Now, to hold the base in the sides, dado cut a 1/2" slot in the side boards 1/2" from the edge. For the long boards, since you don't want to see the slot from the outside, stop the dado before it reaches the end of the wood, and square it up with a chisel. Make the dado just a but wider than your plywood. After painting all the parts, you'll need the little bit of extra room to get the base in the slot. The dado should be about 9/16 deep.

For the legs, cut from two sides to leave a 1/2 tall square 2"x2" in one corner.

For the top, I first glued the 3/4" strips in place to hold them and then screwed them in after the glue dried. Use the 1" screws, 3 to a side.

Now, paint all the parts. Use a primer first, and then at least two coats of topcoat.

Assembly

After the paint has dried (the hardest part for me is waiting for the paint to dry completely) assemble the table.

Set the base into the slots in the sides and then screw the sides together with the 3" screws, 3 per corner.

Set the table on the legs, and screw the base into the legs using two 2" screws per corner.

Fill it with between 50 and 80 lbs of sand.. and bring on the kids.

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