How to Make a Dining Room Table Out of Reclaimed Wood (pt. 3 of 3)

In Parts 1 and 2 of this series on how to make a dining room table out of reclaimed wood, you chose the wood you would use and cut and shaped each part of the table. Now in Part 3, you are ready to put all the parts together and stain the finished table. Follow the simple steps below to complete this project.

Step 1 – Preparing Your Tabletop for Gluing

If your tabletop is to be built from planks or individual pieces—rather than from one large piece such as a tree trunk cut in half—you will need to make the pieces that make up the tabletop into one single piece. The only practical way to do this is to glue these pieces together. To prepare them for gluing, lay the planks on a flat surface, side by side. Examine the edges of your tabletop pieces to be sure they are all smooth, flat, and even. Using a damp cloth, remove any dust or debris from these edges that might keep them from bonding as they should when they are glued.

Step 2 – Gluing Your Tabletop Pieces

Apply wood glue to the surface of each plank edge, except for the two outer surfaces on the two outside plank pieces. Spread the glue over the entire plank edges. Hold a straightedge against the plank ends to be sure they are all even. At least one end should be even. Place all planks together, side by side, so that the glued surfaces are conjoined.

Place 3 pipe clamps across the width of the plants, one on each end and one in the center of the planks. With the clamp pipe resting on the upper surface of the planks, tighten each clamp as much as you can. This will squeeze glue from between the plank edges. Use a damp cloth to remove all this excess glue from the plank surface. Be sure the plank surface and ends are even. Allow the glue to dry overnight.

Step 3 – Assemble the Table Pieces

When the tabletop glue is dry, attach a leg to the table skirt inside each of the 4 corners by drilling holes through the skirt and into the leg. Then insert a bolt, adding a nut to the bolt and tightening it. Finally apply glue to the support and leg surfaces where they touch, position a support against each leg, drill a guide hole through the support and into each leg, then drive a screw through the 4 holes, and wipe away any excess glue that is squeezed out from the support-leg joint.

Step 4 – Finish the Table Surface

Sand the table, including the outside surface of the skirt, and all four surfaces of each leg. Use a clean damp cloth to remove any dust or debris from the table surface. Finally, apply your finish of varnish, sealer or wax.