Made from oak glued laminated timber, our classic and elegant dining table comfortably seats six people.
Thanks to a special metal fitting, the table is solidly constructed without the need for awkward beam joints.
But the best thing about our table is the price: A piece like this could cost you a fortune in a furniture store.
But build it yourself and you can save a tidy sum - put some of the money saved towards a nice dinner!
The following assembly instructions apply to 27-mm-thick oak glued laminated timber boards and the table bracket described.
You must adapt the list of materials accordingly if you opt for other materials or thicknesses.
If possible, ask your DIY store or carpenter to cut the required boards to size.
Instructions
1. Glue together the legs
Each table leg comprises two wide boards and two narrow boards that are glued together with tongue and groove joints. Mark each part so that you always know which belongs to which table leg at a later stage of assembly. Also mark all parts of the table leg with a triangle. By using the triangular symbol, you always know which part belongs where later.
The grooves are routed to match the tongues measuring 4 mm in width and 11 mm in depth. To rout the grooves, clamp the board you are working on to the work surface, making absolutely sure to use pieces of scrap wood as buffer blocks so you can protect the workpiece from unsightly pressure marks.
Start with the wide leg boards. Adjust the router with the 4-mm straight bit to a routing depth of 11 mm and rout the grooves at a distance of 15 mm from the longitudinal edges on the inside using the parallel guide; with the narrow leg boards, make the grooves in the centre of the front of the boards (see illustration, table leg detail).
It may be difficult to have the narrower wood tongues cut to size by a retailer. In this case, you can cut them yourself at home with a jigsaw. Then glue the tongues with the wide leg boards. To do this, apply wood glue to one side of the grooves and then insert the tongues.
Once two tongues have been fitted in all of the wide leg boards, apply glue to one long side and the groove in all the narrow leg boards. Now attach the gluing faces of the narrow leg boards to the tongues in the wide leg boards. Finally, apply glue to the other long sides of the narrow leg boards and attach the remaining wide leg boards fitted with tongues.
Important note
Use clamp clips to press all of the glue joints carefully until the glue has dried. Refer to the manufacturer's instructions. While pressing the joints, use pieces of scrap wood as buffer blocks to distribute the pressure evenly and avoid leaving unsightly pressure marks on the workpieces. Wipe away any excess glue immediately with a damp cloth.
2. Assemble legs, beams and table top
In furniture design, beams refer to the connector boards underneath the table top that span the legs. These boards reinforce the table construction. In the case of our table, a special metal fitting joins these beams securely to the legs and the table top.
First use the cordless screwdriver and round head screws (4 x 20 mm) to screw the top of the table brackets so they are flush with the inside corners of the table legs.
Now connect the legs with the beams through the table brackets to form a frame, once again using the cordless screwdriver and round head screws (4 x 20 mm).
Place the table top with the upper side face down on a clean, smooth surface (to avoid marks and scratches). Arrange the frame (with the legs pointing upwards) on the table top so that each of the legs are fully aligned with the corners. Now you can simply use the cordless screwdriver and round head screws (4 x 20 mm) to fit the frame underneath the table top.
Tip
Oak is a particularly hard wood. You are therefore advised, before fastening the table brackets with screws, to predrill holes in the wood that are 1 mm smaller than the screw diameter.
3. Sand wood surfaces
First chamfer all edges with sanding paper with a grit of 120 or 180 at a 45° angle to create a small bevel. Use your sander to sand all visible surfaces in the direction of the wood grain, first with coarse sanding paper (grit of 120) and then with fine sanding paper (grit of up to 240). Damp sponge the surfaces afterwards to wipe off the dust. Some loose wood fibres may protrude while the wood is drying. You can remove these with sanding paper with a grit of 180. The wood is now ready for surface treatment.
Tip
Make sure that the sanding paper is sharp enough to remove the wood fibres properly, not just flatten them.
4. Surface treatment
First read the wax manufacturer's safety and handling instructions thoroughly. Make sure the room you are working in is well ventilated and not used for smoking, eating or drinking.
Generously apply the wood wax with a fine spray system and remove any excess wax with a cloth. Observe the drying times specified by the wax manufacturer.
If you want to apply a second coat of wax, you need to sand the surface between coats using sanding paper with a grit of 240. Once again, you must always sand in the direction of the wood grain. Repeat the application as described in the section above. Once the wax has dried, polish the surface with a soft brush until it gleams.
Safety note
Following the wax application, spread out the wax cloth and leave it to dry properly in a well-ventilated area. If left scrunched up in a ball, the cloth may become warm and self-ignite.
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