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I think you overlook that continental climates tend to have long cold winters when any precipitation tends to fall as snow and does not evaporate leading to low humidity. Jim

It seems to me that your story should serve as a warning to anyone contemplating buying a Sjobergs bench. 40 -50% relative humidity may be fine for anyone living in Sweden with its continental climate, but it is not realistic for most UK amateur woodworkers who have to work in sheds and garages...

The fact that it took you an age matters not a jot. That you had the patience and perseverance to take the necessary time to achieve the standard you aspire to is what really counts. Congratulations on such excellent work. Look forward to seeing more. Jim

Very nicely made piece, Ian, thank you for posting. Jim

The tabletop The table-top design was to be an important part of the overall tree inspiration of the piece from the outset. The furniture design world is littered with round tables with circular inlay made up of radial plain or burr veneers segments; some of these are very beautiful but, for me...

Glue-up time. This was a long and complicated process, the details of which I recalI only hazily. Suffice it to say that there was no full dry run, not least because we knew that it would be very much trial and error, the chances of remembering it in detail would be small and we had a Plan B...

I'm sure you are headed in the right direction with excellent advice here. Can't speak for Felder PT's but don't be put off their bandsaws which are actually Italian made machines and near identical to equivalent Startrites. The cabinets of the Felder badged machines are a lot more rigid than...

There's nothing quite like that feeling when you suddenly feel it's ccoming together and you have finally got the knack. Some pictures of the end result would be nice. Jim

Thanks Geoff, I am really glad that you are enjoying my meanderings. It is often hard to know how much to say, so I try not to overthink it and just go with my instincts. Jim

Hi Kev, It was a very expensive table in terms of 5 day courses! Took me 3 years overall, very much part-time but I have no clue as to how many hours. Many, many hours thinking and planning before I even started and, as you surmise, lots more in between courses - thinking and doing. You are...

Thanks MF100, quite a lot of that was needed with the table-top which I will get to soon. Jim

Thanks Sawtooth, I am looking forward to getting to the creation of the table-top, which is in some ways less conventional than the pedestal although that is not obvious from the photo at the top of the thread, and posed some problems needing very careful planning. Jim

Lovely stuff. I am no engineer or mathematician but really appreciate the quality and ingenuity of your work. I steer clear of metal work but but that doesn't stop me appreciating what you have achieved. Jim

What a nice creative idea. Purpleheart will eventually turn bown - one of the reasons I have never used it. Have you considered a colour fast wood dye? Not only would this give you the colour you seek but it would also enable this to be further enhanced by the beauty of the wood itself. If...

Ply ribs glued into grooves in the legs above the maple trunk block seemed the best solution to the bendiness problem. Quite thin and simple, “low-rise” ribs, glued into routed grooves in the legs would have done the job, but this seemed like an opportunity to do something a bit more dramatic...

Yes, more photos please. Jim

Great effort. I was 57 when I started to make anything serious and have always refused to be intimidated by puzzles and problems. The secret for me has been to break it down into small parts of the process and think it though. Yes, it takes time but the reward at the end of a successful...

That looks seriously smart and a very useful piece of kit. Jim

With most of the shaping done, it was time make some decisions as to how the to fix the four legs together to form a really strong cylindrical trunk. Clearly, just gluing them together at their mitred edges would not provide a structure of guaranteed long-term integrity. I considered several...

Thanks also to Martin and COWS for your kind words. There is quite a long way to go yet and I hope everyone will enjoy the ride. Lastly, particular thanks to Baldkev for his encouragement to start this thread which I don't think I would otherwise have done, it really is good to know that the...