How to Build a Double Pedestal Table
Because they frequently serve as the gathering place for families and friends for holidays and celebrations, dining tables are often seen as highly desirable heirlooms. You can add more of a personal touch by building your own. If your gatherings tend to be large, a double pedestal dining table might just be the perfect choice. We have a plan for a very sturdy design that incorporates a trestle between two pedestals. Osborne Wood Products can help get you started with our beautiful pedestals and cabriole feet. As with any woodworking project, the degree of success in directly related to how well prepared you are. So, for this project you will need to provide your own tabletop and the boards to be used for the batten boards and the trestle board. You can order the pedestals and pedestal feet from Osborne.
Altogether, you will need the following:
Materials:
- Your tabletop
- Two 1″x10″x30″ boards for battens (Note: 30″ wide will accommodate a 32″ wide or larger tabletop
- A 1″x8″ board – the length is determined by the length you want for your table. In this example we are using a 4′ long board
- Two pedestals
- Eight pedestal feet
- 16 hanger bolts / washers / nuts (available from Osborne Wood Products- Part #930)
- 16 wood screws (for attaching batten boards to pedestals
Tools:
- Electric drill
- 3/8″ drill bit
- Screwdriver
- Adjustable wrench
For our project, we are imagining a 32″ wide table that is 96″ long. The dimensions for the length will work out as follows:
2 pedestals @ 8″ wide each = 16″
1 4′ long trestle = 48″
16″ overhang on either end = 32″
Table length = 96″
We have the width and length of the table. The last dimension we need is the height. Most dining tables are 30″ tall. For our project, we are assuming that we are using Osborne Wood Products’ Pedestal Center (#1420). This piece is 24 1/2″ tall. We will calculate the height as follows:
Desired height = 30″
Less Tabletop thickness* = 1″
Less Batten boards thickness* = 1″
Less (bolt placement on leg) = 7.25″
Bore a 3/8″ hole on the pedestal 20.75″ from the top of the pedestal
Bore a second 3/8″ hole 3″ above this hole.
NOTE: board thickness is assuming a finished board thickness of an actual inch. You may achieve this either by buying 5/4 boards that are 1 1/4″ thick that you plane and finish down to one inch, or you may buy finished hardwood that is typically 7/8″ thick. In the worst case your table will not be more than 1/4″ shorter than 30″.
Bore 3/8″ holes on four sides of each pedestal, using every other (alternating) face on the octagonal (eight sided) pedestal.
Select one empty side (un-bored face) on each pedestal to serve as the side that will receive the trestle board.
Not FoundHaving dealt with preparation for the trestle and cabriole legs, you will now turn your attention to the batten boards. Mark a centerline at 15″ (one half the length) on the batten board. Next, place the batten board on a level surface and turn the pedestal upside-down and centered on the batten board. Trace the perimeter of the pedestal onto the batten board with a pencil. Do this on each batten board.
Inside the margin of the tracing, bore a small pilot hole that is roughly centered along each of the eight sides of the penciled perimeter ensuring that the holes are centered correctly for placing the screws into the pedestal.
Next, drill a counter sink hole (so the head of the screw will not rise above the surface of the board). Drill the countersink on the side of the batten board that will be the top – or will be the side that meets the underside of the table top. Now join the batten boards to the pedestals by setting the pedestals on a stable, level surface and aligning the batten boards to the tops. Screw in with wood screws.
You are now ready to attach the feet with hanger bolts, nuts and washers. Begin by inserting the bolts into the predrilled holes on the cabriole feet. Hanger bolts are double threaded. The threads that receive the nuts are the ends that will go through the pedestal. The other end – with larger threading – is the end that will go into the cabriole leg. Turn the bolt into the cabriole leg until the ONLY threads showing are those that receive the nuts and washers.
Next, insert the hanger bolts into the trestle board. Attach the washers and nuts to the hanger bolts for the cabriole legs and finger tighten only. Then attach the washers and nuts to the hanger bolts for the trestle. Once both the legs and trestle have been attached, you may tighten all nuts with a wrench. Your table is now ready to have the tabletop attached after which you may begin staining and finishing.
