So far so good

Ahhhh I've been waiting for this for a while. No, they aren't done. Still plenty of work to do. After all that joint fitting this is the first time the tables have been dry-assembled and already they are quite solid! Most the "rough work" has been done, from here on out it's mainly cleaning, refining, and fine tuning.


After gluing the tenons into the all the rails I felt I should turn my attention... or maybe avoiding some final commitments heh. Anywho I started a shoulder plane which I will use to clean adjust the frame rebates and got to re-sawing veneer for the table tops.
It takes a while to learn the behavior of your machines often not really getting to know them until you test there limits or needing to make very critical cuts. This re-sawning was a bit of both. This band saw has an 8" re-saw capasity but the planks I cut were both about 6". For a pretty entry level saw 6" of Oak heart-wood aiming to cut at a conistsant 3/32" "slice" I think is asking more than most of the users in mind for this product. It performed fairly well. Not perfect but I don't think I could have expected better.
The plank pictured above is actually Narra, which went easier as it is not nearly as dense.



The Oak one the right is going to the Shedua tables and the Narra to the Kwila tables. Oh man this Narra is beautiful! It is so chatoyant. Glimering tones of honey and gold. It's difficult to capture with my camera but in person it shines! I originally only had one plank of it coming from Gilmer Wood Co, but when I decided one of the coffee tables was going to be Kwila like the side tables I knew I needed more. I called Jim up and ask about more Narra and he said he already had a plank set aside ha! He said he set his #2 pick for the first plank aside incase I called looking for more. Awesome! Thanks Jim.
The first plank had a little more red than the second. The new one is a more even golden tone which would be good for a needing to do a couple edge joints. So the new one is becoming veneer and the first one is on deck for the next tables.



The legs are finally getting some attenion to shaping. I chose to do include subtle curves in these table components. The amplitude of the "arc" of the outside faces is only about 1/4" and the relief at the bottom inside of the legs only about 1/8". I find that it's more difficult to fare a slight curve than a radical one. In a slight curve you have less referance for a curve and slight deveations are more pronounced due to the curve's "porportions" if you will.


When coming to this kind of stage in a project it's hard for me not to look forward to the next. I do enjoy the refinement of the basic structures but this is were things slow down. Slowing down is not a bad thing at all but I guess it gives one more time to think and for me projects are always on the mind. In this case I'm also excited to work with some of the wood I have gotten a hold of :) In the photo is most of the material for the batch of Pedestals.
Two will be of Walnut, though two different Walnuts. I got material from a large scale lumber yard - kiln dried Black Walnut. The other from a small scale operation located about 40 min from me. This Walnut I believe when through a DH kiln (dehumidifying). The color is much more varied and lighter. Much more mauve with reddish highlights and purple leaning lows.
Another table will be of some lovely air-dried Black Cherry found at another small operation located just 10 min from where the Walnut came from! ha. I'm hoping I can present these pieces in a way that some out there will be able to tel the difference between "cooked wood" and its more "natural" state. Not to say that "cooked wood" is all bad. Sometimes you can only get a certain hue and consistency from it.
The fourth Pedestal will be of the Narra from Gilmer. Another reason I'm looking forward to these is becase the wood will all work "better" than what I'm using now. Except perhaps the Narra as it has reversing grain.
I haven't quite decided what to use for the panels but I think a couple of them will get some air-dried maple I got from the same place as the Walnut. Buuuuuut I'm really getting ahead of myself here but it's good to get excited :)

tenon that mortise

Ok the floating tenons were glued in the rails but there is another step before the frames will come together. I planed my joinery such that the rebate of the Rail will hit the rebate of the Style being too far inside to come together. In other words I made the mortise a little on the inside of the frame so that I would HAVE to trim some of the rebate off to assemble the frame.
It's all about allowances! I've said this before and will say again and again... I like to give myself some sensible breathing room. "Don't commit until you have to" they say. It's true, committing prematurely can be a dangerous thing heh.


It doesn't take long to shoot away that little extra material. This way you can also be paying attention to the possibility that one sides needs more material taken off than the other. Don't rush it though! This is defiantly "workmanship of risk" as Mr. David Pye Would say. One stroke too many and there's an eyesore of a hair-line gap and a heart ache. There are ways to come back from this one but I want to get it right the first time!
Now how many people will notice this little meeting of rebates? It's covered from the top with the top panel and is tucked behind the leg and aprons on the bottom. Well it's not really about that. I could talk about consistency and integrity but on a more personal level I just wouldn't be happy with the result or myself by not doing my best.


Ta Da. Now it fits, it is neat, I get a warm little feeling and maybe a little hint of a smirk touches my face. I find fitting joints like this to be kind of exciting. Not like winning the Tour De France or anything but on a small, consecrated scale. It's partly walking that thin line of not quite and too much. Put the pieces together see what needs to be removed. Take a couple plane strokes and put it back together. Maybe you know full well that it wont fit yet but you just want to see where you are. Now it's close. I check every couple plane strokes. Now I try to assemble the part after every plane stroke. Watch and feel closely. It pretty much fits, but it doesn't feel happy, one more light plane stroke. Ahhh there we go.
The procedure is really quite simple. Just a combination of simple technique and patients. I often feel something more though. Maybe there's some psychological, philosophical, metaphysical mumbo-jumbo goings on. Then again maybe it's just seeing all the work that went before this paying off. Maybe I'm just a wierdo... who's to say?


On another topic, again. More mortises... 64 more of them.


Followed by a few more hours fitting the tenon stock. The major mortising is done for this set of tables but I have more to come, almost the exact same ones but for pedestals. I admit that some of this can get to be tedious but still find it more personally rewarding than my "night job" heh. While fitting the tenon stock I turn on some music and take it relatively easy as my fingures get cramped and sore heh.
I'm not working these round from square. I used a round over bit on the router table but I do not have a "correct" bit for the tenon thickness. The last ones I did took far less "correcting" of the round over than these... I need a different round over bit.
There's a search for a balance of machine and hand work. I find that balance to change from project to project and depending on the material used. Sometimes I am tired of machining and just want to get a plane in my hand and little shavings at my feet so, if I don't have a lot of them to do, I will shape that tenon stock by hand. On the other hand if I feel inclined I have no problem with roughing it out on the router table, they will require some fine tuning by hand anyway... As a Godfrey would say "There's no art to waste removal." For me it depends on what I'm feeling at the time ha.

Frame work.... more-tises

Jumping in... After the rebates were made in the frame members I made room for the joinery. A portion of the rebate was cross-cut on the table saw then the waste was ripped on the band saw. I'm trying to cut pretty close because it makes clean up easier and I have 16 cuts to clean up. CAREFUL though it's a lot easier to take material away than put more back!
The clean up with chisel was the one operation where the Shedua worked better than the Kwila... Neither worked well but the Shedua responded better to cross-grain cutting. Even with the work clamped tightly to the bench (supporting the bottom of the cut) the stringy Kwila would blow out.


More mortises. These are the Styles of the frame. Prior to the mock-up I had thought of using slip-tenons aka bridal joints but I found the open joinery to be quite distracting in these "designs". I also like the little steps I'm using with the styles, like a bread board. That would just be silly with slip tenons heh.


One of the biggest improvements in knowledge, skill, and mind-set I got from going to IP was in veneer work. Not that the school focuses solely on veneer, but a more sensitive "style" of veneering is taught. Being familiar with industrial use of veneer I had a distaste for it. The school teaches shop-sawn veneer, use of "bake-ins/ons", added potential for grain graphics, and so forth. Also when you take a look at some pieces, you discover that even the configuration, form, or structure could not even happen in solid wood.
I still don't feel that the veneering process for a whole piece is the most conductive to the way I like to work, but perhaps with time and practice It will work better and better for me. The veneering I'm doing for these tables is pretty simple compaired to my last project though so it's nothing to sweat. This is another case that I just couldn't make these tops the way I invisioned without the help of veneering.


It didn't take too long to put together these lillte substrates. 1/4" birch plywood with 5/16" poplar "bake-ins".


Back to the frames. Yay! I finally just got a start on the tenon fitting. All the tenons in these pieces are "floating tenons". I had always used live tenons untill the Chinese Elm Cabinet stand. I like the feel of live tenons but in some cases floating ones make a little more "sense". These guys can be about as strong as live tenons (in a test I saw I think the live tenon lasted a couple more pounds of pressure) but they have to be fit well. With the use of the x-y table for mortising and carefull machining of the tenon stock the fitting is going quite well and smooth :) They don't quite fit off the machines but are very close. You don't want to be struggling over something as important as joinery when you have 80 joints to make (160 if you count both sides of the joint).
I'm happy getting to this point because it means that something more resembling furniture might show up soon!

leg mortise & frame prep

Work continues. So the leg stock came down to final dimension then was further scrutinized, cross-cut points were chosen and made. Above is a picture of cutting the legs to final length. Nothing fancy, pretty primitive actually but it works and works well. The ply-wood "backer" is clamped onto the cross-cut sled to extend the range of my stop-block and to give a cleaner cut and the back of the operation. Make one cut, put the next piece in at the stop block and cut at the same length.


Due to certain "qualities" of the table saw in use I get some rougher cuts than I would like. It takes some extra time to clean them up. Here is the set-up I use to do so... Block plane, plane adjustment hammer, and the "little buddy". That little square is SO handy. It costs a pretty penny for such a little guy but it is well worth it!


The boring machine and x-y table in their first real action in my possession. My depth-stop might be a bit crude, but it works. Once again a series of stop-blocks for repeatable operations.


After 64 mortises all the legs look like this. The pair of mortises up top are only 7/16" deep as to not run into one another. They were never meant to be the primary structure for the tables, I wasn't even thinking of using aprons till I got to the mock-up. The stretcher joinery is of more than sufficient depth but those 7/16" stub tenons, when fit well, can be surprisingly strong. I'm using single tenon joinery on the side tables, and pedestals. For the kind of loads these tables will bare this joinery will last more than a life-time when fit well. Some double tenons may appear in the coffee tables.


On to frame members. The same process for final cutting is followed with all components but this time I can use my "shooting board" for end-grain clean-up. Adjust your backer block and blade for 90 degree cuts and shoot away.


After the end-grain was cleaned up I wanted to do some surface prep before I cut the rebates for the panels. At least prep the bottom side. With the rebates cut out the work piece is less supported on one side which could lead to skewed results while planing.
This is also the first real action for my new scraper plane. It takes a little getting used to but It was working well after a little learning curve. The Shedua can sometimes be planed... I've had mixed results. You HAVE to use a very light cut do plane it. Some pieces give me a very fine surface after a plane stroke and some get gnarly after the same ever so light cut. I figure it's safer to scrape but the combination of light cuts, the hard cocobolo plane, and the sharpening simple sharpening method I adapted I have seen some pretty smooth results. It will still need light sanding but hopefully not a lot.


Finally to cutting those rebates for the panels aka table-tops. I have found that the Kwila works better in every way than the Shedua but in this operation is was especially true (the Shedua even smells a bit unpleasant). Though I'm never taking heavey cuts the Kwila would work well under twice the cut load as the Shedua. I did run all of them through on each setting though. It's good practice to cut less off than you think you need to, at least for those of us who can get greedy. I did make a pass that was too deep for the Shedua that left a pretty nasty tear-out but it was early enough in the process to come back from.

Frame Side Table - mill work

So the "real" work begins. Here is a set of "negative templates" for the side table. The templates are cut to the finished dimension of the stock desired and allow you to easily see the grain and adjust for grain graphics of components. This is how I map out components in planks. Before going to IP I didn't spend nearly as much time in the milling process. Being in a school for the industrial cabinet shop I was concerned with minimizing waste and time. Of course one should still be mindful of such things.


The component search doesn't stop at whatever surface you have. Every axis is open for interpretation. This is why, to others, I make a big deal out of getting at least 2" thick stock. What I'm doing above is re-sawing at and angle to get a pair of rift-sawn components out of a pretty flat-sawn piece. Getting a higher angle of annual rings shows a more calm and orderly surface grain which is also easier to "predict".
For sure this milling takes a fair bit of time, but this is what your project is made of! heh. Yes it's more "wasteful" and yes it takes longer but this is a "different" product. I am trying to use the best aspects of the material and help not only the furniture but the tree "sing" as it were and reach a level of harmony in it's new life.


After about 18 hours of milling this spread of rough components showed up. It's about enough for 4 side tables. Kwila on the left and Shedua on the right.
It took up almost all the 20 board feet of each species I had! I went through about 10 b/f just to get the 8 legs of each set!


This is what I have "left". Kwila on the right Shedua on the left. The shedua is about 22" long. The scary thing is that I don't even have all the pieces I need! I need a couple stretcher pieces out of each. I decided to wait just in case I have a mishap on the way. I don't like to be this close, just scratching by, but now I know that I should get more than 20 b/f per pair.


Back to milling... round two. I rough out the stock a fair bit oversized. This allows for movement in the wood to happen still be able to get the stock straight again and for any slight adjustments in grain graftics. Each piece of this run was roughed and squared, then let rest for about 2 days. Squared again and brought within a 1/16" of final dimension, let rest, and I have one more round to go. This succuessive milling takes for less time than the initial milling though I believe it is still important.


After I set the pieces to rest again I started a plywood re-saw fence for veneer cutting on the band saw and I came back to this little guy... a scraper plane. I started this a while ago in anticipation for this project and plain old needing it in the future. I had it all done except a wedge. Well now, I've heard a number of people with mixed feelings about these wooden scraper planes. The common suffering is that the blade doesn't stay at a set cut depth. It just scoots up due to all the chatter of scraping. I do not know but my feeling is that they may be using too hard of wood for a wedge. It may look funny but I tried a wedge in poplar because it is relatively soft. The give in the poplar really lets you jam the wedge in there and absorbs some of the vibration that a matching cocobolo wedge would not. I have only used it in test scraping for about 5 min but the depth was quite consistent and I bet if I went down there again with out adjusting it I would get a similar shaving. That's a lot longer than I've heard other people re-setting their planes. Who knows maybe it will start acting up on me with more use... one way to find out. Maybe a Walnut wedge would look better?

James Krenov, be well

I have just caught word that yesterday James (Jim) Krenov has passed on, or as he would say, joined the cosmos. Jim has been a role model in craft and in life. My thoughts go to his family, his friends, and students around the world.
His works are not well known widely but are held dear to a relative few of us. Though I have only relatively recently found his works myself, I am very glad I did and the time was right. His first book A Cabinetmaker's Notebook is perhaps the most influential woodworking book published and has little to do with woodworking specifics. I finished it quickly eager for the next.



Though Jim is better known for his cabinets, this writing desk is one of my favorite pieces. It seemed quiet yet somehow profound to me. Made of Italian Walnut, I believe, holding his slide was the first time I saw it in color. It was Jim's work and his words that lead me to Inside Passage to study with a long time friend and student of Jim's, Robert Van Norman. We were lucky enough to hear Jim's voice over the phone just about every week sharing his experience and passion, along with some laughs.
Through his work, his writing, and teaching James has striven for integrity, fine workmanship, persistence (perhaps stubbornly), patience, humanity, and perhaps above all living "richly".

It is hard for me to explain but all of Jim's works are there for me in the whisper of my plane. It's there for his students, for Robert and his students, my classmates, my friends. Remember from time to time to slow down, and listen.

Thank you Jim and be well.

X-Y Table & some scrubbing

Taking breaks from mocking up I spent some time attempting a "poor man's x-y table" Just some plywood and T bars. The hold-down was a pleasant surprise waiting for me at a local store. To my experience I never thought I would stumble upon something I was actually looking for and costing less than I anticipated! It's made by Wood River and labeled as a drill press hold down. I picked it up on sale for about $12. It's by no means super heavy duty but for $12 I think it's pretty good. Having a plywood top I can just drill a new hole for it when the need arises.
I don't know how long this table will last or how long till I'm fed up with it but it will do for now.


With the two mock ups done I worked on the coffee table mock up. I did not think it would give me so much trouble. The two smaller tables are just that... smaller, and taller proportionally. I felt I achieved a level of grace and a balance between airiness and stability with the first two, but the coffee table didn't seem to come to life so "easily". A coffee table is quite the opposite to a pedestal, but I'm trying to keep a similar theme and feeling.
I got closer to what I want with it but by that point was getting tired of mocking up. Sooooo I'm putting the coffee table aside for now to start on the real deal of the others.
Pictured above, scrubbing a pair of Kwila planks from Jason at Cormark International in North Carolina. Sorry guys, this is what I use my metal plane for heh.
It's always nice to get back into project wood. This Kwila is quite nice. It's pretty straight grained, I wasn't seeing much tear-out even with my rough scrubbing, it's in the mid slightly dark tones of Kwila I've seen, and there's some nice chatoyance. I need to get more of this! Though there are so many others I would like to get my hands on as well.

Well my schedule at the part-time job is a bit more full than I would like it to be this month. Hopefully I will still be able to get some good work done.