I would like to repair and reinforce a 1930's Lincoln double pedestal
office desk to use as a base for a metalworking lathe. The desk appears
to have been made by the Commercial Furniture Company of Chicago. It's
well-used but no wood is broken, however one mortise and tenon joint in
a leg has come apart.

It's not obvious to me how to disassemble it for repair, nor what adhesives
to use. Since it was mass-produced, I'm hopeful that somebody will know how
to get it apart without further damage. Web searches came up empty, so the
subject is obscure or I didn't use the right keywords.

One curious thing (to me) is that many of the plywood panels in drawer
bottoms and pedestal sides appear to be free-floating in their rabbets.
Seems that the desk would be much stronger if they were glued in place.
Did they just come loose over time?

The desk is nice enough that I don't want to butcher it, but since it was
sitting by the curb with a "free" tag on it it's unlikely to be a treasure
warranting museum treatment.

Thanks for reading,

bob prohaska