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Finally got some time in the shop and I'm navigating new territory right now. I've got the bottom or "base of the chair glued up. I've also got the back of the chair glued up. Just need to glue these together then start on the arms; I've lengthened the back supports and it looks much better to my eye. Everything is fitting together great and before i move to the next step I need some approval from the upholstery guy. I've got the seat supports squared away for the seat cushion and they are glued in place. The supports for the back cushion are a little tricky. My guy want supports attached to the frame but with some space between the supports and the frame. Here's what I've mocked up waiting for his approval, nothing is glued yet with the supports so I can change them it he wants. I'm using hickory for the supports, thought there wasn't a tougher wood out there; I've got about 1/4" space all the way around and I'll glue it to the frame using small 1" blocks, the blocks in the picture are larger than what I plan to use; I've also cut the cushion supports to match the curve and sweep in the back; A couple pics with the back clamped to the base; Also been working on the sanding and shaping and I'm really happy how it's turning out. Once I'm done this chair I will have learned so much in doing chairs with upholstery and I'm very excited to add this to my skill set. After this chair I'll be dreaming of all the new possibilities for future chairs! Thanks for looking.

I had two wolves, and two leather sofa's. They loved the taste of leather. and I bought stock in Duct tape.

I started the bottom rail last night but it got late so I’ll finish that up today. That’s the plan anyway. Then I can start on the drawers. This is the most complicated “box” I’ve ever made

This door is one of the more intricate joinery projects to tackle, and frankly although it’s “ok” I’m not satisfied. It involves a through tenon, mitered beading and a stepped tenon as well. First time I’ve needed a stepped tenon, not difficult. Through tenons aren’t that hard but I’d not done those before. I have extra material all the way around the door so there’s room for trimming which will help it look better in the end, and I’ll get a perfect fit for the door. I had a test piece because the first curved rail I made I didn’t like. So I used that to fit and fuss, which helped. But I didn’t have a test stile. So off I went; it took all day to get this far.

A chair junkie. Who'd have thought that was a thing.

My table saw is incredibly out of line. I watched a video on my specific saw and i cant just move the cast iron. I have to adjust the motor. but the saw marks are pretty deep and im starting at 80 grit and its taking forever to get rif of the saw marks. To be honest i've done 2 days of sanding at 80 grit and the saw marks arent even going away, i may have to start with 40 or 60. I just did a river table and taking it to my local lumber yard to have it run through their drum sander, i may just bring my cutting board and have them run it through also, thanks for the advice

Really like the detail in that backrest, very cool. What you are making would be so expensive to buy. Most mass produced chairs are lacking very much in quality. Not many pieces of furniture get worked as hard as a chair. It's one thing to buy a mass produced cabinet, no one sits on it or drags it across the floor. Mass produced chairs cannot hold up to what people put them through.

Well my point is a lot of chairs you buy today are not going to have the joinery you plan to use. Most mass produced chairs are just held together with dowels. Regardless of their construction, 6 x $325 is $2000, minus your $450 investment saves a decent sum. I know it's not massive but sounds like you have an argument to add a new tool to the shop, or at least buy some more lumber!

Solid Southern Live Oak Coffee Table. Top is 3 1/2 inch slab at 35 inches diameter. Legs are milled to 2 1/2 inches thick and shelf is 1 inch thick.

Even though I had a support piece under it, I got a little breakout on the outer side of the through tenon. Luckily there’s material I can shave away, probably 1/4”, so I think it’ll look ok in the end. These tenons get split then wedged so either way, they won’t move. They’re pretty darn snug.

This is the end result. Not perfect but acceptable.

Inspirational! Chairs of any kind are a hurdle I have not developed the confidence to leap!

Wow that looks great Bmac!

I bet it’s really level. I think the camera angle in the first pic makes the top took a bit tilted.

That last pic is awesome!

I think these would be interesting challenges...

Yes, I don't know for how long. A friend of mine got the job to cut down that were dead close to a house. The owner's wanted the trees cut down before they fell down and possibly hit the house. My friend told me about it and he asked if I wanted the wood. Of course I said yes. Since then I've been trying to do research on the trees, how to mill it, make slabs, make lumber. I leveled the slab with a router and leveling bit on both sides and then several hours of sanding on both sides.

I wouldn't start with 40 grit. That's an eating grit I'll use 40 only for really depends scratches. Usually 60 grit is my first pick unless it's real deep. You really should start at 80 grit and work you way up.

Two questions: 1. Is your sander connected to a vacuum? Removing the spoil is key to sanding efficiently. 2. Are you starting at a low enough grit? Saw marks can be pretty deep. Don't be afraid to start with something like 40 grit to get the surface level. Work up in small increments, and your sanding will be much more effective that trying to start finer. I have a Dewalt 120v single speed ($69-ish) and a Kobalt 24v with variable speed ($79-ish). The variable speed can really help, especially in the finer grits. Keeping the heat down helps the paper, AND the interface pad, from wearing out too quickly.

Aw, he's just wondering why I'm taking a picture, when the real thing is there to play with.

I've gotten to an exciting point on the chairs. I left off with the legs half finished and some parts rough cut. I cleaned up the other side of the legs. They fit together nicely. I placed the legs in pairs trying to keep all the legs from the same board together so grain and color would match closely. I positioned the unfavorable grain towards the inside. I wanted to start with the backs of the chair and work my way forward. I took the measurement that would space the legs apart and cut the 3 rear pieces, the headrest, the bottom back rest, and the bottom rail. I then milled the material strait and square and cut to length using a miter gauge. After using a miter gauge I find myself unable to go back to the mitersaw for critical work. With the parts cut I was able to start laying out joinery. This will all be floating tenons with the widths dependent on how much space I have available. I marked out 2 legs with the tops and bottoms of the boards and then the center of the joinery. I used this to cut the joinery on the first char (chair A). I then did a dry assembly so i could determine the length of the back rest. I have deviated slightly from my original plans and have added a bottom back rest part. This allows the joinery on the back rest to be strait and square and leaves me free from trying to deal with a nasty angle that may change from chair to chair. Then i grabbed a piece of 6/4 material and cut it in half thickness wise. I was able to plane it out to around 16mm thick. It's a bit thick but I like the stability and it allows substantial joinery. I used a template to mark the rough shape and clean up on the router table. I used the painters tape and superglue trick here as I didn't think the time to make 2 complicated sleds was worth it. I then took the back rest cut to shape and length and marked out some floating tenon joinery and tested it out. Everything worked out great. So i took the 2 legs and used them as a story stick to mark each leg for joinery locations and length. I first cut to length. All 12 legs then had their joinery mortises cut. Following that I took the back rest parts and cut the matching joinery in them. All the mortises are 8mm thick. The momeny I was waiting for was to do a dry assembly of the one back rest I had finished. I'd been waiting years to finally see my idea in the physical form instead of just an idea on paper. I have to say that it was a long wait and I think I'm going to love these chairs when they are done.My goal is to have 3 chairs sweep right like the one above and to have 3 chairs sweep left. This way 2 chairs on the sides of the table will either sweep away or towards each other. This bit was the other aspect that using a flat back rest made easier. If i wanted this to work out this way I'd have had to make 2 complicated routing jigs to accomplish my goal. I have a lot more work left. I still have a lot of back rests to cut out. Then each part needs to be cleaned up sanded rounded over and completely ready before glue up. After it's glued up planing surfaces will be a lot harder to accomplish.

Finally got to glue-up for the box. Sanded everything from 100 to 220, did a little tune-up on a couple spots that I left till last, then dabbed some Titebond II on the pins and squared it up. Inserted the false top and now it's taking shape - permanently. So I got out the scraper since this sapele requires a lot of surface prep. Never enough, it seems. Still haven't decided on a finish, but AquaCoat seems to flatten it out quite well. Although I'm starting to wonder if I really need it to be perfectly flat; it's not a table. But it is square. I got stopped because I was running low on propane for my heater and it's snowing today; and a friend dropped by to give me an over/under Beretta 12 GA shotgun... That's a show stopper for sure.

Moving ahead and I'm really pleased with the progress. Completed the front leg joints. I left them bulky to have flat surfaces for the routing, after the routing I placed my pattern over the leg and shaped them some. In this pic the leg on the right has already had a visit with the bandsaw and the one one the left is headed there. Both side supports after bandsawing, starting to take shape; Front legs went quickly; And I think we are starting to see the chair form, but still bulky; Next I did an offset turning of the front legs, following the same steps as the Maloof Rocker. Then cut out the front and back seat cross supports. Dominoed the front joint and it's looking good; And the money shot; I'm really happy how it looks. Still way bulky in some places and I need to attach the back seat support. Also need the back cross supports and headrest cut out. Once thats done and those pieces are fitted I'll meet again with the upholstery guy and get the shaping tools out. This is going way more smoothly than I thought, hoping I'm not overlooking something.