Wood table top without gluing

[rusty]

Sometime ago i saw pics of a wood table with the top not glued together but with a small gap between them. The gap was consistent and precise, Maybe 1/32" or so. Not sure of how the individual top boards were affixed to the aprons but it looked high end. Any idea how this was accomplished?.
Also the 4 legs were cut through the top.

 

[JohnnyR]

If it had an apron, just some screws through the cross braces. If I were to do it I'd dado the brace under the gaps to disguise them looking down thru the gaps.

 

[Bear Republic]

Could it just have been shiplap?

 

[rusty]

Lumber was air dried under shed roof for 3 years and then stacked & stickered in garage for 1 year with plenty of air flow down here in Shallotte. The table top (54 x 42) consists of actual 2 x 6 & 2 x 8 white oak, quarter sawn, planed and milled. Did not want to glue up due to weight of top. Will use z-clips and cross braces underneath and have an accurate 1/32" gap between boards. My crystal ball says it will work, i hope.

 

[Willemjm]

Lumber was air dried under shed roof for 3 years and then stacked & stickered in garage for 1 year with plenty of air flow down here in Shallotte. The table top (54 x 42) consists of actual 2 x 6 & 2 x 8 white oak, quarter sawn, planed and milled. Did not want to glue up due to weight of top. Will use z-clips and cross braces underneath and have an accurate 1/32" gap between boards. My crystal ball says it will work, i hope.

What is the MC? My guess is around 11 to 12%. Once inside, your 1/32" gaps will widen up to 1/8" and the will not be uniform throughout.

Personally, I would use a wider gap, allowing me to clean debris that gets in between the boards through normal use and allowing a more uniform look after wood movement.

 

[mkepke]

It could be done by rigidly attaching the edges of each board to each other with a 1/32" gap, but letting the whole assembly float on the stretchers.

I can think of a couple ways to actually do it, e.g. use a sliding dovetail joint running perpendicular to the boards (handles the movement and keeps the boards flat). Then use figure 8 clips to attach the edges of adjacent boards (to maintain the 1/32" spacing).

Not sure how you avoid having some sort of spacer(s) visible when looking down the gap though. Alternatively, you could use continuous spacers between the boards such as strips of 1/32" plexiglass to get around that...

The parent in me shudders at the thought of a table top with gaps in the top

-Mark