Preparing the second apron

Yesterday I unclamped the first apron lamination and had a look. I think it was a success. Definitely a more consistently tight join than what I had on the benchtop.

Unfortunately when I went to move the two other apron pieces that I had stashed on the floor under my saw horses, I realised that I had left them in a position where the excess glue from the lamination had dribbled on to the wood. That was dumb.

I also found that my T-bar clamps had some discolouration on the beam where it was in contact with the glue. I’m not sure whether this is rust or some other deposit.

So, after scraping those pieces clean, giving my clamps a quick sanding, I ran a few passes with the plane on the apron to clean up the join. There is much more to be done to get the apron fully smooth, but today I set that aside and started work on preparing the second apron.

Working on the first of the two pieces for this new apron, after doing a first pass to flatten out the face, I discovered that there was a very substantial twist in the wood. Enough that, once I knew about it, I was able to see it with the unaided eye. There was probably about 3-4mm to be removed at each of the high corners, which doesn’t sound like a lot, but when you’re planing it down (while maintaining flatness across the width) it’s tough going.

I did eventually get the twist out, then planed and squared off the edges, and finally flattened and untwisted the other face. It was hard work but very satisfying.

Next it will be on to the second piece and then laminating the two together.

Lessons learned

• Pay attention to what’s underneath when laminating.
• Think about putting some material between the work piece and the beam of the clamp to protect it.