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.”
Here you can get a sense of the lean of the back.
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.
Pew Pew! We use lasers and a spotter (in this case Denise) to help guide the driller (here, that’s Michael) in cutting mortises. Peggy is in the background, working on a stretcher.
We’ve just finished a stick chair class – so I might actually be able to answer your chair questions in today’s Open Wire! (But who am I kidding – I’ll leave those for Chris.) You know the drill (with or without lasers): Leave your woodworking questions in the comments below, and we’ll do our best to answer (note that there may be a lag between your asking and our answering).
To kick things off, here’s a Jeopardy-style answer – I’ll bet you know the question: “Whatever is heavy, cheap and readily available.”
A camp stool in teak with latigo bridle leather and copper rivets.
The following is excerpted from “Campaign Furniture,” by Christopher Schwarz.
For almost 200 years, simple and sturdy pieces of campaign furniture were used by people all over the globe, yet this remarkable furniture style is now almost unknown to most woodworkers and furniture designers.
“Campaign Furniture” seeks to restore this style to its proper place by introducing woodworkers to the simple lines, robust joinery and ingenious hardware that characterize campaign pieces. With more than 400 photos and drawings to explain the foundations of the style, the book provides plans for nine pieces of classic campaign furniture, from the classic stackable chests of drawers to folding Roorkee chairs and collapsible bookcases.
Three-legged folding stools appear in many Western cultures, including the French, English and American. They have been popular with soldiers, sportsmen, campers and artists for at least two centuries.
This stool is a great introductory project to campaign furniture, especially if you are new to turning or working with leather. There are only three pieces of wood, four pieces of leather and some metal hardware. You can easily build one in a day.
Choosing Materials I have seen some of these camp stools built using dowels, and they are strong enough to hold most people. However, I like to build them from mahogany, teak or ash that has dead-straight grain. I’ve had nightmares about getting a stick stuck in my backside from a stool disaster.
If you can build the stool with riven stock (oak or ash are good choices), it will be quite strong. Many original stools used 1″-diameter legs. However, my recommendation is to use stouter stock. I have built reproductions with 1″-diameter legs, and they felt too springy under my 185-pound frame.
You don’t need to make the legs baseball bats, but try for something between 1-1/8″ diameter to 1-1/4″ diameter. The leather can be almost anything 7 ounces (just shy of 1/8″ thick) or heavier. Vegetable-tanned leather that you dye yourself is a particularly strong choice.
You also will need rivets to join the leather pieces – unless you are skilled at hand-stitching. While hollow rivets (sometimes called rapid rivets) are inexpensive, easy to find and strong enough, I prefer the look and unerring permanence of solid copper rivets. I used No. 9 rivets with posts that are 1/2″ long.
To attach the leather to the wooden legs, you’ll need three No. 10 x 1-1/2″-long brass screws plus matching finishing washers.
Finally, you’ll need the hardware that allows the legs to open and shut. Traditionally, this was a three-headed bolt that once was easy to find. Now, that hardware is rare in North America. If you are a blacksmith or have access to a good welder, making a three-way bolt is straightforward. I have seen a couple of these bolts for sale in England, but the price with shipping to the United States was more than the cost of the bolt itself.
So I looked for a different way. Luckily, the Internet is good for something other than photos of cats playing keyboards. One maker of custom stools uses some off-the rack hardware to make an effective three-way bolt and shares that information freely on his web site.
Here’s what you need for legs that are up to 1-1/4″ in diameter:
A hex-headed bolt with a 5/16″ shank that is long enough to pass through two of the legs and protrude out the other side by 1/2″. A 3″-long hex-head bolt will work with 1-3/16″-diameter legs.
An eyebolt with a 1/4″ or 5/16″ shank that is long enough to pass through one of the legs and protrude out the other side by 1/4″. (Note: You can hacksaw any of this threaded hardware to length. An eyebolt that has a total length of 2-1/2″ should be sufficient.)
Two acorn-headed nuts.
Three washers.
15 No. 9 copper rivets.
Turn the Legs The three legs are easy to turn, even if your favorite turning tool is #80-grit sandpaper. Turn the legs to round using a roughing gouge or carbide-tipped roughing tool. Create a smooth, clean cylinder of about 1-1/4″ in diameter with a skew or other finishing tool.
Fig. 6.3 A bulbous foot. The foot can be almost any shape, from a bead similar to the foot of the Roorkee to this teardrop.
The feet shown are 1-3/16″ in diameter and 5/8″ tall. Make the feet by turning down the foot. Then turn the ankle to 7/8″ in diameter. Round the foot, then taper the rest of the leg down to the ankle. The taper should begin 6″ from the bottom of the leg.
I added four small grooves where the hardware holes will go – two above the hardware and two below. Little details such as these grooves and beads make the legs look like something fancier than three store-bought dowels.
Fig. 6.4 Not original. These little grooves add some visual interest to the joint. However, they’re not a detail I found on any original stool. So skip them if you are going for authenticity.
Sand the legs to remove any rough tool marks. I finished the legs on the lathe. First I burnished the surface with a “polissoir” (a French polishing tool made from tightly bound broom corn). Then I applied beeswax to the legs with the workpiece spinning. I used the polissoir to drive the beeswax into the pores of the wood (again, while the lathe was spinning). Then I used a rough cotton cloth (I’d like to be fancy and say it was muslin, but it was an old bag that held corn grits) to buff the wax. Then I applied another coat of wax and buffed that.
If you want to add a little age to the wood, apply a coat of black wax and push it into the grooves and pores. Let the wax set up then buff it.
Wax is not a permanent finish, but it is easily renewed or repaired if your stool is for the drawing room instead of the campsite.
Bore Three Holes All three holes are located in the same spot on each of the three legs and should be the same diameter – just big enough to allow the hardware to pass through. The holes are located 11-5/8″ down from the top of the legs.
Figs. 6.5 & 6.6 Dead center. The holes for the hardware need to be bored through the middle so the leg isn’t weak. A cradle helps hold the legs for drilling, no matter how you make the hole. Drill the hole so the brad point of the bit barely pokes through the leg (right). Rotate the leg so the tiny hole left from the brad point is facing up. Finish the hole.
The best way to bore these holes is with a drill press or hand-powered post drill. You want the hole to be dead straight and pass through the middle of the leg. If you are a whiz with a hand drill or cordless drill then go for it.
Install the Hardware Strip the hardware of its zinc if you like – I use a citric acid solution for this. Here’s how the hardware goes together:
Put a washer on the bolt. Push the bolt through one leg.
Place the eyebolt on the post of the bolt. Put the other leg on the bolt. Add a washer to the end of the bolt, then drive on the acorn nut.
Push the post of the eyebolt through the third leg. Add a washer and acorn nut.
Drill pilot holes that are deep enough to receive the No. 10 screws into the top ends of the legs.
Dead center. The holes for the hardware need to be bored through the middle so the leg isn’t weak. A cradle helps hold the legs for drilling, no matter how you make the hole. Drill the hole so the brad point of the bit barely pokes through the leg (right). Rotate the leg so the tiny hole left from the brad point is facing up. Finish the hole.
Leather Seat The seat is four pieces of material: a triangular seat and three pockets that look a bit like lips when you cut them out. When I cut out leather, I make patterns for my pieces from thin MDF or hardboard – usually 1/4″-thick material.
Knife work. You will probably make more than one stool, so make plywood patterns of the seat parts and cut them out using a sharp utility knife.
Put the patterns on the leather and cut out the seat and three lips using a sharp utility knife. You can hand-stitch the lips to the seat. If you aren’t up for stitching, rivets work well and give the project a military flair.
First punch. Using a leather punch, make a hole through the seat and pocket piece. I’m using a kitchen cutting board as a backer.
Secure each lip to the seat first with one rivet at one of the tips of the seat. Punch a snug hole for the rivet through both pieces of leather, drive on the washer or “burr,” snip off the excess and peen the post over the burr.
Now bend one end of the lip up and rivet the end to the seat about 1/4″ from the end of the lip. Repeat for the other end of the lip. Finally, add two more rivets between the three existing rivets. Repeat the whole process for the other two corners.
Insert the rivet. Put the rivet through the holes. The flat face of the rivet should be on the top surface of the seat.
One quick note on neatness: Be sure to put the burr so it faces the floor for all these joints. After the pockets are riveted, use a sharp utility knife to trim any little bits of the pocket that aren’t flush to the seat.
Like a washer. The “burr” part of a traditional rivet is what pinches the leather. Place it over the post. Then drive it on the post with a rivet setter.
If you purchased undyed leather, finish the leather with a dye, oil and wax. Burnish the edges with a piece of wood and a little spit (water will do nicely as well).
Snip it. The post of the rivet should extend about 1/16″ or so from the burr. I use nail pincers to snip the post to length.
Peened. Some people peen the rivet freehand with a hammer. I use a rivet setter, which makes a tidy dome. It’s personal preference.
Five rivets. Each pocket is secured with five rivets. One at the peak of the curve. Rivet the ends of the lips, then fill in with the rivets between.
Attach the seat to the legs. Punch a clearance hole through each lip that will allow a No. 10 screw to pass. Screw the leather to the legs with a finishing washer under the head of each screw.
Finishing washers. The brass washer gives the screw head some extra bite into the leather – and it looks nice, too.
That’s all there is to it. You can make the tool easy to transport by making a belt that will go around the girth of the closed stool and screwing that belt to one leg. Or you could make a canvas bag embroidered with your football team’s logo. After all, when going into battle, it’s always best to fly your colors.
Make a Three-way Bolt
As I was finishing work on this book, woodworker Mike Siemsen sent me a clever three-way bolt he had made from off-the-rack hardware. According to Siemsen, here’s how to make it. Hardware needed:
A 1/2″-13 heavy hex nut. (Regular nuts will not work well; get low carbon, not hardened.)
Three 5/16″-18 x 2-1/4″ bolts (machine screws, get low carbon, not hardened.)
One 5/16″-18 nut (for cutting off the bolts to length).
Three 5/16″ washers.
You will also need a 5/16″-18 tap, a drill for the pilot hole (F-size bit which is .257″; 1/4″ will probably work) and a drill press.
Center punch the center of every other face on the 1/2″ heavy hex nut, put it in a drill press vise and bore the pilot holes for the tap. You can then either run the tap by hand or put the tap in the drill press and turn it by hand, no power! Keep things square to the face being drilled.
Next take the three 5/16″ bolts, screw the nut on them all the way up to the unthreaded portion and saw off the excess end. Remove the nut and file or grind the burr off. It is important that the unthreaded portion be around 1-1/4″ long.
You can blacken the hardware, or remove the hardware’s zinc coating using a citric acid solution and let it patinate naturally. The hole in the 1/2″ nut is a nice place to add a wooden cap or a small turned finial.
When I set out to write, “The Anarchist’s Design Book,” my intent was to create a “pattern book” of vernacular furniture. The book didn’t turn out that way, which is sometimes how it goes. But during the research, Suzanne Ellison turned up a little book that fulfilled my original objective.
“A Craftsman’s Handbook: Henry Lapp” (Good Books) is a reproduction of 47 pages of a pattern book created by woodworker Henry Lapp (1862-1904). Lapp was an Amish furniture maker and hardware store owner in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
His book is filled with more than 100 designs that he made for customers on the farms and in the towns surrounding him. Each one is drawn in pencil and then painted in watercolor.
These pieces represent an excellent cross-section of the vernacular pieces common in the Americas during the 19th and early 20th century. You could spend your whole lifetime building these pieces and pretty much find contentment (both for you and your customers).
The little book is 4-3/4” x 8” is nicely printed on uncoated paper, but it is unfortunately perfect bound. Mine fell apart shortly after it arrived. Despite this flaw, it is an excellent addition to your library if you are interested in vernacular furniture. Highly recommended.
— Christopher Schwarz
p.s. There are a couple versions of this book out there. I don’t know how the others are bound.
p.p.s. You can read more about Lapp in this post from Suzanne Ellison (aka the Saucy Indexer).
Chris is getting ready for his talks at Colonial Williamsburg’s Working Wood in the 18th Century conference (Jan. 25-28), and had all (some?) of the books he’s discussing arrayed across several benches. So we grabbed the microphones and a camera, and recorded a little bit about each one; he will of course have more to say when he’s on stage in Williamsburg…including closing remarks I cut out here at the end (so apologies for the abrupt cessation of Christopher’s comedy stylings).
I expect I’ll never get these books back in the same place in the library. Oh well.
