Next project: Dining Table/Chairs?

[stoutman]

My wife wants me to build her a dining table for the kitchen form cherry. This will be the largest table I have had to make. She doesn't trust me enough to make the chairs and she wants to buy them :(

I told her that I 'think' I can do it :|

I don't own a lathe for round spindles, but that's ok because we don't like round spindle chairs.

My biggest concern (and hers) is dishing out the seat contour for your ...um...cheeks. How do 'most' people do it? What is 'most' common? I was think of some kind of contoured jig that I could use to make sweeping router passes.

Suggestions?

[Leon]

Look here, You need an Inshave.

have also seen it done with a jig and a router and you can also buy preformed seats.

[stoutman]

I am guessing it would be difficult (for me) to stay consistent from chair to chair using that alone.

Thank you. I might need to get one of those suckers!

[Leon]

Better yet, maybe, a Spoon Bottomed Plane. With a plane you might be able to control the depth and be more consistent. Look at Steve's site.

[stoutman]

My wife would Spoon me in the Bottom when I told her it cost $115.00 :)

[Locutus]

Chairs don't HAVE to be formed to your buttcheeks... I have seen plenty og flat bottomed chairs, or you could go the cushioned route.

[fredfighter]

There are also caned seats. Very comfortable.

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FF

[Joe Gorman]

What if you mentioned Morris Dovey's 3 axis CNC router first? Joe

[Swingman]

With chairs, done correctly, that may be the least of your concerns ... right after you get all the compound angles right.

Not to mention that one of the most comfortable chairs in this house is about 100 year old and has a flat, slat bottom:

[Mike Reed]

I think your biggest concern should be tight and strong joinery.

Disclaimer: I haven't hollowed chair seats before, but if it were me getting started:

To use an inshave to hollow out, trace out the region to be hollowed, and run one even pass through the whole region. Then trace another line inside that region, like a contour line, and make another pass.

If you start with a region that's cut out of poster board, you can duplicate it for all your chairs. If you get some practice so you know about how far inside each region should be from the last, you could make a series of poster board templates for each pass. The border of the poster board could be the shape of a seat base, with the region cut out of it. Just line up the edges and trace. Then for each chair and for each pass, you know your region is properly positioned.

[dadiOH]

If you want to do it with a router, you could make a jig - adjustable in height - that suspends the router over the work and which will pivot. One can be made easily from plywood. Pivot point needs to be adjustable too as it determines the arc in which the router travels and the arc determines the dish size.

Another router way would be a couple of pieces of ply with curved top surfaces (mirror of desired dish), mount work under & between, track router along curved surfaces. Problem is keeping the router vertical to work (or at same angle pass to pass).

Never done either..... When I want to "dish" something I do it with my radial saw...blade at angle to work/travel and just low enough for the teeth to cut. The angle of the blade to work'travel determines the width of the dish...maximum is with blade perpendicular to plane of travel. Radial rather than table saw because one can see what one is doing.

-- dadiOH ____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06... ...a help file of info about MP3s, recording from LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that. Get it at

[Max Mahanke]

If price were no objection I'd go with this, especially if you already have an angle grinder (fits most brands).

've used one cross-grain on hard maple and its easy to control and the cut is very smooth.

[Mike Reed]

That is cool.

You can get a perfectly functioning angle grinder for $14 from Harbor Freight. $10 if it's on sale. So you'd still be under $100 for the whole setup if you didn't already have the angle grinder.

[Enoch Root]

Unless it's from Singapore. 8-o

er

[Michael P. Hunter]

If you don't custom fit the chair to the individual buttocks, you may be missing the best part of chair making

[Leon]

Unless that person weighs 400#'s.

[Mark & Juanita]

I'd say that really depends upon for whom you are making the chair. Could also be the worst part. "No, that's not necessary, I can just eyeball the dimensions."

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