Cool fold-up chairs

[Bill]

While I was visiting the Ozark Old Time Music Festival last month in West Plaines, MO I met a man who built some rather amazing folding chairs.

In a nutshell, here is how they opened:

The back was lifted upward/upright, and then the two pieces which were the arms were pulled apart, that brought the seat, and the rest of the parts, into their final position.

Reversng the steps folded up the chairs.

He made taking the seats down and setting them up look effortless. It was a truely remarkable design, with not very many pieces.

He had a regular version, a wide version (like a small bench), and even a rocking-chair version.

Has anyone else here seen these chairs? My effort to locate one on Google failed.

Bill

[Sonny]

Bill, this chair sounds neat and I'm interested. Can you give any more info about where, at the festival, you saw the man and chairs? Do you recall his name .... any other info? Did he have a dedicated booth or was the setup less formal (not necessarily registered, if applicable)? Was his festival location in a section other than woodworking? Did he have other kinds of displays/medium, other than those chairs?

I contacted the personnel, at Ozark Old Time Music Festival, hoping to get some info, but have struck out. Here is the reply I got from them:

Sonny - I've reviewed our list of vendors, and can't find anything in the description of products given to us that would help me locate this vendor for you, based on folding wooden chairs. If you can give me a little more information about other products they may have had, where they were located on the grounds, or anything else you can think of, I'll be glad to look over the listing once more to see if we can help you find them.

[Swingman]

Was it all wood, or did it have a canvas seat and back rest?

[Larry Jaques]

Are you thinking "director's chairs" like I am here? They're very comfortable. I had some in my living room for about a decade and my friends flocked to them first.

've seen another canvas and wood style in the old books by Popular Science for ShopSmith. Page 30 of the 1986 Yearbook. It's called the Rocking Lawn Chair, but it looks like the old style canvas beach chair.

-- It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt

[MJ]

These:?

of fits the area.

MJ

[willshak]

MJ wrote the following on 7/10/2012 2:37 PM (ET):

How does anything named Adirondack, a mountain range in New York State named after the Adirondack Indians, fit in Missouri?

[Bill]

All wood. I don't think the arms of the chair at Highland push apart to unfold in the manner I've described above. One thing that was obvious in watching the operation of the chair was that it had to have been designed with of A LOT of time and trial and error--that none of it's parts collided when folded or unfolded. I pointed out what I thought might be a "weak area" supporting the back of the seat I think, but that's another matter.

His 16 year old young friend shared his abundant knowledge about blacksmithing with me. All I had to say is "I think it would be really cool to make my own hinges.." and we were off! This interspersed with old time fiddle through the afternoon and evening--it was a great day! : ) Cost of admission was free and parking was easy--highly recommended (annual) event!

I'm still interested in the chair design too!

Bill

[Bill]

you might expect to see the likes of Wham-O copy, in plastic.

[MJ]

Thinking rural, rugged, country folk craft, etc. Adirondack aside, I recall there's hills/mtns in Missouri (isn't that's where the Ozarks are?).

MJ

[Larry Jaques]

PLEASE, Bill. The interjection of logic into a Wreck discussion is never advised.

-- It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt

[Larry Jaques]

OK. I didn't grok that at all, but maybe I will when you show us a pic.

-- It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt

[willshak]

MJ wrote the following on 7/10/2012 4:46 PM (ET):

So you meant an Ozark chair?

[Bill]

I looked when I came home, but haven't seen one. Now that Cedar-Sonny is interested too, maybe one will show up.

Bill

[krw]

Dunno, I've seen a lot of Amish-made Adirondack chairs. Don't think they live in upstate-NY and they sure don't dress like injuns.

[Nova]

There's a rather large Amish community in East Otto, NY, about 25 miles south of Buffalo.

[krw]

Never saw any in the Adirondaks, anyway (lived across the drink for 35 years). The New York chairs I was referring to were made in Ohio. ;-)

[krw]

BTW, isn't that considered "Western New York" rather than "Upstate New York". I understand that everything North of Yonkers is "upstate" to a NYC boy, but...

[krw]

I certainly subsidized them when I lived there. ;-) They still send me adverts.