A tale of limitations- Petrified Wood Table
Bill Tindall, E.Tn.
I make what I make because somebody needs it. I will muster whatever skill I have, or can acquire, to come to an end. The petrified table is a case in point. In my mind I envisioned a table with arty legs that would hold the slab of petrified wood to become a functional table in the dining/sun room. My skill set is good engineering, acceptable execution of traditional joinery, and not proficient in design and sculpture.
Designing something to hold the slab was easy enough- four legs, some crossed stretches and points to capture the slab. The question was how “arty” I could make it. Limited success was the result. I am pleased with the shape of the leg and the outside profile. I had expected to profile the inside of the leg and here is where I ran out of ability. The challenge is where profiles meet in intersections. Copes and other techniques are employed for intersecting molding. I knew in advance it would be a daunting task to use these techniques on the stretcher to leg intersections. I did not further consider this possibility.
What I did consider was shaping the inside of the leg to flow into these joints. After failure to execute a satisfactory solution of many test joints I gave up and left the insides flat and the edges chamfered. (The chamfers do not show up in the picture. As a result the legs look a bit larger than in real life) I am simply not good at sculpture with a spoke shave.
The assembly is good enough and I’m done with it. A lesson learned a long time ago is to accept good enough. I wonder how many people could be making stuff that don’t because they have failed to come to terms with good enough. The table will meet the need and acceptable by most.
