I also thought this was a beautiful Japanese tori gate.
The previous commenter is correct about the pith. The best way to accomplish a glueup like this with non ideal/big box store wood would be to rip the boards down skinnier so the end grain is a straight or angled straight lines. The curve of the end grain is the direction the board will move, nothing will stop it. But if you remove the most curved (closest to the pith which will likely rot anyways) you end up with a much more stable glue up. It’s more work but it will last.
If you physically hard mount the tabletop to the base, with firm screws or glue, it will eventually warp or crack also since wood never stops moving. Usually the top is heavy enough to just sit on it, or mounting using screws with a hole in an 8 shape to allow a little movement.
This video by the workshop companion is INVALUABLE in explaining what can be confusing and boring
7
u/dontdoitdonny 5d ago
I also thought this was a beautiful Japanese tori gate.
The previous commenter is correct about the pith. The best way to accomplish a glueup like this with non ideal/big box store wood would be to rip the boards down skinnier so the end grain is a straight or angled straight lines. The curve of the end grain is the direction the board will move, nothing will stop it. But if you remove the most curved (closest to the pith which will likely rot anyways) you end up with a much more stable glue up. It’s more work but it will last.
If you physically hard mount the tabletop to the base, with firm screws or glue, it will eventually warp or crack also since wood never stops moving. Usually the top is heavy enough to just sit on it, or mounting using screws with a hole in an 8 shape to allow a little movement.
This video by the workshop companion is INVALUABLE in explaining what can be confusing and boring
https://youtu.be/oZkYLVrTYe4?si=ORWpjzoq65MVIiV_