Putting it all together

Working with this Aromatic Cedar is just about killing me - it's kicked up my allergies or I'm getting a cold - or something. The last time I worked with a piece of wood that I had a reaction to - I was diagnosed with epiglottitis - and trust me, that sucked big time. 

So - I'm feeling miserable, but it's time to get finish this piece! 

There wasn't much left to do - make the center stretcher and then tie it all together. The stretcher was about three feet long, so boring holes in it on the drill press wasn't an option. 

There's more than one way to drill a long piece!

KD (that stands for knock-down) fittings seemed appropriate here - in case this piece has to be disassembled some day. 

Placing everything on the table saw upside down is an easy way to bolt it together.

These long bolts will eventually be hidden behind some wooden plugs.

When using KD fittings, you usually use a dowel bolt, 

but I didn't have any that were large enough. Dowel bolts work best when clamping against a rounded surface like this hole. 

The next best thing is to bend the washers

so that they conform to that curve. 

I've done this a time or two. It works like a charm.

With the stretcher in place, it's time to add one last detail.

Along it's length, I added some FIgure-8 tabletop fasteners. Those will allow me to connect the stretcher to the tabletop in a few more places. 

FInally - the base is complete!

Everything was flipped upside down and bolted together. 

Don't you think the black hardware looks much nicer than seeing zinc coated metal? Well, the hardware is completely hidden on the underside of this table, so it's not like anyone will see it. You'd have to climb underneath the table to look at it. 

Still - I'd know it's there, so I want it to look nice. 

And suddenly - the table is done!

Hope you enjoyed watching this table go together. 

Now it's time to turn my attention to making something else - here are the plans.