Angles and splines combine for an airy design
For the last few years, the “table” between my couch and fireplace has been an old leather steamer trunk. A holdover from my bachelor days, it was too bulky for our small parlor, and obscured our view of the fireplace. It was time for something new. In its stead, I designed and built this minimalist, mid-century inspired table.
The glass top shows off the elegant form of the curved legs, and minimizes the table’s profile. Three sets of splines secure the joints, holding the legs together and attaching them to the mitered frame which itself is splined together. A rabbet in the frame holds a shelf, handy for storing coasters, magazines, and the like. I used slate from a local quarry (they take phone orders, see pg. 60) which contrasts nicely with the black walnut I used for the rest of the structure, but a glass shelf or veneered plywood panel would also be suitable.
A study in splined joinery
The table’s base consists of a rectangular frame with four legs angling out from the corners to give the table a stable stance. The frame is mitered and splined together and has a rabbet cut in its top edge to hold the shelf. Each leg is made from two pieces to prevent the short grain problems that would arise should it be cut from a single, wide piece. Splines in between the upper and lower leg parts reinforce the joints. After the upper and lower parts are glued together, the leg blanks are shaped at the router table using a template and an over-under flush trim bit. A third set of splines attaches the legs to the frame.
Order of Work
- Spline and shape legs
- Make the mitered frame
- Attach legs to frame
- Finish up and install glass and shelf
onlineEXTRA
- Full-size leg template pattern
- CNC file for leg template
Make the legs
Mill the upper and lower leg blanks to size and miter their mating ends at two different angles as shown. Also cut two 13⁄4"- thick spacer blocks: the first a right triangle about 4 × 7" with a 62° and 28° base angles and the second 4 × 5" with a 45° angle. Assemble a simple sled as shown below, and use it in conjunction with the spacers to position the leg blanks as you slot the upper and lower leg parts. Then mill a length of spline stock to the necessary thickness (see drawing, p. 32) and width before cutting the individual splines to length. Note that for strength, it is critical that the splines’ grain runs perpendicular to the joint line. Glue up the legs, using offcuts as clamping cauls. Print and adhere the leg template pattern onto 1⁄2" plywood, then cut and sand it to shape (or cut the template using the CNC file from OnlineEXTRAS). Trace the template onto each leg blank, centering the joint perpendicular to the template’s flat front facet. Bandsaw the leg blanks to rough shape, then attach the template to the leg blank and use an over-under flush trim bit (see Buyers Guide, pg. 60) to finalize the leg shape.
Glue up the legs. Glue the offcuts from mitering to the leg blanks to act as cauls before gluing the leg segments together. You’ll trim these off later.
Shape the legs. Fasten the template to the rough-cut leg blank using double-faced tape. Chuck an over-under flush trim bit in your router table and adjust its height so the upper bearing engages the template with the template on top of the workpiece. Start in the center of the curve and feed the piece against the bit’s rotation around the end and to the center of the opposite side (left). Then flip the assembly over, adjust the bit height to employ the lower bearing, and trim the other end (right).
Create the panel frame
Mill the frame pieces to thickness and width, leaving each about an inch overlong. Tilt the blade on your table saw and miter both ends of each piece at 45°, trimming the pieces to length in the process. Cut the spline slots in the pieces as shown, then size splines to fit. Again, for strength, the grain of the spline should run perpendicular to the joint line. Cut a 1⁄2" wide, 3⁄8" deep rabbet to accept the shelf material. Install the splines and glue the frame together. When the glue is dry, use a chisel to pare the spline flush with the frame’s top, bottom, and rabbet. Then bevel the corners at 30° as shown, to create bevels that are 11⁄4" wide.
Glue up the frame. Whether you use a special miter clamp system, a band clamp, or shop-made clamping blocks, the goals are to get good pressure across the beveled joint and to make sure your corners are square.
Cut bevels for legs. Tilt your table saw blade to 30°. Clamp a stop block to an auxiliary fence to position the frame as you bevel the corners. Try to save the offcuts to use as cauls when you clamp the legs in place later.
Attach the legs
To cut the slots for the splines that join the legs to the frame, position the 28-62° spacer block to use the 28° end as shown. Then cut one last spacer block at 30° to use when slotting the frame. Cut the spline slots in the legs with the sled you made earlier. Make another carriage to clamp to your miter gauge. Use this along with the 30° spacer block to positon and cut the spline slots in the corners of the frame. Mill spline stock and glue the legs to the frame as shown. After the glue dries, trim the splines flush with a flush cut saw. Chamfer the bottom of the legs, sand and finish the table—I used a Danish oil to enrich the walnut’s color and topped it with a water-based varnish for added gloss and protection. Attach rubber bumpers to the tops of the legs before adding the slate shelf and glass top. Then sit back and admire your splendid new coffee table.
Slot the frame. With the carriage clamped to the miter gauge, position the 30° spacer block to register the frame for the 1⁄4" wide, 1⁄2" deep spline cuts. Clamp the frame to the block before making each cut.
Glue up. Cut two 83⁄4"-wide pieces of plywood to hold the frame level above a flat surface. Spread glue on the mating surfaces and fit the legs and splines to the grooves in the frame. Make sure the legs stay in contact with the surface below and the marked faces are oriented consistently. Use the frame offcuts as cauls in the inside corners as you clamp the pieces together.
