Dominos for dining room chairs?

[Chris Padilla]

In addition to the time to make ten chairs, it gets really boring (for me) to make ten chairs. Doing the same thing over and over is not very creative or enjoyable - it's just a chore.

There's a joke about the woodworker who was selling a dining room chair at a fair for $300. A customer came in and really liked the chair.

"I'd like eight of those. How much for the package?"

"That'll be $3,000 for eight" replied the woodworker.

After thinking that over, the customer said, "$300 for one but $3,000 for eight? How does that add up?"

"Well," said the woodworker "The first one was fun."

Mike

LOL! Okay, that made my day!

[M. A. Espinoza]

Why not just use hide glue with the Domino?

At least if the joints fail in the future it won't be a complete waste.

[Jonathan Spool]

Although I am not a chair maker, and recognize through commercial chair failures in my own home, The joinery techniques used a hundred years ago were in relation to the adhesives that they had available. I would think that if a joinery technique could be simplefied due to the use of superior glues, there should be no reason to expect any pre-mature failure.
Seems to me that I have seen some "Z" chairs made with modern epoxies that defy my visual logic, yet they have held up to various tests. Naturally the chair would require proper engineering in order to withstand daily abuse.

[Cody Colston]

Those M&T joints they used 200 years ago were pinned because those Masters evidently realized that the glue joint would fail eventually. Pinning the joint gave it a mechanical connection that held after the glue failed, even though pinning actually weakens the M&T.

I don't intend to ever purchase a Domino, as I prefer traditional M&T joints, but who is to say that chairs made with Dominos won't be around 200 years from now...at least some of them.

A lot more of those chairs made by the Masters failed than survived. Not all of the furniture made then was the best it could be, either. Just like today, there was the finely crafted pieces for those who could afford them (mainly the merchant class) and lesser pieces for the less affluent.

Personally, I believe that any cross-grain joint is eventually headed for failure...it's just a matter of time. While the Domino-joined, PVA and Epoxy glued joints may be more difficult to repair, they are repairable. When the joints fail, someone will have to decide if the chair has enough intrinsic value to be worth the effort...just like today.

[D-Alan Grogg]

I think it's a bit premature to state with certainty whether a chair using Domino joinery will last 100 or more years.

Most likely, it depends on the quality of design, materials, and construction. A properly designed Domino joint will be at least as strong and durable as a similarly designed MT joint. BTW, according to the latest FWW joint test, a pinned joint was actually weaker than an unpinned joint.

[Terry Fogarty]

In the last 3 years I have made stacks of chairs using the Domino (with epoxied corner blocks) and so far they have all held up.

Below is a demo chair I made using the Domino(the completed chair has corner blocks)

It’s only my opinion, but the Domino is a gift from the woodworking gods for chair makers

[Vince Shriver]

In proper chair construction in the 18th.C.,tenons went all the way through the legs on the back sides of the chair.They were angled so that the grain of the wood ran parallel to the tenons. When you look at the backs of these chairs,the tenons look way off center because of this,but the makers knew what thay were doing. They were also pinned through,usually with square dowels,as well as glued.

George, I can't picture what you're saying here. How can the grain of the wood in the rail (between two legs) run parallel to the gain in the legs? Horizontal grain going into vertical grain, I don't picture what you're saying. Did the gain in the legs run parallel to the floor?

[Paul Murphy]

I just finished a set of chairs using loose tenons. I used a multi router because I prefer a single large tenon over a couple of dominos. A domino would be way faster than doing with a router and homemade jigs.
I think if you could fit two of the 8x50's in each rail it should be strong enough, I would make a sample of each method you plan on using and then beat on them and see how they hold up. Another thing that adds a fair amount of strength to a chair is corner blocks in all the corners. One of the problems with the joint tests I see in magazines like Finewoodworking is that they just test breaking strength and don't simulate things that happen in the real world like rocking motions and such. Most of what I've seen in chairs that have failed are loose joints rather than joints that have fractured.
The picture is a set of 8 chairs I'm currently putting finish on, They are loosely based on the dining chairs from the Thorsen house in Berkeley CA, designed by Greene and Greene. The finished photo is from a previous version of chair I did a number of years ago.
The materials are mahogany, ebony,white oak, cherry, mother of pearl, abalone and sterling silver.
Tom

Thomas, those chairs are beautiful! I have been working up the courage to try making a set of chairs, but have never found exactly the right style to actually get me started. Your take on the Greene and Greene style is as elegant as anything I’ve seen. I’m out of excuses now…

[Jonathan Spool]

Heres a good example of a chair made utilizing Dominos and modern adhsives. Hope I'm allowed to post the link??
http://www.festoolusa.com/Web_files/...WCM_zigzag.pdf
The last page has a few guys standing on the chair!

[Chris Padilla]

In the last 3 years I have made stacks of chairs using the Domino (with epoxied corner blocks) and so far they have all held up.

Below is a demo chair I made using the Domino(the completed chair has corner blocks)

It’s only my opinion, but the Domino is a gift from the woodworking gods for chair makers

Very nice, Terry! Mahogony?

[Terry Fogarty]

Very nice, Terry! Mahogony?

Thanks Chris. Its Eastern Mahogany with Red Gum Back splats. The splats are 10mm thick and fit into the three different Domino plunge settings. I made it for a wood show to demonstrate how easy and effective the Domino is when it comes to chair making. I love it