Build Your Own Tables

Article Tools

Image Gallery

Print

E-mail

Comments

RSS

Finishing Up

Most tables do best with a durable finish that forms a protective film on the wood, but creating smooth results that enhance wood grain depends on choices and techniques that may not be obvious. While dark stain can make the wood more attractive, it also means that wear and scratches show up more prominently than if wood is left to its natural color before sealing. It’s a trade-off to consider now.

You’ll find it easier to finish parts separately if you take the table apart as much as possible given your design. Three coats of polyurethane offer excellent protection for most tables, but you need to sand between coats for smooth results.

After the first coat dries completely, your wood will be noticeably rougher than before. That’s because surface fibers that had been lying down stood up as the finishing liquid soaked in, then dried that way. Use 220- or 240-grit sand paper to remove this “raised grain,” then wipe or vacuum the entire table before coating again and resanding. Apply the third coat of urethane, let it dry, then smile. You’ve launched a piece of furniture into history that’s useful, attractive and all your own.

Make Your Table Stable

Chances are quite good that your new table won’t sit perfectly steady on a flat floor immediately after assembly. The slightest twist in the aprons or variation in joinery details may leave your table wobbling. But fixing it is easy. Just shim up the legs so the table sits still, then lay a sharp pencil flat on the floor and drag its tip all around the outside of each leg. This is called scribing, and it marks the spot where each leg needs to be cut to create a stable table. Just remember to complete the operation on a floor that you know is flat. After you’re done cutting, chamfer the bottom ends of the newly-trimmed legs. This helps prevent splintering if the table ever gets dragged across the floor.

RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print