Hey, I’m Cam.
I build tables in Portland, Oregon, under the name Blacktail Studio. Most of what I make starts as a salvaged slab from the Pacific Northwest and ends up on camera.
I went from a novice who ruined his first epoxy table to building pieces that sell for $10,000 to over $30,000. My first table sold for $900. Along the way the channel grew to 3.46 million subscribers, and my epoxy builds alone have passed 90 million views.
Selling tables is great. But what I love most is teaching. If a video, a course or a set of plans helps someone build their first real piece, that’s the best part of the job.
From the cockpit to the shop.
For ten years I flew helicopters, the last five for an air ambulance company in the Pacific Northwest. It was the job I thought I’d always wanted. The schedule left long stretches of time off, so I started woodworking to fill it.
The side hustle that began as a way to buy a few more tools slowly turned into a real company. In March 2020 I quit flying and went full time. I’ve never worked longer hours, and I’ve never been happier.
I don’t make the videos alone. Scott edits every episode, has a say in how each one comes together, and when a slab needs another set of hands, he’s usually the one on the other end of it.
Being in the Pacific Northwest means access to some of the best hardwoods in the world. That’s why the shop specializes in live edge slabs, epoxy river tables, charred wood and solid wood pieces, for first-time homeowners and large commercial spaces alike.
What I believe about a good table
You cannot improve on nature. Every piece is designed to look like nature put it together.
Why the rivers follow the live edge instead of a ruler.
I make each one as if I were making it for my own home.
Hand-selected slabs, mostly salvaged from the Pacific Northwest.
Not only a functional piece, but a table that could be handed down for generations.
Joinery and bases built to move with the seasons.
The shop so far
51 pieces, 147 videos and one very patient dog.
- 2017
The first pieces
A single-slab elm coffee table and the Willamette resin table, built on days off from flying, are the first entries in the archive.
- 2019
Teaching starts
The first long-form tutorials go up, including the step-by-step guide to building an epoxy resin table.
- 2020
Full time
In March I left a decade of flying helicopters, the last five on air ambulance crews, and moved into a house with a detached shop.
- 2020
A table for food relief
With Goby Walnut, I raffled an heirloom dining set. Every dollar went to the Sunshine Division’s emergency food fund.
- 2022
Make-A-Wish
The sculpted breakfast table was auctioned with all proceeds to Make-A-Wish Oregon. Two more auction tables followed in 2023.
- 2024
Damascus denim
A thousand square feet of denim, epoxy and a $100,000 planer produced the world’s first Damascus denim table.
- 2025
Blacktail Ranch
After three years of searching, a farm. A second channel follows the build of a new shop of almost 10,000 square feet.
Work with me
Commission a piece
One-off tables, desks and consoles, from your slab or mine.
Start a commissionLearn to build
The Epoxy Table Workshop, the Finishing Workshop and full build plans.
Courses and plansSponsor a video
For brands I’d actually use in the shop.
[email protected]Watch along
New builds most months, mistakes included.
YouTube