Every single vernacular stick chair I have studied uses cylindrical tenons. None have tapered tenons and mortises.
Yet, I teach many first-timers to use the tapered joint. What gives?
The tapered joint requires some special tooling, but you get a few chances to dial in the final angle. So it’s forgiving for beginners. A cylindrical mortise uses only a drill bit. But you get only one chance to get it right.
Personally, I prefer the cylindrical joint because it looks right to me. But both survive just fine in antique examples. You can make up all sorts of reasons that one is superior to the other, but the furniture record is clear: Both work.
Yesterday I legged up two Irish chairs I’m working on, and Kale Vogt (our new assistant editor), shot this short video that explains the steps I take to get my mortises just right.
This method is a little different than what I show in “The Stick Chair Book” (a free pdf download). I have added my cheap construction laser to the process. The laser makes the process so easy, that I’m considering using it in future classes.
Years ago I used to make all my sticks with the 5/8” Ray Iles rounding plane. I think I must have had a bump on the head at some point because I cannot remember when or why I stopped using it.
Last year I bought one from Classic Hand Tools in the UK, and I quickly remembered how well it worked. When set with care, it can be used to shave sticks and tenons. And you can do it in a jiffy if you spin the stick with an electric drill.
There are other places that sell them, such as Workshop Heaven and Tools for Working Wood (plus some other small suppliers in the UK). If the tools are temporarily hard to get, Ray and his crew will make more.
The video above shows how I use the tool to create long sticks and tenons. It was shot by our new assistant editor, Kale Vogt. Kale is an enthusiastic chairmaker, and you’ll see a lot more of her in the coming weeks.
As per the usual, I buy all my tools with my own money. Nobody sponsors us. No affiliate links. No legerdemain.
— Christopher Schwarz
For other tips on making chairmaking cheaper, read these entries.
Today I had a few minutes of free time so I whipped up this quick T-shirt with my Cricut (yes, I have a mint green one) and the artwork of Rudy Everts. (If you love chair art and woodblocks and Escher stuff, check out his store.)
Anyway, Rudy kindly consented to put this design up as a free download. You can take it to a T-shirt printing shop, a maker space or an online vendor and get it in your favorite color and style.
Whenever I teach a chair class, I build a chair along with the students. I don’t always sell my classroom-built chairs because I always push myself to try something different on the chair – something I’d be afraid to do to a chair that I am counting on to put food on the table.
During last week’s chair class I crossed over a threshold I have been approaching for a few years: changing the geometry of the comb of a comb-back to the point where it sits more like a Gibson chair.
This is the most comfortable comb-back I’ve made to date. I don’t like to name my furniture, but for now I’m calling this a “short-back chair.”
I don’t have “plans” for this chair. That’s not how I design chairs. It would take me longer to draw plans for this chair than to build another chair. But I am happy to share the essential geometry so you can graft it onto one of your designs. (This is my Southern way of saying all gentle-like: No, I’m not going to create plans. All you need is in the free book and the information below.)
Seat Height I have been gradually lowering the seat height of my chairs, as measured from the pommel to the floor. This chair is 15-1/2”. You might think that’s low. I don’t. I think tables are too high. When one of the students this week asked how low chair seats could go, I replied: “Many Morris chair seats are 12” off the floor.”
Back & Seat Lean The back of this chair leans back 16.2° from the seat. The seat tilts 4.15° back. That’s a total lean of 20.25°. No, it doesn’t feel like a dentist’s chair. If you are using the chair plans in “The Stick Chair Book,” you achieve this 16.2° angle by positioning the front edge of the arm 1-1/4” behind the back edge of the seat. The seat is tilted back “two fingers.”
The Comb My big comb-back chairs have the comb about 15” above the arm. That makes for a big and impressive chair, but you have to arrange the sticks so the sitter’s shoulders don’t feel like they are being poked by a bunch of sticks.
In this chair, the bottom of the comb is 8-3/4” above the arm’s shoe. This means the comb supports the shoulders – the sticks are taken out of the comfort equation, which means the comb must be a comfortable curve. This one is 18” long and has a 20” internal radius. The top edge of the comb tilts back to add a little comfort.
What’s Next? I’m going to move the comb down 3/4” next time. I have a hunch that will help even more. (I could be full of crap.)
This chair is currently in paint (“Twilight” in General Finishes acrylic). Megan is patching a bit of blow-out on the arm (the bit of white in the photo). This chair, while experimental, is good enough to sell. I’ll post it for sale on the blog in the next week or so. It is made of elm with ash sticks. The chair will be $1,500 (which will include shipping). We’ll sell it via a random drawing.
I love using Cold-Bend Hardwood for the bent parts of my stick chairs. During the last 10 years I have basically a 0 percent failure rate with the stuff (the only failure was my fault – more on that in a bit).
When I steam-bend arms, I typically lose about one-third of my bends.
People think it’s expensive. I disagree. Each chair arm costs me about $100 in material. But there is almost no time involved in making the bends. Today I opened a new pack of Cold-Bend Hardwood, sliced it to size and bent three chair arms (by myself) in less than 45 minutes.
When I steam-bend an arm, I have to find and purchase some suitable material (that takes time). Rive it out (more time). Then slice it, steam it and bend it. And then 33.33 percent of the bends fail during the bend or during drying.
If you live in a forest and have the space and time, steam-bending is ideal. When you live in the city, have no land and every minute counts, Cold-Bend Hardwood is the way to go.
Before you even order the stuff, build your bending forms because you need to bend the stuff within a few days of its arrival. The packaging will get damaged in shipment. The plastic will get a tiny hole in it. And your stuff will dry out.
Do not let it sit around. Assume the plastic is letting out moisture.
Order stuff that is overlong by about 18” to 24”. You need the extra length to provide leverage as you make the bend. If you won’t do this, you’ll need to use a bending strap with a long handle to give you leverage.
That extra length is the difference between a cakewalk and a desperate slog.
Order stuff that is the correct thickness for your bend. You cannot joint and plane this stuff. It will explode in your machinery. You can’t rip it on the table saw (crosscuts are OK). Again, it will self-destruct.
There are only two ways to dimension the stuff when it’s wet: the band saw and abrasion. After it is dry you can machine it and shape it with hand tools. But until then: band saw and sanding only.
I fasten my bending forms to the end of my bench with holdfasts. The holdfasts pass through both the form and the benchtop. Simply clamping the form to the benchtop rarely goes well. The form comes loose during the bend.
Allow some extra length at the beginning of the bend. This extra length (cut away later) will allow you to screw a batten across the arm and remove it from the form to dry.
About My Failure
I had one arm crack during a bend when using Cold-Bend Hardwood. The reason was simple: I had waited too long to make the bend, and the stuff had dried out. The fresher the stuff is, the easier it is to bend. I cannot emphasize this enough.
If you are wondering how the stuff is made and how it works (it’s like magic), the company’s website has all that information. If you are wondering if other companies make the stuff, the answer is yes. There’s a place in Amish country in Ohio that makes its own, but they don’t sell to the public. They make the bends for you. I also knew a couple chairmakers in Middletown, Ohio, that made the stuff in their chair factory. They have disappeared. And there are companies in Europe that make it. Google “comp wood” or “compression hardwood” for more details.