The Walnut Hall Table

This walnut came down in the January 2024 storm — I milled it that spring and it's been stickered in the loft since. 38mm, one live edge worth keeping, and a crack at the north end that will become a bowtie or a lesson.

Router sled day. There is no craft here, only patience and earplugs. Two hours of passes took out 4mm of twist. The grain that came up under the cutter made the whole ordeal worth it — ribbon figure I had no idea was in there.

White oak legs, drawbored mortise and tenon. The drawbore offset is 2mm — enough to pull the shoulder tight forever, not enough to split the tenon. Chopped all eight mortises by hand because the hollow chisel mortiser is a machine I refuse to own.

Everything goes together, nothing goes together well. Two shoulders need a shaving, one mortise wall bellies inward. This is what dry fits are for. Marked everything with chalk and a bad mood.

Tearout. Deep, ugly, in the show face, because I planed against grain I *knew* reversed. Options: card scraper and humility, or 2mm off the whole face. Chose the scraper. Two evenings of my life. Document your mistakes — they're the only honest tutorial.

A 12° underbevel on the slab edges makes 38mm read as 20mm from standing height — all the mass, none of the bulk. Spokeshave, then plane, then hands. Your fingers find what your eyes miss.

The moment the oil hits the walnut is why I do any of this. The ribbon figure from part 2 turned to smoke under the finish. Three thin coats over a week, burnished between. Next: the bowtie for that crack, and the part I've been avoiding — the drawer.