Advice needed on hand planing a tabletop

[dave]

The 20th is my last day at work (being laid off) and I am using this opportunity to spend more time in the shop and hopefully grow my skills beyond a hobbyist. One of the first assignments from my wife is a dining room table. She saw a very simple, country style table made from pine and she wants something similar.

I have no experience planing by hand and don't even have any planes. So, my first question is what type of planes do I need for this project? And what is a decent brand? Being out of work, I'll not be buying top of the line, but I would like some that I can use for a couple years until I am more skilled and can afford nicer tools.

I plan to use 8" boards and dimension the top at 40"x84". Should I plane the boards separately, join them together and then plane again? Since I'll be using pine, I am not worried about making mistakes since the materials are inexpensive. I actually need to make some mistakes since I learn so much better that way!

Thanks!
Dave

 

[Mike Davis]

Drive over to Pittsboro, discuss your plans with Mr. Ed Lebetkin at the tool room over Roy Underhill's school. He has good used tools at reasonable prices.

Basically you will need three planes, a try plane (#5 or 6 with radiused blade) to rough and quickly thickness the boards. Jointer to get the edge ready to glue and also the flatten the top, then a #4 smoother to finish the surface.

 

[bluedawg76]

good advice from Mike.

Yes, 4 square the boards i.e. face joint, edge joint, saw parallel edge, then face joint -leave them thicker than you need. Glue up and then plane to final thickness, flattening as needed. Just to add, you'll need a sharpening method if you don't already have one. Blades dull quickly and will need to be sharpened as you go. Folks here host sharpening workshops from time to time. If not, I'd recommend checking out some of Paul Sellers videos on his no-nonsense approach to sharpening (and others of his) as this is my preferred method. The other tool you need is a pair of winding sticks to check for twist in the boards. I made a pair of these about 24" long:

http://www.newwoodworker.com/windingsicks.html

Good luck!

 

[Roy G]

Check the CL ads. I see planes from a fellow in Willow Springs frequently. For your top, first lay out the boards so the appearance is pleasing to you. Then mark the edges so you know which boards go where in the top. Take the two boards at each joint up and fold them so the marks are on the outside(treat the joint like a hinge). Then put the two boards together into your vise and plane them together. It's hard enough getting a tight joint after planing without having to put a right angle on the board edge. Planing the two boards together cancels out any slight angle on the edge.

Roy G

 

[dave]

Excellent info, just what I needed to know! Thanks!! I am sure I'll be back once I actually begin the work.

 

[Willemjm]

Check ebay for old Stanleys that may need a bit of TLC.

Just a note of caution, flattening a top using hand-planes takes quite a bit of experience. It lends itself more towards the advanced hand plane user. It took me a while to learn how to use hand planes really well and it took me a while longer to learn how to flatten a table top with them.

 

[Mike Davis]

Right, and it takes even longer if you have to figure out how to set up and sharpen the planes. Which is why I recommend visiting the Roy Underhill school.

I'm sure if you explain your needs and the short time available to learn, someone there will help you out and show you the basics to get started.

And the planes there are ready to go, you will pay a little more than e-bay or craig's list, but you won't have to worry if the parts are all there, how to remove rust, how to sharpen a blade that is damaged or misfit, or any of the other hundred things that could be wrong with an unknown plane. And the price will be much less than a new high end plane that still needs some TLC before it is ready to go.

 

[KenOfCary]

Mike is giving you exactly the advice that I would. If you let Ed know what you are planning, he can guide you to exactly what you need.

I would recommend Stanley Bailey's or an equivalent. Ed will be of great help though and anything he recommends will be spot on.

Email him at edlebetkin<at>gmail.com to make sure that the store is open on the day you plan to visit. If you give him an idea of what you're looking for and when you'll be there, he will likely be all prepared for you. Great guy to work with.

I'll be happy to help out any way I can once you get the project underway. Pine is very easy to work with hand tools.

- Ken.

 

[MarkE]

Dave, you are welcome to stop by my shop if you would like to practice with a few different planes and planing techniques. I'm pretty sure I have a few pieces of pine laying around to practice on.

 

[MarkE]

Here is a link to Ed Lebetkin's web site.

 

[KenOfCary]

Mark,

Thanks for the link. That shelf unit on the left in the main page was twice as full of planes two weeks ago when I last visited.

Dave,

You can't go wrong with Ed's shop in Pittsboro.

Mark also has been known to sell some well tuned planes for decent prices. If he has what you need he is another good resource.

 

[Mike Davis]

I second that, got some great planes from Mark.

 

[agrieco]

I second that, got some great planes from Mark.

+1 on Mark's planes.

FWIW, I did something very similar recently. Pine table, and used the #7 I got from Mark to flatten the top. Since apparently I suck at glue-ups, I spent quite a bit of time throwing around the #7 getting the top flat. I now have incredible upper body strength from that activity..as the #7 isn't the lightest tool in the box ;-)

I was discussing the finish on this project in this post: http://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums/showthread.php?t=50938

FWIW, I based my design off of:
http://www.thewoodwhisperer.com/videos/the-not-so-rustic-rustic-outdoor-table/

 

[dave]

Thanks alot everyone! I realize it's a big project to start using handplanes on, but if I have goal, I am more likely to make progress. I am also trying to adapt a new attitude that failing is a part of learning and get away from my old " have to get it right the first time" mentality. I figure the more I fail, the better I'll be!

I really appreciate all the advice and I think I'll take you up on your offer Mark and come visit you after the new year. I won't be doing much over the next few weeks except trying to get the shop ready. Seems like I can't go wrong in visiting Ed either, so I'll do that too.

 

[Rick M]

I flattened a mahogany top, several side tables, and a small benchtop all by hand. Maybe it was luck but it was easier than I expected (not saying it was easy just easier than I expected). Do yourself a huge favor and learn about traverse planing, planing across the grain. Much faster, less physical, less tearout, then you smooth it and you're done.

 

[Jeff]

Dave,

Is your design 84" l x 40" w with 4 corner legs or are you thinking about a trestle table? Do you have pics of your planned table to share with us?

Pine is fine and it'll make a fine dining table. You're going to invest a lot of time and effort so select your wood carefully before beginning. I would not buy the junk at the local BORG which will save you headaches at the outset.

A 9-10' l board allows you to slip match them for grain and appearance. Boards 1 and 5 below look terrible, but the interior ones 2-4 aren't too bad overall. The ends get trimmed for your 84" l.

http://www.ncwoodworker.net/pp/showphoto.php?photo=72345&title=dave-table&cat=500

 

[CrealBilly]

I'm not so good with hand plans. So i just rip, joint 1 face and both edges, glue. Then find someone with a wide belt sander and pay them to flatten the panel and bring it down to my desired thickness.

 

[dave]

Jeff, I don't have a definite plan yet, but it will be something very similar to this:

http://cottagehomemaine.com/images/Cottage_Home_Ad_Table_Photo.jpg

Thanks wormil, I'll do that.

 

[pviser]

I gotta hand it to you guys flattening table tops by hand. For only a year or so have I added hand planing to my repertoire. My shooting plane has been a joy, and I love my block plane, but I have much to learn about using my #4 smoother. Tackling a table top seems to be very challenging. Good luck with your efforts, then offer an on-site seminar!

 

[Jeff]

That'll be nice. The design options are up to you.

You can consider leg designs and buy the legs if you wish. Supply the aprons and top and you're off to a start.

http://www.osbornewood.com/dining-table-legs.cfm