Repair and Refinish Chairs

[page2171]

Hi all!  My mother-in-law picked up these two small chairs.  She, knowing that I have an interest in woodworking, asked if I would repair and refinish these chairs for my twin nephews.  As you can see from the pics, the seats have split and many of the joints have come apart.  I think the chairs getting wet along with the way that the seats are attached to the frame is why the seats split.  Anyway, I'm here looking for advice on how to attack this, and what order to do it in.

My first thought:
1. Disassemble
2. Strip
3. Repair
4. Reassemble
5. Refinish

I'm also curious about how the seats are attached.  Should I leave them that way, or attach them differently?

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[CLETUS]

My first thought:
1. Disassemble
2. Strip
3. Repair
4. Reassemble
5. Refinish

I'm also curious about how the seats are attached.  Should I leave them that way, or attach them differently?

I redid my wooden high chair in the same order you have suggested. I wouldn't change how the seat is attached, other that the water damage it doesn't appear to have hurt anything.

[EdL]

Recently repaired one for loml.....they are a pita.

Had to drill out & replace every dowel as the chair was falling apart.

For re-assembly I used clear Gorilla glue, good stuff, it needs water to activate but it doesn't foam up like the original Gorilla glue.

Ed

[BillinIN]

I just refinished four of the same type of chairs.  Yes, do all the things you suggested.  ...and yes, they are a PIA.  But your MIL will love you for it!! 

[bhh]

Yes, it's probably worthwhile.  Couple of points:

- Regarding the seats:  You will probably need some bleach on there after stripping.   Depending upon what the staining is, it could take A:B bleach or if it's due to  iron+water+tannin, Oxalic acid http://www.woodcentral.com/bparticles/woodbleach.shtml

It may be easier just to make new seats from scratch. 

The seats are screwed to the frame from underneath,  BTW.


Regarding the joints:   There are two types of chairs: (1) those with loose joints (2) those that will have loose joints   (there are some exceptions, but not so much for factory-made, dowel jointed chairs.   Disassemble, clean out the glue, use new dowel pins of necessary and re-glue.   Quick and dirty approaches such as squirting in glue or worse, adding screws or nails generally don't last long.  Metal hardware tends to just concentrate the forces in one spot and can be a real pain to remove if needed to do it right in the future.  I've re-glued hundreds of chairs and if I ever find a broken tenon, it's always right where the hardware is.

https://www.popularwoodworking.com/techn...led_chairs

[AgGEM]

Hi all!  My mother-in-law picked up these two small chairs.  She, knowing that I have an interest in woodworking, asked if I would repair and refinish these chairs for my twin nephews.  As you can see from the pics, the seats have split and many of the joints have come apart.  I think the chairs getting wet along with the way that the seats are attached to the frame is why the seats split.  Anyway, I'm here looking for advice on how to attack this, and what order to do it in.

My first thought:
1. Disassemble
2. Strip
3. Repair
4. Reassemble
5. Refinish

I'm also curious about how the seats are attached.  Should I leave them that way, or attach them differently?

Seek Thomas Johnson on YouTube and search his many videos. He knows much about water stain removal in particular, and restorations. He really knows his stuff. You will learn lots.
Ag

[page2171]

I redid my wooden high chair in the same order you have suggested. I wouldn't change how the seat is attached, other that the water damage it doesn't appear to have hurt anything.

Thanks!  That is what I was thinking, but wanted to ask to be sure, because I've never really done anything like this before.

Recently repaired one for loml.....they are a pita.

Had to drill out & replace every dowel as the chair was falling apart.

For re-assembly I used clear Gorilla glue, good stuff, it needs water to activate but it doesn't foam up like the original Gorilla glue.

Ed

I hope I don't have to drill out and replace every dowel.  Good idea about the Gorilla glue.

I just refinished four of the same type of chairs.  Yes, do all the things you suggested.  ...and yes, they are a PIA.  But your MIL will love you for it!! 

Thanks!  I probably would have passed on the idea of doing these, but I need something to do when I'm not job searching.

Yes, it's probably worthwhile.  Couple of points:

- Regarding the seats:  You will probably need some bleach on there after stripping.   Depending upon what the staining is, it could take A:B bleach or if it's due to  iron+water+tannin, Oxalic acid http://www.woodcentral.com/bparticles/woodbleach.shtml

It may be easier just to make new seats from scratch. 

The seats are screwed to the frame from underneath,  BTW.


Regarding the joints:   There are two types of chairs: (1) those with loose joints (2) those that will have loose joints   (there are some exceptions, but not so much for factory-made, dowel jointed chairs.   Disassemble, clean out the glue, use new dowel pins of necessary and re-glue.   Quick and dirty approaches such as squirting in glue or worse, adding screws or nails generally don't last long.  Metal hardware tends to just concentrate the forces in one spot and can be a real pain to remove if needed to do it right in the future.  I've re-glued hundreds of chairs and if I ever find a broken tenon, it's always right where the hardware is.

https://www.popularwoodworking.com/techn...led_chairs

I hadn't thought of the seats being stained from the water.  I'll try the methods you mentioned.  Making new seats is a no-go at the moment since all of my tools are in storage until we get a place of our own to live in, which won't happen until I get a job.

Thanks for the info on regluing!

Seek Thomas Johnson on YouTube and search his many videos. He knows much about water stain removal in particular, and restorations. He really knows his stuff. You will learn lots.
Ag

Thanks for the tip!

All of these replies are why I asked the questions here.  You guys are awesome!

[page2171]

OK guys, I have another question for you all. What do you recommend I use for a finish?  I don't care to paint it, as I generally associate painting one of my projects with an attempt to hide a screw up.

[CLETUS]

OK guys, I have another question for you all. What do you recommend I use for a finish?  I don't care to paint it, as I generally associate painting one of my projects with an attempt to hide a screw up.

It appears it was finished with poly. Which would be fine. Personally, I like lacquer.

[BillinIN]

OK guys, I have another question for you all. What do you recommend I use for a finish?  I don't care to paint it, as I generally associate painting one of my projects with an attempt to hide a screw up.

I asked my wife what stain she wanted on the four I refurbished.  She said the same as the table.  I said, What table?  She said,  the one you're going to make to match the chairs. No joke...that happened....I put my foot down....and made the table!