Canterbury Pitt table renovation progress updates…

Canterbury Pitt table

Just in case you were wondering what had happened to my Canterbury Pitt table renovation, ongoing progress has been made, all be it a bit slowly! Having removed the original chipboard and Formica top from the mahogany underframe, it was time to make a decision on what to use for the new work surface. I had looked into a variety of options including post-consumer waste recycled plastic boards, Tectan Board (made from recycled Tetrapak drink cartons) and even recycled circuit board, but in the end, I opted to go with a more conservative option of some nicely grained timber. Sometimes it is good to explore all options, even if you do come back to your original thought or idea!

Natural grain

So I opted to hunt down some nicely grained 18mm WBP plywood to use for the table surface. Having rejected most of the boards in store, I eventually came across a really beautifully grained 600mm x 1200mm sheet that would be perfect for my requirements. In fact, it would even allow me to make a matching bed support piece to infill between the rear seats and the rear-facing buddy seat! Although fairly light in colour in its unfinished state, I knew that what looked to be an Oak grain finish, would darken up sufficiently once treated with several coats of some Danish Wood Oil before getting finished with some clear Black Bison wax as a final protective coating. With the mahogany under frame separated from the work surface, I will also take the opportunity to sand the frame down and refinish it with some Danish wood oil as well.

an existing Canterbury Pitt door catch that can be re-used for the table fixing bolt

Fixing bits

Next up was to sort out the locating/locking mechanisms that were used to fix the table to the side support on the wall of the camper when the table is up and in use. Luckily I had a couple of extra pieces of incomplete Canterbury Pitt furniture panels which had various fixtures and fittings on that I could potentially refurbish and use for the table locking mechanism.

an existing Canterbury Pitt door catch that can be re-used for the table fixings

So it was a case of carefully unscrewing the items and giving them a good soaking in a penetrating oil bath. These should clean and loosen up nicely and allow me to use a nice mixture of original and new elements in the table refurbishment.