Newbie question.
I want to make a wooden stool, quite an unsophisticated one, with four legs square in cross section.
It will be used for usual stooly things such as standing on to reach things that are high up, and carting to places one wants to sit but doesn't want to cart a dining or office chair to.
The 25mm x 25mm sticks at B&Q obviously aren't strong enough.
Could someone please help me with what sort of wood I need, and where I might get it?
Many thanks!
Cheers,
Chris
"Chris Nellist" wrote in message news:Xns95EBC01BC38pnellist@195.92.193.157...
The reason that milkmaid stools were made with three legs is that three legs will always all touch the ground, no matter how uneven, while four legs will only all touch if the surface is perfectly flat (assuming no errors in making the stool).
A very good reason for wanting one that does not wobble, although I have a small set of aluminium steps for such jobs, which I consider to be much safer.
For a basic stool, joinery quality timber from a timber merchant. OTOH, dowel would make it easier to build. You would only need to drill the right size blind holes in the underside of the seat base and glue the dowel in place.
Colin Bignell
"nightjar .uk.com>"
That's true, but even a wobbly four legged stool won't fall over as easily as a three legged stool.
I agree. We have one upstairs and one downstairs.
Mary
nightjar "Chris Nellist" wrote in
For standing on you don't want a three legged stool, very unstable. Whereas with four legs it may wobble on an unevensurface but is less likely to give way when trying to support two feet.
Not sure I'd agree - please can you explain why?
Sitting on a stool the weight is centred so 3 legs will provide stability on an uneven surface. But using a stool for standing on is another matter. Step on the stool with just one leg and you can place your weight in the centre, then step up with the second foot, that foot will have to go nearer the edge, transferring any weight to that foot will tend to either distribute the load on to one leg or on the edge of the segment of stool that lies between two legs. Either is unstable. For a three legged stool to be stable for _standing on_ the triangle over the legs needs to be large enough to accomodate two feet well within its boundary. If not either it will tilt with the weight of one foot (if that is off centre) or do so when the weight distribution changes to accomodate two feet. Four legs will better accomodate the shifting load during step-on step-off.
Why?
I couldn't have put it better!
Mary
There is nothing intrinsically which makes a three legged stool more unstable than a four legged one - it depends on the overall design of the stool.
Both you and "quisquiliae" are assuming that there is more of an "overhang" of the stool top with respect to a straight line joining adjacent legs with a three legged than with a four legged - which is not necessarily the case.
You may also be assuming that a three legged stool has a circular top compared with a four legged stool with a square/rectangle top - in which case I would agree about the overhang and hence stability - but this is not always the case.
However, a four legged stool with a square top and a leg in each corner is no more stable than a three legged stool with a triangular top and a leg in each corner.
I rest my case ;-)
You didn't read the op properly in that case.
I did - I was not commenting on what the OP said, I was commenting on the two assertions (one of yours) that a four legged stool was more stable than a three legged eg:
"That's true, but even a wobbly four legged stool won't fall over as easily as a three legged stool." - which is just not true.
The message from quisquiliae contains these words:
If the weight is on both feet the stool will be stable provided the centre of gravity of the person standing on it is within (as in vertically above) the area bounded by a line drawn round the outside edges of the stool legs. That applies whether the stool has 3 or 4 legs.
Not so. You can stand on a 3 legged stool much smaller than that. It is easy enough to shuffle around without actually lifting the feet off the seat but for the stool not to turn over when the stander lifts one foot the marginal condition is for the centre of the foot (ie the point directly below the bodys centre of gravity) to be on the outer boundary referred to above.
Only if the all four legs are firmly in touch with the ground otherwise the undamped shake during the single leg step up could easily magnify out of control.
cheers
Jacob
For standing, you want a set of steps, not a stool, of any design.
Colin Bignell
nightjar
I find a one-piece plastic four legged single step (which is effectively a stool designed specifically for standing on) much more comfortable for standing on than a set of steps, because the area on which my feet are supported is larger and I can step on/off from any direction. Sets of steps are much better at dealing with standing at variable heights.
Biggles
I use platform steps, of different heights, which not only give an adequate standing area, but also have a handrail and, sometimes, a tool tray, at waist height.
Colin Bignell
Nice bit of topology that.
My favourite bit of topology is the "ham sandwich theorem", which is an extension of the "bacon and egg theorem".
The latter states that any two closed shapes in a plane can be cut with a single straight line in such a way that each shape's area is divided exactly in two. The practical application of this is that if you have a plate containing one piece of bacon and one egg, you can always use one straight cut to cut through both items so that two people can have equal amounts of bacon and egg.
The ham sandwich theorem is the same, except it's three objects in 3-d space, and there is always a single plane which will divide each object's volume in two. This means that any ham sandwich can be fairly divided between two people using only one swish of the knife, even if the two slices of bread are miles apart and the ham is in another country!
Have a good morning everyone, Al
"nightjar .uk.com>" >
Yes. And you never see three legged steps ... imagine what HSE would say about that!
Of course some smarty pants will point out easels. They aren't stepped on. Or he might point out that a ladder only has a three point loading - ignoring that one of them, the wall, has a long/broad base.
We're not going to convince SP, Colin, by our practical experience! Not that I want to particularly, such a stubborn attitude is heading for a well-deserved fall ... :-)
Mary
snipped-for-privacy@jpbutler.demon.co.uk wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@c13g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:
Thanks for this. Yes, I will splay the legs a bit. I've figured it's easier to do this if I don't do it so that if extended they would all meet at a point. So I'll splay two outwards in one plane and the other two outwards in another, parallel plane. This will make it easier to make and put in the horizontal pieces at top and bottom. (This may sound pathetic, but I am using rudimentary equipment).
Hmm. I don't like the look of those sticks from B&Q :-) The wood is too soft.
Chris
"nightjar" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:
[SNIP]
Hi and many thanks for this. But what do I actually ask for? Can you give some examples of suitable stuff and what it's called?
Cheers,
Chris
Sounds like a good solution if you remember the stool has a front and a back when using it as a step - splay the front legs forwards and the rear legs sideways.
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