sometimes we forget .. live and learn

so, i built this table sometime in 2013 ... the base was from the antiques show at brimfield, mass., and it was pretty cool.  the concept was a round table with a silver dollar inlaid in the center.  it was a busy time, and maybe i wasn't thinking 100% clearly, but anyway, i cut a plank of 1.5" reclaimed oak into four sections and glued them up into a circle without thinking about seasonal movement over time.  it made it through one set of changes, but last summer, it absorbed enough moisture that the weakest joint failed and opened up by about 1/4".  below is an email i sent this morning, and when i finished it i thought, 'ah, instant blog post'  ... cautionary tale here with a happy ending.

click the photos to enlarge them ...



hi nina ...

sorry i didn't get the table fixed for t-day weekend, but it was not a small effort.  i'll put the silver dollar back in tomorrow and we'll be good to go. 

c u soon ..
dan

here's what i did

 we cut the top into four sections and cut veneers off the bottom and top so that it will still look the same.  i wasn't thinking things through the first time.  we made the top in the winter, and when the table absorbed ambient moisture from the air in the summer, the planks got enough wider that the outside circumference was too 'short', which is what caused the weakest joint to open up.  using veneers will prevent that .. 

should have thought of that, but hey, live and learn.

 

 so we had the 8 pieces of veneer and the cores

 

  and then we cut the edges off the cores and joined them to an mdf top

rejoined the veneers

and glued them back on, one at a time ... then after a little sanding and refinishing,

 once i get the silver $ back in there it'll be good to go ...