i am slowly making some progress on this project, and learning some things along the way. I have the legs laminated, dimensioned and one of the two mortices cut on each. I did make a small mistake on one, cutting a mortice too long, whilst trying to rush. I have glued a block in, but will inlay a veneer to get a perfect sized piece. I doubt it will actually be seen in the finished piece. I need to cut the tapers- I haven't decided whether to do it on the bandsaw (probably), or build a sled for the thicknesser. The latter is probably overkill for a one off job. I have no tablesaw to build a jig for.
The long side rails are dimensioned, need cutting to length and will have their haunched tenons cut shortly. The ends are to have drawers in, and I have dimensioned the piece running under the front to size (tenons to be done with above), and have thicknessed down the drawer fronts, so that they are equal to each other, and flat. I will take some pics, but at the moment it is just a stack of planed up timber!
I think that I am short on timber to use for drawer sides and backs. I need to have a measure up, but I was thinking of the drawers being 12" front to back, and about 24" wide. I wonder whether they should be longer front to back. I cant remember what i asked the yard to cross cut it to...
Now for some questions:
1. What are the classic combinations, if I use a contrasting timber with the oak for the drawer sides and back? I was thinking of American White Ash, Maple. I could buy another board of oak if need be, but it would be nice to make a feature of the dovetails. The finishes will be oil for the fronts, and sanding sealer for the sides and back.
2. The drawer fronts are currently dimensioned to 1". They will be wide- 24" and about 3 1/8" deep. Is 1" a bit too thick? I dont have anything to reference it on.
3. The end pieces, below the drawer are 7/8" (finished) x inch and a bit (i forget exactly what). They are fitted so that the 7/8" shows from the end of the table. If i do a 3/8" mortice, there isnt any room to drawbore it from the only face I can access it. Will a nice tight blind mortice be sufficient? I do not want to fox wedge it, because I dont trust myself to do it correctly. I could do a sliding dovetail if I have to, which would be a better job, but is high risk! I fear that I have just answered my own question there...
Cheers
Mark