Photo 14- Use very gentle pressure when you glue these up. The biscuit or dowel joints do not depend on clamp pressure to acheive their strength, so all you need to do is squeeze the parts together until they touch. Put clamp blocks between the clamps and wood to avoid dents and to avoid rust stains when the water from cleaning the glue hits the iron clamps. Clean the glue carefully with hot water.

Glue up the rails and legs in two steps. First glue the rear rails and front rail to their corresponding legs. Let these dry, then take them out of clamps and glue the side rails and front legs to these assemblies (photo 14). Doing the glue up in two stages this way reduces the number of clamps on the legs at any given time and avoids congestion. Check that the rails are square in relation to each other at the second stage.

Photo 15- Cut a cove detail into the bottom edge of all the table tops. If your cove bit has a bearing you don't need the fence, but I usually put one there anyway for safety and because it helps guide the work along.

Cut the tops to size, and trace the curved shape onto the edges of the uppermost top. Cut these curves out with a band, scroll, or coping saw and smooth by sanding. Set up a cove bit on the router table with a fence as in photo 15, and cut a cove into the bottom corners on the sides and fronts of all tops; not on the backs. Note that this cove cannot be more than 1/4" wide, because on the two inner tables it is close to or adjacent to the plane of the table legs.

Photo 16- Use a tapered bit with countersink to drill  holes for the screws. You don't need the countersink here, but it cuts away some of the wood above the dado to make it easier to get the screw in place.

Attach the table tops to the legs with screws located in the special groove cut inside the rails. Turn a top over, and clamp its rail assembly in place as in photo 16. Drill for screws as shown, but don't cinch the screws down yet.

Whenever you attach a table top to its rails, you have to make provision for the fact that the top will shrink and expand across the grain with moisture variations in the air. If you don't, when the top moves (and it will), it will break any glue bond resisting its movement, or break screws. Or, if the glue or screws hold, the top itself will split. One way or another, you have to let the top move or it will wreak revenge in a most unpleasant way.

Photo 17- Now you do need the countersink. Use it to expand the top 1/4" of the hole in the rail to give the screw room to move as the table top changes dimension with changes in humidity.

With these table tops, the amount of movement will be minimal because the width of the tops is never greater than 15". Since you don't need to expect them to move a lot, you can make lesser provision for their movement. Remove the rail assembly from the top after drilling screw holes as above, and bore countersinks in the rail tops over the screw shank holes as in photo 17. Bore these about 1/4" deep. Put the rail assembly back on the table top and screw it down. The countersunk shank holes will allow the table top to drag the screw shank back and forth a bit as it moves, without pushing against the body of the rail.

Figured veneer will benefit from fine sanding down to 600 grit paper, to bring out the way swirling grain plays with light. A durable finish on top, such as polyurethane varnish, is advisable if these tables will be used for any purpose that may get them wet, such as potted plants or Uncle Fred's unending supply of frosty aluminum cans.

Resources For Building Nesting Tables