Got an UGLY little table to rehab...

Yeah....base has some screws missing, couple legs are loose.  That top will need to be cleaned off.  

Worst of the stuff..Crayola Finish?

Tried a course,80 grit belt in the beltsander at first......wasn't doing anything.  Had one apron clamped in the end vise...decided to try a small plane..

But those curved aprons let the table rock way too much.....finally, since the base will need work as well as the top, seperated the two.  Clamped the top to the bench, where I could plane in-line with the bench's long axis

Much better....plane is a Millers Falls made Mohawk-Shelburne.   Later it was sold as a"V"Line 900.   About a #4 size.   I had forgotten how knotty this old Black Walnut was.  One of the three boards in this top had cupped a bit.   Smooth plane wasn't doing much to level it down.   Needed to get the Crayola junk out of there, too...Went with a slightly different plane

It also made those curlie things.  Jack plane has a slight cambered to the iron.  Able to dig down a bit faster,too.    Then level that out with the smooth plane again

later, I'll sand a bit more, to even things out.  Once the top is clean and smooth enough for finish, I can move on and fix the base.   Might take awhile....stay tuned..

A "real wood" table! Don't see that too often, any more.

This is the one I rebuilt a few years ago.   Found an old Meersman coffee table on a trash pile.  Used the aprons as patterns, Salvaged the legs.   Plywood top was left in the trash. had some 1x6 Black Walnut in the shop, and rebuilt the table with that.   Meersman used a metal bracket to hold things together at each leg, I used Mortise & Tenon to make the base.   They also used pocket holes to attach the top.....I used wood corner blocks.  Their veneered top spit into three pieces.....solid wood one hasn't so much as a crack. 

 

Only part that will get the finish removed will be the top of the top.  Might add a new coat to all of the table?