Stool Proportions and scaling

Hi all. I am building a stool that was featured on a video from the Wood Whisperer http://www.thewoodwhisperer.com/vide...marcs-projects The stool is somewhat smaller than I need to build. The top is 1-3/4" thick, 7" Wide and 16" Long. The legs are 1" thick x 7" wide by 11-1/2" long and at a 15 degree angle making the effective height to the bottom of the seat at 10.8" I need to make a stool that is approximately 19" tall from the floor to base of seat. This is basically what the stool looks like from TWW. Attachment 267691
And here is an actual final product from TWWAttachment 267692

I need to make the stool 19" to base of seat, and I am thinking 10" deep vs 7". Currently the legs are the same width as the seat, should I keep that proportion? My thought is to taper the legs from say the original 7" at top to the 10" at bottom, or should they stay 7" all the way. The legs are tapered currently at 15 degrees, so they protrude only about 1/2" beyond the sides at the floor. If I keep the same exposure, my legs then become roughly 9 degrees. If I keep the 15 degrees, then the extension of eh legs becomes 2-5/8" which I think is too much. Is 9 degree taper too steep?

Please note the top of the leg is on a center-line set in 3" from either end. I can make the bench portion wider, say 18", and slide the legs in to a 4" centerline but there is still a 1-3/4" overhang. To achieve a 1/2" overhang with the legs at a 15 degrese angle, I would have to place teh leg centr-line 4.5" from either end. Comments or suggestions appreciated.

Now one final question, proportionately, where should I position the stretcher with its through tenons? On TWW, it is located approx 2/3 of the distance from the floor to the base. Here is an example of what I am thinking but any constructive criticism welcomed. Attachment 267696

I think for your taller stool the legs should be more upright. Here I've drawn them at 10 degrees instead of the 15 in your last drawing.

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2848/9...7c3ffd98_z.jpg



You'll probably find it easier to make design decisions if you can look at it in 3D perspective instead of just 2D.

Thanks once again Dave. My goal is to start learning SU this weekend. I have dabbled a little but now with sa new tablesaw I am ready to tackle some projects. And can I ask you to send me the file at tw69 at earthlink.net

Thanks Dave,

Hi Tim,

Sorry. I didn't keep this one. I just did it in a few minutes while waiting for a machine to finish a test sequence and deleted it after making an image.

+1 on making the leg angles more shallow. 7-10 degrees looks right for me. The stretcher serves a dual purpose: prevent racking, foot rest.

6" would be about 2/3 down. 1/3 from either the top or bottom is a good 'rule' for those elements. Consider making it thicker to support a foot, or running parallel stretchers nearer the front and back edges, respectively.

Last, consider that when you deepen the seat to 10", you will create long, flat sides that might look more dominant in this design vs. a smaller foot stool. You might mock up or play with the sketchup b4 committing to that. If you do wish to alter (I'm not saying I find it objectionable) then you can cut out or split the bottom to create 4 feet.

Thanks Prashan, I really like your idea about a dual stretcher. My intent for the top is to round over the edges and corners with a rasp, while leaving the bottom flat. For the legs, I do have a question. If the top is 10" deep, should the legs not be say 8" to give a slight reveal, then they can taper back to the 10" on bottom? Also for the bottom of the legs, i am trying to give the appearance of four legs by rasping out an area approximately 1" from each end and removing material up the legs to make the legs appear slightly concave on the bottom. I have tried to illustrate in the attached drawings.Attachment 267757

On the second drawing I have relieved the sides to 1", 1-1/2" and 2" and tapered back to 10" on bottom. I personally like the 2" relief.Attachment 267758

I kind of like the scooped out area on the legs although you might also look at cutting it out completely.

In the model I drew I tapered the top of the legs to 7" wide as you mentioned in your first post. The top is shown at 10" wide (front to back).

I don't think this stool is really tall enough to need a foot rest.