How to add legs to a table top?

[Alyse1]

Hi all - I am trying to make a low picnic table on a budget. I have some old outdoor chairs that are falling apart, and I am hoping to re-purpose the legs on these as low legs for my table. I want to be able to remove the legs from the table for easy transportation in my car, and be able to easily attach and remove the legs with no/minimal tools as required. The chair legs I have are metal so I am unsure whether I can screw through them, and the table top is only thin at 12mm. The part of the chair that will attach to the table is essentially a hollow square (I have tried to draw this, so hopefully it makes sense). 

The solution doesn't have to be perfect, just enough so that the table top doesn't flip or move too much if someone leans on it. The table top will be 80cmx120cm and the chairs are approx 45x45cm - I will be using 2 per tabletop so should be fairly stable otherwise. My only thinking so far is some kind of strap that can clip over one side of the chair beam and click into the table top on the other side - but not sure how to achieve this. Any ideas would be appreciated! 

Thanks  

 

[Noyade]

G'day Alyse @Alyse1 

Would you/could be interested in making some simple wooden folding legs with hinges for your table? They would be cheap and the table would fold flat. No need then to transport your your two-chair support system.

Just a thought.

Otherwise I was going to suggest these Bunnings clips (below) - but the chair base frame is square.

Any chance of a photo of these chairs?

Cheers!

[Alyse1]

Hi Noyade, 

thanks for your reply! These clips actually look perfect, my chairs are rounded so could slot in nicely. From a quick look at Bunnings, these would be a tool clip? 

I did think about timber legs, but wasn’t sure whether I would need lockable hinges to make sure the legs cannot be kicked and knocked down? They would only be 30-40cm high so perhaps stable enough? I’m making 3 tables, so unsure whether to cost of hinges and timber would be a bit over budget. 

[MitchellMc]

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @Alyse1. It's wonderful to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about adding legs to a table top.

I love @Noyade's idea, and yes, they would be tool clips. If they suit, I can't think of a better solution than that.

You might not need lockable hinges for timber legs, but they'd need to splay outwards enough to prevent the table from collapsing. They'll likely cost more to make than the clips; it just depends on how large your budget is. Due to the tabletop being so thin, it could be a bit of an issue to try to attach them in a solid fashion. 

Please let us know if you have any questions.

Mitchell