Just finished my last project. Dining room table and chairs. Posted on abpw.

Have never built a chair before. What an interesting challenge. Used loose
tenon construction and had every individual piece of wood marked.

Table is 8/4 red oak with mahogany stain to darken it a bit. Urethane top
coat. Glass is 3/8 smoked plate glass. Table is 44x60.

I really had fun building this and got to use several tools that I haven't
used much, like a spokeshave and bull nose plane.

I bought a little gadget called MortisePal and it made cutting the mortises
in the table and chairs a snap. Just set it and rout out the mortise. Fast
and accurate. For anyone who is challenged by mortise & tenon joinery, this
little jig is well worth the cost.

Vic

--
There are 10 kinds of people - those who understand binary and those who
don't

"Vic Baron" wrote in message
...
Just finished my last project. Dining room table and chairs. Posted on
abpw.

Have never built a chair before. What an interesting challenge. Used loose
tenon construction and had every individual piece of wood marked.

Table is 8/4 red oak with mahogany stain to darken it a bit. Urethane top
coat. Glass is 3/8 smoked plate glass. Table is 44x60.

I really had fun building this and got to use several tools that I haven't
used much, like a spokeshave and bull nose plane.

I bought a little gadget called MortisePal and it made cutting the
mortises in the table and chairs a snap. Just set it and rout out the
mortise. Fast and accurate. For anyone who is challenged by mortise &
tenon joinery, this little jig is well worth the cost.

Vic

Very nice work Vic. How many mortises? I guess I wouldn't have wanted to do
all of those with my drill press and chisel!
Dick

--
There are 10 kinds of people - those who understand binary and those who
don't

"Dick Snyder" wrote in message
...

"Vic Baron" wrote in message
...
Just finished my last project. Dining room table and chairs. Posted on
abpw.

Have never built a chair before. What an interesting challenge. Used
loose tenon construction and had every individual piece of wood marked.

Table is 8/4 red oak with mahogany stain to darken it a bit. Urethane top
coat. Glass is 3/8 smoked plate glass. Table is 44x60.

I really had fun building this and got to use several tools that I
haven't used much, like a spokeshave and bull nose plane.

I bought a little gadget called MortisePal and it made cutting the
mortises in the table and chairs a snap. Just set it and rout out the
mortise. Fast and accurate. For anyone who is challenged by mortise &
tenon joinery, this little jig is well worth the cost.

Vic

Very nice work Vic. How many mortises? I guess I wouldn't have wanted to
do all of those with my drill press and chisel!
Dick

--
There are 10 kinds of people - those who understand binary and those who
don't



Thank you!

Actually, 112 mortises and 32 dowels. I shudder to think of doing them
with a drill and chisel. The router made it a snap.

Vic

I agree, very nice, Vic.

However, if I may:
I can't tell if it is the pics, themselves (distance), as to why I
can't see clear details, but I'll assume the edges of the seat
upholstery are a little uneven.

When upholstering dining chairs, don't pull the fabric over and under
the edges of the seat with your thumb and index finger. That will
always result in indentations, or an uneven edge, along the edges.

Preferably, the bulk of the padding should not overlap the edges of
the seat base (board), for a fitted seat as that (It looks like the
seat fits into/inside the chair framing). Too much padding on the
outer edges can cause problems with (pressure on) the chair frame. Be
careful with that outer edge padding, that way. A light amount of
padding, like a polyester batting (polyester fiberfill), is okay to
overlap the edges with, to dull any sharp edges of the board it's on.
Just don't use a lot of batting (bulk padding) on the edges.

Application of the fabric:
To start, tack or staple (I use staples) the centers of the front and
back. The tension, here, shouldn't be the final tension. Somewhat
align the sides' centers, but not tight, and tack them in temporary
position.

Align the front edge of the fabric, next to the first staple, and
staple the adjacent areas, one on each side of the first staple....
staples about 1" apart. If the fabric seems to align easily, staple
one more, each side, again. Make sure the lateral tension is good and
firm (the finish tension, laterally). Don't pull the fabric,
laterally, with your thumb and index finger... use the palm of your
hand to pressure it laterally. Work it a few times, with your palm...
you'll see the results as you work it.

Now you want to attach the center section of the back edge to its
finished tension. Instead of pulling each area with thumb and index
finger, place your whole hand on the seat's top and pet (like petting
your dog) the "whole" toward the back. The whole of the fabric will
adjust itself to conform to and over the edge, uniformly. With your
whole hand still in pressured position, remove the initial staple,
while using your thumb to hold the fabric in position at that point,
then insert a replacement staple, there. Use the petting motion for
a few more attachments at the back edge.... and don't forget about the
lateral tension, there, also.... , then....

Go back the the front edge and attach another few staples along the
front edge. At this point, the front edge conformity can be
established with the whole-hand petting motion, also. Just make sure
your lateral tension continues to be good and firm/tight. Then repeat
the back edge procedure.

Except for upholstering right at the corners, when the front and back
edges are done, attach the side edges. Do the same petting procedure
for attaching the sides. This petting procedure eliminates awkward,
excess and/or contorted fabric gathering at the corners, as often
happens when one tries the "thumb-index finger" pulling technique, for
stretching fabric across an area.

The petting procedure and the firm lateral tension will help eliminate
those dips, valleys, uneven edges. I don't suspect you have too much
padding, along the edges, for it to have caused the rippling I think I
can see (again, I'm not sure I am seeing correctly). I suspect it was
the way the fabric was attached. This petting procedure is a must for
fabrics with lines or other similar patterns, that need to be
perfectly aligned and uniformly tensioned.

Sonny

"Sonny" wrote in message
...
I agree, very nice, Vic.

However, if I may:
I can't tell if it is the pics, themselves (distance), as to why I
can't see clear details, but I'll assume the edges of the seat
upholstery are a little uneven.
snip


You are absolutely correct Sonny. Couldn't get the tension quite right. It's
in my job jar to redo that part. Appreciate your tips.

The seats are 1/2 plywood blanks set in a 3/8 deep by 1/2 wide rabbett. I
did make corner blocks which the seat is screwed to.

Plywood has a layer of 1" foam and two layers of 1" dacron or poly cotton or
whatever you call it g - then the fabric.

Seems my main mistake was the initial staple - I pulled that too tight and
it was downhill from there.

I've printed out your tips and will give it another go.

Thanx!

I think most dining chairs have a tad more padding, on top, than
you've described. A generous layer of cotton is typical for a first
layer, against the seat base (board), then foam, then a layer of
"polyester" (there are several kinds of finish lining/padding). *Fire
retardent polyester fiberfill (a designated industry description) is
just as inexpensive as non-fire retardent fiberfill.

For when you redo your seats: For the small amount of padding you
seem to have, pay close attention to the front and back corners of the
seat base, your plywood! If the wood's corners are sharp 90�, the
wood may poke through the fiberfill and sometimes, in time, through
the fabric, at those points. When you redo the seats, at the point of
having the fabric over the corners (just prior to stapling your fabric
down), feel the corners to see if they feel too sharp (use your good
judgement). If they feel too sharp, cut the tip (1/8") off the
board's corners. This will dull those sharp "poking" corners, yet
maintain a good square contour. That 1/8" removed is not going to
affect any visible or functional difference. For seats with a bit
more padding, instead of cutting the corners, a touch more padding, at
those spots, can be used to soften sharp corners. The consideration
not to use a touch more padding on your corners is because your seats
fit inside a framing..... you want to avoid adding padding into that
fitted type of framing.

I assume everyone knows, but I'll add: Once a seat is fitted to a
particular chair frame, attach a number/symbol to the seat
corresponding to its particular chair/frame number/symbol.

Sonny

"Vic Baron" wrote in message
...


"Dick Snyder" wrote in message
...

"Vic Baron" wrote in message
...
Just finished my last project. Dining room table and chairs. Posted on
abpw.

Have never built a chair before. What an interesting challenge. Used
loose tenon construction and had every individual piece of wood marked.

Table is 8/4 red oak with mahogany stain to darken it a bit. Urethane
top coat. Glass is 3/8 smoked plate glass. Table is 44x60.

I really had fun building this and got to use several tools that I
haven't used much, like a spokeshave and bull nose plane.

I bought a little gadget called MortisePal and it made cutting the
mortises in the table and chairs a snap. Just set it and rout out the
mortise. Fast and accurate. For anyone who is challenged by mortise &
tenon joinery, this little jig is well worth the cost.

Vic

Very nice work Vic. How many mortises? I guess I wouldn't have wanted to
do all of those with my drill press and chisel!
Dick

--
There are 10 kinds of people - those who understand binary and those who
don't



Thank you!

Actually, 112 mortises and 32 dowels. I shudder to think of doing them
with a drill and chisel. The router made it a snap.

Vic
I just read the info on the MortisePal. Looks pretty good. I assume you
fabricated the tenons somehow and then rounded the edges. Correct?

Dick

On Sat, 19 Dec 2009 21:08:31 -0500, "Dick Snyder"
wrote:


"Vic Baron" wrote in message
...


"Dick Snyder" wrote in message
...

"Vic Baron" wrote in message
...
Just finished my last project. Dining room table and chairs. Posted on
abpw.

Have never built a chair before. What an interesting challenge. Used
loose tenon construction and had every individual piece of wood marked.

Table is 8/4 red oak with mahogany stain to darken it a bit. Urethane
top coat. Glass is 3/8 smoked plate glass. Table is 44x60.

I really had fun building this and got to use several tools that I
haven't used much, like a spokeshave and bull nose plane.

I bought a little gadget called MortisePal and it made cutting the
mortises in the table and chairs a snap. Just set it and rout out the
mortise. Fast and accurate. For anyone who is challenged by mortise &
tenon joinery, this little jig is well worth the cost.

Vic

Very nice work Vic. How many mortises? I guess I wouldn't have wanted to
do all of those with my drill press and chisel!
Dick

--
There are 10 kinds of people - those who understand binary and those who
don't



Thank you!

Actually, 112 mortises and 32 dowels. I shudder to think of doing them
with a drill and chisel. The router made it a snap.

Vic
I just read the info on the MortisePal. Looks pretty good.

Indeed it does. I've been considering how I want to tackle M&T and
this solution looks pretty good. It's certainly cheaper than the
Leigh jig ($850!).

I assume you
fabricated the tenons somehow and then rounded the edges. Correct?

They sell the tenon stock on the same web page.

"Dick Snyder" wrote in message
news

"Vic Baron" wrote in message
...


"Dick Snyder" wrote in message
...

"Vic Baron" wrote in message
...
Just finished my last project. Dining room table and chairs. Posted on
abpw.

Have never built a chair before. What an interesting challenge. Used
loose tenon construction and had every individual piece of wood marked.

Table is 8/4 red oak with mahogany stain to darken it a bit. Urethane
top coat. Glass is 3/8 smoked plate glass. Table is 44x60.

I really had fun building this and got to use several tools that I
haven't used much, like a spokeshave and bull nose plane.

I bought a little gadget called MortisePal and it made cutting the
mortises in the table and chairs a snap. Just set it and rout out the
mortise. Fast and accurate. For anyone who is challenged by mortise &
tenon joinery, this little jig is well worth the cost.

Vic

Very nice work Vic. How many mortises? I guess I wouldn't have wanted
to do all of those with my drill press and chisel!
Dick

--
There are 10 kinds of people - those who understand binary and those
who don't



Thank you!

Actually, 112 mortises and 32 dowels. I shudder to think of doing them
with a drill and chisel. The router made it a snap.

Vic
I just read the info on the MortisePal. Looks pretty good. I assume you
fabricated the tenons somehow and then rounded the edges. Correct?

Dick


Yes. they do sell various sizes pemade but it was a snap making them. I just
cut some strips on the bandsaw and a few passes with a block plane to round
over the edges. Probably could use a router to round the edges but it was
really only a few passes with the plane. BTW, also used the MortisePal to
rout the dowel holes in th ends of several pieces. Made alignment a snap. As
you can tell, I REALLY like that jig - and I have no connection with the
company other than a satisfied customer.

Vic