Extendable Cherry Dining Room Table

[WarrenT]

I just finished building an extendable cherry dining room table and thought perhaps the FOG community may enjoy having a look. 

I also purchased six new chairs made by Thos Moser in Auburn, Maine.  When I first ordered the chairs, I spoke to them about recommendations for table slides. My friend Jessica at Thos Moser provided me with the contact information for a German company called Poettker .  Their USA outlet in North Carolina was very polite and helpful and shipped a beautiful pair of slides to me promptly. The total cost for the slides was right around 300 dollars, including the UPS shipping.

The table is 42 inches wide.  In the closed position it is 7 feet long, adding the two 18 inch leaves brings it to a total of 10 feet long.  It will seat 10 people comfortably.  The tops of the arm chairs are 28 inches high.  The underside of the top is 29 inches from the floor, and the 1 inch thick top bring the total height to 30 inches.

I built a similar table from oak about 30 years ago.  It was modeled after plans by Norm Abram of the New Yankee Workshop.  I re-used many of his ideas and added my own thoughts to incorporate the extendable feature of the table.

Click here for the You Tube Video

 

[RKA]

Nice video and beautiful table (and chairs)!  Thanks for sharing the details on the slides, you can tell those are high quality judging by how easily the tops opened and closed. 

Regarding the polyx, the stickiness could be because it’s setting up (work smaller sections) or the microfiber is too grabby (try blue shop towels).  I haven’t noticed this problem with osmo using these tips.  I love osmo’s ease of use and the final finish.

 

[WarrenT]

Thanks Raj,    I oiled both halves of the top and the two inserts before I began to wipe it off.  You are right, I should have oiled one piece at a time then wiped.  Thanks for the tip on the blue shop towels, too...

 

[Michael Kellough]

Nicely done! Beautiful table and the slides work extremely well.
I especially like the unexpected leaf storage feature.

The video was short and sweet!

 

[gsdvorak]

Awesome design and craftsmanship- Congratulations!  I really appreciate you sharing as this is on my 'to-do' list coming up (according to the boss- my wife).  I really like how your table can be disassembled- it gave me some ideas to incorporate in my design.

Regards,
Gerald

 

[GoingMyWay]

That is a beautiful table and having the leaf storage underneath is brilliant!

 

[chrisrosenb]

Beautiful design & table. Great video.

Could you provide the contact information for the slides? What length are they?

 

[WarrenT]

My initial table slide conversation was with Jamie Mills at Poettker USA in North Carolina.  The contact number is 336 472 1006.  At that point, I had a rough idea of the size of my table top.  Jamie was relieved that my first step was buying the slides, and that I was going to build the table around the slides, and not the other way around.  After he had a rough idea of my top size, he e mailed me a few pdf drawings.

I had read, and Jamie confirmed, that you want to have roughly two thirds of your top supported by the slides.  In my case, the closed slide measured 1370 mm or about 54 inches.  Two thirds of 81 is 54, and my closed table size was 84 inches so I was pretty close.

After reviewing the drawings, I talked to someone different when I called back to place the order, then I spoke with someone different to confirm my shipping and credit card information.  Although they were different than Jamie, those people had my order information in front of them and were polite and helpful.

Thank you to all for your comments.  I spent a lot of time online gathering ideas from You Tube, searching Google for pictures that gave me design ideas, and reading ideas in forums like this one. I am certainly not an expert, but many others helped me, and I am glad to answer any questions or post additional pictures.

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[thender]

GORGEOUS table!  And it looks wonderful with the chairs.

The slide works incredibly well and by far the best I've ever seen.

But...  the slides are fairly tall (in vertical direction).  Does that create a knee-room problem?  It is hard to tell looking at the video.

Great job, and thanks for sharing.

 

[Mario Turcot]

Awesome table  [jawdrop]

I watched the video and cannot tell if there is a locking mechanist for open and close positions?

 

[WarrenT]

Before I started, I measured every table within a 20 mile radius of home.  My friends and neighbors and my wife thought ( still think ) I am crazy.


Then I read an article in a 1995 edition of Fine Woodworking on this very subject which said,

“Chairs are typically 17 to 18 inches high at the seat. Allowing 6 to 7 in. for the thighs to go under the top, the bottom of the apron should usually be 24 to 25 inches above the floor. “

The same article recommended a table height of 29 to 30 inches.  The seat height of the Thos Moser chairs is 18 inches, and the arm height of the end chairs is 28 inches. 

You have a good eye Tom, because those slides are 3 1/4 inches tall.  I originally built the two pedestals to be a hair too tall, then mocked up scrap 2 by 4’s and plywood to represent the 1 1/4 cherry that sits on top of the pedestal, and another 1 1/4 piece that runs between the pedestals to support the slides, and the 3 1/4 for the slides.  Then I was able to trim the tops of the pedestals to give me exactly 25 inches under the apron and 29 under the 1 inch thick top, for a total height of 30 inches.  I also made the table top 3 inches wider than my old one, 42 inches, to help push the chairs back from the apron a bit.

The result was worth all of my stressing because there is plenty of room for legs and knees when sitting on the sides.

Mario, I am attaching a video I took of the slide operation on the day they arrived from Poettker.  Yes, each one has a brake lever...

Click here for slide video

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[chrisrosenb]

Thank you for information on the slides. I have been wanting to build a table for many years.
With all that is going on, this year looks like the time to do it.
I am wanting to build my table based on a table we saw at the Shake Village in Kentucky a few years ago.
I am sure I will have more questions.

 

[Mario Turcot]

Thank you Warren. I was wondering because of the ease it is to pull it out and back in  [big grin]

 

[Michael Kellough]

When you’re ready we want to see the truck.  [wink]

 

[JayStPeter]

Nice!