Q&A for How to Attach Table Legs

Metal tables appear wobbly when one of the legs is bent. Start by figuring out which leg that is; then, use a vise to bend the table leg back to its correct shape. Just be sure to sandwich the table leg between thin pieces of wood as you secure it in the vise--otherwise, you'll damage the metal.

Many wooden table lags have a cloth pad on the bottom, which prevents your floors from getting scuffed up. Wooden tables often get wobbly when one of these pads come off, so your best bet is just adding a new sticky pad.

Usually, when designing a round table, you make a square skirt to accommodate the legs. The square is like a box that is attached to the circle. A leg will be located at each corner of the square. The leg will have a square end that fits into the corner. If you just want to attach the legs to the table, you can use a table plate -- it attaches to the bottom of the table and has threads for a screw that is screwed into the leg.

I've used rubber washers over the bolt that holds the leg on. The leg tightens against the rubber and not the table bottom. This way, when the leg is tight, you still have a bit of room to finesse the leg into just the right position. You may have to experiment with different thickness washers, or use more than one per leg.

The T-nut can be used in this application, but it's stronger when it's bolted from the post and not the flange. Kind of like a binding post or a rivet. The way it's used in this how to, though, you might have a problem one day in the future when you pick up this table and the T-nut comes away with the leg. Alternatively, you can use the T-nut in the way I described and then attach another piece on top to cover the flanged bits out.

Depending on the look you're going for, I would suggest building a frame that you can just place the slate in, and then attaching the legs to the frame. Alternatively, there is a matching brass piece (usually) near the hanger bolts at a hardware store. I forget what it's called, but it's a short, hollow, brass screw that's threaded on the inside and threaded or ribbed on the outside. You can carefully drill a hole in the slate and pound that in and glue it for good measure. Slate isn't hard to drill, but it's a lot of head and heartache if it breaks.

Two 1" x 2" pieces of wood at the right lengths attached to the wall studs is sufficient, and they will be under--and therefore hidden--by the desk. You can butt the desk against the wall; a couple anchor screws (sunk) through the top of the desk and into that 1" wide strip are usually sufficient. You'll still need a leg under the outer corner of the desk.