Maple Sculpted Rocker

[Mick S]

On 9/22/2017 at 10:46 AM, SeventyFix said:

did leather upholstery on my Morris chairs.  Let me clarify: I hired a local upholstery shop to perform all of the leather upholstery on my Morris chairs.  In all seriousness, leather upholstery is pretty expensive.  Looking back, I wish that I had spent a little more time and money and gone with bison hides.  I have a bison wallet and I really like the grain.  Not sure what that would have cost but it would have been awesome!

How much more were the bison?

[SeventyFix]

2 minutes ago, Cheeset202 said:

Those are stunning, I would hate guess what that leather work cost but they sure make the chairs beautiful!  Look like they are the thrones  in your castle room! 

2 chairs and 2 ottomans required 3 cow hides - about $400 per hide.  The upholstery work, including all springs, strapping, piping, cushions, labor, etc was about $1,100.  Fabric upholstery costs much less.  The material can be used a lot more effectively (less waste) than cow hides.  Leather upholstery labor, if I remember correctly, is priced at 3 times the cost of fabric labor. If a mistake is made while sewing the leather, there's no going back and replacing the leather is expensive.

But that's the look that I wanted and it will last for many, many years to come.  I spent 8 months or so working on these chairs.  With that many hours in a project, I cannot see using any materials other than exactly what one wants. 

[SeventyFix]

2 minutes ago, Mick S said:

How much more were the bison?

I honestly don't remember.  It wasn't easy to source.  I saw some faux embossed alligator leather (embossed cow hides).  It looked SUPER cool!  But instead of $400 per hide, it was more like $900 per hide.  I used Roden Leather in Michigan.  Really nice people - family run business.  Huge plus with Roden: I didn't know if I needed 2 hides or 3.  Roden sold and shipped me 2 hides which I gave to the upholsterer. They took a third hide, from the same dye lot, and put it on hold in storage for me for 1 month.  When the upholsterer requested a third hide, I bought the hide being held.  So all of the leather was guaranteed from the same dye lot.  It's hard to put a price on that level of service.  And call around for top quality leather hides - $400 is pretty reasonable. 

Every time that someone sees the Morris chairs , they always comment on the upholstery.  Me: "Yes, I made these chairs."  Them: "Did you do the upholstery?!".  Never mind the woodworking or the figured cherry - that always gets overlooked!

[Cheeset202]

15 minutes ago, SeventyFix said:

I ran into a problem with the rocker build this weekend.  Two of the spindles cracked at the bottom in the seat.  The cracks aren't too major.  I attempted to repair the cracks with CA glue but that didn't work (they cracked again, at the same spot, on a subsequent dry fit). I think that I remember reading that CA glue has poor sheer resistance.  I tried to repair them again with tried and true Titebond.  I let them sit and moved on to constructing the bending form.

It's odd that the spindles cracked as I had performed a dry fit in the past without problems.  If the cracks can't be repaired, I will make new spindles.  But making new spindles will take a significant amount of time.  I have other deadlines that I need to meet before the end of the year so the rocker might be put in the back burner.  It will be a shame if the spindles cannot be repaired as the figure in the wood is very prominent.

After an 18 mile training run on Sunday morning in the Dallas heat and humidity, I wasn't feeling hugely motivated to spend the day in the shop.  I'll get back at it tonight and update this blog when I find out what's happening with the spindles.

You might try using the epoxy, coating the bottom of the spindles then re-shaping to fit the holes.  You need to be able to get the epoxy into the crack.  I know on my spindles I over-relieved the back side of the spindle to allow them to move into place.    I filed in about a 3/32" relief about a 1/2" long on the backside of each spindle.  I did this on all 7 spindles.  I have very little resistance when I slide the headrest into position.  This resulted in a very slight gap at the back of spindle where it meets the hole in the seat.  I will carefully fill with epoxy on the glue-up.  I know the next time I build one of these chairs I will drill the holes at a 2-3 degree angle to decrease the need to relieve the back of the spindle.

[SeventyFix]

1 minute ago, Cheeset202 said:

You might try using the epoxy, coating the bottom of the spindles then re-shaping to fit the holes.  You need to be able to get the epoxy into the crack.  I know on my spindles I over-relieved the back side of the spindle to allow them to move into place.    I filed in about a 3/32" relief about a 1/2" long on the backside of each spindle.  I did this on all 7 spindles.  I have very little resistance when I slide the headrest into position.  This resulted in a very slight gap at the back of spindle where it meets the hole in the seat.  I will carefully fill with epoxy on the glue-up.  I know the next time I build one of these chairs I will drill the holes at a 2-3 degree angle to decrease the need to relieve the back of the spindle.

Good suggestion - thank you. 

And I agree with you wholeheartedly about angling the spindle holes in the seat.  I'm a little irritated that this wasn't spelled out in the build.  I'm not as enthusiastic about this build as I have about other Wood Whisperer Guild builds that I have done.  The plans (from Charles Brock) were not the kind of detailed over-engineered Sketchup plans that I have come to expect from Marc.  I struggled at times to understand from watching the videos, how deeply to carve some sections.  It was difficult to look at 2-D video and get a full understanding of 3-D proportions.  It's the nature of the beast to a certain extent.  This isn't a problem on projects where the parts are square!

[pkinneb]

2 hours ago, Cheeset202 said:

... I know the next time I build one of these chairs I will drill the holes at a 2-3 degree angle to decrease the need to relieve the back of the spindle.

Are you referring to the holes in the seat, the head rest, or both. Want to store this tip away as I plan on making one of these chairs at some point. Thanks

[Chet]

2 hours ago, SeventyFix said:

Never mind the woodworking or the figured cherry - that always gets overlooked!

[SeventyFix]

2 hours ago, pkinneb said:

Are you referring to the holes in the seat, the head rest, or both. Want to store this tip away as I plan on making one of these chairs at some point. Thanks

Correct, the holes in the seat (not the headrest).  I'll post a picture soon to show you what I mean.

[pkinneb]

1 hour ago, SeventyFix said:

Correct, the holes in the seat (not the headrest).  I'll post a picture soon to show you what I mean.

That would be awesome! Thanks for taking the time.

 

[Cheeset202]

6 hours ago, pkinneb said:

Are you referring to the holes in the seat, the head rest, or both. Want to store this tip away as I plan on making one of these chairs at some point. Thanks

It would be for the holes in the seat.  The spindles currently require a relief on the backside at the bottom of the spindle so they can be pushed forward to line up with the holes in the headrest.  Drilling the hole at a slight angle would be a much better solution IMO.

[SeventyFix]

18 hours ago, pkinneb said:

That would be awesome! Thanks for taking the time.

[SeventyFix]

The spindles will be bent forward, engaged in the headrest, to meet the rear legs of the chair.  That bend is too severe for some of the spindles; they cracked as a result.  The cracks were repaired with Titebond glue.  In future, I would select a strategy to reduce the bend requirement. 

1. Drill the holes in the seat at an angle, pointing towards the headrest.
2. Change the curvature of the spindle template so they shape corresponds to the curvature of the chair. 
3. Steam bend the spindles to conform to the required bend.

When making your spindles, pay close attention to the grain direction at the bottom part of the spindle (the section that is inserted into the chair seat).  Straight grain wood in that section may help strengthen that part of the spindle - likely the weakest section - or the section that is subjected to the highest stress.

[SeventyFix]

The video series recommends removing material from the back of the spindles, when needed.  I removed material from all of the spindles.  I added extra epoxy in the seat holes when installing the spindles and rotated the spindles back and forth in the holes to try to spread it around as much as possible.

[pkinneb]

2 minutes ago, SeventyFix said:

The spindles will be bent forward, engaged in the headrest, to meet the rear legs of the chair.  That bend is too severe for some of the spindles; they cracked as a result.  The cracks were repaired with Titebond glue.  In future, I would select a strategy to reduce the bend requirement. 

1. Drill the holes in the seat at an angle, pointing towards the headrest.
2. Change the curvature of the spindle template so they shape corresponds to the curvature of the chair. 
3. Steam bend the spindles to conform to the required bend.

When making your spindles, pay close attention to the grain direction at the bottom part of the spindle (the section that is inserted into the chair seat).  Straight grain wood in that section may help strengthen that part of the spindle - likely the weakest section - or the section that is subjected to the highest stress.

Thanks! So you would actually tilt the drill 2/3 degrees towards the front of the seat?

[pkinneb]

1 minute ago, SeventyFix said:

The video series recommends removing material from the back of the spindles, when needed.  I removed material from all of the spindles.  I added extra epoxy in the seat holes when installing the spindles and rotated the spindles back and forth in the holes to try to spread it around as much as possible.

Oh gotcha! Thanks again for sharing!!

[SeventyFix]

I got a little too enthusiastic with the epoxy on the second spindle.  No worries.

2 minutes ago, pkinneb said:

Thanks! So you would actually tilt the drill 2/3 degrees towards the front of the seat?

Yes, I would.

[SeventyFix]

Easy squeeze out cleanup with acetone. 

 

[SeventyFix]

Orient all of the spindles so that they're facing the center pommel.  They move a lot easier with the wet epoxy in the joints.

[Alan G]

3 minutes ago, SeventyFix said:

Easy squeeze out cleanup with acetone

Do you clean up the squeeze out immediately with the acetone or let it start to setup a bit?

[SeventyFix]

Even without finish, the figure in the wood is apparent.  I'm looking forward to putting the first coat of finish on this project.

[SeventyFix]

1 minute ago, Alan G said:

Do you clean up the squeeze out immediately with the acetone or let it start to setup a bit?

Complete the glue-up - all of the spindles in place, all positioned correctly.  This only takes a few minutes - this is not an overly complicated glue-up.  Then get a rag or shop towel and wet it down with acetone.  Be generous - think wet, not damp.  Wipe up all areas with epoxy squeeze out.  This isn't Titebond - don't wait until anything sets up!  Come back with a second clean rag/shop towel, wet it with acetone and wipe again to make sure that everything is gone.  Acetone will evaporate and not leave a trace. 

[SeventyFix]

I mentioned earlier that my West Systems epoxy pumps weren't dispensing properly.  To get around this, I used a 10CC medical syringe to measure the epoxy.  One part hardener (3CC) to 3 parts epoxy resin (9CC).  CC = Cubic Centimeter - it's the markings on the side of the syringe. 

I put the squirts of resin and hardener into a disposable dish (empty and cleaned out tuna cans work great for this).  I used a popsicle stick to completely blend the two components.  I sucked up the epoxy mixture with the syringe and squirted it back into the dish several times, flushing out the syringe with mixed epoxy.

Then I added the epoxy thickener and mixed it in, adding more until I achieved the consistency that I was looking for.  Once everything is thoroughly mixed, I sucked up the thickened mixture into the syringe again.  This made it incredibly easy to inject precise amounts of epoxy into each hole (seat and headrest).  A cut up popsicle stick made a good spatula to spread the epoxy around in each hole. 

This method leads to (1) an accurate ratio of resin to hardener and (2) an easy and clean final dispensing method.

I used a small disposable brush and the leftover resin in my tuna can to spread epoxy onto the sides of the headrest and the rear legs where the headrest attaches.  I like to save the epoxy can and the brush beside the project.  This allows me to return to the project and inspect the can and brush to clearly see how much the epoxy has set up.  It's also a sanity check to make sure that the epoxy is in fact hardening as expected.  You shouldn't expect problems but it's nice to see it hard and solid in the can, knowing that the same reaction is occurring inside your project's joints.

Just my $0.02.  I'm sure that others have success with different methods.

[Cheeset202]

3 hours ago, SeventyFix said:

I mentioned earlier that my West Systems epoxy pumps weren't dispensing properly.  To get around this, I used a 10CC medical syringe to measure the epoxy.  One part hardener (3CC) to 3 parts epoxy resin (9CC).  CC = Cubic Centimeter - it's the markings on the side of the syringe. 

I put the squirts of resin and hardener into a disposable dish (empty and cleaned out tuna cans work great for this).  I used a popsicle stick to completely blend the two components.  I sucked up the epoxy mixture with the syringe and squirted it back into the dish several times, flushing out the syringe with mixed epoxy.

Then I added the epoxy thickener and mixed it in, adding more until I achieved the consistency that I was looking for.  Once everything is thoroughly mixed, I sucked up the thickened mixture into the syringe again.  This made it incredibly easy to inject precise amounts of epoxy into each hole (seat and headrest).  A cut up popsicle stick made a good spatula to spread the epoxy around in each hole. 

This method leads to (1) an accurate ratio of resin to hardener and (2) an easy and clean final dispensing method.

I used a small disposable brush and the leftover resin in my tuna can to spread epoxy onto the sides of the headrest and the rear legs where the headrest attaches.  I like to save the epoxy can and the brush beside the project.  This allows me to return to the project and inspect the can and brush to clearly see how much the epoxy has set up.  It's also a sanity check to make sure that the epoxy is in fact hardening as expected.  You shouldn't expect problems but it's nice to see it hard and solid in the can, knowing that the same reaction is occurring inside your project's joints.

Just my $0.02.  I'm sure that others have success with different methods.

SeventyFix, good to know the acetone works for cleaning up the excess glue.  Marc uses just enough glue to prevent squeeze out but I will need to create a small amount of squeeze out at the back of the spindle due to gaps created from filing down the back of the spindles so they move forward enough.  Next one will definitely have the 2-3 degree angle drilled in the seat holes!  I also agree the straighter the grain on the bottom of the spindles the better.  Looking forward to your next step, the rocker build!

[SeventyFix]

9 minutes ago, Cheeset202 said:

SeventyFix, good to know the acetone works for cleaning up the excess glue.  Marc uses just enough glue to prevent squeeze out but I will need to create a small amount of squeeze out at the back of the spindle due to gaps created from filing down the back of the spindles so they move forward enough.  Next one will definitely have the 2-3 degree angle drilled in the seat holes!  I also agree the straighter the grain on the bottom of the spindles the better.  Looking forward to your next step, the rocker build!

Anyone who has to perform the glue-up for the sides of the Morris chairs may come to appreciate this information.  There is a lot of epoxy used; a lot of pieces being glued up at the same time.  It gets messy.  Agreed - Marc uses the epoxy quite sparingly on this step of the sculpted rocking chair project.  I did not.  I'm the kind of guy who likes to wear a belt and suspenders!

[SeventyFix]

The headrest is blended into the rear legs.  Everything is sanded to 320 grit.  The plugs are installed.  Just like the video series indicated, the plugs made by the plug cutter are too small.  Perhaps the holes get a little sloppy when the screws are added and removed during the various dry assembly times.  An oversized plug cutter, if such a tool exists, would be a help here.

All of the accent wood on this chair will be made from walnut (plugs, accent strip in the rockers and the dowels in the chair bottoms).  I prefer this over the use of several different wood species.