Oak Table for Church Services

Oak Table Before

This was a beautiful oak table hiding beneath years of usage. Used in a local church, this table’s place was at the front of the church used in their Sunday services as a communion table. It had been covered with a white tablecloth that hid the lovely carving (which you cannot see in the “before” photo. The top of the table had lots of wear and some water damage, but luckily it was superficial and mostly on the surface, not beneath the wood’s fibers. Therefore a good stripping and sanding process removed the unsightly stains and damage to reveal the original gorgeous oak hidden by years of normal wear. 

Table After

The table’s bottom cross piece, which was connected only with dowels, had come apart and was spinning wildly during transport. This was the first order of business, to repair that loose cross piece to stabilize the table and keep it from shifting again. To achieve this, we drilled two holes on each end of the underside of the board with a pocket screw assembly, then screwed it tightly after applying a generous amount of wood glue to the end cap. 

After clamping the sides together, the center board was again secure and super strong and won’t come apart anytime soon. (We always make any repairs prior to the refinishing process). Once the center board was dried and secured, we stripped and sanded the entire table, revealing the lovely carving which read, “This do in remembrance of me.” 

We chose “gunstock” as a stain color, which is a gorgeous golden rust with red tones. It’s my new favorite stain color as of this year and we’ve used it many times as it works for any type of wood. Followed up with four coats of satin polyurethane on the top and three coats on the rest of the table, this lovely oak piece will glorify the church and its services for many years to come.