Recommended tools for live/natural edge slab tops?

9 years ago

I don't have much in the way of woodworking tools (skill saw and a table saw that's about it!) but have just caught the bug and hope to try out making a few coffee tables with slab tops and hopefully work my way up to a 10 person dining room table.

I have a book with a chapter on finishing slabs, it recommends cutting them in half so they fit into the planer. I don't have a planer and would LOVE to get one if needed (looking at the 13" Dewalt), but cutting a slab in two seems a tad wasteful?
Any reason (wood stability?) why one may just keep a big slab solid?

Can you recommend the basic tools needed to debark, plane, sand, (etc etc) a slab?

Thanks for any tips and pointers.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (5)

sombreuil_mongrel
9 years ago
You could find a shop that has a thickness sander and ask to have them run it for you.
Or buy a few hand planes and cabinet scrapers and make your own shavings. A #4 bailey plane with a slightly convex blade to rough it out and get it true/flat (planar in geometry) and then a #5 plane to finish it very smooth and get rid of the rough-planing marks. Finally a cabinet scraper for the final smoothing. You won't believe the upper body you can develop planing hardwood for a few weeks. You'll also discover if you are prone to tennis elbow.
Casey
klem1
9 years ago
I will first dovetail on what casey said. Hand planes are something that last a lifetime and can be very satisfying to use if they are good quility and you learn to tune and sharpen them. It go's alot smoother if you have a mentor from the begaining to help select good planes.
I wouldn't cut a slab just to fit it through a planer. As casey suggested,have someone run it through thier large planer or drum sander. Depending on a few variables slabs can warp or split. That only adds caracter and is easy to remendy if nessary. My favorite method is useing a router because it will do slabs that power planers can't. An example is where the log is split leaving you with a half round that is impossible to power plane but is a piece of cake for a router.. Go to magizine's online like "Wood" and "Fine Woodworking" and search instructions for building nessary sled for router.
I find it easier to debark logs with a pressure washer and "TURBO NOZZLE"before taking it to sawmill. If I get a slab with bark intact I usually proceed with project unless bark is already starting to slip. If bark is still intact when project is complete,call it caracter and leave it.
Related Discussions
Can you recommend a digging tool for my crazy soil?
Q
Comments (34)
Here's a picture of the tool I use. (for practically everything) I'm hard on tools, and have not injured this one yet, except for a little rust residue from leaving it in a hot compost pile overnight...oops. Also included a pic of one of the 'earthly helpers' found in my yard. They aren't all this big, but since I've never tilled on my property... I seem to encounter bigger ones every year, and doubt they would survive a tiller. This one pooped right in front of me...about a half tablespoon worth. (Shocking, I know.) But, all that earthworm poop adds up. Makes a really big difference, if you are easy on the existing worm population. Just saying... I think what I've been using must be a 'pick axe' as Tox has described it... didn't know exactly what it was called before, but the pointy end works great to bust up rocky clay. (where I have broken plenty of shovels) If I am adding compost, I will sometimes work it in with my hands. Otherwise, just fracturing the ground with that pick is sufficient to let the good stuff in. (water, any organic matter you pile on top of the cracks, etc.) The worms will travel through the worst sharp rocky soil to get to organic material if it's there, but thats not all. They will intentionally improve that soil as they go, just to make their job easier. You'll start finding these big clumps of earth with nice tilth...and a great big hole running through the middle of every clump. The earthworms make those to use as their own personal subway systems...if nothing else, it's fascinating to witness how fast the soil can improve when there are motivated earthworms in the vicinity. (Tilling = death to big poopers.) You are right though...if you're in a hurry, the the worms probably are not the fastesr way. But, if you bust up a spot with the pick this year, pile organic matter there...and keep it damp? You should have no problem using a shovel there next spring... and won't believe how easy it is. Like a totally different patch of ground... I got to go, 12" of snow on the ground, and my arm is killing me...:( Les Here is a link that might be useful: My helping tools...
...See More
Natural Stone Primer / Granite 101 by Stonegirl
Q
Comments (1)
Fascinating! Could you address slab thickness? We mostly are seeing 2 cm, but at one place that both sells and fabricates slabs, they carry 5 cm and say thats better for the edge. Prices seem to be about the same.
...See More
What shrub to plant as natural fenceline on top of retaining wall
Q
Comments (7)
@ken - You can kind of see one of the white septic vents in the weeds a few feet in front of the deck and on top of the large retaining wall. It had to be put there (from my understanding) due to the drainage of our land. We put our home on 10 acres in the corner of one of our grain fields. Behind our home is a natural spring pond that eventually creeks off and feeds into a river about a half lv of a mile away from our home. We live in central SD. Our children right now are 2 and 2 months. Don't worry, I don't plan on ever having them unsupervised out there. We also have gates on both entrances of our decks. The plant choice is more for a deterrent/peace of mind since climbing a fence is pretty easy and fun for pour 2 year old. @Select - I appreciate the suggestions! I will look into those. I like the prickly idea. My parents planted prickly bushes in front of my bedroom window, I would assume to keep me in and the boys out, Hah! I doubt there are any codes due to the sparse population of our county, but I will certainly look into it! It is something I've thought of but forgot to research.
...See More
Natural stone slab, concrete pavers and gravel
Q
Comments (8)
KOH and NHBabs, thanks for your comments. I'm attaching a picture of the existing backyard. You can see the rock path curving around and meeting the patio to the right. The concrete extends in a walkway from that patio to the back gate and past the back door, out to the driveway. To the extreme left is the carport and garage, which form the side boundary of the yard. As for the use of the patio, there will be a pergola covering it (denoted in blue), and a hot tub and a place to put two chairs and a small propane fire pit. Not much scooting back and forth of chairs will be going on. (The grill and trampoline pictured will be relocated.) Here is a ROUGH diagram of what I've been playing with... slightly altering the stone path and the bed that it confines to extend out and over to a poured-in-place paver patio with the same crushed granite between the pavers. I've been playing around with lots of different iterations. I think I'd probably have less of a curve downward with the rock/gravel path and make it wider where it meets the patio so that it forms a more organic shape. The thing I can't rectify in my mind is the juxtaposition of rectangular concrete and natural stone. Since I have a rectangular concrete patio already, and don't want to have to resurface it, I'd like to marry the two types of surfaces. I'm just not sure if I'm approaching it the best way.
...See More
ctnchpr
9 years ago
What klem1 said about using a router. YouTube has several videos showing them in use. Mine is a lot like this one...

Here is a link that might be useful: Router
sswinehart
9 years ago
Call around to local custom cabinet shops & ask them if they will run the slab through their planer and sander. There is one custom cabinet shop where I live that will do that for a fairly reasonable hourly rate charge.

If you can group your slabs so that they are doing multiples - the charge becomes more effective as the rate charge is spread over more pieces.

The shop I've used charges a minimum of one hour time, and it only takes them about 15 minutes to run one slab as they have a double sided planer and then two runs through the drum sander.
fireweed22
Original Author
9 years ago
Thank you for the tips! I particularly like the idea of finding a shop that can run them through the planer, and I will look at making the router sled idea, my speakers are down but watched a bunch of videos and get the idea. Looks like I don't even need a bench top planer at this time.

Recommended tools for live/natural edge slab tops?

Comments (5)

sombreuil_mongrel

klem1

Related Discussions

ctnchpr

sswinehart

fireweed22
Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Recommended tools for live/natural edge slab tops?

Comments (5)

sombreuil_mongrel

klem1

Related Discussions

ctnchpr

sswinehart

fireweed22Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

fireweed22
Original Author