---
title: 'How to build and finish a desk top / DIY Table top'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=IxELcJsbLCc'
video_id: 'IxELcJsbLCc'
date: 2026-06-28
duration_sec: 0
---

# How to build and finish a desk top / DIY Table top

> Source: [How to build and finish a desk top / DIY Table top](https://youtube.com/watch?v=IxELcJsbLCc)

## Summary

Brandon from Walker's Woodworks demonstrates how to build a large maple desktop from S3S lumber, covering the entire process from board selection and glue-up to flattening, finishing, and installing C-channel for stability. The video is a practical tutorial aimed at DIY woodworkers, with tips on grain orientation, biscuit joinery, and water-based polyurethane application.

### Key Points

- **Lumber Selection and Preparation** [0:22] — The client wanted maple; Brandon used 8/4 S3S (surfaced on three sides) lumber to save time. Boards ripped to just under 6.5 inches for a 32-inch wide desktop.
- **Grain Orientation for Stability** [1:02] — Rotate the grain pattern on the ends of each board to help combat twisting or warping later. Label boards after layout.
- **Biscuit Joinery for Alignment** [1:20] — Uses #20 biscuits every 10-12 inches, starting 4 inches from ends, to keep boards aligned during glue-up. Cuts slots on inside of outer boards and both sides of inner boards.
- **Glue-Up Technique** [2:29] — Uses Titebond III glue for strength and long working time. Applies glue to one side and in biscuit slots, then brushes to cover. Clamps from top and bottom, tightening gradually to keep panel flat.
- **Excess Glue Removal** [3:19] — After 10 minutes, scrapes off excess glue with an old chisel to save sanding time later.
- **Flattening with a Sander** [3:48] — Uses a Festool Rotex sander: starts with 60 grit to flatten, then 80 grit to smooth. Repeats on both sides.
- **C-Channel Installation for Stability** [4:14] — Installs steel C-channel on the underside to prevent warping/cupping. Uses three pieces for this top. Holes must be elongated width-wise to allow for wood movement.
- **Routing Slots and Installing Inserts** [4:53] — Routs slots for C-channel with a 1/4-inch bit in shallow passes, then uses a flattening bit to recess the channel flush. Installs Rampa threaded inserts with CA glue.
- **Trimming to Final Dimensions** [6:50] — Leaves an extra 2 inches on boards to square up after glue-up. Uses a track saw (or circular saw with straight edge) to trim to final size.
- **Final Sanding and Edge Treatment** [7:23] — Sands from 120 to 220 grit on the bottom, then uses a 1/4-inch round-over bit to soften edges. 'Water pops' the wood before finishing to raise the grain, then re-sands to 220.
- **Applying Water-Based Finish** [8:10] — Applies water-based polyurethane with a foam brush in thin coats, sanding between coats. Uses 2-3 coats on bottom, 4 coats on top with Scotch-Brite pad between coats.
- **Branding and Delivery** [9:46] — Brands the piece with a custom iron from Gearheart Industry. Reinstalls C-channel and delivers the desktop.

## Transcript

what's going on everybody i'm brandon
from walker's woodworks welcome back to
the channel i've been getting a lot of
questions lately on how i put together
these big desktops and table tops and
today i'm going to show you how i do it
[Music]
the client for this build wanted maple
so i went and picked up some nice eight
quarter stock this will be used as a
desktop but the same process can be used
for a table as well
the width of this desktop will be 32
inches so each board will be ripped at
just under six and a half inches to make
it look symmetrical i buy most of my
lumbers surfaced on three sides or what
they call s3s with s3s lumber you really
only have to trim one edge to get your
final size since the other three are
already surfaced buying it in this form
will really save you a lot of time
especially if you don't have a planer in
a joiner to take it down from rough
lumber to this state
once it's all ripped to final width i
lay out the boards and make sure the
grain pattern on the ends is rotated on
each board this helps combat twisting or
warping later on
after i have all the boards laid out how
i want them i label them so i know how
they go back together yes i already had
them labeled i hate when you push record
on the camera and it decides not to
i put all my tops together using
biscuits they help keep the boards
aligned during glue up you can also use
dowels or dominoes if you want to get
real fancy here i'm just marking where
i'm going to put them i usually start in
about four inches from the end and then
about every 10 to 12 inches after that i
use a t-square to mark a line all the
way across for a reference when it's
time to cut the slots i always use
number 20 biscuits and just try to get
them in the center of your material they
make expensive biscuit joiners but this
ryobi has worked great for me for years
you want to cut slots on the inside of
the outer two boards and then on both
sides of all the inner boards
once i had all the slots cut i laid the
boards back out in order on the clamps
and got them all lined up starting at
one edge i stood each board up to expose
the edge and biscuit slot where my glue
will go leave the last one laying down
though it doesn't need glue i've been
experimenting with this roller
attachment on a glue bottle from rockler
it seems to work really well and spreads
the glue out evenly i'll leave a link to
it and all the other tools i use in the
description below for you guys to check
out
i like to use quite a bit of glue on my
joints and i only put glue on one side i
prefer tight bond 3 because it's
extremely strong and has a long working
time i put a little extra glue in all
the slots where the biscuits go and then
go back over everything with a brush to
make sure everything is covered
here's where it can get messy lay each
board down and fit them together and
then lightly tighten the clamps until
the piece is drawn together but don't
tighten them yet just snug them up a
little bit
then you're going to want to use clamps
on the top between the bottom ones to
distribute the pressure evenly once you
have them on tighten everything down a
little bit at a time alternating from
the top to the bottom making sure it
stays flat as you go
i'll usually allow the glue to cure for
about 10 minutes and then go back and
scrape off any excess i can with an old
chisel this saves a ton of time later
scraping glue
the next day i came back after
everything was nice and cured and took
it out of the clamps this is kind of a
challenge with one person in large tops
the last top i did was a 10 foot long by
44 inch wide top that sent me the
chiropractor
be careful guys
all right so there's many different ways
but this is how i flatten my tops i used
to use a belt sander which works fine
but the rotex works so much better i
started out with 60 grit to get
everything flat on both sides and then
move to 80 grit to really smooth it out
i did the same flattening process on the
other side
if it's a really wide top or a long top
like this one i like to use c-channel in
the bottom to help keep it from warping
or cupping over time you can purchase
this at any metal supply yard or even a
local home store usually has some
for this top i used three pieces of
c-channel
i laid them out where i wanted them
making them even on each side and then
marked each one you want to make sure
the holes in the channel are elongated
as well width-wise to allow room for
wood movement
talk about good timing on this shot
here i'm using my router with a quarter
inch bit to cut the slots for the
channel delay in following my marks i do
this in several shallow passes
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hey
i also cut an eighth inch of depth out
of the center to allow the channel to be
flush with the bottom of the top using a
big flattening bit and a chisel to clean
up the ends
then i can install the inserts that will
accept flat machine thread allen bolts i
really like these ones by rampa they're
probably the best ones i've used
[Music]
i like to use ca glue when i install
these just to make sure they don't back
out even though i'm pretty sure they
never will
i like to run them in a little bit back
them back out run them back in just to
get the threads nice and secured in
there and not strip the wood out
after they're all installed i laid in
the seat channel and test fit all the
bolts
one thing i should have mentioned before
is i always leave about an extra two
inches on all my boards so i can come
back later and square them up after the
glue up i use my track saw for this but
you can use a straight edge and a
circular saw it'll work just fine
i made a few passes on this because
maple is really hard and doing this
makes it easier on the saw and the blade
i removed the channel and went to my
favorite sander the mercaderos you guys
are looking for a high in sander highly
recommend it as i always say
but i went from 120 all the way up to
220 to finish sand the bottom and then i
took a router and went around the outer
edge with a quarter inch round over bit
just to soften all the edges
this is what people call water popping
or raising the grain because i'll be
using a water-based finish on this it
would bring the fibers of the wood up
and make it feel kind of rough so using
water beforehand and then re-sanding to
220 keeps this from happening
basically you just spray a light coat of
water rub it into the wood let it dry
and then re-sand
[Music]
off camera i blew off the top with some
air and then wiped it all down clean as
i said i used the water-based
polyurethane on the top it will not
yellow like oil base does over time and
keeps the maple looking really natural i
like to apply this with even coats using
a foam brush
i also learned to make sure the coats
aren't very thick as you put them on
you'll be tempted to do it thick but
just do thin coats and sand in between
about two to three coats you'll be good
to go
looking back i should have installed the
channel before flipping it over oh well
live and learn
[Music]
[Music]
i used the same process on the top side
but i applied four coats and i sanded
with a scotch brite pad in between them
it makes it a lot smoother
i always brand my work and everyone
always asks me where i get my brands
from i get mine from a place called
gearheart industry i highly recommend
them great people over there
off camera i reinstalled the channel
flipped it over and this thing was ready
for delivery
well that pretty much does it i hope the
video helped you guys out if it did give
me a thumbs up leave me a comment down
below with what you think about it and
uh subscribe if you haven't already i
really appreciate it also check this
video out i'll see you guys on the next
one