# Two Rocking Chairs, Build Thread



## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Yes, another build thread. I was seriously considering the Alternative Methods Challenge and frankp was kind enough to send me the plans but for now at least I've decided against it. It really wasn't my thing, which is to try to create and build my own designs.

My status as Professional Woodworker has been re-established with a commission to build a pair of rocking chairs of my design. I was going to do a documentation of the highlights to give to my client so it's really not much more difficult to post this thread.

The client has seen and sat in some of my chairs and wanted a pair for he and his wife. He mentioned that the did not have to be the same and that he like wood combinations of maple and walnut. Other than those very easy to live with parameters, I've been given total creative license.

I'll be using a chair I completed recently as a pattern to which I plan to make some creative modifications but will keep the fit the same. My client has sat in it and has deemed it "quite comfortable".

I usually start with the seat which requires the largest chunks of wood and form the structural foundation to the total chair. I plan to make one seat walnut (of which I have a good inventory) and I thought the other would be nice in a maple burl (of which my stash has become depleted). 

I grabbed a stick of my walnut and headed over to a friend's place to do some horse trading. He has a wonderful stash of maple burls he has been collecting for decades. I found a half log about 4' long that looked like it had some promise, a deal was struck and we both went away with something we wanted.

I built a makeshift band saw out-feed table so that I could deal with the re-sawing of the log by myself. After studying the log for some time I finally decided to lay it flat on the saw table and ripped it into two inch wide pieces. There were considerable defects to work around but I yielded some fantastically figured and spalted grain patterns. It took some head scrathing to get the pieces sorted out into what would be a seat, all of which were wedge shaped. The result, I hope you agree will be stunning!

My client is a Texan. With a little imagination I think you will see the Texas star in the seat formed by the shapes and the grain pattern. The other seat is made from some beautiful walnut but looks boring by comparison.

To be continued.........

Best regards, Bret


Photos:

1. A crest rail.
2. Sorting out how to get the seat pieces to work.
3. The "Texas Star"?
4. This is beautiful walnut, why does it look boring?
5. The glue up. It required some clamps endo to keep the wedge shaped pieces from sliding.


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

Okay, now this one is going to be cool. I'll be glued to this thread for sure. (pun intended)


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## aardvark (Sep 29, 2011)

Got that right, Kenbo.
I'm not into fine joinery for myself , but sure appreciate it. Especially when I see interesting rough cuts of wood being used with dynamite grains and colorings.


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## Brink (Nov 22, 2010)

Oh boy, this gonna be nice.


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## Chris86 (Aug 27, 2011)

Having once built a rocking chair of my own design that turned out sitting straight up and maybe slightly forward, I will be watching this thread like a hawk:laughing:

When you get to that point, would you please provide details on how you figure out what angle the chair will lean back when the rockers are attached?


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Chris86 said:


> Having once built a rocking chair of my own design that turned out sitting straight up and maybe slightly forward, I will be watching this thread like a hawk:laughing:
> 
> When you get to that point, would you please provide details on how you figure out what angle the chair will lean back when the rockers are attached?


I built several test chairs out of scraps to work out the comfort geometry. Once I had built a comfortable chair, I kept one to use for reference. There is no secret formula.

Sounds to me on your chair you might just want to shorten the rear legs. A rocking chair is not like a regular chair, the seat wants to slope back quite a bit so you sink into it.

Bret


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Now that might be rustic we will find out. Like the wood choice that's for sure. Eyes are peeled for this one. Keep em comin.


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## Chris86 (Aug 27, 2011)

Lola Ranch said:


> I built several test chairs out of scraps to work out the comfort geometry. Once I had built a comfortable chair, I kept one to use for reference. There is no secret formula.
> 
> Sounds to me on your chair you might just want to shorten the rear legs. A rocking chair is not like a regular chair, the seat wants to slope back quite a bit so you sink into it.
> 
> Bret


Thanks Bret, That's what I was thinking too. That and I should've made the backrest tip back slightly. I guess it wasn't too bad for a first attempt... and now I have an example of how NOT to make a rocking chair:laughing:


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

That's looking really nice! I really love the way the seat turned out with the sap wood stripes, very very cool!

~tom ...it's better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt...


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## hands made for wood (Nov 2, 2007)

Bret, I always get so excited every time I see 'lola Ranch' just posted a thread! Your furniture has such a unique look and such a BEAUTIFUL contrast of woods that I always fall in love with! It's soo.. warm (if that's the right word..) I cannot wait to see how these boys turn out!


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Day Two: 

Got all the legs rough cut from 5/4 walnut.

Cut the notches in the seat using a canted block attached to the miter gauge so that I could create the 3 degree toe in and the three degree intersecting angle. Three degree toe out and 6 degree intersecting angle on the front legs. I can notch the seat with the dado on the table saw and end up with a nice flat bottom on my notch. I cannot cut the notches in the legs completely with the table saw because the shoulders require a compound angle. so I cut within an 1/8" of the final line with the TS and then carefully mark and cut the shoulders by hand.

The first photo shows chair #1 with the legs now all fitted. One down one to go.

Photo #2 shows the canted block I use to make the compound angled notches in the seat.

Photo #3, The wood I chose for the legs had grain that changed direction throughout the board so I hand planed the legs smooth to avoid any tear out.

Photo #4. I work with curves and radii a lot. This set of radius patterns that I made a couple of years ago gets used a lot and has been a tremendous time saver for me.

Well, off to the shop I go.

Bret


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Well it's starting to take shape Bret. Looking good. I like how you incorporated grain pattern for the star. Very creative.


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

I started glue laminating the splats. I do this by clamping four thin strips together 1/8" thick x 2-1/4" wide. I cut the strips on the TS using a smooth cutting thin kerf blade. This produces glue pieces without planing. I don't know about you but I don't have very good luck surface planing 1/8" thick material.

I make a lot of my forms for curve laminating using scrap chunks of glue lam beams. This one I use a lot for the splats with the lumbar support, so covered it with aluminum tape to keep glue from building up on mating sufaces.

Another photo shows a chair being worked on on each end of the bench. There is a piece of plywood screwed to the bench that hangs out far enough so that I can fasten it to the seat bottom. 

The last photo shows the goose-neck I have to built onto the front legs to create extra width between the arm rests.

































To be continued.........................


Bret


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## woodtick greg (Sep 12, 2011)

very nice, I like that you used the walnut sap wood, I have always liked the contrast. I will be watching this one with great interest. a rocking chair is on my bucket list!


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Very nice its starting to take shape. How big is the seat? Looks big here can't really tell. Are you leaving the seat flat or are you going to hog it out for customers bottom. Just wondering.


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

I'm still loving this one. It's a little hard to see your work because I'm so busy looking around at your shop. I'd love to have that kind of space. Great work. Keep it coming.


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## johnnie52 (Feb 16, 2009)

Looking good, as always. 

Man your shop is bigger than my entire house! I'm so jealous...


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## Texas Sawduster (Apr 27, 2009)

*Wow !!!*

WOW !!! What a great job on that chair.

I too am looking at the background in the pics of your shop. Very nice shop with lot's of room.


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## Longknife (Oct 25, 2010)

Looks really great! Nice design and and a fine combination of woods. I like your use of glulam beams for the forms and the trick with aluminum tape.


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

I got hung up trying to learn to use a Lancelot to carve the seat but I finally got one seat carved and got the burl crest rail fitted partially. I cut the bevel wrong three times! I just barely had enough left but made it, whew.


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## DWalls11 (Nov 1, 2011)

Looking beautiful so far. I'm loving the walnut. What specie is the crest rail? I have only dismantled and refinished a chair. This thread is making me want to tackle building one. Keep the photos coming.


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Lola Ranch said:


> I got hung up trying to learn to use a Lancelot to carve the seat but I finally got one seat carved and got the burl crest rail fitted partially. I cut the bevel wrong three times! I just barely had enough left but made it, whew.


That's awesome good job on the seat. I was thinking about doing something like that with a bench. How did you get the shape did you sit there and draw your bottom. lmao. It would be cool if you can explain in a short detail. You mentioned the Lancelot what is that ? Pic? Thanks.


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Dominick said:


> That's awesome good job on the seat. I was thinking about doing something like that with a bench. How did you get the shape did you sit there and draw your bottom. lmao. It would be cool if you can explain in a short detail. You mentioned the Lancelot what is that ? Pic? Thanks.


The Lancelot is a little chain saw attachment for an angle grinder the use of which I have not mastered.

When seat carving, imagine your seat (keep this thought to yourself), then remove all the wood that doesn't look comfortable. Test ( by sitting in the seat ) Repeat. Really

Bret


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Oh ok, I've seen one of those attachments before. I've seen guys use those for chainsaw carvings. It seems like its an aggressive tool, but you did your seat with precision and smooth. I think you've done that a few times or two, yours looks comfy. So how do you know it will be comfy for your customer? Just luck.


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Dominick said:


> Oh ok, I've seen one of those attachments before. I've seen guys use those for chainsaw carvings. It seems like its an aggressive tool, but you did your seat with precision and smooth. I think you've done that a few times or two, yours looks comfy. So how do you know it will be comfy for your customer? Just luck.


That was easy, he is roughly the same size as me. He has sat in a chair that I have here at home and found it to be comfy for him so I using it as a model.

For the Lancelot, I spent quite a bit of time fashioning a holding gizmo with interchangeable pivoting or sliding track with adjustable depth setting. I just use it for the perimeter to get a clean line and an even depth. I then switch to a flap disk and finish up to that line.

Bret


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Ok thanks. I'll have to try that some time. Practice makes perfect. That chair really looks nice, great job so far.


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

I got the crest rail and arm rests installed on chair #1. I'll do the same to chair #2 tomorrow then work on the rockers.

Bret


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

This is an incredible thread. I'm really enjoying seeing the work that you go through to make these chairs. Fantastic!!!


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Your chair is looking good. It's coming together beautiful. Can't wait to see the other one with the star pattern,with a finish on it. It should pop with great color. Keep em coming.


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Dominick said:


> Your chair is looking good. It's coming together beautiful. Can't wait to see the other one with the star pattern,with a finish on it. It should pop with great color. Keep em coming.


Unfortunately the star pattern disappeared when I carved the seat. What I now have is stunning resemblance of the Virgin Mary..........Just kidding:laughing:

Bret


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## hands made for wood (Nov 2, 2007)

Okay Bret. I could not believe how fast you've been going on these chairs! Absolutely incredible! Can't wait to see them finished!


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

hands made for wood said:


> Okay Bret. I could not believe how fast you've been going on these chairs! Absolutely incredible! Can't wait to see them finished!


Really? I feel like I'm a little behind schedule.

Bret


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Lola Ranch said:


> Unfortunately the star pattern disappeared when I carved the seat. What I now have is stunning resemblance of the Virgin Mary..........Just kidding:laughing:
> 
> Bret


Well that stinks. I thought that was the whole idea to have the star. Anyways they still logo great. Good work.


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Dominick said:


> Well that stinks. I thought that was the whole idea to have the star. Anyways they still logo great. Good work.


The star pattern happened by chance. I was hopeful it would remain after the seat was hogged out and there was no way to tell other than just doing it. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted. I got the photos anyway.

Bret


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Well your right about that. At least you know how to incorporate something like that in the future. Good going.


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

Lola Ranch said:


> Really? I feel like I'm a little behind schedule.
> 
> Bret


Yeah ya are! :laughing:... Joking of course.

Looking great!... I still wanna see the Virgin Mary!:laughing:

~tom ...it's better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt...


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

Gorgeous chairs. You did great. We made two little chairs for
our kitchen and struggled like a sonofagun on them, I think it was
the hardest thing we ever did...so I really
can appreciate what you've done there ...your chairs are awesome! :thumbsup:


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

progress update in photos.

Bret


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Chairs look very nice Bret. You've come a long way on this build. I'll be honest from the start I wasn't sure where this was going. But you reached all expectations. What I like most about it there's different. Great job on chairs and design. Like the birds eye.


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

Still an amazing thread and some serious skill on your part. Great work. I can't wait to see how that grain is going to pop when you apply the finish.


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## Texas Sawduster (Apr 27, 2009)

*Absolutely Amazing !!!*

WOW. What great work you are doing on those chairs. :thumbsup:

I can't wait to see them finished.


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## sanchez (Feb 18, 2010)

Bret, you are amazing! Thanks for posting all this!


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

Absolutely awesome!

~tom ...it's better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt...


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Sorry there was no update last night but I was out of the shop most of the day.

My goal was to get these two chairs done in two weeks but by the time I have all the coats of finish done, I'll be well into the third week.

I did spend a fair amount of time experimenting with the seat carving apparatus

Today I installed the rocking rails on one chair, which I glued up last night. I glued up the other one this morning. The one photo shows the addition of mortise blocks being added to the rails. Again, so that I wouldn't have to spend a lot of time building jigs, I cut the mortises and tenons for the leg to rail connection by hand.

I haven't use these mortise blocks before but decided it would be stronger because now I don't have to through mortise the the rails and possibly produce a weak point. So I think it's a nice improvement but more time consuming. 

Tomorrow I hope to get the rocker rails installed on the second chair. Then spend a good part of the day detail sanding and shaping and try to get the first coat of finish on sometime this weekend.

I was able to "test rock" the first chair today. Very comfortable, sits and rocks well.

Bret


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

*One day...*

Some day (after you're dead:wheelchair::tt2 they're going to put your work in a fine arts museum and write about it... when they do i'm gonna say I kinda knew him and got to see some of the process for his creations!... very cool peices here, Brett


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

So, what you are saying is I have something took forward to.......when I'm dead?:laughing:


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Thanks for the update Bret. Beautiful job. I really like these chairs. I like how you did the rockers, nice contrast. Excellent wood choice. It's going to be hard to get rid of them. Can't wait for the finish.


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

The rockers look great and the chairs look fantastic. You say that you glued the rockers to the first chair. Is that the only thing holding the rockers on?  I see a bottle of Titebond II on the bench. Is that enough to hold the rockers on over years of wear and tear? Either way, amazing build thread. I might have to try doing a build thread one of these days. :laughing:


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Kenbo said:


> The rockers look great and the chairs look fantastic. You say that you glued the rockers to the first chair. Is that the only thing holding the rockers on?  I see a bottle of Titebond II on the bench. Is that enough to hold the rockers on over years of wear and tear? Either way, amazing build thread. I might have to try doing a build thread one of these days. :laughing:


Kenbo,

I have always cut tenons on the bottom of the legs which fit into mortises which were cut into my rocker rails. This time I strengthened it by adding the "mortise blocks" which are glued to the rails, long grain to long grain. Now the mortise just penetrates the mortise block and not all the way through the rail, keeping in stronger. There is also a 3-1/2" screw going up through the bottom of the rail into the legs. If there is a stronger way to do this, I'm all ears.

I would never rely on an end grain glue joint to hold anything over time. I'll take some photos of the process today. Good question though.

Bret


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Here is a sequence of photos showing the installation of the rocker rails.

1. After carefully cutting the legs to length at the correct angle to sit flat on the rocker rail, I then cut the tenons. I do all of this with a Dozuki saw for the only reason, it's the easiest way.

2 and 3. I spring clamp some strips of bicycle inner tube to the legs to act as a third hand to hold the rails against the the bottom of the legs while I mark for the mortises. I bore the corners of the mortise with a 3/8" fortsner bit on the drill press and then quickly chop out the remainder then dry fit it. I pre-bore a pilot hole for a long screw. Then I apply glue, tap the rail on the legs with a mallot and then send it home with my impact driver being careful not to over-tighten.

4. Pretty racey looking rails.

5. Some fairly serious screws, the best I have found for the job.

Bret


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## Brink (Nov 22, 2010)

Love the mortis blocks! The way they flow reminds me of a Sam Maloof rocker.


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

The wood work is all done and one coat of finish applied. Enjoy, Bret


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## Cracker749 (Sep 1, 2010)

Your projects always amaze me. What's the third chair in the picture?! Looks interesting


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Hey Bret chairs came out awesome. I like the finished look. Looks like the star pattern kind of shows after carving the seat. That's cool. And yea what's up with that other chair? please explain.


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

The mysterious "third chair".....is just a cantilevered side chair I was experimenting with. It needed some finish so i was doing with the others. 

I guess I haven't posted it. It's a great little chair and quick to build.

Bret


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

How sturdy is that chair? Does it balance well? Looks cool


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Dominick said:


> How sturdy is that chair? Does it balance well? Looks cool


It balances like a normal chair but feels sturdier somehow and is quite comfortable. It's sort of patterned after George Nakashima's "Conoid" chair.

Bret


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Lola Ranch said:


> It balances like a normal chair but feels sturdier somehow and is quite comfortable. It's sort of patterned after George Nakashima's "Conoid" chair.
> 
> Bret


Oh ok. I was just curious.looks nice. I was thinking of doing a chair like that but only with slabs.


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Dominick said:


> Oh ok. I was just curious.looks nice. I was thinking of doing a chair like that but only with slabs.


I considered that also but thought using slabs would make for a heavy chair. I decided that for dining chairs, lighter would be better.

My $0.02
Bret


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Hey no doubt about it. Chair looks nice the way you did it.


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

Wow, they turned out great. I love the look of both of them. Thanks so much for posting the photos of the rockers and how you join them to the chair. It makes a lot more sense to me now. Congrats on a job well done. All 3 chairs are gorgeous.


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## whatalesyou1 (Mar 18, 2011)

Amazing build! The chairs are beautiful!

May I ask, how much did you charge the customer for the pair?

I have been toying with the idea of building a rock chair during the cold winter months. I must admit that I am intimidated. I would hate to waste all the time with a chair that no one wants to sit in...


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

whatalesyou1 said:


> Amazing build! The chairs are beautiful!
> 
> May I ask, how much did you charge the customer for the pair?
> 
> I have been toying with the idea of building a rock chair during the cold winter months. I must admit that I am intimidated. I would hate to waste all the time with a chair that no one wants to sit in...


Thank you. Go ahead and guess the price, I'll tell you if you are close.

You can purchase a pattern from a proven chair builder or do what I did and build a couple of prototypes out of scrap wood, just screw everything together. Although, to be honest it took about six chairs before it all came together. I went back and dismantled the first couple I built because they were just bad, I didn't want them around.

I could make a pattern out of butcher paper for ya.

Bret


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## whatalesyou1 (Mar 18, 2011)

Lola Ranch said:


> Thank you. Go ahead and guess the price, I'll tell you if you are close.
> 
> You can purchase a pattern from a proven chair builder or do what I did and build a couple of prototypes out of scrap wood, just screw everything together. Although, to be honest it took about six chairs before it all came together. I went back and dismantled the first couple I built because they were just bad, I didn't want them around.
> 
> ...


I would guess about...$750 per chair?

My biggest concern for my first chair is getting the height, angle of the back, and leg length right.

The pattern would be AWESOME! :notworthy:


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

whatalesyou1 said:


> I would guess about...$750 per chair?
> 
> My biggest concern for my first chair is getting the height, angle of the back, and leg length right.
> 
> The pattern would be AWESOME! :notworthy:


Ohh, sorry, even I can't work that cheap. You are way low.


I'll send you a PM concerning the pattern.

Bret


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## Texas Sawduster (Apr 27, 2009)

Lola Ranch said:


> So, what you are saying is I have something took forward to.......when I'm dead?:laughing:


Heaven ain't such a bad place. :yes:

Very nice work on those chairs. I really like the laminated rockers.
Adds a very nice touch.


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## whatalesyou1 (Mar 18, 2011)

Haha...I guessed low! I got your pm's. I look forward to your follow up. 

For now, can you give some more info on the lamenting process for the back supports and the rocking surfaces? 

Thanks!


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

For now, can you give some more info on the lamenting process for the back supports and the rocking surfaces? 

Thanks![/QUOTE]

This first photo shows the bending form I made from and old chunk of glue lam beam which I cut to the shape of the back splats using the band saw. I covered the gluing faces with aluminum tape to keep the glue from sticking to the form. The form is wide enough to glue up two at a time side by side. I use a thin kerf trim blade to rip the 2-1/8" wide strips to a thickness of 5/32". The trim blade produces a smooth even surface that is glueable without running it through the planer. I am not comfortable thickness planing to less than about 3/16", any thinner and the pieces have a tendency to blow up in the planer. The net width on the splats is 1-7/8" which gives me about 3/16" to clean up on each edge. For wider laminations, I'll re-saw the thin layers with the bandsaw and then carefully run them through the planer. Also in the photo are two stacks of laminations ready to be glued into splats.









The second photos show the two splats glued up and under pressure. I like lots of clamps with lots of pressure..









Third photo shows a splat fresh out of the form after a minimum of three or four hours.









An the final photo shows figuring out the length to cut the individual splats adjusting for the curve of the crest rail.









Same process for the rocker rails, just a different form

Bret


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## whatalesyou1 (Mar 18, 2011)

How many layers do you use for the splats and the rails?


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## DWalls11 (Nov 1, 2011)

Bret, Your chairs are gorgeous. I bet putting on the first coat of finish was like christmas morning, that's the feeling I get anyway. You have to love when the true colour of the wood "pops". Keep up the nice work and I look forward to more of your projects.


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