Chair Seats

[edgy]

Last of my chair building questions. (So far
) These will be for a dining room table and probably some variation of a ladder back, with stretchers side to side and front to back between legs for seat support.
I'm gonna need cherry blanks app 18"x 18" x 1-1/2". Is it ok to laminate them staggering the glue lines?
Should I go thicker on the seat material, say to 2" ? 
 
Thanks!


[attachment=20912]

[Scoony]

I would start with 8/4 material milled down and glue up for the width. I would not laminate wood to get the thickness.

[John Mihich]

I have watched a few videos about making chairs.  All of the chair makers stated that it is best to use a solid piece.  We all know glue joints will creep over time.  With the stress on the seats I would go for a solid piece. 

I like cushioned seats but there are chairs out there that scream for solid seats - Windsor for sure - Sam Mulloff another.  By using the thicken blank you can scoop out the bottom to make it more comfortable.

[Rob Young]

Yep, solid blank if you can. Best that it is well seasoned/dried and be patient with it during initial milling so you don't make a banana seat. Those belong on 1970's bicycles...

A slip-seat style chair would use less material and affords the opportunity to "refresh" the look of the chair by changing out the material once in a while.

[edgy]

Finding 8/4 anything in that width is not easy for me, let alone cherry. I think glued up for width is gonna have to be my choice.
Thanks for the input.

[mike4244]

Finding 8/4 anything in that width is not easy for me, let alone cherry. I think glued up for width is gonna have to be my choice.
Thanks for the input.

I'm not a chair builder but I think gluing for width would be okay. I looked at my dining room chairs which are cherry. I turned two upside down and saw that they were laminated for width. One chair had two seams and another one seam. Looks like a one piece seat right side up.
Imagine the other 6 chairs are  also glued up.
mike

[R Clark]

I've done a few chairs.  Never had an issue with the glue-up to get the desired width, and the newest of those chairs is now 6 years old.

For chair seats with underlying structure as shown in your picture, I don't think there would be an issue with 4/4 stock.  8/4 if you want, I suppose, but that would be for the look you desire and not necessarily strength.

[KC]

I've done a few chairs.  Never had an issue with the glue-up to get the desired width, and the newest of those chairs is now 6 years old.

For chair seats with underlying structure as shown in your picture, I don't think there would be an issue with 4/4 stock.  4/4 if you want, I suppose, but that would be for the look you desire and not necessarily strength.

Couple hundred chairs under my belt, every one of them with glued up seat blanks.  For those worried about strength, look at all the fancy rocking chair makers.  The entire chair is built around the seat.

[edgy]

Thanks to all. The 8/4 may well be overkill and I can certainly save a few bucks by using 6/4 and glue up the blanks.
Sounds like a plan.