Tea House Chair and Table

[Joe A Faulkner]

Great project. I recall a video on cutting blind dados by hand that you did on your Butler's desk. I'd love to see a video of the adze work. I always learn something from your posts.

[Brian Holcombe]

Hi Brian,
Historical reference is important. I've made an exact copy of a Shaker end table and you appreciate why each joint is the way it is. I certainly have experience of stressed wood failing (two Directors chairs spring to mind).
Yes I've seen similar joints but with wider battens, no I have not made this joint or yours but I am now tempted! The wracking challenge in this design is most interesting and I love thinking about things!
I believe thinking about the position of the legs created this challenge, at least for me.

I try and build stuff to last a very long time.

A guy I met in a shop almost next to mine built a HUGE oval directors table for Ontario Hydro (big budget). I believe it was about 40 feet long as he described it and had to do the final build in the room. This table kept falling apart, he kept going back to fix it but it kept falling apart. He could not understand why. I clearly remember the look of anguish on his face as he told me his story. I was dying to go and look at it as I love a challenge, but I think they scrapped it.

Far be it from me to suggest how you build anything! You do a superb job and I'm very interested in your projects. I'm willing to bet you would have wanted to look at that Director's table as well.

That sounds like a fun challenge to design for, 40' long would practically demand being assembled in the room so that adds to the stress of designing the table, especially if it were planned in solid wood.

I don't mind suggestions and discussion of course, it makes these threads a bit more interesting, but once I submit a design to a client I'm pretty tightly bound to my design, especially so if it's something I've built already and have planned only a few changes.

I'm very curious to see your results when you build both types of battens, I have my suspicions that the tail applied to the table top would require a good 2-3" of width to make a strong connection, and the overall batten width probably around 4-5". Wider does also help the battens I've made, I prefer to make them so that the dovetail is at least 1" wide, if not wider.

Great project. I recall a video on cutting blind dados by hand that you did on your Butler's desk. I'd love to see a video of the adze work. I always learn something from your posts.

Thanks Joe!

I actually did take some video of the seat carving, but didn't get around to posting up the video as I had debated it quite a bit. I made some changes to the adze to get a better scooping action, so doing a third chair seat would likely go a bit faster than this. The mahogany, while still a softer hardwood, is a bit of a step up in hardness from basswood and so it takes longer to cut. It's likely on par with walnut or cherry, maybe slightly easier than those two.

[michael langman]

Brian," Bumbling forward into the unknown," is certainly an understatement, from what I have seen in your postings!

I find your pieces both beautiful and well designed, executed.

Thanks, for taking the time to explain and teach to us.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Michael! My pleasure!