Easy to Make ""Truss-Worthy"" Chairs
(Page 3 of 3)
NOTE: WHEN
MAKING THE LEFT
SIDE UNIT, REVERSE
THE POSITIONS OF
PARTS D AND E, AND
PLACE THE TOP
RAIL (C) SO THAT
IT EXTENDS 2" OUT
FROM THE LEFT LEG
(A) ... THE
OPPOSITE OF THE
PLACEMENT SHOWN
HERE.
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With that done, position a front support piece (E) along
the right side of your jig's triangle, with the outside
edge of the component's bottom end flush with B, and the
inside edge of its top end flush with the top
rail's upper edge. Now glue and nail the front support in
place, again using a pair of 2" finishing nails at the top
and two 1-1/4" brads at the bottom. (Remember to
reverse the two supports when building the left
side frame. Place the front support to the left of the
triangle, and the back support to the right.)
Remove the completed side frame, put it on a solid work
surface, and center-punch all the nails to draw each joint
up tightly and to sink all the spikes below the wood's
surface. Now set the frame aside for at least 24 hours
to allow the glue to dry. Don't skip this required
step! If you do, you'll loosen each glue joint when you
hammer the seat and back slats in place, and your chair
won't last more than a week.
Naturally, once you've assembled the right side frame and
stashed it away to dry, you'll be ready to whip together
the left unit. Believe me, I don't use the words whip
together lightly; I can complete a side in just a few
minutes, and now that you've had some practice, you should
be able to, too.
A DAY PASSES . . .
You're champing at the bit to get your chair finished,
right? Well, nothing could be easier. Just position the
seat slats 1/2" apart across the side frames. Mark where
the slats overlap the top rails (each end should extend
outward by 3/4 of an inch), apply glue to the marked areas,
and hammer the slats in place, using a pair of 2" finishing
nails at every joint.
You'll need to exercise some patience when you attempt to
attach the first few slats, because you'll have a hard time
keeping the side frames upright and aligned while you hold
the slat in place. Even if you can't get someone to help
you steady the components, though, you'll be home free as
soon as the first couple of slats are nailed down and the
chair gains some rigidity. Make a point, however, to check
each slat with a try square to make sure it's perpendicular
to the frames.
When you've finished the seat slats, go ahead and tack on
the back crosspieces. Position the first one so that its
bottom edge is 5" above the seat, and space the remaining
three pieces 1/2" apart, with the ends extending 1-1/2"
beyond the supports.
Now, before you flop your carcass onto your newly built
handiwork, nail the front and back bottom braces (parts G)
in position, as shown in Fig. 2. Place each one so that its
bottom edge is pretty much even with the top edge of the
bottom rails (B). Give the whole thing another 24 hours to
dry, and then you and your chair will be ready to
meet seat to seat.
I didn't apply any finish at all to my rustic set of four
yellow-poplar dining chairs, because the lumber came from
the floor of a 100-year-old house, complete with gouges and
nail holes, and I liked the look. The functional simplicity
of the furniture seems to call for a natural treatment, so
I just sanded the quartet slightly and left them "as is."
(EDITOR'S NOTE: Our staffers chose to use a mediumdark
wood stain, thinned with a bit of boiled linseed oil, to
color the truss-worthy chair they built of 1 X 2
pine.)
My wife and I liked our quick-and-easy chairs so much that
we decided to make living room furniture in the same
pattern. The walnut rocker you see in the small photo is an
example; we made only a few modifications to the original
design, and I suspect that even further variations on the
theme (making a larger chair on a larger jig, for instance)
are possible . . . and waiting to be discovered by an
imaginative woodworker. Could that be you?
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