I milled this oak log in Gatwick in the summer on a beautiful sunny day. It was absolutely riddled with nails, screws and fencing so the bottom metre had to be cut off completely and the rest carefully examined before each cut. Despite the large amount of blue staining I was lucky enough not to hit anything at all.
I cut two slabs for the top of the table then some 5x5 and 4x4 for the frame underneath.
On this table it was decided that I could spend an extra day on the table and plane and size all the timber. This really makes a big difference to the finish of the table and allows the grain to show through. As it dries out and ages the grey of the oak will be enlightened with the silvery medullary rays and will look really smart.
The frames I build for these tables are all made with pegged mortise and tenons. The pegs are made out of seasoned oak so when the rest of the table dries out the joints only get tighter
As I had planed the timber I also added more finishing touches such as chamfered edges.
I built the two ends in the work shop and then completed the rest of it on site. This included cleaning up and hand planing the top smooth.
The finished product. One very heavy table!