Hi
Firstly - fantastic site! I've read loads of really intesresting stuff, and still barely scratched the surface of what's on here.
Secondly, apologies if this is treading over well-worn ground. I have used the search function, but still have some questions.
Having read (and thoroughly enjoyed) Jack Hill's country chair making, I'm having a go myself. I've made a little 3-legged milking stool, and I'm currently planning a 2nd stool, hopefully improving on the first - which is functional, but no oil-painting. Then, I'd like to tackle a chair. Hopefully you good people will be able to answer some questions.
- Jointing the seat - gluing several pieces seems common, to make a piece large enough. Is glue sufficient? Or do you also use a mechanical joint (dowelling, biscuits etc)?
- When drilling holes at an angle, the forstner bit wants to skip off, as the outer edge touches before the centre "spike". How do you cope with this? Clamp more firmly, or perhaps start the hole vertically, before moving to the relevant angle?
- Most chairs seem to use blind joints for the legs. I quite like the look of the wedged joints. Is it down to personal preference, or is there good reason for using blind joints for chairs?
- When using a powered lathe, how do you turn pieces fine enough for e.g. slim back spindles? A 3 or 4 jaw chuck? I don;t know the technical term for it, but on my lathe the 4-pronged "spike" that pokes in to the work piece in order to propel it is about an inch and a quarter in diameter, so at least one end on the workpiece can't be smaller than that.
- A couple of years ago, there was a BBC prog which showed a chap making a windsor chair in his workshop. He used an attachment to an angle grinder to rough out the seat (before finishing with hand tools). Any idea what that attachment was?
Hope that all made sense, and apologies for the essay!
Much obliged.