Directions for Making a Picnic Table

A picnic table is usually constructed of wood and is used for eating meals outdoors. A picnic table with separate benches has advantages over a table with attached benches -- it's more versatile and the pieces aren't as heavy to move around as an all-in-one unit. A picnic table can be constructed of cedar or redwood to resist deterioration from outdoor elements, but a table made from simple and inexpensive pine boards available at your local home center or lumber yard will suffice if you coat it regularly with paint or wood sealer.

Measuring tape
5 slats, 2-by-6 inches, 72 inches long
1/4-inch-thick scrap wood blocks
Bar clamp
2 cleats, 2-by-4 inches, 27 inches long
Belt sander
Power drill
Countersink bit
1 lb. of 4-inch wood screws
Phillips screwdriver
4 legs, 2-by-4 inches, 36 inches long
Circular saw
C-clamp
6 carriage bolts, 3 1/2 inches, with washers and nuts
Adjustable wrench

Instructions

- 1
  Lay the best sides of the five slats facedown on a flat work area, side by side.
- 2
  Place 1/4-inch-thick pieces of scrap wood in between each slat as spacers. Line up the ends of all the slats evenly. Place a bar clamp across the center of the slats. Tighten it to secure all the pieces together.
- 3
  Stand the 27-inch-long, 2-by-4-inch cleats upright on your work surface. Round off the top corners of each with a belt sander.
- 4
  Measure in 12 inches on each side of the tabletop slats. Mark the spots with a pencil. Place the cleats on edge with the rounded-off edges facing upward. Place a cleat on each end of the slats, on the 12-inch marks.
- 5
  Drill through the cleat and into the underside of each slat in the tabletop, using a countersink bit installed in a power drill. Drill two holes for each slat. Secure the cleats to the slats with 4-inch wood screws, driven in with a Phillips screwdriver.
- 6
  Loosen and remove the bar clamp from the finished tabletop. Remove the 1/4-inch wood spacers from in between the slats.
- 7
  Mark a 38-degree angle on the end of each 36-inch-long, 2-by-4-inch leg. Make the diagonal cuts with a circular saw.
- 8
  Cross two of the legs to form an "X" at their center. Secure the legs with a C-clamp. Spread the legs so they are 28 1/2 inches apart at the ends. Make a pencil mark at the center of each leg where the other intersects it. Remove the C-clamp.
- 9
  Cut laps in between the pencil marks at 3/4-inch deep with a circular saw. Put the legs back together and secure in the center of the "X" with a 3 1/2-inch carriage bolt, washer and nut. Repeat this procedure for the other two legs.
- 10
  Secure the legs to the cleats on the underside of the completed tabletop with two 3 1/2-inch carriage bolts, washers and nuts each.
- 11
  Cut two leg braces 16 inches long from 2-by-4 stock. Cut the end of each brace at a 45-degree angle with a circular saw. Attach a brace to the underside of the tabletop and to the center of one set of legs with two 4-inch wood screws on each end. Repeat this procedure for the other brace.

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