Super Amart v DIY (Ana White) Dining Room table

Dining Room Table

So in an attempt to hurry things up in my mind, I'm thinking about furniture for the house.  Similar to the bookshelves for the library thinking, it's an exercise of the mind only and research.  It helps (!?) distract me from thinking of the things I should be doing.

But it helps me to put it down in writing somewhere so my mind doesn't churn about it.  Kinda the theory behind GTD as a method of productivity.

This post is about my thinking around the dining room table.

I've posted before about looking (and drooling over) a few other tables, including the one at the Heritage Building Centre for $2000 and the one at Alexandria for around the same ($1899).  They look amazing.  But then there are the ones found at Super Amart for a lot less.  For less than $1000.  But it won't be quite the right size.

There are a couple here I like the look of:

The pick is probably a cheaper one again called Industrial.  Esp as it's a little bit longer at 2500.

To check it out yourself and price it up for your area, visit the Super Amart site for this table.

The space we have is pretty big and we want to be able to have 4 seated on each side with overflow being at the heads of the table to fit 10 comfortably and possibly 12 tightly.

So the other option is a DIY plan.  Building it ourselves will allow us to get it the right size.  So if we wanted an oversized table at 3m length we could do this.  And we don't like a super wide table as we had a square 1500 mm table previously and it was too far to reach stuff in the 'middle' of the table.  I think I worked out a max of 1200mm width would be best (for us).  It will allow a decent table setting and stuff to be put in the middle.  Hmm.. having said that it will be a lot of "pass the x" please as the table will be so long!  The other thing is the table can then be 'rustic' looking as we'd do it ourselves and finish it with a rustic finish.  W is thinking of using railway sleepers and a bandsaw.  I want to just use normal pine.  And then make it more rustic and then stain it.

Ana White has some lovely plans, and the one I like at the moment looks similar to the Super Amart Industrial table.  But for supposedly a lot less.  I have to do a check on how much the materials cost in Australia as I think it will be a fair sight more than the prices that are listed on the Ana White site where the Americans get a much sweeter deal with their timber bits.

Here's the pic from the site:

One thing I'd need to learn is Pocket holes and how to make them.  I think it's a matter of getting a Pocket hole jig.  But based on the instructions I have so far it seems as it helps get the screw in there but what about the hole itself?  Surely that is what the jig is for!  I'll have to suss it out IRL at a Bunnings or Masters.  If I can find one that is.

So what do you think?  Build or buy?  I'm usually a buy sort of person but as I age (ha!) I'm wanting to build.