A tabletop, 2-1/2” thick x 48” wide x 16’ long is heavy. To support it, we increased the size of our larger Mitchell Table base and added two center supports. This definition of trestle comes to mind: a braced frame of timber for supporting a railroad over a span.
There are many mortise and tenon joints in this base.
The braces running end to end are tenoned through the ends. As a general rule, we cut mortises with a plunge router and shape the tenons to fit the radius left by the router bit, but on the trestle table ends we like the look of square tenons. Austin is squaring the trestle end mortises with a chisel.
We cut tenon shoulders on the table saw. It is extra trouble to make these cuts on the long heavy braces for this table.
Assembling the trestle.
Hell for stout.
