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Has anyone built one? Today I got a copy of John Brown's book, Welsh Stick Chairs, on interlibrary loan. It's a short but terrific book. It's missing some details I wish it had--e.g., what angle to make the legs?--but it's nonetheless rich and fascinating. I highly recommend it.
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I just got the Build a Welsh Stick Chair with Don Weber. New video from Popular Woodworking. Perused the CDs last night. Don gives a great step by step process. One thing he does that I have never though about is to use sassafras for the seats.
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(12-15-2016, 08:42 PM)overland Wrote: Has anyone built one? Today I got a copy of John Brown's book, Welsh Stick Chairs, on interlibrary loan. It's a short but terrific book. It's missing some details I wish it had--e.g., what angle to make the legs?--but it's nonetheless rich and fascinating. I highly recommend it.
I second the new Don Weber video. I have watched it on-line but also ordered a hardcopy. However FWMedia's shipping decided I'd rather have a book on counted cross-stitch instead. Interesting but not what I had in mind so waiting on the RMA for the replacement...
Almost as funny as one time I ordered a DVD from them, got the DVD but inside the case was the wrong DVD (but with the right label!). A video on crocheting. I think they may be trying to tell me something.
Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things. -- G. Carlin
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It sounds like the Don Weber DVD is essential because while John Brown's book is full of useful details, like how much to slant the seat backwards, how to make the different components with simple tools, etc., it's missing some crucial ones that you really need to know -- or to figure out yourself. As for wood for the seat, I suspect the best wood is what's available. Elm would be great because the grain resists splitting, but I think anything that you could find that's wide ( 18"+) and about 2 inches thick would work. Just for appearances sake, it would be nice to make the seat out of just one piece. On the other hand, Sam Maloof glued up his chair seats, and his work wasn't too shabby!
What's great about these chairs is that they're simple, both in construction and in appearance. I'm excited about the prospect of building one.
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(12-16-2016, 10:19 AM)Rob Young Wrote: I second the new Don Weber video. I have watched it on-line but also ordered a hardcopy. However FWMedia's shipping decided I'd rather have a book on counted cross-stitch instead. Interesting but not what I had in mind so waiting on the RMA for the replacement...
That's funny because they decided to send me a magazine on stitching (Quilting). A quick call fixed it and I got the correct DVD a few days later.
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(12-19-2016, 11:29 AM)Scoony Wrote: That's funny because they decided to send me a magazine on stitching (Quilting). A quick call fixed it and I got the correct DVD a few days later.
Yeah, since this was a book and not a magazine, they wanted to do RMA. I expect I'll get my replacement in the next few days.
Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things. -- G. Carlin
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Just got Michael Dunbar's excellent book How to build a Windsor Chair. Many of the details that John Brown left out can be found there, such as the best angles for the rake and splay of the legs. In some details Dunbar differs from Brown: e.g., Dunbar prefers to glue his seats up from several pieces (he's using pine, which he will finish by painting), whereas Brown prefers to make his seats out of one piece (of elm, if possible). But these books make excellent companions. Dunbar has good advice about even some very small matters, such as how to make and set wedges.
