My coffee table
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- This topic has 31 replies, 16 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 10 months ago by
Greg Merritt.
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9 June 2013 at 1:52 pm #13234
Michael van Zadelhoff
ParticipantHello fellow woodworkers,
This is my coffee table. It’s a different design than Paul’s because I could not convince my spouse. She prefers straight lines and not curves. This times she wins, but I’ll be back.
The frame is made of Cherry and the top is Mahogany from an old table. It’s almost entirely made by hand. At some points I felt I needed to cheat to safe time and frustration.
Did I mention that it’s not finished yet? Yesterday I applied a coat of sanding sealer (based on shellac) and today I sanded it with 600grit paper as advised by the manufacturer.
I do have a question about the next step. I want to continue with a couple of coats of Danish oil and finish with wax. But I am not sure if it makes sense to use Danish oil over a sanding sealer. I have read some negative advice. I’m also not sure if it’s durable enough, especially for the top. I have 2 little girls (one is still a baby), so it will be beaten up :). Any thoughts?
Thanks in advance.
9 June 2013 at 2:58 pm #13240Steve Follis
ParticipantLooks very nice Michael! Very nice work!
I’m not sure about the Danish Oil, I know Paul addressed the issue of a different finish for the top in his last episode of the Coffee Table.Memphis, Tennessee
9 June 2013 at 4:02 pm #13242Michael van Zadelhoff
ParticipantThanks Steve. He mentioned polyurethane for example. According to the project info the finish was going to be Danish oil. But for some reason Paul changed his mind.
I will postpone the finish until I’m 100% sure. After all the hard labour I wouldn’t want to mess it up 🙂
9 June 2013 at 6:06 pm #13243Serhiy D’yachyshyn
ParticipantGood job Michael)) finally we started building tables, you are the first one who posted the finished table project. Thank you for sharing with us. According to Bob Flexner you can put everything on everything if it’s dry)) From my practice (used to do hardwood floors for living) the only two finishes that do not work together are:
http://www.synteko.com/index.php?contentID=119&productID=2363&productcatID=313(I still believe this is the best for floor protection, almost impossible to damage) and water based finishes. And you can always try on the scrap piece of wood.
Toronto, Canada
9 June 2013 at 10:20 pm #13258Mark Armstrong
ParticipantTHat looks one solid coffee table nice job.
I would go with the polyurethane pretty tuff stuff.Dagenham, Essex, England
10 June 2013 at 12:33 am #13270david o’sullivan
Participantnice work micheal , i tried the danish oil over sanding sealer i it worked out well on oak i did however sand the second coat with 400grit wet&dry using the oil as a lubricant to fill the open grain ,like you i taught Paul would be using danish oil on this project.
"we can learn what to do, by doing" Aristotle
10 June 2013 at 3:08 am #13274John Poutier
ParticipantWell Michael, the girls may beat it up but they will never win. Your table will be around when the baby is a Grandmother!… I’m of the view that furniture is to be used, and if gets beat up a little bit, so be it. I believe polyurethane would tough but if you like the look of something else, try it. I would guess you could always switch to polyurethane if necessary. These are just my thoughts, I have zero expertise so I’m looking forward to seeing other opinions.
John
Yorktown, Virginia
10 June 2013 at 3:26 am #13277Greg Merritt
ParticipantNice work Michael…clean lines.
http://hillbillydaiku.com
10 June 2013 at 4:43 am #13282dborn
ParticipantVery nice coffee table! I like it.
I use Danish oil almost exclusively. It’s easy to apply, almost fool proof. I’ve even used Danish oil on top of milk paint. I think Paul Sellers doesn’t use oil based finishes because of the chemical properties and also because the oil finishes can have the tendencies to spontaneously combust. I have not had the problem with it spontaneously combusting, but do somewhat agree with not using products with such heavy chemical properties. I just have not made the switch to shellac.
10 June 2013 at 1:37 pm #13292RL
ParticipantDan, I don’t think the oil finish will spontaneously combust when cured although the rag used to apply the finish can combust if not stored or disposed of properly.
If you want to try a non-toxic oil finish, try Tried and True finishes. I use them all the time and they are terrific.
10 June 2013 at 1:53 pm #13295Michael van Zadelhoff
ParticipantThanks for the replies. I might just go with the oil. More pictures will follow. What do you think about the combination of Cherry and Mahogany? I wasn’t sure if it would work, but it seems fine to me.
10 June 2013 at 2:04 pm #13296Ken
ParticipantI think they compliment each other very well. Great job Michael
10 June 2013 at 2:39 pm #13299dborn
ParticipantRl, you’re right, I meant the rags and open containers can combust. However, I still think using an oil finish is no more dangerous than using a gas powered lawn mower and keeping gas in the garage. The bigger concern, I think, it’s the exposure to harsh chemicals, inhalation of fumes/absorption through the skin and also it’s an environmental hazard. In one of the videos I recall Paul mention he no longer chooses to use oil based finishes, unless it’s used in restoration work to match color, because of the chemical hazard and combustion concern. With that said, I still have a quart of it on hand and will continue to use it up.
Dan
10 June 2013 at 2:39 pm #13300Michael van Zadelhoff
ParticipantThanks Ken. I needed this confirmation 🙂
The contrast will be more visible when all the finish coats are applied.
10 June 2013 at 2:47 pm #13302dborn
ParticipantIt looks great! I’m curious to see how you decide to finish it and how it looks with the finish.
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