split in cherry tabletop

[C.S.]

This is a solid cherry table, made in Vermont, with a 1.25" thick top. There is a 1.5" long, 3/8" deep crack coming out to one edge, along the top. (see link)

table is about 2-3 months old, but just received from the furniture maker. It has a catalyzed, 'natural' finish. I wanted to ask for your opinions about how this would best be handled... from a woodworker perspective. Some questions that come to mind, are, whether this sort of thing is unavoidable (it appears to have split along a line of grain) whether there is any reasonable repair/ hide available, and if one should expect that it may grow in size (and how to prevent this).

thanks for your suggestions,

-cs

[JGS]

[George]

Obvious from the picture that the crack was not near the heart. Also, if the color in the picture is true, it's some KD cherry, which means the crack might have existed and been closed by the final stress relief. Must have been a dry winter.

Had I paid for custom work, I would refer to the builder with my complaint. Even if you close it, the traces will likely show, and the finish will have to be repaired in any case.

[Danny Boy]

If older, I'd say it had character and leave it alone. Recently bought? Then make a personal decision: take it back ...no question about it. Ask for a replacement. Or, just worry about it until the warranty, if any, is over. If I'd built it and *if* that happened within the same time period or somewhat longer, I'd simply replace it with an apology, and use the wood for some other project. I'll assume you didn't buy it at Wallmart.

Dan.

[Jay]

Is it under warranty. Most big maufacturers are.

[Scott Lurndal]

Take it back and get a refund or get the maker to finish it.

scott

[Ken Buddha]

Damages are owned by the custmer, defects by the manufacturer. Have them replace the table or just the top.

This is a season split. It is a defect. You prevent this by getting a top which will not do this within its first four seasons of you owning it.

If the table were out of warranty then the repair/patch may be more noticeable then leaving the are alone. Sometimes, furniture technicians will use a low visocsity CA glue to fill the crack up, then level the glue with sandpaper and buff as needed to adjust the sheen. That's fine for catalyzed coatings and for plural compnent coatings (resin, hardner, reducer) like polyester and 2K urethane.

If this were on raw wood I would let some thinned structural epoxy (SystemsThree T-88) wick into the crack (use a hair dryer on a low setting and the stuff will thin out and wick in) or drill a pilot hole in the side and inject a little epoxy until I see it start to come out that top. This is gap-filling epoxy so there is no need to mate the split parts together as you would do normally with regular gluing situations. Also, because this is a slow curing adhesive it is pliable and not brittle, so it will stay stuck to its sides and not crack. Then, as for the visible part of the crack, that's a matter of cosmetics and hiding it under a thin bead of artfully applied color.