Here is a new project I started over a year ago. I finally had time to finish it during the holidays.
The wood is live edge curly maple. I am not a wood worker there are mistakes but they are mine.
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The next problem you are going to have: How are you going to ship it to me?!
Great job Phillip.
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Well… Maybe someone will donate a XR or MR-1 crate. This thing is like lead.
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That top needs a good oil finish to bring out the chatoyance!
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I did polyclear polyurethane. Wasn’t sure the best finish for it. I filled some voids with epoxy. My research up up with polyurethane as best finish.
I am all ears for tip and suggestions.
Had to look up that word. Never even heard or know how to say it.
Looks awesome!
Wish I knew of any wood workers around me; only reason why I don’t make tables/etc.
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Thank you
I traded work for a friend to plane it. Then I went to harbor freight and bought a sander and 50 bucks worth of sandpaper.
Spent 5 hours sanding and learning.
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questions for everyone. I made this table for myself but not above selling it. I have had a few inquiries on it
I don’t have a clue as to how to price the wood and woodworking. I can price the metal work easily.
I live in a area that things like this doesn’t sell or for what I see prices online.
This table is about 60x14. It is curly maple and powder coated frame.
What is the wood worth and would this sell in your area?
Well Jim already put claims on this one.
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Here is a good demonstration of Chatoyance. It’s presented by Brian Boggs, a fine furniture maker in western NC.
I took a furniture design class from Brian about 5 years ago.
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You price the table for what you would never pay for it. The double it.
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That wouldn’t work. I am so tight I don’t even squeak! At 100 bucks I would be like yeah that’s nice.
I hopped on Etsy and looked up live edge table. Wow I don’t see how they sell.
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I am with you Sticks. If someone came up to me and said “Make this for me” I would price at a number I would be happy to get for my effort. They don’t have your skills, tools nor the raw products.
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Gorgeous table. The combo of the wood top & metal work is outstanding.
For the finish I would have done a flood coat of epoxy resin to create a really hard durable finish and sanded it down to 320 grit. Then a couple of coats of Rubio for a final hard oil finish. Depending on the use (desk vs accent table) I might follow that up with one of the nano coatings for more durability.
Poly is a film finish and won’t really soak into the wood far enough to make a truly durable (as in years of daily use, water resistance, etc) finish. Epoxy and hard oil finishes soak deeper into the wood and alter the structure of the fibers so the finish isn’t just sitting on top of the wood. The downside is the cure time. Epoxy needs days (for big projects like tables using slow cure epoxy) and hard oil finishes need a month for polymerization unless you use one like Rubio which use a catalyst accelerator and then you’re good to use in 24hrs and full cure in a week.
I like the combination of epoxy and Rubio because I don’t like the shiny finish of epoxy and prefer the softer look of the Rubio matte or satin finish.
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Thank you.
Awesome I appreciate the tips. This top I put 4 coats of polyurethane then wet sanded with 2000 grit. it has a void on the bottom I had filled with epoxy. I researched around and found polyurethane was the best thing for epoxy.
I am going to try to think of a small end table I want to do a river table top. I want to do a small one due to inexperience with epoxy. The deep pour epoxy is expensive.
I want to find a design to incorporate the metal art too.
Depending on the size of the void I often use hot glue to fill it. I get black hot glue sticks and fill small holes. It’s fast and overfills sand down easily. If black fill doesn’t fit with the wood, I’ll use colored CA glue (Starbond has a bunch of colors). That’s quicker & cheaper than getting epoxy for small stuff.
Poly is okay but it depends on your use case as to what finish is best. Film finishes wear over time and restoring them requires sanding it off and refinishing the piece. But they’re fast and last reasonably well. Hard oil finishes are more durable and restoring them is only a matter of reapplying it (no need to remove the old finish) but take longer to cure.
It’s certainly pricier than typical poly, varnish or shellac finishes but relative to the whole project - wood, time, etc. not so bad until you start getting into multi-gallon pours for big river tables. The wood for my breakfast bar (12 ft live edge claro walnut slab) was $3,500. A couple of gallons of epoxy wasn’t a deal-breaker 
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Very nice!
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That would make an awesome two-person dining bar for a patio area. Some form of a back-lit strategy might make it pop.
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Yes Sir I am planning on a back light and will probably make a wood cover for the bottom shelf.
My wife said she is going to contest Jim taking it. She insisted she needs s coffee bar. Me all I need is a coffee!
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Did you mention to her that anytime her name comes up, I usually take her side? Of course you wouldn’t… 
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