Comb Back Arm Chair Seat Carving Photo Series

That title is a mouthful. It is that simple. I have been saving up gobs of photos from shop projects. It seems I am really good at taking photos but very poor at blogging them. Maybe, I should be on Instagram instead. Nay... I like to ramble.

Anyhow, these are a series of photos I took in Curtis Buchanan's shop while I did my research on the drawings for his chair plans I drew. I think the photos are pretty self explanatory so I won't go into detail to much. Others that are better at explaining it than me have already done so but I find that lots of pictures really help in seeing all the angles. Hope you like these.

Lay out the pattern, drill leg holes, arm support, center spindle and a few practice holes on the edge. (Was a different bit than I was familiar with :) )

Fit legs.

Adze work and carve gutter.

Bandsaw front profile and Inshave work.

Layout outside edge of seat.

Front view of layout.

Remove bulk with drawknife @ front vise. Use a wide one so your handles have more clearance for those slicing/skewed cuts.

Some more angles.

Refine with travisher. Use inshave to work concave area near gutter at arm post. Also some initial spoke shave work

Block plane down from front of pommel towards depth of seat. Redraw center line for reference.

Refine pommel with travisher and spoke shave seat front.

Two more views.

Layout seat bottom.

Drawknife front bottom edge and follow with spoke shave. Give it a slight convexed edge about the last 1/2 inch back.

Layout seat side and drawknife only. Ok you can use a spokeshave or other if you must. I won't judge. :)

Sorry I don't have step by step photos of this part. I don't like to stop when I get going. Lots of focus to do this right with the drawknife only. Lots of skewed slicing cuts here. Have a very sharp knife. If you have two drawknives you might leave one shaped and sharpened for just this task.

Shape back edge in two steps (refer to layout photo above) with drawknife and follow with spoke shave to blend.

Another view. Don't forget to chamfer the back top edge of the seat with drawknife. I forgot to take a photo.

Bottom view complete.

Another view.

Finish up top of seat only with scrapers followed by 180 grit paper. Raise grain and lightly sand with 220. Now leg it up!

Hope that was informative. By the way this is in eastern white pine from one solid board. That makes it so much easier to shape.

Ahh... The Perfect Summer Day On Repeat

So, I have finally got my first batch of beech plane blanks out of the kiln. I have dried steambent wood parts in my small light bulb kiln for chairmaking for quite some time now. That is a whole different process really than when drying wood blanks to make wooden plane bodies.

What is my aim when drying wood for plane blanks? Well, with a background in working greenwood I always have appreciated how wood works that has been air dried. It is just different. I don't want to over rate it but the way the tools cut it is just different. As you can imagine I prefer it to the super dried stuff.

The difference lies in the fact that air dried wood never gets to a high temp like typical kiln dried wood. In the kiln the temp will generally get to the 160˚ range for many woods and some are higher. This is often done just to be safe and kill bugs or to set pitch in resinous woods like pine and to get the wood dried to a very low moisture content. However, it isn't actually necessary to heat wood this hot to dry it.

It is important to appreciate that commercial kiln operators are concerned with speed since this affects profits. Not knocking this, they are businesses, after all. However, the resulting product is not as good as it could be for the artisan woodworker. I have been completely sickened at times to have bought a wood like white oak that was beautiful wide boards and paid premium prices to only find that 30-40% was a waste because of drying defects hidden within the wood.

Anyway, these sorts of things, among the fact that I couldn't find certain wood cut and dried in the orientation or sizes that I wanted, lead me into the kiln drying business. ...for myself of course.

So I started researching this about a year ago and decided to go with a low temp dehumidification kiln. It basically allows me to control the environment in a closed chamber. Imagine wood drying on a perfect summer day at the optimal range of temperature and humidity for that wood. Now recreate that day over and over until that wood is dry. That is what this kind of kiln allows me to do. The blanks I am drying never get over 105˚ or below an average moisture content (MC) of 10 percent.

Yes this can take longer than a high temp (HT) commercial kiln but not very much longer. For most hardwoods it can be dried just as fast. In fact since I am not super drying the wood to, say, 6-8% MC (because these will be used in a open shop environment) then I don't have to dry as long. An advantage is that a low temp dehumidification kiln uses way less power than conventional kilns. Mine can run 100% of the time for 30 days for around $53. Of course, high tech kilns like this are not cheap to begin with. Think hybrid electric cars, you pay up front to get low operating cost.

I think this is the best of both worlds. After all there are drawbacks to air drying lumber. Air drying can take several years, first off. It is also subject to a lot of drying defects in actuality since you can't control the weather, as we all know. Surface checks are very common in air dried wood and then there are woods that are very susceptible to stain from mold and fungus if not dried quickly enough or cut in the "wrong" season. Beech is one of the worst for both surface checks and fungus stain when air dried.

Here are a few pictures from the process. I wish I had some of the log getting cut up a Curtis' place. Thanks again Curtis for letting me use your yard!

Haul it...

...cut it...

...stack it...

...load it...

...check it...

...start making it...

...finish making it...

...use it... (nice hair!)

...stack it... Wait, didn't I already say that?

Skew Chisel Sharpening- The Critical Geometry

Do you love to turn but have a panic attack when you pick up the skew chisel? I think this is the most feared tool for a new turner. They buy a set of tools and start turning. Everything is so so with a few successes and a few mishaps. Then they go to sharpen the tools. Doing this for each tool is a bit confusing for the beginner to say the least. There are a great many sources out there nowadays to get you going in the right direction... except maybe when it comes to the skew.

Why do I say that? To me it is mind boggling that with all the discussion about the different angles to sharpen the edge at in relation to this and that and blah blah blah... The most critical part is always left out. DON'T ROUND OVER THE CUTTING EDGE. Maybe I should say that louder. 

What I mean is that it doesn't matter squat what all that other stuff is if your cutting edge is dubbed over. That is to say that their is not a straight line between the bevel and the cutting edge. It must not be sharpened with a rounded edge like you might see on a carving tool. Why? The skew is a simple tool to cut with on the lathe and requires one key to its successful use and that is you must have the bevel in contact with the turning to support the cutting edge while cutting. If you don't then the tool will catch. 

If your edge is rounded over then when you place the bevel against the turning the cutting edge will not be able to make contact with the turning forcing you to lift off the bevel to engage the cutting edge. When you do this you WILL catch. 

Often a related problem to this is not having a rounded edge from improper sharpening but simply a dull edge. A dull edge is another way of saying that your edge is rounded over. Keep your edge sharp and avoid catches

Also it is important to create a smooth arch to the edge. Not one that has transitions from one area to the next which will make problem prone areas for catching since you will tend to rock from one area of the edge to another while trying to keep the edge cutting. This rocking or shifting that you do while trying to keep the tool cutting lends itself to making you lift off the bevel and catch. 

So here are a few photos of what your edge should look like. Don't focus on the angles of anything but look at how the grooves left by the grinder are smooth and don't transition but create one smooth arch across the bevel. 

Notice that when everything is in one plane the light reflects off the edge consistentaly.

One way to help keep your grind smooth is to "bell" or round the face of your grinding wheel and ride across that high spot. Notice the darker area on the wheel in the background. It is the high shot. I am not trying to sharpen across the whole face of the wheel which would give me way too much area to worry about controlling. This gives me a small area to concentrate on while sharpening. I have no use for a 1" wheel as you might guess.

Now with a nice bevel, it is on to a few passes over my 8000 grit water stone and I will have a gleaming edge. Sounds easy. This is the part where you can round over the edge quickly. It is imperative that you keep the bevel against the stone while honing the edge. Firm (but not grinding) pressure should be applied while evenly and smoothly sharpening from heel to toe and back. 

I admit that is not a great description of how to actually do the honing but fortunately someone (Pete Galbert) made a video a good while back that demonstrates this part quite well. More people should be watching it but unfortunately they are probably learning how to do this from a woodworking writer not a professional maker. (The cynic in me coming out.)

Finally, notice again, that the reflection of light is even across its edge. Once you have removed the grinding wheel marks I stop here and go the lathe. I will return every turning to make a few passes to keep me sharp and catch free.

By the way it is nice to have a bench stone holder like the one pictured to have it up nice and high so you can hone with more control. 

What is the Diameter of Danish Paper Cord?

Wow, what a question. I have been asking that for a long time. What is its actual diameter. I think I may have figured it out finally.

The root of the problem of nailing down the exact diameter probably lies in the fact that it was originally an industrial product made to bind things. Anything and everything. It wasn't meant to meet a particular exacting standard (as far as I know of). This product just so happened to make its way into Danish modern chair production because of a number of reasons.

Despite this, as far as I have experienced, there is an amazing consistency in size from roll to roll and from different suppliers, though I now primarily source it from one company in the US.

I used to use a rough figure of 7 cord widths per inch. This works for anything less than 3" but anymore than that and it becomes clear a more accurate measurement is needed. Here is where it gets ugly. There is no easy measurement that fits. It doesn't even make a clean round number in metric.

It is somewhere between 1/8" and  9/64". Or somewhere between 3.5mm and 3.6mm. I have landed on the figure of 0.13875" or 3.52425mm. It is close to 31/32" for 7 cords which works ok for figuring the nail locations on a 5/2 cord layout.

Since this figure is awkward to work with in the shop for laying out cord and nail locations I made a ruler for simplifying the process and of course want to share it with all of you.

Don't be confused by all the little blocks. There are instructions on how to make a ruler with the print out. It is designed so that you can create a two sided rule and be able to pair it with the different standard ratios of cord layout used on most danish modern chairs. 

It is sized for printing on standard 8.5 x 11 paper. The rule is 10" long and can be made longer by butting pieces end to end. I suggest using some clear plastic tape to laminate it with to create a simple flexible rule. Choose from several different measuring ratios, such as, 5/2, 4/2, 2/2, and a basic 1/1. I paired most of these with the option to have a 1" scale on the reverse side.

Hope this makes your shop life a little easier. BTW I decided to make this after weaving a CH25 pair that I recently made. I will post some photos on that since I know many have questions on how it is done.

CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE DOWNLOAD PAGE. (Click on the download button in the upper right corner of the new page to begin download.) NOTE: THE DOCUMENT IN THE LINK DISPLAYS INCORRECTLY BUT THE DOWNLOADED IS JUST FINE. 

NOTE: The plans are in PDF format. If you don't have a PDF reader Adobe Acrobat is a free software that will make it viewable and printable. Make sure where ever you print it that the "scale" is set to 100% or the measurements won't be accurate on the print. You may need to unselect "fit to page" when printing.

If I made any errors anywhere in the plans please let me know so I can update them.

Free Wooden Smoothing Plane Plans

So here we go again. It looks like you folks are having fun making some wooden planes so lets add to the fun. Here is a great little coffin shaped smoother for your collection. This is a fantastic size and a great introduction to making a wooden bench plane. The construction of the parts is a very typical arrangement and the size of wood needed to make this is much easier to find.

Here are the plans in several different layouts. The download has four pages. First one is for shop reference with measurements and lays out everything logically but not intended to be to scale. The second is for printing to scale all on one page but is on a large standard size paper of 11" x 17". The last two pages are for printing to scale on your home printer paper of 8-1/2" x 11".

As with other free plans I offer, I have one request and that is if you want to post these anywhere else online please link back to this page/ post. I offer these as a free download but they are not intended for commercial use. Again please limit the use of this design to your personal use and please don't be silly and try to sell them on Ebay. It is FREE! and it is © copy right protected.

CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE DOWNLOAD PAGE. (Click on the download button in the upper right corner of the new page to begin download.)

NOTE: The plans are in PDF format. If you don't have a PDF reader Adobe Acrobat is a free software that will make it viewable and printable. Make sure where ever you print it that the "scale" is set to 100% or the measurements won't be accurate on the print. You may need to unselect "fit to page" when printing.

If I made any errors anywhere in the plans please let me know so I can update them.

Comb Back Windsor Arm Chair Plans by Curtis Buchanan

So finally they are ready! What are they? These are full scale drawings of Curtis Buchanan's comb back windsor arm chair that he made in his Youtube video series. If you have ever wanted to make one of these now is your chance to have all the details in a truly refined design.

These plans are not simply a "rough" design of the original. I took every effort to show exactly how his chair looks once completed. These are not plans intended to "simplify" the making of a really great chair design for the novice woodworker. (These drawings won't talk down to you) They are for those that want to challenge themselves and make an heirloom piece. 

We truly feel that no detail is left out. I worked with Curtis for over a year, on and off, working on these to get them just right so that they as useful and as detailed as possible. 

Here is a Youtube video of Curtis talking about the plans, the DVD, and topography map of the seat that Jake did. That map is so awesome and really completes these plans. 

There are more to come. Watch for the continuous arm chair version that we hope to have completed in the coming months. For now go to Curtis' website and purchase these. I don't stand to profit from these (disclaimer). However, I simply wanted to work with an awesome craftsman and learn from the best while doing my part to make the sharing of this craft open to others. Your support will make it possible for more plans to come.

Free Wooden Rabbet Plane Plans

So in the spirit of getting everyone in the shop and cutting up some wood I decided to post up a measured drawing of a 3/4" wooden rabbet plane in the 18th century style.

It is all wood with the exception of the blade which is easily gotten from Lie-Nielsen here. It features a conical escapement and some simple embellishments that a hand plane, chisel, and #7 sweep gouge can handle.

The plans are basic with a few things that can be easily changed if you like. Such as the bed angle is shown at 55˚, for hardwoods, but could be 45˚or 50˚or even 60˚. I show boxing on the plane but it is of course not a must especially if you are using a hard wood like beech in the first place but it will increase the life of the sole for a heavy user if you decide to add it. And of course you can increase or decrease the width.

I only have one request and that is if you want to post these anywhere else online please link back to this page/ post. I offer these as a free download but they are not intended for commercial use. Again please limit the use of this design to your personal use and please don't be silly and try to sell them on Ebay. It is FREE! and it is © copy right protected.

CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE DOWNLOAD PAGE. (Click on the download button in the upper right corner of the new page to begin download.)

Have fun ya'll!

NOTE: The plans are in PDF format. If you don't have a PDF reader Adobe Acrobat is a free software that will make it viewable and printable. The plans are 11"x17" and any print shop can print this or just print it in two pages on your home computer. Make sure where ever you print it that the "scale" is set to 100% or the measurements won't be accurate on the print.

If I made any errors anywhere in the plans please let me know so I can update them.

UPDATE: 3/25/13

Hey all, I for some reason I noted 1” where it should have been 3” on the drawing for the mouth location along the sole of the plane. The drawing is still correct but the stated length was a typo. I corrected it. The updated version has a title ending in 3/25/13.

That is what I get for editing my own work. Sorry. Download again if you are in doubt otherwise the error should be very obvious and the physical measurement otherwise is correct either way.

Beech Wood for Planemaking

Could I have bought a bigger log? I think not. When you ask a mill to cut a particular type of tree for you you better specify the size, I guess. You live and learn. Beech is so seldom cut in our forest that I think the feller was just itching to drop a big one. He probably was saving this one for just the day that someone asked for a beech. 

So I never ended up making it home with this one. This is a 18-1/2' log. It measures 31" on smallest end. I didn't get far down the road and decided to give a friend a call to see if I could park it at his place and come back and cut it up later. I had a 2 1/2 hour drive through the mountains of TN so I wasn't feeling comfortable. This log had to of weighed easily more than my truck.

Anyhow this is where I will be getting wood dimensioned properly for solid wood moulding planes. I need it perfectly quarter sawn so I will be riving this up just like windsor chair parts. You can't get any more quartered than that. 

After some time drying I will be up and running. I hope to ease the pain of others that have been looking desperately, like me, for proper wood. I don't have prices yet but I plan to sell moulding plane blanks. I already have some awesome curly hard maple drying for some specialty plane bodies.

If you need beech wood for moulding planes let me know and I will put you on my list. I will have larger plane bodies as well for Smoothing, Jack and Jointer planes.

Just for fun I will post some photos of me splitting this up. :) I need a bigger saw...ugh!

Wegner, Walnut, and Paper Cord

I have been quite busy and away from my posting lately. These chair have kept me quite busy. I had a set of ten to do and they are completed and shipped off to their new home. 

That said, I am in my new home as well. I almost went as far as these chairs did, Charleston, SC, but I stopped in Greenville, SC. That is of course my new residence. I finally am all in and back to work. 

Now that I am back at it, I have a new chair design that I will be showing off soon, I hope. I will be doing a lounge chair in the CH25 style as well. I look forward to talking about all that weaving. 

I love how the light creamy colored weave stands out on this walnut frame. I really enjoyed seeing this come together. 

I can't seem to help myself when I finish a group of chairs. I just want to stack them and see what kind of geometric shapes come to life. I guess I also am just getting a feel for how I might place them together when I pack and ship them. Who knows what drives these things.