Ollys Table

Olly

 

Thats a grand job you have done there, Really like the leg design, i wasnt sure when i first saw it but it looks good now its done.

 

Ralph

Its a beautiful smooth design, well done Olly.........whats next?

 

Marc

Thanks you both.

 

I also had my doubts as to whether it would all pull together at first but, sometimes, you've just got to go with it... I won't be using English beech again anytime soon; this stuff has split far too much for my liking (it's not the first time, either). 'Steamed' European beech is supposed to be more stable... Has anybody used it?

 

What's next? Well, mum's buying a new set of chairs (thankfully! ) and she's even talking of buying a cover to 'protect' the table and keep it clean!! I should have a few furniture jobs coming in the spring-time. To be perfectly honest, it's far too cold out there at the minute; I really struggled to get this table done. We could be looking at a couple of TV cabinets, some kind of plywood box, a side gate and back door... In the mean time, I'll be trying to improve my workshop. Won't be buying any new timber for personal use yet - I've got tonnes of if stashed here and at college and not a lot of spare money in the bank... (Plenty of wood to keep me busy through the year though!)

 

Thanks again for your comments.

 

 

 

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My blog: http://ollypj.wordpress.com/

Excellent job Olly, looks like your getting the hang of tables .

 

I`ve use steamed beech before & not had any problems, i`m hoping to make a plane with some in the next couple of weeks, was your English Beech air or kiln dried?

 

 

 

Cheers.

 

 

Baz  

Thanks, Baz. To tell you the truth, I'm almost sick of these four-legged things!!

 

I've also heard that steamed beech is more 'pink' in colour. That's not really a problem. As you can see in this photo, some of the boards on top have gone that way with the oil finished applied, anyway.

 

By the way, the finish I used was a Worktop Finish from Smith & Roger. It feels like a thinned version of a hardwax oil (like Osmo's Polyx or Fiddes') and smells of white spirit. It's more of a surface coating, which is probably why the wood hasn't darkened as much as it would with Danish or Linseed oil. It's a really nice finish.

 

This was English beech. Mostly air-dried but it was kilned towards the end of the drying cycle (as most wood is these days - wood is money to these sawmills!). I've never had this trouble with 1in. thick boards; it's only with the 2in. and 3in.

 

Despite its hardness, beech isn't actually as stable as many would think... If you could afford to leave the sawn boards as large as possible for a good three-months then, I reckon it might hold together much better. It seems that it needs to be handled very carefully - I wouldn't bring it all indoors immediately, either. Somewhere dry and under cover outdoors would be ideal (...didn't you build a timber store recently? )

 

You could ask Phil Edwards what he thinks your plane. I'm sure he works with locally-grown beech as well.

Nice table Olly!

It has an 'Ercol' style about it, but your mum buying chairs? Where's your sense of adventure!

cheers,

Andy

Very pleasing to the eye

 

Rog

Olly

Very nice table, go with Andy's suggestion a set of chairs to match.

 

 I see Baz is going to make a plane. , not aeronautical  type?.

 

 The trouble these days is central heating it has an adverse effect on natural boards , that is why the furniture industry uses man made boards,also the cost factor.

 

 George

Olly,

 

The beech i have planned for my next plane has been in the workshop 18 months, so no worries about movement, it`s just time i need now.

 

I`ve used Osmo worktop oil before & was quite impressed, have you tried it? If so how does it compare to the Smith & Roger finish.

 

 

Best wishes.

 

 

Baz  

I'm making one chair at college at the minute and that's proving to be challenging enough for now! I don't have the spare cash to spend a load more on beech at the minute, either. If she buys four chairs without arms though, I could make two in the same style with arms (carvers) to go at either end of the table (and keep two of the others as spares)... Two chairs sounds better than four!!

 

Sorry, Baz, I haven't tried Omso's Worktop Oil... Ian at Smith & Roger told me he suspects it's nothing more than their Polyx oil with added white spirit! The two finishes can't really be that far apart... Theirs does smell nice though - very much like oranges!!

Don't know how I missed this. The table is fantastic smooth lined instead of sharp angles like most. Well done on a great job

I think you should have a go at the chairs will be better quality than brought

Olly

 I made the carvers for our table, when we purchased the table and chairs we could not afford the carvers ,when we could afford the carvers the design was no longer being made, so I set to and made the carvers to match.

 

 George

Olly

 Here is a photo of one of the original chairs and one of the carvers

Lovely job George.

 

A cracking match.

 

 

Baz  

George, that looks excellent, exactly what I had in mind.

 

Did you do the upholstery yourself? That's the only thing that would put me off...