Summary: Extra storage and a top that raises up to meet you - and your needs!
What's the job of a coffee table these days?
Rest your drinks on?
A stable surface for the odd TV dinner?
Rest your feet on?
How about storage?
What about laptops? Ever bent over your coffee table to use your laptop? How about sitting on the floor and trying it?
Several years ago, we bought a coffee table that was pretty much what we wanted.
It was large, rustic-looking and solidly built.. but a bit high!
We'd find that we'd sit back on the couch at the end of the day and put our feet up, only to find the coffee table was so much higher than the seat of the couch that it would soon be biting into our achilles tendons.
It was last day of my holidays and I found myself sitting back, watching "Hot Fuzz". After shuffling my legs about on the table trying to get comfortable I thought it was about time to put a long held plan into action.....
So, I checked with the boss and she liked the sound of my idea - mod the coffee table or get a new one!
Goals..
-Lower the coffee table
-Add storage area/s
-Add some kind of funky lid to get to the storage areas
What's the job of a coffee table these days?
Rest your drinks on?
A stable surface for the odd TV dinner?
Rest your feet on?
How about storage?
What about laptops? Ever bent over your coffee table to use your laptop? How about sitting on the floor and trying it?
Several years ago, we bought a coffee table that was pretty much what we wanted.
It was large, rustic-looking and solidly built.. but a bit high!
We'd find that we'd sit back on the couch at the end of the day and put our feet up, only to find the coffee table was so much higher than the seat of the couch that it would soon be biting into our achilles tendons.
It was last day of my holidays and I found myself sitting back, watching "Hot Fuzz". After shuffling my legs about on the table trying to get comfortable I thought it was about time to put a long held plan into action.....
So, I checked with the boss and she liked the sound of my idea - mod the coffee table or get a new one!
Goals..
-Lower the coffee table
-Add storage area/s
-Add some kind of funky lid to get to the storage areas
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Signing UpStep 1: What you'll need..
Tools I used..
Screw drivers (electric driver/drill makes this more fun)
Hammer
Pinch/wrecker bar or something similarly thin and strong to prevent you bending your screw driver.
Old blanket to catch splintered wood, screws, scraps and keep the boss happy ;)
Oh, and ear protection (hammering the pinch bar and smacking at the wood from the underside of the table generated a fair bit of noise and caused my ears to ring before I grabbed the 'muffs)
Parts required to make something similar at your place..
A similar table to start with ;) - Something with a fairly heavy base if you are going to make it open up..
Bolts
Nyloc nuts
Hardwood for the cantilever hinge
Any extra wood required for shelves etc.
Replacement wood for any bits you damage
(I had to sacrifice the top routed edging as it was nailed and glued to the table and the table top)
Screw drivers (electric driver/drill makes this more fun)
Hammer
Pinch/wrecker bar or something similarly thin and strong to prevent you bending your screw driver.
Old blanket to catch splintered wood, screws, scraps and keep the boss happy ;)
Oh, and ear protection (hammering the pinch bar and smacking at the wood from the underside of the table generated a fair bit of noise and caused my ears to ring before I grabbed the 'muffs)
Parts required to make something similar at your place..
A similar table to start with ;) - Something with a fairly heavy base if you are going to make it open up..
Bolts
Nyloc nuts
Hardwood for the cantilever hinge
Any extra wood required for shelves etc.
Replacement wood for any bits you damage
(I had to sacrifice the top routed edging as it was nailed and glued to the table and the table top)
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One question I had though. How do you stop the hinges from continuing to swing? It's a little hard to tell but do they just stop because they resting up against the box of the coffee table when it is open?
I find I also do alot of prep work for cooking at my coffee table now as well. I take my cutting board & bowls & go to work while watching tv. I especially love it when I have to make huge batches of potato salad & I sit there & take care of all the prep work there. It works wonderful for me. My 2 yr old grandson came to visit & I had put lunch on the table & had planned for him to sit beside me, but he sat on the other side of the table where the top lifted up from & he enjoyed his lunch at the right height for him. (Just don't leave it unattended with a child around while it is up). We had no problems, but it is just a thought to be safe.
High Five for you
What are they attached to?
1. So the hinges butting up against the table is basically how you determine how far the table comes towards you, right?
2. Have you seen any wear and tear on your hinges as they keep banging up against the table top? Are they getting dented up? I suppose you could file away the inside of the table top right where the hinge meets the table, so it meets a flat surface instead of a corner.
Anyway, I'd appreciate your thoughts!
You just have to be sure it isn't taller than the two rails when closed, and that it won't get in the path of the top rail as it is coming down. As a bonus if you put four of these in (one for each rail) and you measured everything just right it would add a lot of stability to the top when opened.
There are a few variables that determine how far the table extends towards you, as well as the height of the extended table.
These include:
-the length of the arms
-the height at which they attach to the inside of the table
-the distance they attach/pivot from the inside edge that is closest to you
-the distance from the edge that they attach to the table top itself
If I remembered maths from school there is probably a simple equation that would explain it - personally I just used a couple of bits of scrap wood and laid them out in the shape of the hinge to work out the travel :)
You will also find in testing that these lengths and distances will be limited to what will actually fit inside the table.
2 - Nope, haven't noticed any wear and tear. But we don't extend the table every time we use it. One of my goals for this project was to lower the table as well so that we could put our feet up on on it ;)
The wood I used for the hinge is hardwood and the inner edge of the box that forms the table is pine, so any wear is likely to be seen there.
If it was a worry, you could sand the angle of the edge as suggested and or include some kind of rubber to form a stopper.
I have been thinking about a table for our living room which is not as big as we would like so I prefer most furniture to fulfil more than one need & this is just the job.
I have in mind a mod for a seagrass chest with the structure & storage built into it, I may also include an idea from falconsabre about incorporating a power supply as I have also experienced mishaps with trailing cords.
Have you entered it into the woodworking competition yet?
I just saw the date on some of the other comments, I guess entering it into the current woodworking competition would not be an option would it :-)
Again Great Job
Usually one side will be decent enough to sand/finish nicely.
To hide the layered edges (unless you want to go for that industrial look), you could put some wooden trim around them. This will both look nicer (than plain plywood) and will appear thicker (depending on how you do it).
Thanks for your enthusiasm :) I have a couple of other posts to put together when I get the time.
I have to say that the rebuilt coffee table looks better than the original. You did a great job!
With the hinges, are the closest of the "vertical hinge pieces" just resting on the inside front of the table?
Is it easy to lift and lower? I assume, when closing, once the table lid goes past the apex it'll have a tendancy to want to slam shut?
Thanks
It is pretty easy to lift and lower. I have done it with full plates of food and hot drinks on top. The beauty of the cantilever design means it stays flat the whole time.
Shortening the vertical arms will make the apex lower and therefore even easier to open.