Walnut Coffee Table | Popular Woodworking Magazine

Simple joinery permits (time so as to add) cool design particulars.

I like conventional joinery, and I get pleasure from working with hand instruments. But I additionally like finishing a undertaking with out having it drag on as a result of the joinery is labor intensive. This desk has all of the earmarks of a conventional heirloom: lovely hardwood, traditional proportions and stable building. And you may construct it in a weekend.

What’s the key? Instead of utilizing conventional joinery to construct it, I used pocket screws, a up to date joint-making methodology. I found pocket screw joinery years in the past, whereas designing a espresso desk undertaking that featured haunched mortise-and-tenon joints, internet body construction, and dovetailed drawers. To work out the design particulars, I constructed a prototype utilizing pocket screws. The prototype went collectively amazingly quick, and it was stable as a rock. The desk you see right here descends straight from that discovery.

Pocket screw joinery is unquestionably blue collar: It gained’t win any aesthetic awards, nevertheless it does job with minimal fuss. If you may match a butt joint, you may grasp this methodology, which employs specifically designed screws pushed at exact angles to safe the joints. Of course, butt joints that embrace the tip of a board are notoriously weak, so reinforcing them is nothing new—dowels, splines, biscuits and unfastened tenons serve the identical function. To give pocket gap joinery a go, you’ll want a pocket screw jig, a specialised drill bit and pocket screws.

Playing with custom

The desk’s design continues the play on conventional strategies. The tapered legs are merely turned the other way up and inside out from their conventional pose (Fig. A, under). And moderately than standing at 90˚, the aprons observe the slope of the tapers. Thanks to pocket screw joinery, these modifications current solely minimal constructing challenges—mainly, a number of the butt joint surfaces need to be beveled to suit, and the entrance ends of the drawer sides need to be lower at an angle, so the drawer entrance slopes to match the body that surrounds it. Incidentally, the drawer entrance and body are lower from a single board, so the grain flows constantly—a conventional constructing method that’s too good—and too easy—to disregard.

This desk requires solely 25 bd. ft. of major wooden and 9 bd. ft. of secondary wooden, so constructing it gained’t price an arm and a leg. Both quantities embrace a beneficiant quantity of waste, so you could do with even much less. Also, all the items are brief and/or slender, so that you may not have to purchase top-grade lumber, both. You can glue up 4/Four inventory for the legs if 8/Four inventory isn’t accessible.

Friday night

(Okay, it’s going to be an extended weekend.)

1. If you’re working with tough sawn lumber, mill all of your boards to thickness. Then determine how every board can be used.
   

   Fig A. Leg and Apron Details

2. Choose the perfect boards for the highest (Part A, Fig. B and Photo 1). Cut them barely oversize in size and joint the perimeters sq.. When you glue these boards collectively, be sure their faces are flush, to attenuate sanding. Remove all squeezed-out glue earlier than it hardens. Leave the highest clamped up in a single day.
   

   Fig. B. Exploded View

   

3. If you’re gluing up the leg inventory, do it now.
   

   Photo 1. Use your best-looking boards for the highest. You can get monetary savings by utilizing #1 Common lumber for this undertaking, as a result of all the items are comparatively brief and slender.

Saturday morning

1. Unclamp the highest and set it apart in the intervening time. Stand it on finish, so air can flow into freely throughout, or increase it on stickers for those who retailer it flat.
2. Mill the leg blanks (B) sq., lower them to ultimate size, and pencil full-length tapers on two adjoining sides. Mark the within nook on each ends of the clean—it’s the one nook that can stay untouched and sq. after the tapers are lower.
   

   Photo 2. Saw tapers on two adjoining sides of every leg. Remove the noticed marks by sanding or planing.

3. Saw every taper on the waste aspect of the structure line (Photo 2). Remove the noticed marks utilizing a hand airplane, a jointer, or by sanding.
   

   Photo 3. Tilt the tablesaw blade to match the taper. All the beveled cuts for this undertaking are made at this angle.

4. Use one of many legs to find out the bevel angle (Photo 3). Note the angle in your noticed’s bevel scale (about 2-1/2˚), as a result of all of the beveled cuts can be made at this angle.
   

   Photo 4. Bevel each edges whenever you rip the aprons to width. Bevel one edge with the board face aspect down and the opposite edge with the board face aspect up, so each bevels slope in the identical path.

5. Rip the aprons to width with each edges beveled (Photo 4). Okay, this step is out of sequence. You need to make the entrance apron meeting—the drawer entrance and body—earlier than you may full this step. I simply wished to emphasise that every one the bevel cuts on this undertaking match the slope of the leg tapers.
   

   Photo 5. Make the drawer and its body from a single oversize board. First, rip the board into three items. Next, crosscut the center piece to create the drawer entrance. Locate the drawer ends by marking from a centerline.

6. Make the entrance apron meeting (C1-C4) from a board that’s oversize in each width and size (Photo 5). Start by marking a centerline throughout the width of the board. Keep the board oriented in the identical path for each rip cuts. First, rip a 1″ huge size, to create the highest rail (C1). Then reset the fence and rip a 4″ huge size, to create the piece that features the drawer entrance and finish spacers (C2 and C3). The offcut from this second rip—which also needs to be a minimum of 1″ huge—is the underside rail (C4).
   

   Photo 6. Glue the board again collectively, utilizing the unglued drawer entrance as a spacer. Bevel-rip this meeting to width together with the opposite aprons. Measure from the centerline to find the ends for slicing to size.

7. Crosscut the center piece to create the drawer entrance. Measure from the centerline to find each ends. Then make every lower on the skin fringe of the road. The two offcuts grow to be the tip spacers.
8. Create the entrance apron body by gluing the board again along with the unglued drawer entrance trapped inside (Photo 6). Use the centerline to find the drawer entrance and rails, and comfortable the tip spacers towards the drawer entrance ends. Use waxed paper to maintain the drawer entrance from getting caught by squeezed-out glue. Make certain the rail and spacer faces are flush on the glue joints.

Saturday afternoon

1. Tilt the noticed blade to the predetermined bevel angle. Then rip the entrance apron meeting’s high rail to ultimate width, 3/4″, measured on the again face. Make certain the bevel slopes towards the entrance face. Keep the drawer entrance put in throughout the lower, to stabilize the meeting.
2.  Rip the highest edges of the again and aspect aprons (D and E) on the identical angle. Again, be sure the bevel slopes to their entrance faces.
3. Bevel-rip the entrance apron meeting to ultimate 5-1/2″ width. The high and backside bevels should slope in the identical path (Photo 4), so this time, flip the meeting finish for finish and flip it over to make the lower—with the drawer entrance put in.
4. Use the identical setting and observe the identical process to bevel-rip the again and aspect aprons to ultimate width.
5. Crosscut all of the aprons to ultimate size. Measure from the centerline to find the ends of the entrance apron meeting and maintain the drawer entrance put in whilst you make the cuts. Make certain every pair of aprons are similar.

Saturday night

Photo 7. Assemble the legs and aprons with pocket screw joinery. A pocket screw jig positions the workpiece and guides the drill bit, which routinely drills a counterbored shank gap.

(You’re having an excessive amount of enjoyable to exit, proper?)

1. Drill pocket screw holes within the aprons (Photo 7). Stagger the holes in order that they’re decrease on the aspect aprons (Fig. A). Then the screws gained’t collide whenever you fasten the legs.
   

   Photo 8. Fasten the aprons in order that they observe the slope of the tapered legs. Use spacers to create the 1/8″ setback. Make certain the highest edges are flush. Reinforce the joints with glue.

2. Assemble the desk ends (Photo 8). Clamp an apron to your bench face-side down, with 1/8″ hardboard spacers beneath. Locate the apron so its high beveled edge overhangs the benchtop. Position the legs, oriented with a sq. face butted towards the apron and the adjoining tapered face on the bench (The legs’ different sq. face will face up and its different tapered face will face out. The inside nook mark you’ve made on the tip of the leg needs to be on high, towards the apron.)
3. Apply glue to each ends of the apron. Snug the legs towards the apron and clamp them to the bench, ensuring the highest of the leg is flush with the beveled high fringe of the apron. Then gently clamp the legs to the apron. Allow the glue to tack-set (5 to 10 minutes). Then set up the 1-1/4″ effective thread, washer head pocket screws. Unclamp the meeting and take away the squeezed-out glue.
4. Follow an identical process to lock the again rail to the assembled ends. Before you put in the pocket screws, be sure every assembled finish is sq. to the again rail. Repeat the method to lock the entrance rail meeting.

Sunday afternoon

1. Complete the desk base. Cut and match the underside rail help (F). Bevel the entrance edge to match the entrance apron rail and each ends to match the aspect aprons. Carefully notch the entrance corners to suit across the legs. To decide the help’s size, measure on the backside edges of the aprons. Then lower the help to suit. Start oversize in size; then shave one finish with extra cuts to realize an ideal, comfortable match.
2. Drill pocket holes within the backside help (Fig. C). Use a 45˚ help to drill the holes for the leg screws. Don’t drill these holes full-depth. Leave about half of″ between the tip of the opening and the notch.
   

   Photo 9. Install the underside rail help with glue and pocket screws. To match the sloping rails, this piece is beveled on the entrance edge and each ends. Allow the glue to tack-set earlier than driving the screws.

3. Apply glue and clamp the help to the entrance rail and aspect aprons (Photo 9). The help needs to be flush with each edges of the rail and with the underside fringe of each aspect aprons. Let the glue tack; then set up the pocket screws. Don’t overlook the screws that go diagonally into the legs.
4. Cut the drawer helps (G) to suit. Bevel the skin edge and the again finish of those mirror-image elements, and lower the notches.
   

   Photo 10. Install the drawer helps with glue and pocket screws. A particular clamp holds the joint flush whilst you set up the screws. Follow the identical procedures to put in the highest rail help and the drawer kickers.

5. Drill the pocket holes. Then set up the helps with glue and screws (Photo 10).
6. Install the drawer guides (H).
7. Cut and match the highest rail help (J), utilizing the identical process used for the underside rail help. Drill the pocket holes (Fig. C). Note that there aren’t any leg screws on the high, so no holes are drilled at 45˚.
8. Fasten the highest rail help with glue and screws.
9. Cut, match and set up the drawer kickers (Ok).
10. Cut the drawer entrance and drawer sides (L) to ultimate width.
    

    Photo 11. Cut the entrance finish of the drawer sides at an angle, so the drawer entrance will slope to match the apron, which slopes to match the tapered leg.

11. Cut the entrance ends of the drawer sides on the bevel angle (Photo 11).
12.  Saw or rout grooves to accommodate the underside in all three items.
13. Cut the drawer again (M) to ultimate width. Then lower the drawer back and front to ultimate size, 1/32″ shorter than the opening within the body.
14. Create the drawer joints. I used a drawer lock bit. Used in a router desk with a fence, it permits routing all of the elements from the identical primary setup.
15. Finish sand the within faces of all of the drawer elements.
16. Assemble the drawer with glue and brads. Lay beads of glue within the grooves. Slide within the backside (N) and verify to ensure the drawer is sq.. Then fasten the underside to the drawer again with screws.
17. Test match the drawer and make any vital changes. Glue on the drawer stops (P). Position the drawer so it’s entrance is flush with the body. Then butt the stops to the again finish of every drawer aspect.
18. Make the drawer pull (Q). Bevel one fringe of a large 3/4″ thick board at 10˚. Return the blade to 90˚ and rip the pull from the board as an offcut. Cut the pull to size. (Just for enjoyable, I mitered the ends on the 2-1/2˚bevel angle, so the pull’s face is wider on the backside, just like the legs.) Sand the pull and the drawer entrance. Then glue on the pull with its beveled edge down, so it acts as a finger grip.

Sunday night

1. Glue the screw block (R) to the again rail. Drill holes within the drawer kickers, the screw block and the highest help rail for the top-mounting screws (Fig. D). Elongate all of the holes however the two on the heart, to permit for the highest’s seasonal motion.
2. Drill entry holes to your screwdriver via the underside rail and helps (Fig. C).
3. Rough sand either side of the highest, to degree each surfaces.
4. Cut the highest to ultimate dimensions. I beveled each the perimeters and ends at 2-1/2˚, however this time, the bevels slope in, so the highest edge is wider than the underside edge.
   

   Photo 12. Fasten the highest after centering the bottom and clamping it in place.

5. Fasten the highest to the bottom (Photo 12). Mark centerlines on the underside of the highest and on the suitable inside edges of the bottom: the drawer kickers, screw block and high rail help. Then use the strains to routinely heart the bottom on the highest.
6. Clamp the bottom to the highest. Then set up the screws.

Next weekend

(I mentioned you possibly can construct this desk in a weekend. I didn’t say you’ll end it.)

1. Remove the highest.
2. Finish-sand the highest and the bottom.
3. Apply your favourite end. I began with a coat of SealCoat (dewaxed shellac) to convey out the wealthy colour of the walnut. Then, as this desk is prone to get numerous put on, I brushed on two coats of polyurethane.