How to Joint Large Slabs | Live Edge Dining Room Table Build 

Oh ya!

Thanks man. It will be fun.

LOL. Sounds about right

So true!

I am so looking forward to the first dinner party

If you want any help with it send me an email I'll be glad to help any way I can. Sounds like a fun project.

thanks man!

LOL yup. I love when I get the chance to use it, it was almost too small for this job.

thnaks Michael!

It would be.

LOL yup. over 200LB each.

I need to increase the weight of my dumbbells!

LOL thanks man. it is a beast!

thanks. i am going to experiment with that for a night light. especially the deep cavern parts.

Thanks!

Yup. 4 friends and 5 minutes it will be fairly easy. Easer then taking the bench up the stairs by myself last year.

Lol it is fun!

Thanks Thom. so looking forward to having this upstairs.

Wood By Wright Not going to be fun getting it there but will be sooooo worth it. If I lived closer I’d be there to help and to see it in person.

Thanks Bob.

That is the plan. I have a few fun ideas for that!

I love having her in the shop. we might have to do a project together some time.

I look forward to seeing how well you work together.

LOL yup. I almost put a tinny boat down on the lake but not this time.

That's a great Idea!

I'm going to experiment with that should become interesting to see how it comes out.

LOL. Thanks man.

LOL

My pleasure.

Lol yes it is.

thnaks. yup. 4 guys and about 5 minutes and it goes straight up the stairs. I have gotten my 8' long bench up the stairs by my self, this will be a bit easier.

LOL I need to get a forklift in the shop.

LOL yup. it was almost too small for this one!

Yup. 4 friends and 5 minutes it will be fairly easy. Easer then taking the bench up the stairs by myself last year.

Thanks man. I do not have any plans to take the epoxy off the floor right now. If it becomes a problem in the future I will send it off with a belt sander. But it is fairly runny and created a relatively smooth surface even though it does not look like it in picture.

LOL yup

4 guys and 5 minutes and it will go up easily. I got my 8' long bench up there by myself. this will be a lot easier.

Now that is an interesting topic. It is actually a myth that Biscuits make the joint stronger. They surprisingly make it a slight bit weaker. The glue needs clamping pressure to set properly and there is not sufficient enough pressure in the biscuit to do that. Dowels if they are extremely tight can strengthen the joint slightly, but in most all cases there is no need for that. The glue is way more then you need. For hundreds of years that was the way it was done. just a good joint and glue. If it is done right the glue joint will be stronger then the wood around it. the wood around it will break before the wood fails. the reason for biscuits is alignment. that came about due to power planers. and with a power planer you bring it to final thickness before clamping. you need perfect alignment. with hand tools you get it close then glue up and plane it when it is all together so alignment is not a problem. But if you are getting your thickness from a power planer it can no longer go through the thicknesser as it is too wide. hope that makes sense. I need to do a video on this one some time!

LOL 4 guys and 5 minutes and it will go up easily. I got my 8' long bench up there by myself. this will be a lot easier.

LOL yup she comes in very handy!

He didn't show all the stuff I had to climb under and over. It was definitely a tight squeeze!

LOL. I wish it was that easy

I am waiting for the fork lift comment!

Wood By Wright they'll be over as soon as they're done with me

Thanks. I will just leave it. It is really thin so not that much of a problem.

thanks. Glue is far more the strong enough. contrary to popular belief biscuits and splines actually weaken the joint with PVA glue. They are there for alinement when you plane prior to glue up.

Thanks Jason. LOL where would be the fun in that. it is far more annoying in video than in person. I use to have leather on the bottom fro that but it is not worth the time to put more back on.

You can make it with a split. It all depends on how you design it.

The glue straight joint is actually one of the strongest in this particular application. Especially with a large face as long as there is a good joint between the two it is incredibly strong. Using biscuits and dowels will actually weaken the joint because there is no clamping pressure on them. Biscuits and dowels are used to line up the glue up so that you have to do less plaining or smoothing afterwards.

Tite bond II it is more than strong enough, and I can buy it by the gallon!

the glue by itself is about as strong as it gets. oddly enough Biscuits make the joint weaker as there is no pressure in there to get the wood glue to full strength. they are there to make alinement easer when you thickness plane before gluing together. The glue by itself will be fat stronger then the wood around it.

oh ya!

thaks Russell this is for me. I do not sell what I make.

there is a frame it sits on, but that is all that is holding them together. don't need anything else. that is the way it has been done for hundreds of years. biskets and dominoes are a new thing that makes alignment easier. they really do not ad any strength.

they are fine as long as you did not spill epoxy on the floor! LOL

Thanks man. Yes. Splines and biscuits really do not add much strangth. In truth on most all woods the glue is stronger than the wood. Especially with a slab where there is such a large joining surface.

Wood By Wright whoa ok good to know I was googling how join big slabs and getting all kinds of info thanks for the direct answer and all your great videos!

My pleasure. any time!

You can see the whole build series here ru-vid.com/group/PLAbayqjimalHU2GXbsZm12qym1Z1pHZNM

Thanks. It is for my wife. I have been promising it for years.

Wood By Wright Well how lucky she is. I know it will be beautiful when it’s done and I’ll be following along on the journey. Thanks for sharing James.

You could get it pretty close with the tracks off. But it wouldn't be close enough for actual jointing. Not unless everything was set up on it within an inch of its life. And even then, I probably wouldn't trust it for the final fitting.

Biscuits or dowels really do not add any strength to the joint at all. They are there for lining up joints that have already been planed so that you can guarantee you'll get the two edges closer together. If you're planning on running the slabs through a planner then you will want to make sure the top edges are flush. So people use biscuits to make sure they can keep those aligned during the glue up. It is a misconception that they add strength to the joint.

Wood By Wright ahhhhh! Thanks for responding! Happy new year!

It would work, but better is a personal preference.

Lol he wishes he had clogs like mine.

Both will hold stronger than the wood itself. So if it breaks it will break better than the glue joint. Epoxy is better at wet conditions so if this were to be outside then I would use epoxy.

no those are just for alignment. they do not add ant strength to the joint. if you are going to flatten the whole thing after then there is no need to fine alignment.

Yup those are them.

thanks. yes. glue is all that is needed. biskets and splines are just there for alignment and provide little or no strength. though many will claim otherwise.

@@WoodByWright I was going to ask the same Question . Its realy hard to imagin that this tiny ammount of glue is enought to hold boars of this size with that little surfacearea together.

@@demacherius1 I’m going to disagree and say a 1/2” hardwood dowel every foot would strengthen the joint tremendously, not for pulling apart but for shear. Once you put a base on it you don’t care, but until then it could split from mishandling. I would also do it if the base did not span the joint for any reason (that would be unusual). Otherwise he is correct that biscuits and splines are for alignment during glue up. One other thing is using a smooth small roller will make the gluing go way faster and more even.

Sorry I don't sell what I make. The time I put into this with all hand tools makes it too expensive.

Got to love hand made wooden clogs

@@WoodByWright i didn't realize you made those, that makes it even better!

Better then the concrete

Yes. Dominoes and biscuits actually will weekend the joint with normal PVA glue. Contrary to popular belief they are just there for aliment. With power tools you can not run wide panels through the planer after glue up so aliment is key, but with hand tools you can plane any thickness after glue up. So no need for them. With a proper glue up there is no need for anything in the joint.

OK.. So I'm assuming you used tight bond 3? Or something Elese?

I use TiteBond 2 on this one. So after my most recent glue test I have switched over to using Elmer's wood glue Max.

@@WoodByWright Well I appreciate your time.... Are there any Good Books you would recommend. It's amazing to me just how much you can accomplish with a handful of hand tools... I definitely like the idea of NOT having saw dust blow all over the place. Thanks again for your response 😀

Lol nice!

Yes. On any good join up all you need is glue. Dowels and biscuits actually make the joint weaker. With their main purpose is providing alignment. so that you can plain the boards to thickness individually and then glue them together. However with hand planning it doesn't matter how wide the board is you can glue it together and plane it afterward. But if the joint is good and the glue is decent and there's enough clamping pressure. then the glue joint is actually stronger than the surrounding wood. Even decades into the future

@@WoodByWright thanks for the prompt reply mate. I am amazed by your craftsmanship and have subscribed to your channel. Robert

yup. no need for anything more. splines and biscuits do not strengthen the joint. they only make it easier to get a flat surface when done. Traditionally nothing else is used except for a few odd cases.

Thanks. I carved them from blanks, but best shop shoes you could have extreamly comfortable and protective.

For that one it was Titebond 2.

I probably won't. it is just a thin coating and it is my tradition to leave the underside of tables rough to show how they were made, this will just be one more story the table can tell.

No. I meant from when you had the big leak and there was a ton of epoxy showing.

I'm sure he'll add a few Butterflies/Bowties on whichever side is to be the bottom.

yup splines, pins, biscuits, and dominos are for alinement not strength. Historically glue was all that was used if the joint was done well. that and there will be no stress on the joint once on the base, and with that big of a well-maited surface, the wood will shatter along weaker points int he wood long before breaking on the glue joint even 50+ years from now.

I have not decided if I will ad any butterflies to the to the main joint. I might just do it for the look, but We will see.

I agree some butterflies on the bottom surface wouldnt be a bad idea but probably not completely necessary. As far as biscuits its a moot point since hes going to flatten the surface as a whole and come down enough to meet the epoxy which he said was 1/4" down.

LOL yup it was just barely big enough for the work. I am 11'13"

very comfortable. they are carved exactly for my foot. I wear them every day most of the day. and to top it off they are protective.

Wood By Wright thats so cool i have russian bast shoes i need to wear them more

Lol. 24"+ in width 2" thick and 11" long red oak then add the weight of the epoxy. And yup right about 200lb.

Biscuits are for alinement and provide little to no support. They are a newer invention brought on with the use of thickness planers. With a hand plane they really don't have that much use. And with the large surface area of this joint there really is no need for any other support. The wood will break long before the glue joint will.

it is about the same as normal rubber shoes with wood curls on the concreet.

No. Contrary to popular belief that actually weekens the joint. They are useful for alignment though if you pre smooth the boards before joining. But if you plan to plane them after then it is not needed

thanks man. planing that high is a bit odd, but it was not a problem. you learn to work in odd situations.

I thought about that as well. but James is a Superman and can overcome any difficulties

LOL thanks man.

Lol surprisingly the wooden shoes are pretty good on the wood floor. They have a much wider base and tend to hold on pretty well.

I use to have leather on them, but when it eventually fell off I really did not notice enough of a difference to expend the time to put it back on. it more annoys the viewers then bothers me so it stays off for now.

thanks. there are a lot of crazy people that like to do things with hand tools as it is more fun, quieter and slower. it does not get there faster but I find it more enjoyable.

Best shop shoes you can have.

Four. It'll take about 5 minutes to carry it upstairs. It will be a lot easier than taking the bench upstairs that I did last year

Best shop shoes you can have. Extremely comfortable and protect the feet

LOL I am a runner. not a lifter.

James has organised a few .. no make that a lot of friends to come over and move it for him ;D

Lol what about the fans, and camera.

Lol there is a reason I wear them every day.

We ended up weighing the top before installing it. The whole top together weighed 431 lb.

Wood By Wright Doubt it. Nice work. I’m 6’3” and strong as an ox. You can’t handle a 200lb+ slab like that. At one point you had most of the weight supported with one hand.

Lol I can lift well over 400 pounds in that manner. You might need to reconsider what other people can do. Come on over sometime and take it out for a test drive.

Wood By Wright 400 pounds with one hand? At first I thought you were bad at guesstimating. Turns out your’re delusional. 400 pounds 😂😂👍🏼

Best shop shoes you could possibly ask for. Incredibly comfortable and protective.