Thread: Needing some legs for a large timber desk

I reckon a satin chrome finish would look smicko, also solves the rust problem

Ken

Thanks Ken. Would that be something I can buy in a can and paint on?

Oh, and here's the top, just waiting for the legs.

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Nice one mate! It looks like your little shed buddy approves as well.

Their are going to be a lot of opinions on the finish....at the end of the day it needs to suit you.

The two fall back finishes I always go for with timber furniture is the 'brushed stainless steel' look if you want to make it a feature or black if you want the woodwork to be the feature.

The stainless steel look will hide the dust down the line!

The black finish will hide the rust if you live close to the sea.

Hot dipped gal could be a good look. The legs are a bit industrial looking... You could dull the colour slightly with some coloured furniture wax.
I was surprised on how cheap hot gal coating is.


Does marine spar varnish stick to raw metal? It's probably the easiest of the tougher coatings to apply from a tin can.

Thanks everyone for the advice. I went with a black finish with some silver speckles in it. Not sure what it's called but seeing it all in situ now, I think I like it.

Here's a crappy pic of the finish:
photo (7).JPG


Here's how I attached the leg to the underside of the bench. This way, the timber has plenty of room to move but remains firmly attached to the legs. I have four of these "buttons" for each leg. The shadows make them look like they're on a jaunty angle, but they sit (almost) flush and hold the top to the leg quite solidly.

photo 1 (5).jpg


The final result, with the Inspector General for reference. LOML is most impressed that I am now off the kitchen table for work.
photo 2 (5).jpg

Cheers,
Af.

Mate, the finish on the legs looks bang on! It suits the timber top and fits in the room very well.

Not that I'm knocking it but are the fasteners for the legs strong enough? I'm only asking this because I suffer from over building everything...and I really mean 'suffer'!
One of the questions I always asked myself when I was making something for a customer was how will they miss use it, and can I make this strong enough so they (and myself) don't need to worry about that. This table is going to last a very long time and I doubt you will be the only one to use it.

It looks like a heavy top and legs as well as it being in a corner but the length of the legs looks like a pry bar on small screws. It's the racking loads with this design of table you need to be concerned about.


Mind you, I'm far from being an engineer! That's why I always make things much stronger than they need to be.

You could make up some metal plates that fit over the legs and over size the holes for lag bolts and stacked washers. That way your fixing through metal and the over size holes and washers will allow for timber movement.
Welding the plates to the top bar is better but you will probably get away with the clamping force of the plate. It won't take away from the look of the table either as it's still hidden enough on the underside.

On the flip side, the fixings could be completely adequate.

All in all, it's a pretty awesome job you have done. This fits nicely in the modern designer furniture category!

That looks pretty sweet!

Very stylish

Thanks everyone. I've been using it for the past few days and it's working out great so far.

Originally Posted by Ben Dono

You could make up some metal plates that fit over the legs and over size the holes for lag bolts and stacked washers. That way your fixing through metal and the over size holes and washers will allow for timber movement.

Thanks for that. There is a tiny bit of wracking, but nothing I'm overly concerned about (yet). If I find I need to tighten the buttons over time, I might go with your idea of making something more solid, perhaps even a metal bracket with slotted holes to allow for expansion. Nice thinking.

Cheers,
Af.