How to build these feet?

[julian abram]

Hey fellows, fishing for suggestions on how to build these bed feet. I've been asked to build a bed similar to the one below for our teen daughter. Think I can figure out the panels & rails but having concerns about how to build the feet. I guess this would be called a Queen Anne style of feet. Would you cut these from a solid wood blank, perhaps 4"x4"x8" or would you bandsaw them out of 2 blanks and miter together at 45 degrees like bracket feet? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[Prashun Patel]

I'd do it as two separate cuts on the bandsaw.

Each leg is a single thick s4s blank as thick as the thickest part of the foot.

Trace the side profile on one surface of the leg, cut it, then trace the same profile onto the adjacent flat face and cut it.

A miter will be a pain to cut and glue.

[Peter Quinn]

The feet are part of the stiles on the night stand, probably on the bed too. If it were stain grade I'd use some thick stock and cut it out of a solid billet, probably need 16/6 X 28" per leg. Lay out one profile to suit your tastes, make master template, this will tell you the stock you need. No effective way to connect "feet" to the stiles when they are that tall, maybe a big dowel, but Id make it one piece, stronger and more traditional. For paint grade, I'd just start with 8/4 , make S4S stiles and glue on blocks to the two curved sides to make up the thickness at the bottom .

[Dick Mahany]

Search Google for making Cabriole legs on the bandsaw. I've seen several good videos that show how to make those curves that are what you are wanting to do on the bottom of the stiles.

[julian abram]

Guys, thanks for the good suggestions. This will be paint grade work, I can now see that the foot/stile is one piece so I will need to glue up some long banks and bandsaw the feet out at the bottom. Good suggestion on the videos, I did find a good YOU Tube where a fellow was bandsawing Cabriole legs. Sometimes I have a brain pause/lockup when looking at a new project and need some suggestions to break me free, I think you got me going in the right direction now, again thanks!

[Dick Mahany]

Guys, thanks for the good suggestions. This will be paint grade work, I can now see that the foot/stile is one piece so I will need to glue up some long banks and bandsaw the feet out at the bottom. Good suggestion on the videos, I did find a good YOU Tube where a fellow was bandsawing Cabriole legs. Sometimes I have a brain pause/lockup when looking at a new project and need some suggestions to break me free, I think you got me going in the right direction now, again thanks!

I watched Norm make some on the NYW and was surprised by how easy they seemed. Not intuitive to me at all until I saw the video. Now a ball and claw leg.............that's something altogether different.

[Frank Drew]

I'd do it as two separate cuts on the bandsaw.

Each leg is a single thick s4s blank as thick as the thickest part of the foot.

Trace the side profile on one surface of the leg, cut it, then trace the same profile onto the adjacent flat face and cut it.

A miter will be a pain to cut and glue.

It also works, and is perhaps easier, to trace both profiles on adjacent faces (profiles back to back, if that makes sense), then cut one but not all the way through, leaving like 1/8"; back the band saw blade out of your cut then cut the other profile -- you'll have something flat to ride on that way. You could also cut all the way through and tape the offcut back on to make the second cut. Either way, the cutting will be easier without the workpiece wanting to rock.

[johnny means]

If you look closely at the photo, you can see that these feet are separate from the rails. Though, the traditional way would be to build them as one solid piece. You would make your rails as regular square rails.The extra thickness of the foot portion is then laminated to the end of the rail and cut to shape. No need for a 4"square blank.

[Prashun Patel]

I'm not doubting you've done this successfully before. But from my experience, laminating a curve that varies in thickness like that will require a very thin underlying leg or the risk of burn through.

[Jim Neeley]

Hey fellows, fishing for suggestions on how to build these bed feet. I've been asked to build a bed similar to the one below for our teen daughter. Think I can figure out the panels & rails but having concerns about how to build the feet. I guess this would be called a Queen Anne style of feet. Would you cut these from a solid wood blank, perhaps 4"x4"x8" or would you bandsaw them out of 2 blanks and miter together at 45 degrees like bracket feet? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Julian,

One consideration: if you are going to attach the stiles to the rails using mortices it'll be far easier to repeat the angles on matching corners if you cut the mortices before you bandsaw the leg down from square.

Just my $0.02.. YMMV.

Jim

[johnny means]

Here is a very rough drawing of what your leg blank should look like. The dotted lines are the cut lines.

ForumRunner_20140404_224738.jpg

[Prashun Patel]

Thanks for this tip, Frank. I used it this morning. I've done the 'tape the cutoffs back on' but today I found this to be quicker.