Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Sawbuck Table: Finished!

Just a mere two years and three months after starting the reproduction Pensylvania German sawbuck table project, I can finally call it complete.

The finish consists of six coats of blonde shellac and a coat of dark brown paste wax on all pieces except for the top, which is eight coats of blonde shellac and a coat of Circa 1850 Antique Paste Varnish.

The overall dimensions are 28" tall x 29" wide x 25" deep. I made mine a little more stout than the original, as you can see in the comparison photo.

Here are all the blog posts that relate to the project:
Sawbuck Table Part 1
Shaping the Legs
Handcut Lap Joint
Mortise & Tenon
Lamb's Tongue
Simple Carved Design
Tusk Tenon
Dovetail Plane
Sliding Dovetails
Back to the Sawbuck
Spindle Turning
Half Blind Dovetails
Creating a Cove
Drawer Front
Dare to Move Your Light
Beveled Drawer Bottoms
Handcut Dovetails Video
Stopped Dadoes and Drawer Runners
Fox Wedged Tenon

And here's how it goes together:



You can watch the video in larger, high def, format on my Vimeo channel.

24 comments:

Darnell said...

Well done, Kari!
That drawer front is beautiful!

Frontier Carpenter said...

Outstanding! I loved the post on this project.

Vic Hubbard said...

Beautiful, Kari!!! It's WAY nicer than the original! and I LOVE that it's possessed. How cool is that?!?!

Doug Berch said...

Once again you have done a beautiful job!

Brian Gilstrap said...

Beautiful piece. The figure, fit, and finish are fantastic.

I should also mention that the timeline for the project has made me feel slightly less guilty about how long some of my projects take... :-)

JERM said...

Absolutely Beautiful!! I can beat you on the timeline. I have a chessboard that is going on 3 years in the making, and my wife is still "patiently" waiting on her cherry bed.

Kari Hultman said...

Thanks guys! And I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one who takes a looooong time to finish a project. :o)

Erik said...

Beautiful work. Truly.
And the video brings back childhood memories of Sesame Street (which is a good thing.) Keep up the good work.

Brought to you by the number 2 3/4 (the number of years for completion.) :)

James Vavra said...

Kari - that's a beautiful piece and an incredibly faithful reproduction of the original.

James

Dean Jansa said...

Nice work Kari!

will said...

You've done well in teaching your furniture to self-assemble itself.

The next step - getting it to walk the dog.

Anonymous said...

marvelous friend, what a sensitive craft

The Apprentice and The Journeyman said...

Kari...Pure Joy! If I were a foxed wedge tenon...this is where I'd love to call home. Great little vid! and now...I'll fly away.

Steve Branam said...

That curly cherry is gorgeous! I haven't tried any of the figured woods like this or curly maple yet.

Liz Pf said...

Beautiful!

I think I have a new favorite wood (replacing the previous contenders, figured maple and cherry). And the workmanship is great, too.

Once my skills are up to this, I can see making a modern version ... 'twould be a nice piece of knock-down furniture for a college student or young adult.

Kari Hultman said...

Haha@Erik. :o)

Thanks, guys, for the compliments. This was a fun project. I wish I had thicker boards for the table top, but I ran out. It's a little thinner than the original.

Will, I'd love to have someone or something else walk my dogs these days. We're having a heat wave on the East coast.

Liz, you can build this project. If you feel your skills aren't advanced enough, here's your opportunity to challenge yourself. This was the first time I had ever cut angled dovetails and a fox-wedged joint. I learned a lot.

Unknown said...

well worth the wait ~

;)

Mark S said...

Nice to see a wood working blog that incorporates media, like the video in this post, many sites get bland with the walls of text.

Vermont Area Woodworking - Custom Pieces, Interiors, Exteriors

Woodbloke said...

Hi Kari - nice...and I thought I took a long time to make something. If I recollect, didn't you say somewhere you'd finish it when you were 100? (or something similar to that effect)
Time do fly by! - Rob

Swirt said...

Looks great. Have really enjoyed watching it come together. The years to build should be a claim of pride, not embarrassment. That's what I always tell myself anyway.

Ian Mackay said...

Wow, really fantastic. Beautiful pieces don't just happen, they take time and patience. Great for you to persevere and challenge yourself.

Ian

Larry Marshall said...

Wow...I go out of town and look what happens! It's beautiful, Kari. I've enjoyed all the posts you've made on this project. Once again you demonstrate that you're the cream of the crop.

Cheers --- Larry

Dyami Plotke said...

Kari,
I know I'm late to the party (sorry, I was away), but I just have to congratulate you on finishing the table. It is beautiful. I'm glad you've been able to finish it. You should be awfully proud.

marK said...

Another beautiful piece. Finished at last:)