6 legged table - or what ?

[mart]

Cogar,, I think that square drive screw is not original to the stool and was done much later !! It was put in at the wrong angle and doesn`t fit the offset !! Look at the top of the screw head,,you can see the circular bottom behind it !! So whoever put the screw in,,did not do it at the correct angle !!

[cogar]

Mart, me thinks the possibility that a “weekend handy-man” would just happen to have one of those “square drive” screws in his pocket, along with a matching screwdriver to put it in with, is remote at best. That is, unless he worked as a “repair man” who often worked on house trailers.

[matty77]

Square drive is used almost exclusively by modern woodworkers.  Perhaps they asked someone who works with furniture to repair it - maybe someone they knew?

[mart]

We live on a farm and we have the tools for square drive screws !!

[frogpatch]

I agree with Mart. To me the piece screams 1930s. It very well may have been the bottom of something. If you are handy use it for parts to make something like a wall shelf or just fill in the gaps and paint it white or some other color and put a planter on it.

[Ellenshar]

Wow - thanks for the responses.  I called my sister and asked her to call her sister-in-law to get detalis on it.  I still think it has to be from the 80's - but still don't know what it is for.

As for the screws and nails, I checked my grandmother's china hutch, thinking that back then they didn't have screws (what do I know) - but sure enough, it has the exact square headed screws (and same nails) as my table. She was born in 1902, got married when she was about 15 or so, and got the dining set a couple of years later, making it from around 1920. 

The screws on the hutch are not buried deep - they are flush - but they look like the holes were pre-made with a tool -they definitely had woodworking tools back then - learn something new everyday.  The stain is only on the main parts of the wood, not underneath.  I know her dining set is solid oak, but still not sure what my table is made from.  Don't think it is plywood, but could be.

Will let you know what I find out - hopefully this weekend.

[Rauville]

I would wonder if this wasn't the base for a large wooden cabinet radio?

I was thinking of something similar to this:

[mart]

From the way its made it sure could be !!  And likely is the same !!   Excellent Rauville !!

[Ellenshar]

Still researching - came across this photo.   Hmmm, seems similar!

[KC]

I also thought it was the base..and those slots on the underside (do they go all the way through) just don't make sense if they are ony on the bottom!

[Ellenshar]

Nope - the slots don't go all the way through.

[cogar]

My bad, …… cause I screwed up on this one because it’s fer sure I opened my mouth before I knew what I was talking about. To wit:

The following exerted from:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robertson_screwdriver#Robertson

A Robertson, also known as a square,[17] or Scrulox[18] screw drive has a square-shaped socket in the screw head and a square protrusion on the tool. ………………… Robertson screws are commonplace in Canada, though they have been used elsewhere[20] and have become much more common in other countries in recent decades.

Canadian P. L. Robertson invented the Robertson screw and screwdriver in 1908 and received patents in 1909 (Canada) and 1911 (U.S. Patent 1,003,657).

Robertson had licensed the screw design to a maker in England, but the party that he was dealing with intentionally drove the company into bankruptcy and purchased the rights from the trustee, thus circumventing Robertson.[citation needed] He spent a small fortune buying back the rights. Subsequently, he refused to allow anyone to make the screws under license. When Henry Ford tried out the Robertson screws he found they saved considerable time in Model T production, but when Robertson refused to license the screws to Ford, Ford realized that the supply of screws would not be guaranteed and chose to limit their use in production to Ford's Canadian division.[21][22][23] Robertson's refusal to license his screws prevented their widespread adoption in the United States, where the more widely licensed Phillips head has gained acceptance.

[jacon4]

Did read a bit and some sites do say that during the reign of Charles I chairs were not common and stools were used as seating !

LOL, yessssssssss, back in the day, when men were men & women and children sat on stools.....sorry, couldnt resist! It was not until recently (18th century) that chairs were common and everyone sat on them. In the 17th century & before, pretty much everyone except the man of household and royalty, sat on stools. Chairs were expensive and typically most familys only had 1 (if any) which was reserved for dear ol dad! everyone else, sat on stools.

[Ellenshar]

KC, I checked the underside again where the slots are and came across something.  The slot isn't cut through to the top.  However, looking more closely at it, the top appears to be two identical pieces, either glued or screwed together (I can see daylight in places between the two layers when I use a flashlight).  Could be they removed the cabinet, cut off the lid, and glued the top lid onto the identical bottom base (which has the slots cut through).  That makes more sense as to why the slots are there - the cabinet would be inserted into the bottom piece - but someone has screwed the top lid onto the bottom piece making it look like the slots aren't cut through.

Cougar - I am from Canada - which explains the Robertson screw head.

Thanks to everyone for their input so far - will let you know what my sister finds out.  Will be disappointed if I find out it is only 20 years old!  Now, if I could only find the matching cabinet!

[mart]

In looking at the slots,, they appear to be expansion slots and not for any practical purpose !!  The bottom piece had no finish applied so the wood was not sealed !! The slots would allow for the wood to expand and contract without warping !!  If you look at your found example and at Rauville`s pic of similar stands both tops were made similarly to your table !!  Looks like double thickness !! I don`t think that the top of the upper cabinet was cut off and applied to the stand !! Thats the way its supposed to be !!