Projects to keep me off the streets - Fire Department Table, Kayak
Farback
Posts: 1,088 Member
The new Chief (my successor after the wee heart attack thing) asked me to use my limited skills to make a table for the apparatus floor. Commonly known as the 'liar's table'. Many of us eat lunch and generally hang out there, and the present one is often quite crowded. I'm building a 4' by 10' heavy oak table which will have our department crest epoxied into the top. These are popular in fire halls across North America. It's being built in secret, and will just appear late one night. I'll post updates and pictures as I go along if anyone is interested.
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Today's efforts was to turn a pile of rough cut lumber into pieces for legs (laminated pairs of 2" x 4") and aprons, and cross braces. Five hours of ripping with a new blade and planing to planned thickness took this pile of rough lumber to this pile of dimensioned pieces.
Some ten foot runs on these, had to set up a long line.
If women don't find you handsome, they should find you handy. Or coated in sawdust.
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Or all three! Nice work today. I'll look forward to the finished project!3
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You have mad skillz
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Awesome sauce! I'm following the thread for sure and look forward to the progress as well as the final product.
So wish I had spent more time with my Dad to learn some of his carpentry skills. Hopefully God will eventually bless me with a man who has some handy skillz.1 -
How interesting.. why is it called the liars table? I look forward to see the finished product
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I see
Makes sense now0 -
Ran the top planks through the planer today to get uniform thickness and smooth finish.
Cut the leg pieces at 30", finished length will be 29 1/8 which will result in table top being 30" when added.
Blade change and set up on the band saw.
Made test cuts to waste pieces to figure out how I'm going to do the compound cuts to the legs to tenon in the apron rails. Combination of band saw, carefully adjusted and stopped table saw cuts, Japanese draw saw and and chisel work. I had to go in to work to follow up on a problem from last night, so I used my Autocad to make a drawing for the leg cuts. Four hours work today.
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Went back at it for an hour, but getting tired and can't afford to make mistakes with expensive oak. The leg design has a mirror image effect, so there's two of each cut, A,B,C,D.
The shop is cleaned up for the night. I have a good sawdust collection system that connects to all the tools, plus a box fan blowing through a furnace filter and an in-line fan tee'd into the dryer exhaust vent to the outside. All works well to keep the dust managed. I have two full bags of sawdust so far on this job.
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Looks like it is coming along nicely. A lot of work. Should keep you out of mischief for a while.1
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Dude...awesome! I'm a bit jealous of your skills.
Our "liars table" can be found in the local bar...I know what you mean about tall tales.
I've been both a firefighter and an underground miner. I think miners are worse. LOL3 -
Oooo! Nice shop! I mean, that's gonna be an amazing table and all, but I seriously have shop envy. Even daddy (the actual professional carpenter) didn't have all that swell dust-management stuff. Rockin'! 3
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Thanks Anne. I build my own kayaks, and there's actually a 90% complete one hanging from the rafters in some of these pictures. A winter job to finally complete this boat.2
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Another 5 hour day on the table. Finished the rough build of the legs, fitting and finishing yet to go. Lots of innovative cutting today, and chisel work.. Next step once glue drys is to cut a couple short pieces to the size and shape (45 degree chamfer where they intersect) of the apron boards and get the tenon openings dialed in.
The leg assemblies are made of two 2x4 pieces, glued together with two 1/2" oak dowels to connect them. The dowel drilling has to be right on, and the outer leg half is a blind hole so the dowel will only show as a flush (after trimming) circle on the inside of the leg.
Guides, clamps, dust extraction, and depth settings make for accurate drilling.
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I'm jealous of your wicked woodworking skills!!
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Thanks Mac. It's a passion of mine. After 40 years in industry I much prefer working with wood. Tech stuff paid the bills, but this is what I enjoy doing.2
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That 1 gallon trash can in these pics with the 'debbie travis' label is a joke I made for SHEWHOMUSTBEOBEYED2
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Thanks Anne. I build my own kayaks, and there's actually a 90% complete one hanging from the rafters in some of these pictures. A winter job to finally complete this boat.
This shop, and wood kayaks? Wow: Double envy! (I'm a maker, but smaller stuff and different raw materials, jewelry and clothing, mostly, on the utilitarian side. Love me some human-powered boats, though!)1 -
Have a look at my website
www. Farback.ca
Build logs of the boats i've done are there. The incomplete one is my boat, finally. 'Das Boot' The others I've made for family and one for a children's camp my wife and I are involved with.2 -
Doing a great job Farback.
Brilliant workshop. My hubby is a joiner/builder
He would die for that workshop. He would definitely have workshop envy 2 -
Got three hours in after work today. Legs glued up nicely. Trimmed the oak dowels flush then ran the legs through the planer to get the faces flush. Ran the feet and leg edges on the router table to round over the edges.
Made two fitting pieces of apron board about a foot long, cut the chamfer and hand planed the edges where they seat into the legs. Much work with chisels to fine tune the fit and all four legs are ready for the apron boards.
Joinery. Indecernable from witchcraft.
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Another three hours progress tonight with a fire department meeting in the middle. The legs are ready to go minus final top coat. Sanded 120 and 220 grit, drilled holes for the apron rail dowel connections. Stain coat of Minwax 210B (Golden Oak). Top coat to come will be Minwax Polyurathane.
Tomorrow is fabrication and fitting apron rails.
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Thanks for the photos to help us appreciate how the work comes together.
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That's gonna be one beautiful table!
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Thanks for the kind words everyone. I'm really enjoying this project. I'm looking forward to retiring in June and having more workshop and grandkid time.
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Four hours tonight, brings the hours total up to 22 so far. Got the apron rails cut and fitted, equidistant and squared. Cut two cross members and four corner braces. I should sand and stain these, but it's 8PM here. Job for tomorrow I guess. Starting to get a feel for the sheer size of this thing. The top will overhang by 3" on all sides of the frame. Ought to fit a lunch or two.
Time for a black rum. Yarrr!
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Four hours tonight, brings the hours total up to 22 so far. Got the apron rails cut and fitted, equidistant and squared. Cut two cross members and four corner braces. I should sand and stain these, but it's 8PM here. Job for tomorrow I guess. Starting to get a feel for the sheer size of this thing. The top will overhang by 3" on all sides of the frame. Ought to fit a lunch or two.
Time for a black rum. Yarrr!
https://youtu.be/fudwJZhiYxk 1 -
It's gonna fit through the shop door, right?
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Got a whole inch to spare. Loads of room.4
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