Several readers have asked for a video that shows how I trim wedged through-tenons flush to a seat. So I guess I’m taking requests that aren’t “Piano Man” or “Free Bird.” Be sure to leave a tip in the jar….
Some notes: Usually I perform this operation as-shown in the video. I use my weight and my knee to hold the chair in place. This is safe. I have never cut myself (see also: using a drawknife). If it’s your first time, clamp the leg in your face vise, as shown in the image above.
After I trim the tenon and it is almost level with the seat, I finish the job with a scraper or sandpaper.
Another note: This is also how I make the faceted through-tenons. I simply stop about halfway through the process. Then I level the top of the tenon with some #220-sandpaper stuck on a flat stick.
Final note: I did not invent this technique, but I don’t remember where I learned it. It was a long time ago – maybe with Dave Fleming in Canada.
This, and other processes, are shown in “The Stick Chair Book.” Here endeth the commercial.
— Christopher Schwarz
One of these days I’ll visit the storefront in person and when I do I’m going to ask about that infamous drawknife incident.
Hi Jake,
There’s not much of a story. In the 1990s, I cut open a finger while sharpening a drawknife (sharpening them is FAR more dangerous than using them). My accident was covered by worker’s comp. But they didn’t have a state-approved “code” for “drawknife” when filling out the reports. So my biggest claim to fame is that the state of Ohio had to create a code for “drawknife” because of me.
That is wonderful.
I once got a nice gash on my forehead from the pointy end of a sliding bevel. It was set on a seat for a leg angle, and I leaned forward to check something and impaled myself on the tip. The good news was that the bevel held its angle.
I too have sliced the far out of my hand while sharpening a drawknife. In my case, I was actually drying it off and it sliced through the rag and my hand .. yep it was sharp at that point!
I know they’ll end up under your fanny. But do you ever do something decorative with seat through tenons? Or it it simply flush and smooth?
I’ve left them a little proud. You can’t feel them. Even with my bony butt.
It’s not widely known, but I was the original inspiration for “The Princess and the Pea.”
Good video. It’s fun to see a presentation that kinda states in the action, do it like you’d do it if you were doing it.
But to be fair, I’ve had the benifit of seeing a few different processes that get to the same destination so I shouldn’t get too high on my horse.
This all makes sense, and obviously using the scorp on a curve that was made by the scorp makes sense too. I noticed it looked like you almost used the back of the bevel as a lever of sorts through the cut. Or at least that’s how it seemed. Out of curiosity, when doing a similar operation with a bench chisel on a flat(ter) surface, would you use a related motion by using the chisel bevel down and using that as a lever? I’ve always used it bevel up and used the corner of the chisel to eat away at it gradually while the flat back was resting on the surface. Thanks!
Hi Daniel,
When using a chisel to level the tenons, I tend to use it bevel-down. That allows me to make small adjustments to the angle of attack. And I don’t have the seat’s shape guiding me (for better or for worse).
Most chairmakers use a shallow-sweep gouge for this operation, which works really well. I like to keep my tool kit as small as I can.
That’s what I figured. Thanks for the clarification!
Hey Chris it’s pleasant to see the old motto back. Thank you.
Just a suggestion one may want to try for a more authentic look. After shaving the through tenon, use a smooth faced hammer to lightly beat the remainder of the slightly raised tenon remnant. It removes the facets & gives the tenons a burnished look that’s authentic to the look of antique examples. All bets are off if one mistakenly uses a milled face hammer instead.