Center back slat with split

[andreas]

In Friday's video, Marc mentioned the possibility of splitting the center back slat in half instead of doing a glue up. I liked the idea and decided to give it a try. Here is a photo. Looks pretty darn good in my opinion.

[andreas]

By the way, you'll notice that I've chosen to omit some of the G&G details in my chair. I mainly did that to save time since I have other projects that I need to move on to.

[Southwood]

Looks good, kind of fits the style.

[tombuhl]

Believe I like the split center splat better. Thanks for giving it a try. I'd probably do some sort of small cut out to visually combine the two. Cool that you shared in such a timely fashion.

rock on

[PMR]

I like the split back alot, gives the center board lighter look.

[billboard]

Something has been bothering me about the origianal design and now I know what it is. Adirondack chairs generally have many narrow back slats. By splitting the huge center one it looks a whole lot better. For the build I went with the traditional style chair because I wanted it to match the ones I already have. Also too much Greene and Greene made the chair look too fancy to set out on the deck. I really like what you did with this project. Great job.

[rbbauer00]

I have a question about the back supports:

 

I totally agree with Bill about the slats.  I just bought the Guild Build a la carte and I'm thinking I'd like to have 5 slats instead of three, all of roughly equal width and still with the cloud lifts between the slats.  I want a Tsubo cutout in the center slat.  What should I consider when redesigning the upper and lower back supports?  My parents have some more traditional adirondack chairs that simply have a gentle curve for the slats to rest on, and much easier to cut than having 5 flat edges for joining. More slats would mean more "facets" in this curve and IMO a more comfortable chair, but the curve would mean the slats don't mate perfectly to the support. The screws supply plenty of strength, and the gap is really in a place no one will see anyway.  Does anyone see a problem (structurally) with doing it this way? Marc mentioned that the reason the center slat is recessed a bit in the upper support is because it would otherwise protrude a bit.  How can I overcome this?

[thewoodwhisperer]

Frankly, my brain hurts when I think about this stuff too much. What I would do is make a sample back support with a curve that closely approximates the existing shape and then use a rasp to carve in a bevel. Drop the slats in and see what happens. I don't think it's realistic to include five flat facets so the curve is probably going to be your best option. And remember, when we design these things we tend to get pretty anal about the details. The discrepancy I mentioned in the location of the back slats might not have even been noticeable to most people. But when analyzing the heck out of this thing for weeks during the design phase, we try to get things as perfect as possible. If there were five slats in the original design, I think we would have opted for a simpler solution like the approximated curve.

[rbbauer00]

Thanks marc, BTW... Now that it's been a couple of years, how has the finish held up?  I think the pigmented finish you bought by accident was actually the more attractive finish.  Are you still happy with it?

[thewoodwhisperer]

Yep, but its been under a cover most of the time. Holding up great so far.

[AMarshall]

Just to chime in on the back slats, the original plans have separate facets mostly because SketchUp allowed me to figure all the angles out.  Marc was too polite at the time to tell me to knock it off, though he's probably over that by now. 

 

I do remember that in early versions, the sides of the back slats were not meeting correctly due to the curves of the cloud lifts. All the funky angles were an attempt to get the faces of the back rest to lie in the same plane as much as possible.  In the real world, a simple curve in the back supports is a good start.  If there are any issues with one of the slats being proud of the others, a little work with a block plane or spokeshave would fix it quickly.

[wdwerker]

I my mind the process would be saw the curves, do a test fit of the back slats and make a few marks then rasp the contact points to decrease any gaps behind the slats. The fit doesn't have to be that perfect, just reduce any big gaps to prevent bowing and cracking a slat when it is screwed in place.

[AMarshall]

Just to be clear, I was referring to mismatches in the exposed faces of the back slats, where a person's back would rest.  Since the cloud lifts introduce a gentle arc along the sides of the slats, tipping those side slats out at an angle does funky things to the geometry.

[Sbrooks]

What would you say the skill level for this project. I did the bookcase one and it was about my skill level would this be a good next project ? Any help would be greatly apperciated.

[thewoodwhisperer]

I try not to state skill levels. I find them incedibly limiting since I often see complete beginners build our most complex projects successfully. So it is certainly more complex and will challenge you. But you'll have all the info and support you need to do it. If you have the tools and the wood, you have a good shot.