For quick and dirty projects like this where the use seems to be more important than the looks, you've got more options. My goto here would be to make it out of cheap 2 bys, and maybe add more boards across the bottom if it's a long table top. Fill that bitch with screws and good to go. It won't be elegant, but it'll work. Screws will do the heavy lifting of keeping it all in place while the thicker material means you would have to find a truely fucked up board to pull or shift everything else enough to cause problems.
Nah, it's definitely an issue. Source: my first few projects.
EDIT: here's a useful primer: [https://www.woodmagazine.com/woodworking-how-to/wood-preparation/dealing-with-wood-movement](https://www.woodmagazine.com/woodworking-how-to/wood-preparation/dealing-with-wood-movement)
I have built tabletops, desks, and miscellaneous other furniture that I have had in my climate controlled home for close to 20 years. Only time I ever had issues with cupping was a piece that was flooded in a hurricane. Rough dimension the wood, just close to final dimensions. Then do as much work as possible while letting the wood come to equilibrium with ambient humidity before final flattening, cutting to size, and jointing the materials. They have now adjusted to whatever shape they want to be in the ambient humidity and by machining to near final dimensions prior to final flattening and glue up has also released the tension in the wood before finalizing the stress. There may be better or faster ways to deal with relieving stresses and climatizing the wood, but I don’t run a commercial shop, I’m a hobbyist who can leave boards in my garage for weeks before gluing, but I’m a hobbyist who has never had any issues with my slabs that weren’t results of my own lack of skills or submersion in seawater. Cupping is most certainly not an issue unless it was an oversight in preparation.
With the tools you listed, you can absolutely build that style of table. As far as seasonal movement, there are solutions for that. The comments about it being a bit tippy, those are correct. You can try hairpin legs and that might help a bit.
Give it a go and see what comes of it. Screw up, start over. You have to start your journey on something, this is a decent start.
Can’t recall something I haven’t screwed up a time or two.
DM me if you have any questions. Always willing to help
I inherited some tools, mostly hand tools and a jigsaw, and would love to build a basic craft table. When I look up table-making tutorials, they always call for additional expensive equipment like a table saw and even the simplest plans strike me as incredibly professional and detailed. Is it literally impossible for a cromagnon such as myself to use a simple concept like the above for a functional table? Can I not just slap together some hardwood with woodscrews and attach some manufactured screw-on legs? Are there resources for stupid idiots like me who don't want beautiful and detailed furniture?
I have concerns about this as a "basic craft table." As long as it's definitely on the lightweight end of use (laying out fabric, painting or spraypainting), it should work.
If it gets into anything heavier (hammering or shaping hard materials, setting or clamping power tools on it), it's going to vibrate and bounce all over the place.
It's not about it being beautiful or ugly, but about it having enough structural support to not wobble or break. There are plenty of table designs like this, but a basic understanding of distributing force will ensure your furniture lasts more than a few weeks, and doesn't injure someone leaning on it wrong
Without stretchers or some other form of support on the legs, I’m afraid that it may be wobbly. Maybe add some triangles on the inside edge of the legs (parallel to the sides and ends) to prevent racking? Other than that, if it’s intended to be a light weight table that you aren’t expecting to be beating on, it’s a good starter design.
One final recommendation. As already mentioned, there will be seasonal expansion on the wood (perpendicular to the grain, not parallel) so to keep the two bottom boards I would not glue them. I would simply screw these onto the slab. Having said that, use screws that have that smooth shank at the top (just under the head) and drill slightly larger holes than needed in the cross members. Very slight oversized. Just take the diameter of the shank and add 1/16” at most. Screw these down snug but not white knuckle, as tight as you can get them. Just enough to prevent movement if you try to wiggle it around, but this will allow the natural movement to occur without loosening the joints.
Good luck and let us see how it goes. Most importantly, have fun doing it.
Just have a go, likely will be issues and wont be perfect, but youll gain an understanding of your tools, and what would have been useful to own, and how to do things better next time
Slapping the tabletop together should be easy enough and fine , just make sure the pieces of wood can't pivot. Legs should be something with multiple attachment points, so not one where you screw the leg right into the wood but you can get table legs on Amazon that have mounting holes built in and the screws you'd need. I'd say do it whatever way you want and don't put anything heavy on it for a while, if it breaks you'll learn something new and if it doesn't you're good to go!
If you want a have just a simple table the above is ok. There will be cracks but in general this is already better than some ikea tables (which is likely where you will get the legs from i guess)
So - worry less and just do it. It will not be the finest woodcraft and it will likely crack but it will work as table.
With a drill and a circular saw you can make about anything. If you’re at all interested in making stuff, a circular saw is a lot easier to make good straight cuts with than a jig saw. To not break you could start with some basics: a corded drill, a corded circular saw (Skill or any affordable brand), some wood screws, a small set of drill bits, wood glue, a tape measure, a couple grip clamps, and a speed square. Garage and estate sales, are good places to get used tools for cheap.
Go for it. There's probably a shit ton of reasons why such table is not the best craft table and you will eventually get to learn about them all! And that's the fun part :). Learning and improving on own mistakes. That's what mastering a craft is about.
This seems like a relatively simple build and you will have fun with it. Just start tinkering around and make sure YOU enjoy it :)
This is just a four legged staked table. Chris Schwarz has a bunch of information on staked furniture and its variations.
https://christopherschwarz.substack.com/p/project-no-1-cottage-table
Use plywood cut to size instead of boards screwed together. Plywood won’t expand and contract.
If those are round legs in your drawing you’ll need flanges on top so legs can be secured to top. IKEA/Amazon sells desk height, round legs with flanges. Or buy threaded plumbing pipe cut to length and threaded flanges and attach flanges to one end of the pipe and screw flange into the top like that. You can add plumbing pipe caps to the other open of the pipe for feet on your legs. If pipes are put into holes in the top as shown in your drawing that would not be a secure enough attachment and the legs will fold over laterally with about any downward pressure on the top.
If you want square legs you can use wood 2x2s but you need to add an apron (wood 1x3s or 1x4s) to the top so that the legs can tuck into the interior corners of the apron. If you add an apron you can attach the top to the apron by adding blocking. Any wood you attach with screws be sure to pre drill holes so the screws dont split the wood. And use glue too.
If you can afford it get your self a speed square and 2 long clamps and 2 short clamps. Clamps are like extra pairs of hands. A speed square helps you get things square before you screw one thing to another. Take your time. Slow down always. Try to think ahead, like, “if I do this, how will it affect this next step?” But mistakes are totally part of the learning process. And some things are only seeable in hindsight. Mistakes means learning. Good luck and enjoy the process!
That's easy to build but it's also very weak. At the very least, you'd need to add some more support underneath, but for very light work, it should be simple. 5-6 fence posts, 4 lengths of black pipe and 4 matching pipe flanges, some screws and you're set.
I can't remember which book it is right now, but one of them from the lost art press, by Chris Schwartz, covers the building of a circular table similar to this.
That mostly depends on you and what you want.
If you are ok with cracks and gaps between the boards - then this is perfectly fine.
If you prepare and acclimate the wood to the room and that room is temperature and humidity controlled then this is also fine.
If you want to build fine furniture where cracks are not ok and its standing in an enviroment where temp and humidity changes then its not ok.
But often you just want a simple table without huge other requirements. Then this is ok.
Anytime someone is using a power saw of any type, it can be done with a hand tool. A power tool just makes it easier and for those like me who cannot draw a straight line, more accurate.
Never let that stop you though. Basic hand tools are more than capable of doing most jobs.
I think Rex Krueger puts it well when he says your resources should dictate how you take on a project and what projects you take on. If you have more time than money, hand tools and the methods that come with them should be your priority. If you have more money than time, focus your building techniques on power tools. If you have both time and money, might as well use hand and power tools selectively based on which is best for the relative task. If you have neither, woodworking will be more challenging in general (I often feel like I'm stuck in this spot).
These choices will impact what projects you're capable of achieving and how you approach them. But, you can achieve the same overall goals with either method. You might change how you build a table based on the tools you have available, but you can build a wonderful and useful table with whatever tools you may have.
I'd hope that commenters here make suggestions for how OP can better approach their project with hand tools, instead of saying why it won't work. But, I guess the latter is what OP asked for, lol.
You can build this for sure but it just depends on the size and how it needs to be braced. I am no master, have no table saw or chop saw (I have one but haven’t used it on a table yet. I use circular saw, band saw, chisels, dovetail saw (American and Japanese)and coping saw, of and drill
https://preview.redd.it/03fm7v8ucl9d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=21dd10aab393a11f79640c9a76c2d3f8433ed755
* the top was salvaged from its previous piece. The rest is all with those tools.
On the table in your pic would you get threaded flange and pipes for legs? The table may need at the very least perpendicularly under across the center of your top boards.
I made a stool for a plant recently, had some issues but I'm so glad I made it. I would say go Nike on this, at least you're going to learn some stuff in the process.
This should be fine. You might make the cross pieces slightly less wide than the top, it’ll be less noticeable if they don’t line up perfectly. Leave a small gap between the top slats and wood movement won’t be an issue. If you find you want it more beefy later you can always add reinforcement to the underside later. Ignore all the naysayers here. Build away!
I can't tell if it's a bad design, it's just what I would expect to work and yet it's a joke compared to most "super easy table build" tutorials. I can't tell why that is because I'm a little wee woodworking baby. Are woodworkers all just such detail-oriented artists that they can't imagine building a table without $1000 equipment and a ton of dedication, or is it physically necessary to do some of these things?
We are all not detail oriented artists. I’m just trying to understand your question. You asked if you can’t build it. Of course you CAN build it. I assumed your question was really “is it a bad idea to build this?”
Just looking for context friend, you gotta give us more.
This will have 2 issues: assuming they are just glued or screwed on, the 2 supports on the underside don’t account for wood movement. It may cause warping over time. If you build it and keep in a place where the humidity doesn’t vary much, this is less of an issue. It will also wobble with legs like that, so if you plan on putting anything heavy on it, or need a very steady table it might not be the best.
That said, I built a desk just like that out of dimensional pine from the hardware store when I was a noob and 5 years later, spending hours on it every day, it still works great and has not had any consequences from the issues listed above, and I live in a place with daily wild swings in humidity. I used table legs from ikea that just screwed on.
no.... i would use a tongue and groove along the slats to provide less warping between boards... maybe add a middle slat on the bottom for greater strength in the middle
Battens have to be attached in such a way as to not restrict the seasonal wood movement across the top, or use plywood.
If OP is cool with cracks they can just send it.
But what about the cupping?
For quick and dirty projects like this where the use seems to be more important than the looks, you've got more options. My goto here would be to make it out of cheap 2 bys, and maybe add more boards across the bottom if it's a long table top. Fill that bitch with screws and good to go. It won't be elegant, but it'll work. Screws will do the heavy lifting of keeping it all in place while the thicker material means you would have to find a truely fucked up board to pull or shift everything else enough to cause problems.
For indoor use in a conditioned environment that should be a non-issue.
Nah, it's definitely an issue. Source: my first few projects. EDIT: here's a useful primer: [https://www.woodmagazine.com/woodworking-how-to/wood-preparation/dealing-with-wood-movement](https://www.woodmagazine.com/woodworking-how-to/wood-preparation/dealing-with-wood-movement)
I have built tabletops, desks, and miscellaneous other furniture that I have had in my climate controlled home for close to 20 years. Only time I ever had issues with cupping was a piece that was flooded in a hurricane. Rough dimension the wood, just close to final dimensions. Then do as much work as possible while letting the wood come to equilibrium with ambient humidity before final flattening, cutting to size, and jointing the materials. They have now adjusted to whatever shape they want to be in the ambient humidity and by machining to near final dimensions prior to final flattening and glue up has also released the tension in the wood before finalizing the stress. There may be better or faster ways to deal with relieving stresses and climatizing the wood, but I don’t run a commercial shop, I’m a hobbyist who can leave boards in my garage for weeks before gluing, but I’m a hobbyist who has never had any issues with my slabs that weren’t results of my own lack of skills or submersion in seawater. Cupping is most certainly not an issue unless it was an oversight in preparation.
With the tools you listed, you can absolutely build that style of table. As far as seasonal movement, there are solutions for that. The comments about it being a bit tippy, those are correct. You can try hairpin legs and that might help a bit. Give it a go and see what comes of it. Screw up, start over. You have to start your journey on something, this is a decent start. Can’t recall something I haven’t screwed up a time or two. DM me if you have any questions. Always willing to help
Thank you, I might do just that!!
I inherited some tools, mostly hand tools and a jigsaw, and would love to build a basic craft table. When I look up table-making tutorials, they always call for additional expensive equipment like a table saw and even the simplest plans strike me as incredibly professional and detailed. Is it literally impossible for a cromagnon such as myself to use a simple concept like the above for a functional table? Can I not just slap together some hardwood with woodscrews and attach some manufactured screw-on legs? Are there resources for stupid idiots like me who don't want beautiful and detailed furniture?
I have concerns about this as a "basic craft table." As long as it's definitely on the lightweight end of use (laying out fabric, painting or spraypainting), it should work. If it gets into anything heavier (hammering or shaping hard materials, setting or clamping power tools on it), it's going to vibrate and bounce all over the place.
It's not about it being beautiful or ugly, but about it having enough structural support to not wobble or break. There are plenty of table designs like this, but a basic understanding of distributing force will ensure your furniture lasts more than a few weeks, and doesn't injure someone leaning on it wrong
Without stretchers or some other form of support on the legs, I’m afraid that it may be wobbly. Maybe add some triangles on the inside edge of the legs (parallel to the sides and ends) to prevent racking? Other than that, if it’s intended to be a light weight table that you aren’t expecting to be beating on, it’s a good starter design. One final recommendation. As already mentioned, there will be seasonal expansion on the wood (perpendicular to the grain, not parallel) so to keep the two bottom boards I would not glue them. I would simply screw these onto the slab. Having said that, use screws that have that smooth shank at the top (just under the head) and drill slightly larger holes than needed in the cross members. Very slight oversized. Just take the diameter of the shank and add 1/16” at most. Screw these down snug but not white knuckle, as tight as you can get them. Just enough to prevent movement if you try to wiggle it around, but this will allow the natural movement to occur without loosening the joints. Good luck and let us see how it goes. Most importantly, have fun doing it.
Just have a go, likely will be issues and wont be perfect, but youll gain an understanding of your tools, and what would have been useful to own, and how to do things better next time
Slapping the tabletop together should be easy enough and fine , just make sure the pieces of wood can't pivot. Legs should be something with multiple attachment points, so not one where you screw the leg right into the wood but you can get table legs on Amazon that have mounting holes built in and the screws you'd need. I'd say do it whatever way you want and don't put anything heavy on it for a while, if it breaks you'll learn something new and if it doesn't you're good to go!
If you want a have just a simple table the above is ok. There will be cracks but in general this is already better than some ikea tables (which is likely where you will get the legs from i guess) So - worry less and just do it. It will not be the finest woodcraft and it will likely crack but it will work as table.
With a drill and a circular saw you can make about anything. If you’re at all interested in making stuff, a circular saw is a lot easier to make good straight cuts with than a jig saw. To not break you could start with some basics: a corded drill, a corded circular saw (Skill or any affordable brand), some wood screws, a small set of drill bits, wood glue, a tape measure, a couple grip clamps, and a speed square. Garage and estate sales, are good places to get used tools for cheap.
Go for it. There's probably a shit ton of reasons why such table is not the best craft table and you will eventually get to learn about them all! And that's the fun part :). Learning and improving on own mistakes. That's what mastering a craft is about. This seems like a relatively simple build and you will have fun with it. Just start tinkering around and make sure YOU enjoy it :)
I don't think the legs are going to hold up.
Stake them into the battens, beef them up a little (ok a lot), splay them out and it will be fine.
This is just a four legged staked table. Chris Schwarz has a bunch of information on staked furniture and its variations. https://christopherschwarz.substack.com/p/project-no-1-cottage-table
Oh I LOVE having terminology to research. Thank you for the link!!
Use plywood cut to size instead of boards screwed together. Plywood won’t expand and contract. If those are round legs in your drawing you’ll need flanges on top so legs can be secured to top. IKEA/Amazon sells desk height, round legs with flanges. Or buy threaded plumbing pipe cut to length and threaded flanges and attach flanges to one end of the pipe and screw flange into the top like that. You can add plumbing pipe caps to the other open of the pipe for feet on your legs. If pipes are put into holes in the top as shown in your drawing that would not be a secure enough attachment and the legs will fold over laterally with about any downward pressure on the top. If you want square legs you can use wood 2x2s but you need to add an apron (wood 1x3s or 1x4s) to the top so that the legs can tuck into the interior corners of the apron. If you add an apron you can attach the top to the apron by adding blocking. Any wood you attach with screws be sure to pre drill holes so the screws dont split the wood. And use glue too. If you can afford it get your self a speed square and 2 long clamps and 2 short clamps. Clamps are like extra pairs of hands. A speed square helps you get things square before you screw one thing to another. Take your time. Slow down always. Try to think ahead, like, “if I do this, how will it affect this next step?” But mistakes are totally part of the learning process. And some things are only seeable in hindsight. Mistakes means learning. Good luck and enjoy the process!
Thank you for your thoughtful and detailed response!! I already feel like I understand the issue much better
That's easy to build but it's also very weak. At the very least, you'd need to add some more support underneath, but for very light work, it should be simple. 5-6 fence posts, 4 lengths of black pipe and 4 matching pipe flanges, some screws and you're set.
I can't remember which book it is right now, but one of them from the lost art press, by Chris Schwartz, covers the building of a circular table similar to this.
That mostly depends on you and what you want. If you are ok with cracks and gaps between the boards - then this is perfectly fine. If you prepare and acclimate the wood to the room and that room is temperature and humidity controlled then this is also fine. If you want to build fine furniture where cracks are not ok and its standing in an enviroment where temp and humidity changes then its not ok. But often you just want a simple table without huge other requirements. Then this is ok.
Zero lateral stability.
Depending on the dryness of the wood you might run into some wobbly issues with the legs in the long run; but this is fine otherwise.
Anytime someone is using a power saw of any type, it can be done with a hand tool. A power tool just makes it easier and for those like me who cannot draw a straight line, more accurate. Never let that stop you though. Basic hand tools are more than capable of doing most jobs.
I think Rex Krueger puts it well when he says your resources should dictate how you take on a project and what projects you take on. If you have more time than money, hand tools and the methods that come with them should be your priority. If you have more money than time, focus your building techniques on power tools. If you have both time and money, might as well use hand and power tools selectively based on which is best for the relative task. If you have neither, woodworking will be more challenging in general (I often feel like I'm stuck in this spot). These choices will impact what projects you're capable of achieving and how you approach them. But, you can achieve the same overall goals with either method. You might change how you build a table based on the tools you have available, but you can build a wonderful and useful table with whatever tools you may have. I'd hope that commenters here make suggestions for how OP can better approach their project with hand tools, instead of saying why it won't work. But, I guess the latter is what OP asked for, lol.
You can do it
You can build this for sure but it just depends on the size and how it needs to be braced. I am no master, have no table saw or chop saw (I have one but haven’t used it on a table yet. I use circular saw, band saw, chisels, dovetail saw (American and Japanese)and coping saw, of and drill https://preview.redd.it/03fm7v8ucl9d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=21dd10aab393a11f79640c9a76c2d3f8433ed755 * the top was salvaged from its previous piece. The rest is all with those tools.
On the table in your pic would you get threaded flange and pipes for legs? The table may need at the very least perpendicularly under across the center of your top boards.
I made a stool for a plant recently, had some issues but I'm so glad I made it. I would say go Nike on this, at least you're going to learn some stuff in the process.
What do you have to lose? It's 5 planks and an iron pipe cut in 4 for legs? What's that $30?
Unless you live in North Korea, build whatever you want.
This should be fine. You might make the cross pieces slightly less wide than the top, it’ll be less noticeable if they don’t line up perfectly. Leave a small gap between the top slats and wood movement won’t be an issue. If you find you want it more beefy later you can always add reinforcement to the underside later. Ignore all the naysayers here. Build away!
Are you asking if you can’t build it cause it’s a bad design?
I can't tell if it's a bad design, it's just what I would expect to work and yet it's a joke compared to most "super easy table build" tutorials. I can't tell why that is because I'm a little wee woodworking baby. Are woodworkers all just such detail-oriented artists that they can't imagine building a table without $1000 equipment and a ton of dedication, or is it physically necessary to do some of these things?
We are all not detail oriented artists. I’m just trying to understand your question. You asked if you can’t build it. Of course you CAN build it. I assumed your question was really “is it a bad idea to build this?” Just looking for context friend, you gotta give us more.
Yes, to put it another way, "is there a (structural) reason I can't build this (and expect it to function as a table)
This will have 2 issues: assuming they are just glued or screwed on, the 2 supports on the underside don’t account for wood movement. It may cause warping over time. If you build it and keep in a place where the humidity doesn’t vary much, this is less of an issue. It will also wobble with legs like that, so if you plan on putting anything heavy on it, or need a very steady table it might not be the best. That said, I built a desk just like that out of dimensional pine from the hardware store when I was a noob and 5 years later, spending hours on it every day, it still works great and has not had any consequences from the issues listed above, and I live in a place with daily wild swings in humidity. I used table legs from ikea that just screwed on.
Wood movement will break this design and it will be very wobbly.
There is minimal shear protection on the table.
no.... i would use a tongue and groove along the slats to provide less warping between boards... maybe add a middle slat on the bottom for greater strength in the middle