Console-ing
Erin’s console table is coming together nicely, in spite of a finishing scare tonight. I spent a few hours today sanding all the parts. And sanding, and sanding. Did I mention sanding? Took each part from 80 grit up to 220 grit in 20 grit steps, carefully blowing/wiping off the large grain sawdust particles from the previous grit paper. I wetted the top several times after I had gotten to 220 grit to raise the grain, then sanded it with 220 after it dried. After the grain didn’t raise any more, I put on a thick coat of grain filler on the top of the table… then I read the fine print on the can: “work in grain filler in a small area, such as a drawer front.” Well, I had gone and slathered half the can on the top of the table- an area measuring about 10 square feet- and it promptly dried to the consistency of concrete on a summer day. Took me 2 hours of rubbing with old socks, t-shirts, towels, you-name-its, until it was mostly removed. It’s okay, but I had a bad scare there. The grain filler makes the grain pop under the dye (next step), and acts to smooth the final finish.
Also today I did the inlay work to cover the transition between the field of the top and the breadboard ends. This decision was made after I realized that my joints weren’t very clean on the breadboard ends. The inlay fills the space perfectly, thanks to my new router table, and looks fantastic.
Tomorrow I’ll dye-stain the top a medium dark mahogany stain, then start the 3 coats of varnish. Look for pics sometime next week.