faces of theboard to theshoulder 'l

Cutting thepins front in thevise withitsoutside face toward Leave thedrawer you.Use a dovetail saw to cutalong theedges of thepins, alignjustto thewaste line. ingthesaw blade side of thecutting Cut edges fkst (left), thencomplete the left-hand all theright-hand taking care to keep theblade edges. Use smooth, even strokes, level lines. 0nce thepins arecut,leave asyoucutto theshoulder in thevise saw to remove asmuch of theboard anduse a coping pin, thewaste aspossible between thepins. At theside of each a coping saw blade into thekerf androtate theframe withslide theendof theboard. Keep theblade about %o inch outstriking lineasyoucutto thekerf ontheedge of the above theshoulder pin(above). Pare waste witha chisadjacent away anyremaining (page for half-blind 122).Repeat the el asyouwould dovetails orocess at theother endof thedrawer frontandforthe back of thedrawer, thenmark andcutoutthetails onthedrawer sides.

t25

DRAWERS

DOVETAIL IIGS
joints Hand-cutting for a large dovetail number considerable time of drawers takes paired andpractice. Your router, witha jig likeoneof those commercial dovetail provides shown onthispage, anefficient alternative. Although router-and-jig cut dovetails maylack thehand-crafted look joints, of sawn andchiseled theyarejust fit together asstrong, aswelland,most importantly, canbeproduced in a fraction of thetime.Butremember to factor in setup timeforthejigs.lf youaremaking only a couple of drawers, hand tools may wellbea faster alternative. jigsareshown popular Three dovetail Themodel below. on the leftfeatures interchangeable templates. Depending onwhich template is used, thejig enables a router to cut thepinsandtailsfor halfjoints blind, with through dovetails, or box Thejig in thecenter a single setup. consists of twof ixed templates for cutting through dovetails. Thetemplates arefastened to backup boards thatsupport the workpiece. One template is used forcuttingthe pins, theother forthetails. The jig onthe right forrouting canbeused joints. bothhalf-blind andthrough dovetail you Itssingle adjustable template allows to vary thesize andspacing of thepins

a n dt a i l s g , iving t h ej o i n t s more ofa hand-crafted look. jigswork Allthree on essentially the principle. same A router is f itted witha dovetail bit anda guide bushing-both provided withthejig.Byfeeding usually thetoolalong thetemplate, the bit is guided in andoutof theslots to cutaway

jig isshown thewaste. Thefixed-template in action above. Once thetemolates have been attached to backup boards, thepin andtail boards aresecured in olace. For joints, several identical a stopblock can be clamped to the backup boards for producing repeat cuts. Thejig is shown thetails of a ioint.

t26

DRAWERS

DOUBTE DADO JOINTS

I M a r ko n ee n do f t h e b o a r dd , ividing i t s t h i c k n e s is n t ot h i r d s T . h e n ,i n s t a la l d a d oh e a do n y o u rt a b l es a w ,a d j u s t i n g sf t h e w i d t ht o o n e - t h i r t dh e t h i c k n e s o t h e d r a w ef rr o n t .S e tt h e c u t t i n gh e i g h t rides. e q u a il o t h e t h i c k n e so sf t h e d r a w es Next, i n s t a la l c o m m e r c it a e l n o n i nlg i g ;t h e i n t h e m i t e rs l o t .P r o model shown slides thestock w i t h a w o o dp a d ,c l a m p tecting thejig t h e d r a w ef rr o n tt o t h e j i g . M o v e s i d e w a yts o a l i g nt h e m a r k s s o t h a tt h e b l a d ec s u t t h e d a d oi n t h e m i d d l e third o f t h e b o a r dS . l i d et h e j i g a l o n g to feed the stock. T u r nt h e d r a w e f rr o n to v e ra n d c l a m pi t t o t h e j i g t o c u t t h e d a d oa t t h e other end (right).

front dadoes in a drawer 1t Cuttins -

thedado tongues ! Trimming 4- Install a wooden auxiliary fence onthe ripfence, then mark a cutting line onthe edge of thedrawer front thatdivides one f a c ei n h a l f . o f t h et o n g u e o sn i t si n s i d e W i t ht h es t o c k flush agains th t em i t e r gauge, your inside face down, align mark with thedado head. Butt thefence against t h es t o c k a n dr a i s e t h e b l a d ets o c u ta relief notch in thefence. Setthecutting h e i g htto t r i mt h eh a l f - t o n g u H eo . lding front firmly thedrawer against thegauge, feedit intothedado head. Turn theboard around andreoeat the orocedure at the other end//eft).

r27

DRAWERS

t (

Cutting matching dadoes Q r-.f in the drawer sides cut T o j o i nt h e d r a w es rides t o t h ef r o n t . a d a d on e a r t h e f r o n te n do f e a c hs i d e . Thedadomustmatewith the half-tongue o n t h e f r o n t .S e t t h e c u t t i n gh e i g h t o the length o f t h eh a l f - t o n g u ae n ds c r e w e x t e n s i ob no a r d to themiter a wooden g a u g eT . o s e t t h e w i d t ho f c u t , b u t t t h e drawer s i d ea g a i n stth e f r o n ta n d u s ea p e n c it lo outline oe nthe thehalf-tongu d r a w es r i d e .H o l dt h e s i d ea g a i n stth e w i t ht h e e x t e n s i oa nn da l i g nt h e m a r k s flush . lamp a s t o pb l o c k d a d oh e a d C against the end of the stockandfeedthe boardto cut the dadohbove).Repeat t h ec u t o n t h eo t h e r side

llltijlillii,i[l:llilt lllllll ,llJ dd J' iliifillllil,iit iltJ Jb t:ll

Tt? 9HO7
drawersfor equare Cheaking To keepdrawersoquaredurinq qlueup,measure Lhediaqonale imme' beNween oVpooif,e cornero a l L e rt i 7 h L e n i ntg he d ia L e l y UseLwoeNicke as a clampo. jig. bevel meaourinq oneendof eachstick eo thaL iL can exlend inlo an inside corner of the drawer.Tousethe jtq,holdNhe ebicke face Lo face,eeal the beveled endsin oppoeiLe corners, and marka lineacroestheir edqee. Kepeatr wiLhLheLwooNher corners. T h el w o m a r k ee h o u l d drawer aliqnexaclly,lfnoN,the the io out-of-square, CorrecL by looeeninq the clamVo, problem olidinq o n ej a w o f e a c hc l a m V awaytromLhejoinl al oppooite qhlenin q. corners, and reLi

\28

DRAWERS

RABBET J()INTS LIPPED

front a lipped rabbet in a drawer Cutting of a drawer Tocut lipped rabbets around theedges foran lines face to allow front, mark on its inside 3/a inch(inset). Alsomark the overhang of at least to one-half thethickrabbet depth on itsedges-up front. Cutthe rabbets on the ness of the drawer firstnotching theinside face table sawin twosteps, height setto thedepti of thefront withtheblade withthestocf^ These cutsaremade of therabbets. table. Then feed thestoch facedown onthesaw Settheblade intotheblade onendandon edge. align theblade height to thewidth of therabbets, andbuttthe withthemarks fortherabbet depth, Keeping thedrawer front fence against thestock. into flush the fence, feed it on end the blade against rabbet. Turn the board over and to complete one (right). rabbet the other end repeat to cut the at intotheblade onedge to cut Then feed thestock onthetopandbottom edges. therabbets

()RRABBETS WITHDADOES GLUING UPA DRAWER

Using bar clamps gluing you how Before upa drawer, decide willinstall it (page 133), since side-mountyouto prepare ingmay require thedrawer glue final assembly. Apply on sides before joints of the and allthecontacting surfaces w ob a r a s s e m btl h e ed r a w e A r . r r a n gte lay clamps ona work surface and thedrawaligning thebars oftheclamps eronthem, withthedrawer front andback. Install two more along thetopof thedrawer. clamps joints lf youused rabbet to assemble the drawer, install another twoclamps along thedrawer sides. Protect surfaces byplacpads ingwood between thestock and h ec l a m pls t h ec l a m p ust l a w sT . i g h t etn fully(left), Ihen enough to close thejoints (page for square 128). check the drawer Finish tightening theclamps until a bead of glue squeezes outof thejoints, checkingasyougothatthecorners aresquare. has dried, scrape away Once theadhesive panel glue. thebottom into any dried Slide place t w i t hf i n i s h i nn ga i l s a n ds e c u rie driven up intothedrawer back.

r29

DRAWERS

A BOTTOM WITHDRAWER SLIPS INSTALLING

theslips 1 Making I For drawer sides made fromstock thatis grooved panel, for toothinto be a bottom provide greater install drawer slips. Slips also b e a r i ns gu r f a cfe o rb o t t o m - r u dn rawers. prepare your Before thedrawer is assembled, slipstock froma strip of wood-1-by-1 stock is appropriate formost drawersat least as length of thedrawer long asthecombined sides. Round over onecorner of the board, in thensetupyour table saw to cuta groove it. Install head, adjusting itswidth to a dado you willuse, and thethickness of thebottom height to about %inch. Position setthecutting flush theslipstock against thebottom edge of thedrawer front andmark the location of ontheboard. Align themark with thegroove head a n dp o s i t i otn h er i p f e n c e t h ed a d o . lamp o n t w of e a t h e r agains th t es t o c kC boards, asshown, to support theworkpiece. it intotwo Saw thegroove, thencrosscut lengths equal to thedrawer sides measured from thedrawer front.

,y' ./ ,//,t' ,,//'

./'

,/

./l)'

r) Mounting theslips onthedrawer Z. t"totcfrthe slips sothattheyclear theback, thensetthe glued-up drawer upside down on a work surface, spread some glue o nt h ec o n t a c t i s nu gr f a c e os f t h es l i p sa , n dc l a m p them

against thesides anddrawer front(above,left). f,Aake certa in s t h es l i p s in a n dd r a w e r f r o n ta r e p e r f e c t l y t h a tt h eg r o o v e (above, right). aligned

130

DRAWERHARDWARE
Thefaceplntebeingattached to the drawer"f"ont shownat right forms part of a halfmortiseIock.The lock bolt into a nrorlise cut in exlettds directly the rail or casework abovethe drawer.

INSTALLING A HALF-M()RTISE LOCK

Centering the lock I Set the drawer on a worksurface and m a r kt h e m i d p o i nb t e t w e et n h es i d e s on the top edgeof the front.Thenusea combination square to extend t h e m a r ko n t o t h e i n s i d ef a c e o f t h e f r o n t ( / e f f ) .N e x t , (seephotoabove) holdthe lockfaceplate front,alignagainst the inside of the drawer m a r ka n d i n gt h e k e y h o l w e i t ht h e c e n t e r k e e p i ntg h ef a c e p l a tle i pf l u s h w i t ht h et o p e d g eo f t h e d r a w e f rr o n t .U s ea p e n c i lt o en the inside face outline thefaceplato a n d t o p e d g eo f t h e f r o n t . 'l

131

DRAWERS

Keceasfor faceplaLeIip

mortise Cutting thelock Youneed to cutthree mortises forthelock: oneforthefacep l a t ea , n o t h efro r t h e l o c kh o u s i n g a , n da t h i r df o r t h e f a c e p l a t e l i p . T h i s i s o n eo f t h e r a r ec a s e s w h e nt h e r o u t e ri s u s e df r e e h a n d .I n s t a la l s t r a i g hb t i t i n t h e t o o l ,s e tt h e c u t t i n g depth to the thickness of the faceplate, andcut a mortise inside the marked f o rt h ef a c e p l a t e . t a r tb y g u i d i n g outline S t h e t o o li n a c l o c k w i s e direction to cuttheoutside edges o f t h e m o r t i s ec ; l e a ro u t t h e r e m a i n i nw gaste b yf e e d i n g t h e t o o la g a i n stth e d i r e c t i o o nf bit rotation . s ea c h i s etl o s o u a r e U t h e c o r n e ra sn do a r e to theline. F o rt h e l o c kh o u s i n gm , e a s u rte hedistance b e t w e et n heedges en dh o u s i n g o f t h ef a c e p l a ta a n dt r a n s f etrh e m e a s u r e m etn ot the firstmortise. Adjust the router's cutting depthto the thickness of the housing a n d c u t i t s m o r t i s eN . ext, u s et h e c h i s etl o c u t therecesi sn t h et o p e d g eo f t h e d r a w efrr o n tf o r t h e f a c e p l a t e lip (above). Testthe fit of the lock in the cavityand usethe (/eff). chiselto deepen or widenanyof the mortises, if necessary

Cutting the keyhole Q r - J S e tt h e l o c ki n t h e m o r t i s e a n dm a r k . o un e e dt o the location o f t h e k e y h o l eY f o rt h e k e y : d r i l lt w o h o l e s o n ef o r t h es h a f t a n da s m a l l eh r o l ef o r t h e k e yb i t b e l o w it. Bore t h e w i d e rh o l ef i r s tw i t ha b i t s l i g h t l y l a r g etrh a nt h e k e ys h a f t . T h e nu s ea b i t slightly l a r g etrh a nt h et h i c k n e so sf t h e k e y b i tt o b o r e t h es e c o n d hole. U s ea c o p i n g sawto join the two holes(rrght). To finish i n s t a l l i nt g h e l o c k ,m o u n t anescutcheon on the outside faceof the drawer to protect t h ew o o d surroundin th ge k e y h o l e .

132

MOUNTING DRAWE,RS
r-pr here drawways to install areseveral The method $. ersin a deskor table. of you choose shouldsuit the design you expect the andtheloads yourpiece drawers to bear. a drawer wavto moul-lt Thesimolest belowand is with siderunneri.Shown thismethodinvolves on thenextpages, in the drawersides routing grooves These mate with before assembly. mountedon the insideof the siides is idealirt casework. Side-mountine I 35) casework frarne-and-panel t pnge drawand for small-to rnedium-sized loads. ersthatwillbearmoderate runners areanothslide Commercial ir-t drawers of side-mounting er method Althoughpuristsmaydecry a carcase. arestroltrunners theiruse, commercial and so area ger than wood runners, for drawers thatwillbear soodchoice are runners hear,ry loads. Commercial Buythehardin different sizes. available ware and read the manufacturer's your beforeyou br-rild instructions runnersrequire specific drawers, since the drawersides clearances between andthecarcase. methodof securing The strongest Here, the isbottom-mounting. drawers in mounted rideon runners drawers milledin the sides of the casegrooves joinedatthefiont are work.Therunners whichproandtherearwith stretchers, for the vide both a bearingsurface the casework. and strengthen drawers (pnge to Dust panels 3a) canbe added and the frameformedby the runners themin a groove by setting stretchers woodedges. Some routed in theirinside in the workers preferto rout a groove which and install a shelf, carcase sides support asdrawer serves double-duty anddustpanel.

doesnot Evertcorefulnteosurettlent alwnysgttorantceo per.fbct .fit. If a i s / o os r r r r q i r r i t so p t ' t t i r t y t ,o t t rlrowcr urttilthc c o t tp l o t r cd o w r t t l r es i d e s orrd closes vrtoothly. trrtitoperrs

IN A CARCASE A DRAWER SIDE-MOUNTING

in thedrawer sides 1| Cuttins srooves -I C u ta s r o o v e i n t h eo u t s i d e f a c eo f f i n a la s s e m b l y . e a c hd r a w i rs i d eb e f o r e guideline s rt h e g r o o v e fo There a r en o r i g i d lides a c c o m m o d as te w i d t h ,b u t i t s h o u l d to supporthe t h a t a r e h e f t ye n o u g h l dado d r a w e rO . ny o u rt a b l es a w ,i n s t a la Draw headthe samewidthas the groove. w t d t ht n t h e c u t t i n gl i n e sf o r t h e g r o o v e g n do f o n ed r a w e r middle o f t h e l e a d i ne t t no more s i d e .S e tt h e c u t t i n gh e t g h a . utt t h a no n e - h a ltfh e s t o c kt h i c k n e s sB w i d t ha g a i n stth e thelines f o rt h eg r o o v e flush , o s i t i otn h e r i pf e n c e d a d oh e a d p the stock, and makethe cut (/eff). against l f t h eg r o o v e w i d t he x c e e dts h e w i d t ho f , u r nt h e b o a r d e n df o r t h e d a d oh e a d t . e p e atto a n o t h ep r a s sR e n da n d m a k e i n t h e o t h e rd r a w es r ide. c u t t h es r o o v e

t33

DRAWERS

r) Making andinstalling the Z- drawer slides Onyour table saw, ripthedrawer slides froma board thatis slightly shorter than thedepth of thecarcase. Position therip fence to a cutting width slightly narrower (sfep than thegrooves in thedrawer sides l). Cuttwoslides foreach drawer, using (Caution: guard a push stick(above). Blade removed forclarity.) Tomount theslides, insert thedrawer in thecarcase andhold l mark it in place while using a p e n c ti o thelocation of thegrooves on the front edseo s f t h es i d en a n e l s T.h e n use a carpenter's square to extend themarks a c r o sts h ei n s i d e faces o f t h ep a n e l s . Bore three countersunk clearance holes through theslides; make theclearance holes slightly wider than thescrew shanks toallow f o rw o o d movemen t. H olding theslides recessed fromthefront edge of thecarcase between themarked lines panels t o l ea o nt h es i d e d,r i l lp i l o h sn d (inset), screw theslides in place Testf i t t h e d r a w e rU . s es h i m s u n d etrh e slides to tighten rt ordeepen thegrooves to ease thefit.

lll1 rlll lllt lllJ ljlt llllillJ tllJ lltJ illllltJ illJ lll1 rlll tllj l]li tllt tlll
?HO?Tt?
?ooilioning drawerslides Toensure drawerslideson oppooitre oideeof your carcaeeare aNprecieely the eameheiqhl,ueea wood gpacer cul from a oiece of ecraV. Makeite widLh equal to the neceooarv e0ace belween lhe eliiee.'Hota Nheedaeol the ezacer aqainoitheto? Andthe face againeloneeidepanel,butl the elideaqainsl
lhe sVacer,and screw if,

in place, Kepea|Nhe for the procedure remaininq slidee.

r34

DRAWERS

DRAWERS IN FRAME-AND-PANEI CASEWORK Installing drawersin frame-and-panel caseworkis a Runners little more complicatedthan with carcases. cannotbefasdrawersupports connotbe usedbecause teneddirectly to thefloating panels.As shown at right and on page 136, the supportsore insteadanached to corner strips screwedto the stilesof the casework.The drawer supportsarefixed in the dedoes.During installation, hold the corner stripsin position with handscrewsand test-fit the drawers to make sure the supportshold them straight and level. The strips can run thefull height of the caseworkto support several to mount a singledrawer in a drawers,or be shortened pieceoffurniture like the night tableshownat right.

CASE A DRAWER IN A FRAME.AND.PANEL SIDE-MOUNTING

thecorner strips 1 Making and I Rioa board to a width of 4 inches bottom it reach from top to crosscut to The dadoes forthedrawer inside thecase. on arm areeasy to cut a radtal supports it h e a d a , d j u s t i n gs ll dado sawI .nstaa of thethickness width to accommodate you Starting in step 3. thesupports willuse of the at theendthatwillbeat thebottom forthelowest drawer. cabinet, cut a dado to cutthe theboard along thefence Slide position. lf at thenext drawer second dado will be between thesuoports thedistance into thefence to serve equal, drive a screw pin;locate thehead of the asan indexing of thefirst fastener against the leftedge dado andreoodado. Now cutthesecond of this the board sothe leftedge sition head. Cutthe thescrew dado rests against n t h i sf a s h i o ( nl e f t ) , remainin dg a d o eis into fourequal strips. thenriptheboard

r35

DRAWERS

r) Installing thecorner strips L Bore a clearance hole fora No.8 near screw theendof each corner strip, thenwitha larger bit,drilldeep enough to recess thescrew head. Nowoosition each stripin thecase, making certain that thedadoed edges areflush withtheedge of thestiles. Temporarily hold thestrips in place withhandscrews, make and (sfep yourdrawer insert supports 3), and testthedrawers in thecase. Adjust the height of thecorner strips, if necessary, to level thedrawers. Then remove the drawers anddrawer supports, mark the screw holes near thetooandbottom of pilot thestiles using an awl,andbore holes fora No.8 screw. Screw thestrios to the case(/eff).

thedrawer supports Q lnsefting r-,1 Measure thedistance between the front andback stiles on both sides of the case. Cutdrawer supports to fit thegaps pairs matching between of dadoes. Make sure thatthesupports arewide enough to buttress thedrawers adequately, and (rghfl. thattheyf it snugly in thedadoes

r36

DRAWERS

T()FIT A DRAWER FINE.TUNING

sides Planing drawer in a piece of f urniture, binds lf a drawer plane the youcanusea hand to improve the drawer bind,remove f it. lf the sides a r e ao sn a n ys h i n y a n df i n da n dm a r k can high spots that are thesides-these p l a n e . S e c u r t e h e b e s h a v ew d i t ht h e t h e b i n d ing s u r f a cs eo d r a w eo rna w o r k plane with the up.Gripping side isfacing spots off the marked hands, shave both (right).fesIeven strokes with smooth, and continue in itsopening f it thedrawer p l a n i nu gn t i li t f i t s p e r f e c t l y .

Planing thetopofa drawer rubs of thedrawer lf thetopor bottom plane partof thecasework, the against in place, secure Tohold thedrawer top. using wood bench dogs, between oneside pads Plane theedge thestock. to protect (/eft). pass even witha light, to betrimmed planing, asnecessary. Test{it andcontinue

t37

DRAWER STOPS
.i stops control howfara draw{- rawer L r' ercan slide in or out.Inward stoos arealmost always needed. Theyprevent a drawer from beingpushed in too far. Outwardstops, to prevent a drawe r f r o mp u l l i n g outofa carcase a, re always needed whena drawer carries a heavy load,and may be desirable at othertimes aswell.Thefollowing pages showa fewmethods for installins both types ofstops.

Tlrc inward stop shown ot lef'twill nllow thefrortt of the drawer to rest exactlyllush with tlrc cnrcase front. It is installedon the dustptutel xtpporting the drnwer,oJfset fr"onttheJiont edgeby tlrc thickness oJ'thedrntverJront. To make this metlrcd work, tlrc drawer overhangthe bottorrtso the li'ont rrrtrst insidelace of the frortt c()ntacts tlrc stop whert the drawer is closed.

INWARD ST()PS
Attaching an eccentric stop T h i si s a n e a s y - t o - i n s ta ad l lj u s t a b ls e top. Before i n s t a l l i nt gh e b a c kp a n e l of your c a r c a s eu , s ea b a n ds a wo r s a b e r s a wt o cuta 1-to 1%-inch-diame dtie sr kf r o ma p i e c eo f s c r a pw o o dt h e s a m et h r c k n e s s a st h e d r a w e r s i d e s .B o r ea n o f f - c e n t e r hole through t h es t o p , t h e ns c r e w t h ed i s k t o t h e s i d ep a n e l near theback. S e tt h e c a s eo n i t s s i d ea n d c l o s e the drawer. Loosen thescrew slightly a n dr o t a t e the s t o pu n t i li t j u s tt o u c h e t sh e d r a w e r t, hen tightenthe screw(right).

L3B

DRAWERS

ST0PS: CARCASE 0UTWARD

anoutward dlawer stop Installing gluing up the wood. Before of scrap Cuta stopfroma piece Make the back. forthestopin thedrawer cut a notch drawer, andwider thanits narthickness deeper thanthestop's notch h eo p e n i n g t h es t o p t o f i t t h r o u gt h tn o allow r o wd i m e n s i o pedestal youinstall shown above, For thedesk thedrawer. when oe f t h es h e l o f r d u s tp a n e l . t o t h eu n d e r s i d t h es t o pi s f i x e d a rn dm a r k t h el o c a t i o n i n s t a lt lh ed r a w e T o m o u ntth es t o o .

Bore thedrawer. a pilothole ontheframe above of thenotch (above, /eff). Donot it in position thenscrew through thestop, Withthe long edge of thestop all theway. tighten thescrew (above, parallel in place of thecase, slipthedrawer to thesides the notch, completely through right). Once the stoppasses thedrawer back edge is parallelto rotate it 90" sothatits long thescrew. andtighten

FRAME.AND.PANEL STOPS: OUTWARD

rail Installing a stop onthefront forthetoodrawer of a Thismethod works withdrawer frame-and-oanel desk orone railsbetween each drawer. Cuta drawer Tomount thestop, bore stop fromscrap. near oneend.Screw thestop a pilothole thefasto themiddle of therail,leaving justloose sothatyoucan tener enough Install the rotate outof theway. thestop clears the Once thedrawer back drawer. thestop90" (/eff). frontrail,rotate

r39

GLOSSARY
A.B-C Basemolding: A decorative frame madefrom moldedstockthat supports the bottom ofa desk. Bound water:Moistureheld within the cell walls of wood; see free water. Breadboardend:A narrow strip of wood installedacross the end grain ofa tabletopto conceal that grain. Cabrioleleg:A type of furniture leg characterized by roundedcontours designed to imitate the graceful leg of a leapinganimal. Carcase: A pieceof furniture with a boxlike construction; madefrom solid panels. Caseworlc The frameworkof a piece of furniture constructed eitherfiom solid panels or from frame-andpanelassemblies. Cope-and-stickjoint A methodof joining stilesand railsin frame-andpanelconstruction; the joint features mating tongues and grooves and a decorative molding. Crosscut A sawcut madeacross the grain of a workpiece. D-E-F-G-H-I Dado: A rectangular channelcut into a workpiece. Desktop fastener:Metal hardware that fastens the leg-and-railassembly of a table or deskto the top; installed in shallowrecesses cut into the mating pieces. Dividing extension table: An extension tablewith a tabletopand legand-railassembly that slideapart to accommodate additionalleaves; see non-dividing extension table. Double dadojoint: A cornerjoint that features a tonguein each piece that interlockswith a groovein the other. Dovetailedhalf-lapjoint Usedfor joining the connecting rail of a desk to the carcase; the half-lap at the end of the rail is cut in a dovetailshape to lock thejoint in tension. Dowel joint Any joint relying on dowelsfor alignmentor reinforcement. Drawer slide:A type of drawersupport; usuallya wood strip fastened to the sidepanelof a carcase that mates with a groovein the drawerside,or a commercial metalslidefastened to the drawersidethat meshes with a runner screwed to the carcase. Drawer slip: A groovedwood strip fastened alongthe bottom edge ofa drawersideto supportthe bottom. Drawer stop:A woodenblock or disk attached to deskor tablecasework to preventa drawerfrom beingpulled out or pushedin too far. Drop-leaftable:A tablewith a narrow top and hinged leaves that fold down when not in use. Dust frame:A flat frame-and-panel assembly usedto supportdeskdrawersand preventdust from entering the drawers. Escutcheon: A metalplateinstalled arounda keyhole for decoration and protectionof the surroundingwood. Extensiontable A tablewith a top that openson tableextenders to accommodate additionalspacer leaves. Seedividingand nondividing extension tables. False front A pieceof wood installed over a drawerfront, usuallyto conceal the end grain ofthe sides or to create a lippedfront. Fiber saturationpoint (FSP): A condition in which wood cellcavities are freeof all water,while the cellwalls remainfully saturated. Flushfront A drawerfront that sits flushwith the front edges of the carcase when the draweris installed; also known asan insetdrawer. Frame-and-panelassembly:A methodof casework constructionin which a wood panelsitsin grooves in a framemadeof horizontalrailsand verticalstiles. Freewater:Moisturecontained within wood cell cavities; see boundwater. Gatelegtable: A six-legged tablewith two legsthat swingout from the table railsto supportdrop leaves. Grain: The arrangement and direction of the fibersthat makeup wood; grain appearance varies with thewood species and the sawing technique. Half-blind dovetail joint Similar to a through dovetailjoint, except that the pins arenot cut through the entirethickness of the workpiece, therebyconcealing the end grain of the tail boards;idealfor joining drawerfronts to sides. joint: Haunchedmortise-and-tenon Similarto a standard mortise-andtenonjoint, except that one edgeof the tenonhasa haunchthat fills the groovecut for a panel. Inlay: A decorative strip of metal, wood, or marquetrythat is gluedinto a groovecut into a workpiece.
Lap jointA joint in which one or both of the mating boards are dadoed so that the surfacesofthe piecesrest flush with one another when the ioint is assembled.

I-K-r-M-N-O-P-Q

140

Ledgerstrip: A short,narrow piece of wood usedto supportthe top or bottom of a tableor desk. Lipped front A rabbeteddrawer front that overhangs the sides, conmounting hardware cealing drawerwhen the draweris closed: alsoserves asa drawerstop. Marquetry: Decorative inlay done metal,or other materials. with veneers, Mortise-and-tenonjoint A joinery in which a projectingtenon technique cut in oneboard fits into a matching hole, or mortise,in another. Nominal size The dimensions to which lumber is sawnbeforeolaning; wood is soldaccording to nominal size. Non-dividing extensiontable: An that extension tablewith top slides open on tableextenders while the legand-rail assembly remainsfixed;see dividingextension table. Outward stop:A wood block that stopsa dropJeafsupportin the open position;also,a block screwed to the insideof a carcase to preventa drawer from beingpulled out too far. Pedestaltable: A tablewith a top that is supported by a centralcolumn usuallymountedon threeor four short legs. Plain-sawn lumber: Lumber that has are beensawnso that the wide surfaces roughly parallelto the annualgrowth rings.Also known asflat-sawnlumber when referringto softwood;see quartersawn lumber. Pocket hole:An angledhole bored into the faceof a workpieceand exiting from its top edge;typically usedto attacha top to the railsofa tableor desk.

Pommet The souare left on a section turned furniture leg;allowsroom for mortises needed to receive rails. Quartersawn lumber: Wood sawnso the wide surfaces intersect the growth 45" to 90o. rings at angles between Also known asvertical-grained lumber when referringto softwood;see plain-sawn lumber. R-S Rabbet A step-like cut in the edge or end of a board;usuallyforms part of a joint. Rabbetjoint A methodofjoining of wood in which the end or edge fits into a channel oneworkpiece cut alongthe edge or end ofanother workpiece; typicallyusedto join at the corners. carcases RaiftA board running alongthe bottom edge of a tabletopto which the legscanbe attached; also,the horizontalmemberof a frame-and-panel assembly. See stile. panet In frame-and-panel Raised panelwith a construction, a carcase a decorabevelcut aroundits edges, "raises" tive effectthat the centerand allowsthe panelto fit into the groove cut in the frame. Relativehumidity: The ratio of the in the air to the watervaporpresent amountthe air would hold at its saturation point, usuallyexpressed asa percentage figure. Rip cut A sawcut that follows the grain of a workpiece. Rulejoint A pivoting joint commonly features matusedin dropJeaftables; ing concave and convexprofiles cut into edges of the tableleafand tabletop. Seasoning: The process or technique of removingmoisturefrom green wood to improve its workability.

Stile:The verticalmemberof a frameand-panel assembly. See rail. A pieceof plywoodor solid Substrate: wood usedasthe foundationfor veneer, leather, felt, or tile that covers the surface of a tableor desktop. Swing-leg table:A four-legged table with two legsthat swing out from the railsto supportdrop leaves.

T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z
Thbletopevener:Hardwareinstalled on the underside of adiustable tables as to alignthe tablehalves or leaves they areclosed. Tirngentialplane: A viewing plane in wood identification cut alongthe grain tangential to the growth rings;plainsawnlumber is sawntangentially. Template A pattern cut from plywood,hardwood,or particleboard to reproduce multiple copies of a part. Through dovetail joint A method of joining wood at the corners by means of interlockingpins and tails,both cut to the thickness of the workpiece. Trestletable: A knockdowntable with a largetop supportedby trestles at eachend that areconnected to rails with removable wedgedor tusk tenonjoints. Thipodtable A pedestal tablewith a centralcolumn supported by three shorterlegs. Tusktenonjoint A type of through joint in which the mortise-and-tenon tenonextends through the mortise pieceand is fixed,not by glue,but by a tusk-likewedge. Wood movement:The shrinking or swellingof wood in reactionto changes in relative humidity.

I4I

INDEX
Pagereferencesin iralicsindicate an illustration ofsubject matter. Pagereferencesin bold indicate a Build It Yourself proiect. Tops,89-90,93-95 addingledgerstrips (ShopTip),97 felt-topped writing desks (ShopTip), l15 glass,112-113 gluing up, 94 hardware,92,99, 100 leather, 114 methods of attachment, 90,96-100 tiles, l.l5 using steeltabletop fasteners (ShopTip), ee SeealsoPedestaldesks Desktop fasteners,100 Dining tables,25 Double-pedestaldesks.See Pedestaldesks Dovetail joints: Fiing loose dovetails (Shop Tip), 124 Half-blind dovetails,116,118 HalfJap dovetails, 32, 39 figs and templates, 126 Sliding dovetails, 5& 59, 78-80,81-82 Through dovetailjoints, 32, 118,125-126 Dowel joints, 57, 74-75 Drawers,116,117-118 Adjustment, 133,137 Assembly, 129 checking for square (Shop Tip), 128 Bottoms, I30 Fronts, IJ8 Hardware,.l19 half-mortise lo ck. I 31- 132 foinery, 118,120-124 Half-blind dovetails,116,118 rabbetjoints, 118,129 Measuring,1-17 Mounting, 119,133-136 positioning drawer slides (ShopTip), 134 Stops,138-I39 DropJeaftables, 23 Tops, 101102, IO3, 104 leveling drop leaves(Shop Tip), 104 Dust frames, 3436 screwingdust frames to a carcase (ShopTip), 37 Frame-and-panel construction,29, 31,4l Assembly,4T Drawer, 135-136,139 Joinery cope-and-stickjoints, 32 haunched mortise-and-tenon loints, 32.41-43 Panels non-raised,48-49 raised,41, 44-45,46 Pedestaldesks,49-5.1 Gate-leg tables,23,90 Assembln 105 Ghaffari, Kam, 8-9 Glass: Desk/tabletops , 112-113 Gluing: Carcases, 29,37-38 Desldtabletops,94 Drawers, 129 Leg blanks,/ront endpaper Seea/soAdhesives Groove-and-splinejoints, 32

A.B-C-D
Adhesives: loinery, front endpaper Blind mortise-and-tenon joints, 57, 76-77 Boardfeet,16-17 Build It Yourself: Frame-and-panel construction panel-raising jigs for table saws,45 tenoning jigs for table saws,42 Legs jigs for two-sided tapers,62 shop-made hardware, 85-87 Tops drop-leaf supports, 103 Butler's tabIes,22 Butterfly tables,22 Cabriole legs,56, 63-65 Carcases,29,30 Assembly,3T-38 Drawer mounting positioning drawer slides (ShopTip), l3a Drawers,132-133,138-39 foinery dovetail joints, 32, 39 groove-and-splinejoints, 32 mortise-and-tenon joints, 33, 34-36 plate joints, 32 rabbet joints, 32, 33-34 tongue-and-dado joints, 32 Panels,33 Card tables.22 Circle cuts: Round table tops, 95 Clamos: Using pipe clamps in pairs (Shop Tip), 53 Coffee tables, 22 Console tables.23 Cope-and-stick joints, 32 Crosscutting,20 Cutting lists, 17 Dado joints, 32, 118,120, 127-128, 129 Davenport desks,27 Decorative technioues: Inlays,70-71 Desks: Assembly checking for square, .100 Design, 6-7,10-ll,2l styles,26-27 Repair iratching compounds, backendpaper Standard dimensions, 2l

H-I-I
Half-blind dovetails, 116, 118 Handkerchief t ables,23 Hardware: Desks,92, 99,100 Drawers,l-19 Legs,56,84-85 shop-made,86-87 Tables,92,99, 100,102,106, 111 Harvest tables,24 Haunchedmortise-and-tenon ioints, 32,41-43 Inlays: Legs,70-71 figs: Dovetail joints, 126 Table saws jigs for two-sidedtapers,62 panel-raisingjigs, 46 tenoning jigs, 42

foinery:
Adhesives, /ror t endpaper joints, 32 Cope-and-stick Dado joints, 118,120,127-128, 129 Dowel joints, 57, 74-75 Drawers, 118,120-124 Groove-and-splinejoints, 32 Leg-to-rail joints, 57, 72-87 Plate joints, 32 Rulejoints, 101-102 Tongue-and-dado joints, 32 Tusk tenon joints, 54, 57, 72-73 Wood grain, 15 SeealsoD ovetail ioints; Mortise-andtenon joints; Rabbet lomts fointing, .19

E-F-G
Extension tables,23 Tops, 89, l0l aligning table leaveswith dowel centers(Shop Tip), I I I dividing, 91,107 non-dividing, 91, 108-109 pedestalextension tables, 109 tableJocking hardware, I 1I Fall-front desks,26,27 Felt: Desktops(ShopTip), ll5

t42

K-L-M
Keyholes, 132 Lap desks,26 Leather: Desk/tabletops,.ll4 Leaves(table extension): Aligning table leaveswith dowel centers(Shop Tip), lll Legs,55 Gate-legtables, 105 Gluing up legblanks, front endpaper Hardware,56 foinery, 54-55,57 joints, blind mortise-and-tenon 57,7G77 commercial hardw are, 84-85 dowel lornts,57,74-75 shop-made hardware, 86-87 sliding dovetail joints, s8, s9,78-80,81-82 tusk tenon joints, 54,57,72-73 Pedestaltables,59, 81-83 Styles,56 cabriole, 56,63-65 octagonal,56,69 pedestal,56,58,59,68 tapered,56,60-62,70 Turned, 55,56,66-67 SwingJeg tables, 106 Tripod tables,5& 68,78-80 Locks. 131-132 Lumber: Cutting lists, 17 Defects,18 Measurement,16-17 Selection,13,16-17 SeeakoWood Martinez, Ramon, l0-11 Measuring and marking tools, back endpaper Moldings: Basemoldings, 40 Mortise-and-tenon joints, 32, 33, 34-36 Blind mortise-and-tenon joints, 57.76-77 Frame-and-panel construction,41-43 Legs,57,7G77 Legs-to-rail joints, 57

Panels: Frame-and-panelconstruction, 41,44-45,46 non-raised pan els, 48-49 Patching compowds, backendpaper Pedestal desks,12,26,27,29 Assembly,52-53 using pipe clampsin pairs (ShopTip), 53 Basemoldings, 40 Carcases, 33 gtuingup,37-j8 Connecting rails, 39 Dust frames, 34-36 screwing dust frames to a carcase (ShopTip), 37 Frame-and-panelpedestals, 49-51 Pedestaltables,24 Extension tables, ]09 Legs,59,68,72,81-83 Pembroke tables,25 Planing,.l9 Platejoints, 32 Pocket holes, 98 Power tools: Safetyprecautions,front endpaper

T-U-V
Tables: Assembly checking for square, i00 Design,8-9,2l styles,22-27,90 Reoair patching compounds, backendpaper Standard dimensions, 21 Tops, 88-90,9j-95 adding ledger strips (Shop Tip),97 glass,112-113 gluing up, 94 hardware,92,99, 100,102,106, 111 leather, 114 methods of attachment, 90, 96-100 round, 95 tiles,115 using steeltabletop fasteners (ShopTip), 99 Table saws: figs for two-sided tapers, 62 Raisedpanels,45-46 Tenoningjigs,42 Tabletop fasteners,99 Tapered legs,56, 60-62, 70 Tavern tables.25 Through dovetail joints, 32, I 18,125-126 Tiles: Desk/tabletops,.ll5 Tilt-top tables,25 Tongue-and-dado joints, 32 Tools: Measuring and marking tools, backendpaper Safetyprecautions,front endpaper Trestle tables, 22, 24 Legs,54 Tops,91,96 leaves,-ll0 Tripod tables: Assembly, 78-80 Legs,58, 68,78-80 Turned legs,55, 56,66-67 Tusk tenon joints, 54, 57,72-73 Two-pedestal desks.See Pedestaldesks

R.S
joints: Rabbet Carcases, 32,33-i4 Drawers, 118, 129 Rails, 55,57 Ripping,20 Roll-topdesks,27 Roundtabletops,95 Routers: panels, Raised 44 Rulejoints, 101-102 precautions: Safety Tools, front endpaper Searer, Tony,J0-ll 26 Secretary desks, Shop Tips: Deskassembly, 37,53 Drawers, 124,128,134 Tops,J5,97,99,I I I joints, 58,59,78-80,81-82 Slidingdovetail Square: Checking for square drawerc, 128 tables. 100 Standing desks,27 (tables),25 Stands Swing-leg tables, 90 Assembly,]06

W-X-Y-Z
Watts, Simon, 6-7 Wood: Grades,backendpaper,13,17 Grain, 15 Moisture content, 14-15 Recycled,7 Shrinking and swelling, 14- 15,96 SeealsoLrtmber Wood buttons, 98-99 Writing tables,26

N-O-P-Q
Nested tables,24 Night tables,25 Occasional tables,24 Octagonal legs,56,69

t43

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Theeditors wish to thank thefollowing TABLE AND DESK BASICS WA; Delta InternationalMachinery/Porter-Cable, Guelph,Ont.; Judith Ames,Seattle, WA; Hitachi PowerTools U.S.A.Ltd., Norcross,GA; Hank Holtzer, Seattle, Inc., Montreal, Que. Auburn, ME; Shopsmith, ThomasMoser Cabinetmakers, DESKCASEWORK AdjustableClamp Co., Chicago,IL; Black& Decker/EluPowerTools,Towson,MD; Delta International Ont.; Machinery/Porter-Cable, Guelph,Ont.; FreudWestmoreTools,Ltd., Mississauga, GreatNeck SawMfrs. Inc. (Buck Bros.Division), Millbury, MA; GrisetIndustries,Inc., SantaAna, CA; and Tools Co., Scranton,PA; Frank Klausz,Frank'sCabinetShop,Pluckemin,NJ; SandvikSaws A.G. Switzerlandi Colonial Works, New Britain, CT; Steiner-Lamello Tools, Division of the Stanley Stanley SawCo., Kingston,MA; Vermont AmericanCorp., Lincolnton, NC and Louisville,KY; MN The Woodworker'sStore,Rogers, LEGSANDRAILS AdjustableClamp Co., Chicago,IL; AmericanTool Cos.,Lincoln, NE; Black& Decker/EluPowerTools, Montreal, Que.; Guelph,Ont.; Allan Flegg, Towson,MD; Delta InternationalMachinery/Porter-Cable, U.K./BusyBeeMachineTools, LeeValleyTools Ltd., Ottawa,Ont.; RobertSorbyLtd., Sheffield, Roebuckand Co., Chicago,IL; and Tools Co., Scranton,PA; Sears, Concord,Ont.; SandvikSaws Vermont AmericanCorp., Lincolnton, NC and Louisville,KY; WainbeeLtd., Pointe Claire,Que.i MN De-Sta-Co, Troy, MI; The Woodworker'sStore,Rogers, Corp., AmericanTool Cos.,Lincoln, NE; Black& D..kl?El: PowerTools,Towson,MD; CabotSafety Montreal, Que.; Guelph,Ont.; Allan Flegg, MA; Delta InternationalMachinery/Porter-Cable, Southbridge, FreudWestmoreTools,Ltd., Mississauga, Ont.; GreatNeck SawMfrs. Inc. (Buck Bros.Division), Millbury, MA; LeeValleyTools Ltd., Ottawa,Ont.; Ednaand William Mills, Montreal, Que.; Tools,Division of the Stanley Works, New Britain, CT; Sears, Roebuckand Co., Chicago,IL; Stanley A.G. Switzerland/Colonial SawCo., Kingston,MA; 3M CanadaInc., London, Ont.; Steiner-Lamello MN Vermont AmericanCorp., Lincolnton, NC and Louisville,KY; The Woodworker'sStore,Rogers, DRAWERS AdjustableClamp Co., Chicago,IL; AmericanTool Cos.,Lincoln, NE; Delta International Ont.; GreatNeck Saw Machinery/Porter-Cable, Guelph,Ont.; FreudWestmoreTools,Ltd., Mississauga, Mfrs. Inc. (Buck Bros.Division), Millbury, MA; Frank Klausz,Frank'sCabinetShop,Pluckemin,NI; RobertLarsonCompany,Inc., SanFrancisco, CA; LeighIndustriesInc., Port Coquitlam,B.C.; PA; and Tools Co., Scranton, RecordTools Inc., Pickering,Ont.; SandvikSaws Tools,Division of the Stanley Works, New Britain, CT; Sears, Roebuckand Co., Chicago,IL; Stanley MN Vermont AmericanCorp., Lincolnton, NC and Louisville,KY; The Woodworker'sStore,Rogers, alsoassisted in thepreparation ofthis book: Thefollowingpersons (LesBoisD'Ecor,Montreal,Que.),LorraineDor, Eric Cordeau Monette,David Simon Mr. and Mrs. RichardEttinger,Graphor Consultation,Genevidve

PICTURE CREDITS
Cover RobertChartier 6,7 RobertHolmes 8,9 Ian Gittler 10,ll MichaelTincher 13 Philip C. Jackson 22 CourtesyThos.Moser Cabinetmakers 25 Hank Holtzer 27 Judith Ames 90 Dean Powell/KamGhaffariDesign

t44

GP UIDE WORKSHO
TUMBER GRADES HARDWOOD
GRADE Allowablength of board A l l o w a bw l ei d t h of board % of Minimum
elear face nr rfii nqs

FAS 8'- 16', 6 " o rw i d e r 83tA% 3"x7' 4"x5'

SELECT 6 -16 4 " o rw i d e r 83IA% 3"x7' 4"x5'

N 0 .1 C(]MMON 4 ' , -1 6 3 " o rw i d e r 66'A% 3"x3' 4 "x 2 '

N0.2A& 28 C()MMON 4',- 16' 3 " o rw i d e r 50% 3 "x 2 '

N(). 3A COMM()N 4' - 16' 3 " o rw i d e r 33'A% 3 "x 2 '

N O3 .8 COMM()N 4' - 16' 3 " o rw i d e r 25% Notless than 1%"wide 3g 6 containin Incnes square Unlimited

size of Minimum ngs clear cutti

number Maximum cuttings of clear perm itted

Unlimited

HardwoodLumberAagociation Chart courtagv of NaLional

TOOTS ANDMARKING MEASURING USEFUT

PATCHING COMP()UNDS WOOD

TYPE filler Wood CHARACTERISTICS 0n type. depending or water-based, Solvenipre-tinted Canbe tintedwith stainor purchased in a variety available Waxand resin-based; of colors. Setsquickly dv;a i l a b l e S h e l l a ca - n d r e s i n - b a s ea Setsquickly in a variety of colors. to form a hardsurface w i t hb i n d e rs , u c ha s h i d e S a w d u sm t ixed g l u eo r s h e l l a c c;a n b e t i n t e dw i t hs t a i n

usEs
gouges, holes, Fillinglarge and dents cracks Filling s m a l lh o l e s , and cracks scratches Filling s c r a t c h ed se , nts and gouges Filling narrow cracks,
^^^^ Bdp), ^^l dilu ^-^il )ilroil L^t^ilurtrJ

COMPATIBILITIES C o m p a t i bw l ei t h m o s tf i n i s h e s ; or afterstain applybefore ith M a yb e i n c o m p a t i bw le after finishing lacquer a;p p l y i t ha l c o h o l le M a yb e i n c o m p a t i bw finishes; apply or lacquer-based before or afterfinishing C o m p a t i bw l ei t hm o s tf i n i s h e s

Waxstick stick Shellac

Shop-made f il l e r