# Oak, Octagonal Drum Table.



## derek willis (Jan 21, 2009)

A little thing I put together for a bit of fun last summer.
Here is a little project that I carried out some time during the last two years, at the end you will see a different version of the table, because some of the joints in the original project started to come apart, it turned out that the adhesive I had been using was of inferior quality and getting a bit old, I dumped it and bought a gallon of Titebond and re-cut the joints so as to remake the table, I feel that there is nothing superior to Titebond and it’s variants on the market at the moment.
Derek.
Oak Drum Table.

Dimensions, 600 mm. diameter, x 700 mm high.

I first saw one of these in a house whilst visiting, two years ago, somewhat different in design to mine, but it is where the first idea came from.

•	I decided to make the legs first, as I thought they might be a little difficult, I first made a blank out of 12mm. m.d.f. to the final shape that I envisaged. Pic.1 
•	I took some 12mm. oak and cut to lay out the rough shape of the leg, I joined them up with a finger jointer on the router table, I then used some 9mm pieces and I half lap jointed them again in the shape required, glued and clamped in place, when dry, I cleaned up the faces on the planer and thicknesser, I stuck the m.d.f. template onto the top with the glue gun and trimmed with a bearing guided cutter on the table. 
•	I then glued and jointed a 9mm. piece to the other side and carried out the same process as before, this gave me the finished legs. Pics. 2,3,4.
•	The next stage was to cut lengths of oak 70mm. wide and 20mm thick, finished sizes. I put a 6mm rebate on one edge and a round over on the other. Pic.5.
•	I grooved with a 9mm. cutter about 30mm. in from the front edge, enough timber to cut half the pieces for the top, on the underside, and half the pieces for the bottom on the top side, this is for the fixed panels. Pic. 6.
•	Having decided on the eventual size of the table and dividing the circumference up I cut pieces at 67 ½ degrees to give me the required octagonal shape. Pic.6 I cleaned the ends up on a shooting board made for the purpose. Pic.7
•	I fitted a 4mm. slotting cutter to the router table and slotted the ends of each segment, Pics. 8 and 9. I joined these together with cropped biscuits and cramped them into place. Pics. 10 and 11.
•	I next decided to tackle the leg assembly, I obtained a large block of Oak, cut to length 150mm high and cut the segments to form an octagon with a diameter of about 120mm. I cleaned all faces up on the jointer and finished with a hand plane. This has formed the hub for the leg assembly Pics. 12,13,and 14.
•	To attach the legs, I made a jig to cut housings in the hub for the tops of the legs (it will have been noted that there is a rebated portion at the top of each one). I then routed out to a depth if 16mm. and tried the legs for fit. Pics. 15 and 16.
•	Prior to assembling the legs to the hub, I fitted the claw foot castors, I also cut slots for the table bearers.
•	Just for a change of pace I made a checker board to go on the top by, cutting strips of contrasting veneer on a guillotine to form a 300mm. square board, I lay the strips on a piece of glued up card alternately, (I used spray adhesive), when dry I cut in the other direction on the guillotine again, and then stuck these onto card, thus giving me a 300mm. board. Pics. 17, 18, and 19.
•	To cut the insert for the top and bottom, I used 6mm. m.d.f. cut roughly to the shape, I clamped it into place, then with a gauge I had preset to the inside of the rebate, I scribed a line, moving the cramps as and when necessary, I then carefully cut to fit each piece. Pics. 29 and 21. 
•	I glued the bottom one in place with p.v.a. glue, and glued the chequerboard into place on the top one, aligning but not fixing the board into place until after the fitting of the drawers. Pic.22.
•	Pic. 23 shows the blanks and the drawer components dimensioned to 9mm. x 50mm. for the drawers and 9mm. x 60 mm. for the blanks, I then cut the blanks to length and assembled top and bottom onto the blanks in there respective housings.
•	Pic. 24 shows drawer components being dovetailed with a jig and router.
•	Pictures 25, 26, and 27 show the drawers fitted in place with guides and stops. The m.d.f. top can now be glued into position.
•	Pictures 28, 29, and 30 show the leather type being fitted around the, chequer board, stuck again with spray adhesive,
•	Picture 31 shows the tapered bearers for the top being glued into place, and 32 shows them being drilled and countersunk prior to being screwed to the underside, as in picture 33.
•	Picture 34, being finished with five coats of Danish Oil.
•	35 and 36, two pictures of finished article.


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## derek willis (Jan 21, 2009)

*Drum Table*

Second batch of pics.


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## derek willis (Jan 21, 2009)

*Drum Table.*

Third batch.


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## derek willis (Jan 21, 2009)

*Drum Table.*

The last batch.


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Very pretty!


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## derek willis (Jan 21, 2009)

Very original wording.
Derek.


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## GateKeeper (Dec 2, 2008)

Derek: Ican see that you are a master craftsman by the way you go about putting that table together and your attention to detail, very beautiful work sir, tell me, does the inset piece in the top flip over for the game board?


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## derek willis (Jan 21, 2009)

Gatekeeper,
No I'm afraid not, I had to disband that idea when my glue failed and I did a partial remake, the veneer panels were a bit of fun with some offcuts thatIi had.
Thanks for the welcome comments.


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## tjcarita (Feb 1, 2009)

Excellent work Derek! 
No doubt about it, a true Craftsman and it shows! Love the Picture-torial also!


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## derek willis (Jan 21, 2009)

tjcarita,
I re-iterate the words i used to Gate keeper, thanks, it is nice to feel one's work is appreciated by some.


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## Gene Howe (Jul 10, 2007)

Derek,
Your work is more than just appreciated. I'm in awe! You are an inspiration.
Gene


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## Bogydave (Nov 14, 2008)

Derek
Great job, Thanks for the photos & "how to".
Gives me ideas for a chess table that's planned in the future.


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## Dr.Zook (Sep 10, 2004)

Very nice Derek, but 8 sides and only 4 drawers? Just kidding, about the drawers.


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## harrysin (Jan 15, 2007)

What a project Derek, I can't really add to what's been said already, other than to express my disappointment with the lack of praise from Bj, who of all people is in a position to judge workmanship, and there was that in abundance in this thread.

Those casters, are they "off the shelf" items?


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## derek willis (Jan 21, 2009)

Thanks Harry, and I also am suprised that Bob hasn't told me of a better way to do it.
The castors, I had given to me, but I found them in Rutlands new hardware catalogue, and very expensive too, £35:00 each Phew!!, £140:00 just for the Claw foot castors is a bit much I think.


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## xplorx4 (Dec 1, 2008)

Very good work Derek, How did you finish it, and how long did it take to craft?


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## derek willis (Jan 21, 2009)

XP, Finished with several coats of Dnish Oil, took me about two weeks with just a few hours each day in between other jobs.


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## harrysin (Jan 15, 2007)

I see, like me, you use Rustins Danish oil, I've mentioned on this forum several times that oils aint oils, there really are big differences between the ones I've tried.
I'm sure that on the next table Derek, you'll adapt casters that cost a whole heap cheaper than those and still look good. I've just had a thought, I'll bet that a search through some second hand furniture shops will find a junk piece of old furniture with nice old world brass casters.


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## derek willis (Jan 21, 2009)

Harry, no doubt I will find castors, I use more recycled stuff than I buy, these I wouldn't have used if they weren't free, and by the way, Rutlands was the first place I had seen them.As for Rustins product, the best I've ever come across for finish is there two pack finish, called Plastic Coating, it appears to be, a melamine lacquer, very strong and virtually indestructible.


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