Reclaimed Longleaf Pine Dining Table

by ivan_stephens

34K12620

Intro: Reclaimed Longleaf Pine Dining Table

My wife and I just bought a new house and for the first time ever we have a formal dining room. So we went and starting looking for the perfect dining room table. We looked at furniture stores in the Dallas area. All we found was cheap tables with a thin hardwood veneer. After a few months of looking on Craigslist and all over the internet, I did find a style of table I like. I love the look of a farm table, the only problem is they are several thousand dollars or made from cheap yellow pine. So I finally decided to take a plunge and build one myself.

STEP 1: The Wood

I didn’t know what type of wood I wanted to use to build my table. I knew I wanted some character and I wanted the table to have a story behind it. I was looking on craigslistone day and came across a listing for some reclaimed longleaf pine.  I called the number and asked about the wood. Turns out it was the floor boards from a train depot in Bowie Texas that was torn down. The building was built in the early 1870's. Long leaf pine is the hardest of all the pine species. This wood has a character you can’t find in lumber from a store. It was tight grained and was colored by over 100 years of use. I knew this wood needed to be used again and its story told. Even with its age and abuse it was still good and very usable.

STEP 2: Preping the Wood

I gathered the wood and laid it out. I tried to see what would boards would look best next each other. I am blessed to have a to have a good friend who is master woodworker, named  Kevork.  He has a shop full of large commercial wood working equipment. This is what we used because it was an available option.  It could all have been done by hand with small power tools, it would have just taken longer.
1. We started by running all the boards threw a jointer.
2.Then we trimmed the width of the boards on the table saw. The width varied based on the condition of the boards.
3.We then ran each board threw a thickness planer.
4.Next we trimmed each board to its final length.

STEP 3: Gluing

After all the boards were where arranged it was time for glue. Kevork has a hydraulic banding machine we used to clamp the table. You could do this with pipe clamps just fine but again it would take longer.  After the glue dried its time to start sanding.

STEP 4: Sanding

Next came the part I hate… sanding. I used a palm sender with 150 grit and rounded every sharp edge. I wanted the table to have a worn feeling on all the edges. I hand sanded all the sides to make sure it was it felt like this table has been used for 100 years. There were several imperfections in the wood deep cuts and shallow cracks. I filled these holes with a 2 part epoxy I colored with black paint.  I left the old nail holes in the wood and planned on putting the old nails back in. After I got it where I wanted it I ran some 220 grit over the entire table.

STEP 5: Stain

I tried several stains to see what looked the best. Longleaf pine is notoriously hard to stain. I finally decided on Danish oil in a dark walnut color. If you have never used Danish oil, buy some and try it, you will love it. I then coated the entire surface in six coats of wipe on poly from Minwax. Another great easy to use product.

STEP 6: Legs and Appron

Legs-
The legs I ordered off EBay from a guy who turned them from antique pine beams. The legs are 30 inches tall and 6x6 on the top. They are over the top large legs. The only problem is the legs had large weather cracks in them. So I filled in the legs with the same 2-part epoxy I used on the top.
Apron-
With the apron I used the same wood as the top and cut mortise tenon joints using my drill press on my Shopsmith. I also cut a grove in the apron about 1/2 inch from the bottom. Then some glue and clamps, and we are almost done.

STEP 7: Finished

Finished
I assembled the table, it is exactly what I wanted. The final size ended up being 39x81 inches. It seets 8 well and is just our style. I put the old square head nail in the table and found 8 nonmatching chairs to complete the set. The table complete is heavy about 250 lbs, no particle board here.

This is what I have in it.
Wood for table                       $120
Legs                                      $180
Glue, stain, and sand paper  $50

Total for the table                    $350

The chairs i bought came to a total of $417
So for my whole dining table I paid $767.00

Special thanks to my beautiful wife Rachel for allowing me to do this project, even though I have never built a table before.
Special thanks to Kevork, your knowledge of wood working is very much appreciated.

21 Comments

ivan_stephens 8 years ago

Are you sure it's long leaf? Long leaf usually takes oil great. if I remember all I did was sand it pour on as much Danish oil as it would take. The legs are white pine and they turned dark quick maybe 1 coat. They do sell a light walnut color oil.

RussellB5 8 years ago

Hi. I have a bunch of long leaf pine out of a bar in Austin. I want to make a table like this. I tried the Dark Walnut Danish oil but it absorbs so much that it turns out really dark. Did you do anything to pre-treat it? Or, did you spray it on to get a lighter finish? I've had some luck pre-treating it with water. Thanks in advance!

xavier.lawrence.921 9 years ago

Hi, what brand exactly did you use? Im am trying to find this exact stain but there are a few different brands an the colours change dramatically. Any help would be awesome!!

djokimaki 11 years ago

B E A Utiful table Ivan, Love the sheen I see in it! Regards, D

chuckyd 11 years ago

The work paid off. A personal opinion here is that with those large legs a heavier (wider) apron may be more to scale with the overall table.

ivan_stephens 11 years ago

Wow!!! Thank you for all the positive comments.

cspann560 11 years ago

Awesome table! Take pride in it. I used to work in an antique shop in MA ans me and my partner would build these things out of old barn siding. Done right, they are popular and can fetch a good price. I hope the woodworking bug has bit you good. Try hand cut dovetail drawers next time.

joshfromga 11 years ago

That's a beautiful table. my parents had one similar in appearance, though it was bought. unfortunately, they had very destructive kids. the table didn't last past my teen years.

Philip527 11 years ago

cool table , I have an antique pine table that has turned legs one which cracked in two, didn't know how to get it replaced , I tried repairing it but that just lasted a few months, eBay , thanks ; looks like your table will last a long time , great job . = ph

richardsan 11 years ago

"Norm" would be proud! he might suggest to use 'dutchmen' to cover larger holes, it adds a bit of hand made character to pieces like this.
nice job!

ironman0104 11 years ago

It is wonderful You have truly found a great use of older wood and it will last for many, many years.

DDW_OR 11 years ago

NEXT, re-claimed lumber chairs???

MsJaxFla 11 years ago

Oh it is so beautiful. I know you are so very proud that you did all the work for a quality table that is not only beautiful, but durable and will last your children's lifetime beyond just your own.

Congratulations on a job done well.

I am ever so jealous, It is exactly what I have been wanting for my tiny dining room. A rectangular table like that takes up less space next to a wall and you can put a banquette type seat under it, that is if you make it yourself and voila more walking room till you need it. I have plans myself, just not the expertise to do what I want or the money YET.

rimar2000 11 years ago

Beautiful table! Congratulations.

When I saw photo 2 of step 5 I thought "this dude is crazy, this table deserves wood legs!" Then I sigh of relief, when saw the wood legs.

Mrballeng 11 years ago

This is great! Longleaf pine is rare. You sure have a one of a kind table.
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