Adirondack

[Scally]

I have always been interested in the look of the Adirondack chairs.

The Recovery Chairs inspired me to give them a try.

I just received a load of reject floor boards care of Studley. They are 150 x 19mm tongue and groove blackbutt.

After looking at lots I plans I narrowed it down to a recent plan in FWW and Norm's chair.
A smart move would have been to decide on one plan!!
This would have made it easier to make both chairs at the same time. Now I have made my prototype and can start on the second chair.

My chair has a curved back and a curved seat to give more comfort.
The back has an even number of slats to avoid having your backbone resting on a board.
I like the curved seat front instead of the flat front on some chairs.
There is an additional pair of legs at the back to support the top back rail for the back slats.

The slats and armrests are glued and screwed and the legs are bolted to the side pieces.
It would be better to recess the screws and fill them with wood plugs.

The finish is two coats of Feast and Watson Floorseal. This has been lightly sanded. Next I will add a couple of coats of Danish oil.

It is comfortable and it does look like an Adirondack chair.
Now to start on the second chair.

[Sturdee]

It is comfortable and it does look like an Adirondack chair.
Now to start on the second chair.

They look great and I'm sure yours are as comfortable as mine. When you are finished with the second you can start on the third as two are never enough.

BTW I just finished my fifth (the last two for the Men's shed where I do voluntary work) and still have to build 2 more at home for which I have already got the timber.


Peter.

[RufflyRustic]

Lovely! Just begging to be sat in and enjoyed.

cheers
Wendy

[Scally]

That is embarrasing, Peter.
It would take me until Christmas to finish five!

I have most of the second one cut out so it shouldn't take too long.
But that will be it for now.

Yes, Wendy, it is more comfortable than it looks.
Thanks.

I am doing a little bit of shaping on the arms, similar to the rocking chairs. This should improve it a bit and soften the bulk some.

[flynnsart]

It looks great I am a fan of these chairs, and have always wanted to make a couple. By the time I get to them on my list, I will probably be too old to get myself out of one!

Donna

[BobR]

Looks good Scally. Have been thinking of making a couple of these, but was not sure how comfortable they are.

[Scally]

I did the shaping on the top of the arms using the big Arbotec sanding discs.

It does feel a bit more comfortable and softens the look of the big flat arms.

You certainly won't fall out of these chairs.
The angle of the seat and back stops you from sliding forward.

I thought they might be hard to get out of- a bit like a bean bag - but the big arms and solid build make it pretty good.

[MurrayD99]

Nice chair Scally. I have a thing about them too.

[Scally]

Thanks.

There seems to be a lot of variations on these chairs.
Do you have a favorite?

[MurrayD99]

Scally, here's a pic of one of my creations. The timber is larch and the finish is a Wattyl deck/furniture oil. Mostly the build is 4 x 1 slats but the main legs are cut from about 8 x 1 1/2. Front legs are about 3 x 1 1/2. You'll see the seat is curved and the back is too. Pam reckons the back slats should be rounded instead of cut diagonally. Very comfortable chairs!

[Scally]

I think your thicker timbers look better than my 20mm pieces.

The diagonal back slats matches the flat front and the big angle between the seat and back.
So that makes sense.

I have a habbit of rounding ever everything so I would agree with Pam.

That is a good colour. Is that the natural larch colour?

[MurrayD99]

These are dressed from rough sawn timber so I could decide the thickness myself.

No, natural larch is lighter and nicely figured but it weathers to a greyish colour. I was looking for somthing "varnished" looking. In fact, I wouldn't do this particular finish again.because it hasn't stood outside exposure too well. Need to waterblast them and re-finish... Also, larch (I discovered) seems to exude sap for ages - manifested in white spots that need sanding off.... It's very hard (tough on knives) and the chairs are heavy.

[Scally]

I finally finished the second Adirondac chair.

There were a couple of minor changes. I did away with the cross support under the arms at the back. I didn't think it added much and made assembly more complicated.

I don't think I have used so many screws in my life. It is a steady process especially when you countersink for wood plugs.

They look good for reject blackbutt.
I gave them a few coats of F&W floorseal as they will spend most of their time out in the weather.
A common comment is "I have only seen them painted white".

Now back to things with less screws.

[MurrayD99]

I painted quite a few of my chairs in this blue - sort of French look. I never did any white though that's the standard Cape Cod colour.

[Sturdee]

Got the same comments when I painted mine grey.


Peter.