Greetings, I just purchased some full size plans for folding Muskoka chairs (Adirondack chairs for my friends south of the border). I have never used full size plans before. So my question is, what is the best way to use the plans? Should I cut them out or trace the paper parts onto some 1/4 inch mdf, foamcore board or something similar? Any other ideas would be welcome. Thank you
"Keep your stick on the ice" Tony
Cut them out. If doing several, make templates out of thin veneer, or good stiff carboard or whatever. To do that, tape the cutout paper to the template material with bits of 1" masking tape here and there to hold it in place. Interpolate into the tape area with your pencil when you've traced around the major part of the template. Also, hold the paper down firmly with your spread fingers while tracing; don't press too hard. A stiff template should be relatively easy to hold to the wood while tracing around it for the finished product. It's not fine furniture, so don't be too fussy except to make it solid. Cut out template with bandsaw or sabre saw for use on the wood. You can sand to taste, then paint or whatever.
If doing just one or two and that's it, then tape the paper cutouts to the wood to save a step ...your choice.
Rout showing edges just a little when done all parts and before assembly; that's worth the effort.
Dan.
If you make templates from hardboard or mdf you can use them as guides for a flush trim bit in your router, and will have them to more easily make several chairs.
djb
First thing - go to Kinkos and copy them. Then cut out the copies and file the originals.
You need a material more durable than foamcore. Get some hardboard or 1/4" plywood. Roughly cut out the various pieces, and glue the paper on top of your template material. Cut these out very carefully and sand/smooth the curves right to the line. These are now your master templates. Get some double faced carpet tape and attach to your wood. Bandsaw or jigsaw close to the lines, then use a router with a bearing mounted straight cutter bit for the final trim.
Be advised that 100% on a copier, especially a large format copier, doesn't always equal _exactly_ 100%. Do the first page, and hold 'em both up to the light to make sure it's correct, if any of the dimensions are critical (they are).
Been there, done that, "Not to scale" is not just a saying, Dave Hinz
What Rob said . . . with a bit more.
If the plans are 'complete' on each sheet {some have awkward 'combinations' of dashed & solid lines}, there are two options.
For 'tracing' templates I use spray adhesive and attach the COPY to some 'Whiteboard'. For ROUTER templates, I attach them to 1/4 inch Hardboard/Masonite. If I'll be using them repeatedly, I treat/seal/harden the edges with epoxy.
Regards & Good Luck, Ron Magen Backyard Boatshop
SNIP
On Mon, 26 Apr 2004 22:53:44 GMT, "Rob V" brought forth from the murky depths:
Spend $30 to copy $4.95 plans? I like it!
========================================================== CAUTION: Do not use remaining fingers as pushsticks! ==========================================================
They still make carbon paper. I just traced mine by laying out a few sheets of carbon paper over masonite. Ed snipped-for-privacy@snet.net
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