How to Build a Round Pedestal Coffee Table

Skip the cheap medium-density fiberboard product and construct a round pedestal coffee table with a hardwood of your choice. Hardwoods such as cherry, maple or oak are extremely durable and lend a luxurious feel with their silky or distinctive grain. Choose high quality hardwood boards at least 3/4-inch thick for this project. Unlike other living room tables, the coffee table is short, with squat legs to allow easy access from the sofa. For best results, purchase a pre-built pedestal base with lathed legs available at a home improvement center. Does this Spark an idea?

Instructions

1

Glue four to five hardwood boards together, taking care not to get any glue on the top of the boards. Clamp the boards together with the bar clamps and allow to dry. When dried, the smaller boards adhere together to create one large board that you will cut into a circle. This circle will be the table top of the coffee table.

2

Determine the exact center of the table top. Use a straight edge to lightly draw two diagonal lines from the left and right sides, to create a large "X" in the center of the table top.

3

Tie a section of string to the pin. Tie a pencil at the other end of the string. Place the pin at the center of the "X." With the pin holding the string taut, draw a circle with the pencil. Remove the pin and string.

4

Cut the round table top at your pencil marks with the band saw.

5

Cut a decorative ogee edge or rounded nose edge around the table top with the router.

6

Sand the rough edges of the table top with the sandpaper. Sand the top of the table top with a sander. Take care not to dig into the table top surface with the sander, or you will create uneven dips on its surface.

7

Wipe the table top with a tack cloth.

8

Place the table top upside down so the underside is facing up. Place the pre-built pedestal piece, upside down, in the center of the circle on the underside of the table top. To find the exact center placement of the pedestal base within the circle, measure the distance of the four edges of the pedestal platform to the surrounding edges of the table top.

9

Drill holes through the top platform of the pedestal and into the table top. Be careful not to drill through the top surface of the table top.

10

Place a washer over the first wood screw. Dab the threaded part of the wood screw in wood glue and drill the screw through the pedestal platform piece and into the table top. Add the other wood screws in the same manner.

11

Turn the table right side up on its new pedestal base legs. Wipe the entire, finished coffee table and pedestal with a tack cloth. Stain and seal according to your preference.