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Folding field table


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I found this U.S. Army folding field table yesterday, I have been trying to find one of these for years. I was excited to see it had the harder to find early pattern square legs and what looks like the original paint. When I took a closer look I saw it was dated 1959, I was hoping it had a WWII date. I do not collect anything post 1945 but I am going to make an exception with this table as I believe it is the same pattern as used during WWII. Does anyone know if there are any differences between this 1959 dated table and a WWII dated table? At any rate, I think it will look pretty good with my field desk sitting on top of it.

 

Rob

post-168-1252961054.jpg

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This is like the WWII pattern folding table because the table top is constructed of planks and not of one single plywood plate!

I guess the planks are 1" thick , right? Great find! :thumbsup:

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I have one dated 1942. It does not have the screws to tighten up the center support under the table.

 

What is used to lock the center support in place on your 1942 dated table? Thanks.

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This is like the WWII pattern folding table because the table top is constructed of planks and not of one single plywood plate!

I guess the planks are 1" thick , right? Great find! :thumbsup:

 

 

could you post some pictures please - sounds interesting as I haven´t seen this varriant yet. :w00t:

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post-3685-1253060310.jpg

This table is dated 1942 made by Butler Specialty co, Chicago. THe center support is the same minus the bolts. It hangs down when open and fits tight.

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post-3685-1253060310.jpg

This table is dated 1942 made by Butler Specialty co, Chicago. THe center support is the same minus the bolts. It hangs down when open and fits tight.

 

nice table :thumbsup:

Could you post a pic of the bottom side and stamp, please :w00t:

Looks like oak wood, right?

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Your 1942 table looks to have been left unpainted, were the early war tables issued in natural wood? I also wonder if this is an early pattern table and later war tables were revised with the locking wing nuts. I found an old post here on the forum by member Earlymb that has a reference to the table with locking wing nuts as a 1943 dated variant. This is turning into an intersesting discussion as there does not seem to be a whole lot of info out there regarding these tables.

 

Rob

post-168-1253155979.gif

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The 1942 table has no visible sign of ever having paint on it or the locking nut. This is the only one I have ever seen so I'm not sure if this is standard for tables of this period.

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The 1942 table has no visible sign of ever having paint on it or the locking nut. This is the only one I have ever seen so I'm not sure if this is standard for tables of this period.

 

Walt,

 

Thanks for taking the time to post photos of your table. Now we know of this 1942 dated variation without locking wing nuts or paint. The refernece book "G.I. Collector's Guide" shows a 1944 dated table painted olive drab but the angle does not allow us to see if it has the locking wing nuts. Can anyone else shed some light on this? Anyone else have a WWII dated table?

 

Rob

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  • 6 years later...
Checkmatekingtwo

Are the WW2 Folding table legs the same demension from top to bottom or do they taper? Our group has a number of the post WW2 version eith the rounded legs and we were looking to convert them to the WW2 style.

Is there anyone out there reproducing the legs? If not, what are the demensions?

 

Thanks,

Jim

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  • 5 months later...

Would like info on folding table. Belonged to my deceased brother-in-law. He served in the South Pacific and Japan after the war. As far as I can make out the info on the table is:

 

US

TABLE FOLDING FIELD

SPEC NO MIL-T 3338E

STOCK NO 7105-269-9275

BERN KANE PROD BROOKLYN

(unreadable four ltrs or nos) NO USA 400-67-C-8003

 

There is no date on the table. Thanks for any help.

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  • 5 years later...
MariettaPatriot

I am new to the Forum, Greetings. Using the information from this Forum I have created an Military Folding field table and I included the photos and instructions here. It was a fun project and a bit of a challenge since I usually work with metal...enjoy db

PROCESS FOR BUILDING TABLE -I partially used another person’s instructions (from video and some dimensions from popular sketch on internet) to avoid reinventing the wheel. AUG21

Intro – this was my first time building a table so the instructions are not 100%. Feel free to tweak them to a higher level but I will say that I am happy with my table and the things I would change is the correct paint and putting some spacing in between the most outboard table top supports to the upright leg brace – I had zero clearance and it would be closer to the original with 3/16ish clearance when assembled

Table measures 24” x 36” and 27” tall and made from 1/2” plywood. Assembles easily with bolts and nuts, hinges, screws, a couple of wing nuts and u-straps.

BUILD LIST

·       T-nuts - #10-24 x 5/16 deep (everbuilt p/n 156628). NOTE: I doubt these are original but I wanted it to be strong so T nuts are more solid than wood screws (I slightly under cut the wood so the T-nuts would be flush or slightly lower in the wood. If you do not want to look at the T nuts, you can cover the top with a thin veneer but this is above my rank

·       stencil for table identification (I used what I had, ¾ inch stencil) …I’m happy

·       ½ x 2’ x 3’ plywood Alternative is 1 x 4ish to end up with a planked table (about 7 planks with one or two that were more narrower to take up the uneven withs) – note this makes for a heavy table and this is a reproduction so I went with the plywood

·       1 x 6 for middle and end braces – total 7 feet long (I cut to 5 inches)

·       2 x 1 x 4 ft edge of table reinforcement

·       (6) HINGES – I used Everbuilt 4-inch strap hinge p/n 697451

·       (2) clamps 1/16 steel flat stock x ¾ (with wing nuts, wide area washers and narrow (pan) head bolt - ¼ inch. Appears that clamp straps are about ¾ inch wide x 2 inch long (could be less like 1 ½ – fabricate and cut back if needed -drill for ¼ hole on top and ¼ side holes (aligned for through bolt)

·       (2) ¼ x 1 ¼ bolt with ¼ inch fiberlock // #8 x 2 CC wood screws for hinge to leg. Also used on opposite side (3 each) for end brace to leg – (2 each)

·       #8 x 2 countersunk wood screw for hinge to leg. Also used on opposite side for end brace to leg – 2 each

·       Braided Straps – try On line, I got mine from local Army Navy store

·       (6) small Philips’s button screws with washers to secure straps to bottom of table

·       (4) legs – straight or tapered on 2 sides (the sides that lay next to each other) – 1/4 taper bevel on bottom. 2’3” long (I selected this height on personal preference…it worked for me)

MANUFACTURING NOTE: Since this is not a shop tool but will be a finished table, cut it with extra scrap wood on bottom to prevent slivering of wood and same for drilling holes -keep it looking good!

Plywood top - CUT ½ x 3’ x 2’

Table Top outside edge reinforcement – CUT – 2’ x 1” (looks like 2” wide?) – drill 6 mounting holes per part. Make sure you move the outside positions in a bit to avoid the hinge installation

Middle, center brace – Cut board 1”x 31 1/2'” x 5” (appears to be under 1” so I estimate a standard 1”x 6” that actually measures less than 1” so this should be correct) and place hinges in place – add the 45-degree edge (3/4) cut to clear for clamp and also add ¼ bevel along the 5” side (both sides). Drill for clamps - I located the clamps so when they were assembled (table together), there was about a 3/16 gap from the middle brace to the end leg braces (a 1/6 washer can be used if the legs need to move more outboard so the legs are 90 degree vertical). I drilled for bracket 1 ½ in from edge (note final fit should have 1/16 gap each side)

End leg braces (2 different lengths) CUT (Looks like it is cut from a 2 x 6) (1) 23 “ (1) 19ish (dial in after the first end with legs is made to avoid making too small) and notch out for clamp in center (drill 5/16 and band saw to meet hole – slot should allow ¼ bolt to easily pass) ,drill for three holes to attach to each leg side. Drill for three holes to pick up the legs.

Legs – cut 27 inches (I tweaked this to a comfortable height for me) and place hinges in place. Drill for hinges

Assemble loosely where all parts go and TAC only with screw to make sure it folds correctly – do this before permanently attaching

Attach end reinforcement to table top (6 screws each). Extra countersink (#8 x 1). Sanded 220 and Elmer glued for better bond

Attach legs to End leg brace (three screws each #8 x 2inch Philips wood screws) – I added (2) extra screws to opposite side for more strength.

Attach hinge to bottom of table (and then to legs (6 screws each). Drill table top for T nuts to mount the hinges to (stronger than wood screws) – 3/16 – 24 x 5/16 T-nut. I found it would have been better if I had a gap of about 3/16ish between the end leg brace and the table top outside edge reinforcement pieces. After hinges are located to the table top, open holes to accept the #10-24 x ¾ machine screw, Phillips 

Attach center table brace to hinge and then attach to (bottom side of table top) – countersunk #8 x ¾ wood screw

Locate, drill and attach clamps to center table brace with #10-24 x 1 ¼ with fiberlock nut

Finishing note for edge of plywood table top, I filled in any voids with wood putty so I would have a cleaner edge

Fabricate U bracket with ¼ - 20 x 2 bolt (brazed bolt to U bracket. Install with wing nut and washer

PAINT

Paint after assembled

OD is easy to duplicate at any good paint store and plenty of paints available from aftermarket military part suppliers

Lessons learned - look closer at wood for defects and start a small cut on opposite end of all wood cuts to avoid wood splits

PROCESS FOR BUILDING TABLE AUG21.docx.docx

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There used to be plans (and diagrams ) for this on the 90th INF DIV re-enactors web site. I've made a couple three of them. Handy little tables. Could you show a photo so all here could visualize it?

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If needed I can whip up some of the OD7 Mil-W-27265 cotton webbing leg straps with buckles and ball tips, enduser would just need to screw them to the table. Maybe OD3 if I can find some.

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