# Black Walnut Table (Stammtisch)



## Nathan W (Nov 26, 2018)

This table will reside ( hopefully for a very long time) in the Stammtisch room of a new German restaurant in town.

I was originally commissioned to build a simple distressed farmhouse table out of 2x material. That is until I found the deal of a lifetime on some beautiful locally grown and milled black walnut. 

I started by flattening a book matched pair of slabs. 



 

 This was the first time I have used a router sled, and I learned more than care to remember. Many mistakes and nearly a half inch more than necessary, time consuming routing later, I decided it was good enough. 

I played hell getting an acceptable joinable two surfaces for glue up. Paitience, a few drinks and many choice words later it all came together. 

I could not get the lighting right for the phone camera, and the surface is not as splotchy as it appears. I was not going for a complete flat/smooth surface. I used a wire wheel to create “worm holes “ in the surface. 

 And I think the owners believe that’s what they are.

Overall, I put nearly 100 hours of routing and hand planing and another few hours with a helper to complete final assembly.

It’s not the finest table in the land, but it is the finest I have ever made. I am very pleased with the way it turned out. Most importantly, the buyer is pleased as well.

I finished and delivered the table on the restaurants opening night with a line steadily forming as I scrambled to piece this beast together. 



The table measures 8’4” with a varying depth average of 30” and a height of 30”. All walnut used in the table started out as 8/4.

I hope you never make a deadline as close as I made this one. That was scary!

Reactions: Like 9 | Way Cool 13


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## Tony (Nov 26, 2018)

The customer is happy, that's the important thing! What does Stammtisch mean? Tony

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## Nathan W (Nov 26, 2018)

‘Stammtisch ‘ as described by the owner based on his time spent in Germany is sort of the regular’s table. 

Traditionally, it was a social meeting based around a pub table where members would socialize and talk politics.

Reactions: Informative 2


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## jasonb (Nov 26, 2018)

Great looking table! and I enjoyed reading about getting it done, great post!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## Tom Smart (Nov 26, 2018)

Nathan W said:


> ‘Stammtisch ‘ as described by the owner based on his time spent in Germany is sort of the regular’s table.
> 
> Traditionally, it was a social meeting based around a pub table where members would socialize and talk politics.


Every German village has its Gasthause, the local family run restaurant usually with a local beer dispensed from a beautiful porcelain tap, maybe a few rooms to rent. And each Gasthause has its Stammtisch off in the most prominent corner where the entire room can be seen. It is indeed reserved for the regulars of the village, where they gather to discuss, play cards and enjoy said beer. 

Nice table.

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1 | Informative 4


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## GS-76 (Nov 27, 2018)

Very nice work.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## David Hill (Nov 27, 2018)

Wow!
Great project!
Sounds like you learnt quite a bit too!!! —that’ll come in handy later.
Bet that it results in more business.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## ironman123 (Nov 27, 2018)

That is a lot of walnut that came together to make that beauty of a table. A piece to be proud of. Great job.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## thoffen (Nov 28, 2018)

That's awesome and a crazy amount of effort to flatten it. I was thinking of doing a live edge dining table for us with bookmatched pieces but now am a bit scared.

Reactions: Like 1


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## barry richardson (Nov 28, 2018)

A beautiful table, well done Nathan!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## DKMD (Nov 28, 2018)

Very cool! Hope you get to enjoy a beer or three at that beautiful table!

Reactions: Agree 2


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## Nathan W (Nov 29, 2018)

thoffen said:


> That's awesome and a crazy amount of effort to flatten it. I was thinking of doing a live edge dining table for us with bookmatched pieces but now am a bit scared.


I wouldn’t be scared. I didn’t think I had time or budget to take the table top to a shop to get it flattened. I’ll definitely look into this next time. The hand hewn look is hard to beat though.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Nathan W (Nov 30, 2018)

I wanted to add these to original post, but my picture limit had been met. This is the hall of flags in the upper portion of the restaurant. 16 flags total, one for each state in Germany. I had the electrician help me bend the flag poles 


Yes, they have BEER! This in the wall of steins! 316 in total. I only helped with the layout of this. Each locker is rented for one year for $100. You don’t get to keep the stein, but get discounts on every beer as well as discounts on food and other perks. The owner sold these lockers out beforehand, raising over $30K to ease the opening costs.

Reactions: Way Cool 1


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## Nubsnstubs (Dec 1, 2018)

Man, I'm jealous. All those $10 ammo cans for a beer steins. 

Nathan, if you ever decide to do another one like this, find someone with a wide belt sander. Takes about 1 hour to flatten both pieces, unless the thickness is so far off to cause more sanding time. Since that hand plane can't be plugged in, toss it and use a table saw to get your straight edges for your glue up. 

Now that I'm done bitchin' at you, good looking table. It was well worth the effort you put into it. ...... Jerry (in Tucson)


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## Michelle+Wood (Dec 30, 2018)

It’s really beautiful. I like how you rounded the Edges and added the worm holes .


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## Aurora North (Jan 2, 2019)

Came out Great. I like that you book matched the sapwood right down the middle. I always try to sell clients on that when I'm showing them veneer and no one ever goes for it. I think it's a fantastic look and creates really pretty patterns. Looks killer (again just MOP that's evidently worth nothing) running horizontally on credenza door and drawer fronts. 

I dig the "feel" of the table. It looks like it belongs in a home with beers to go around and good conversations to be had. 

Nice job!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## ThomasT (Jan 4, 2019)

Hello Nathan,

Beautiful work on a wonderful table and it looks right at home in that restaurant.

Have a great day,
ThomasT


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## sprucegum (Jan 4, 2019)

thoffen said:


> That's awesome and a crazy amount of effort to flatten it. I was thinking of doing a live edge dining table for us with bookmatched pieces but now am a bit scared.


That is one of the perks of owning a band mill. Slabs are easy to flatten on the mill, sharp blade and a light cut does the trick.


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## sprucegum (Jan 4, 2019)

Great looking table, hopefully the restaurant is a great success and it gets many years of use.


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