Vacuum press far-out chair - ideas

[s1nglemalt]

Trigger alert for not classical woodworking post. This is a modern chair build with curves and built to look like coral. The coral chair. No dovetails here, just wiggle wood or fiberglass to shape like a curved chair. This question is for vacuum press folks.

Would you make the male mold then cut out the hole with a router / hand saw once it is built? Or would you make a form that somehow has "warts" or whatever that would be the holes around which you would wrap the veneer or fiberglass?

This is a collaboration with a non-profit arts center. This is not my design or wheelhouse, but I think this is a cool concept.

[Chip Sawdust]

I'm interested so I'm posting but I'm no help....

[wtnhighlander]

I'd go with the simple mold and cut the openings after. But this is waaaayyyy outside any wheelhouse I may claim, too!

 

[Mick S]

I'd also go with a simple male solid mold then find someone near you with a 5 axis CNC router to cut the holes and the outside shape.

[drzaius]

The problem I see, if I understand correctly, is that you are trying to make some pretty deep compound curves out of flat wood. I've seen vary shallow curves make out of very thin layers of veneer, but I don't see how that will work on something of this scale. There is just too much stretching & compressing that needs to be done to change something from flat to round.

At any rate, I'm looking forward to how this is solved.

[s1nglemalt]

OK, thank you. I may build this with fiberglass as a simpler male mold. This really has not much to do with woodworking, but I am not very dialed into the "coral chair veneer vacuum press" forums.

[Chip Sawdust]

Hey, there's a niche! You could start your own forum and get some advertising dollars from all those coral chair veneer vacuum businesses you see downtown

[Tpt life]

Film it. If it works, that might be popular on YT.