Re: Slight twist in new pine table-top...

[Andrew Gabriel]

In article , "stuart noble"

[PoP]

I don't think this would be a few days - maybe a year or two might do it.

PoP

[Peter Ashby]

As Andrew says, ask in rec.woodworking. How did you fix the top to the frame? do the fixings take account of the movement of the top? If the design is such that the top overlaps the frame by large amounts then your only recourse is either to breadboard the end or put in cleats with slotted screws, but these would show.

Of course it is also possible that the grain structure of the boards has made this inevitable. In which case look carefully and try and learn more about timber selection.

Peter

[Frank Watson]

On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 09:02:31 +0100, "stuart noble"

[Frank Watson]

I didn't! The top sits on the frame without being fixed, so that it can be lifted off. The frame is actually a wooden chest with no lid.

O suspect so

That's probably the crux of the matter. I noted that the wood was very unseasoned - you could actually feel the moisture in the wood when I selected it in the merchant's. However it was beutifully straight and flat and knot-free. I was hoping it would stay as flat as it was when I bought it.

Thanks again

Frank

[Peter Ashby]

Ah, so its basically an unrestrained panel. Without restraint, be it a subframe or cleats/breadboard ends it will inevitably warp.

Unless you buy it kiln dried you will need to stack the boards in a warm dry environment for a few weeks prior to joining them to allow the boards to dry and do the moving they are going to do. Then if one board twists you know and can either avoid it or work around it in some way. Even then you aren't guaranteed success, that is the nature of the material.

Even if you manage to force the panel flat, without some restraint it will simply warp again. Another thought, did you finish both sides of it? If put a sealant of some sort on one side of a piece of wood and not on the other, the unsealed side will lose/gain moisture faster than the sealed side (though few sealants will completely seal the wood). Putting the same level of sealant on the backside may help to correct the problem though the correction will not be quick.

Peter

[Peter Ashby]

Only if they are really beefy and arranging the slots for the screws at the right angle would be hard with an x-brace. I suspect you really need to built it a frame and some legs. Alternatively since it's sitting on a chest you could just build it a frame. Make the frame out of something like 20mm x 50mm sitting perpendicular to the top but arranged to fit over your chest, think of the normal subframe for a table but without the legs at the corners. You could attach the top using expansion plates, right angles of metal with holes and slots in them, B&Q and Wickes etc sell them. Then your top will be restrained but you can still lift it off the chest for access. Four bits of wood and some plates and you're away. Time to practice mortise and tenon joints ;-)

Peter