Kale Vogt
Jan. 4, 2024
“We finally found something she’s not good at immediately!” [Editor’s note: Yes, I’m an assh*le.] Words from Megan as I struggled with the tool Chris introduced to me today, a military grade pencil sharpener that creates the dowel shape for the back sticks. I struggled with this process, it provided flashbacks to the day holes for the back and arm sticks were drilled. Both undertakings requiring a sort of balancing act where seemingly a single breath could propel one off course. In the past I’d let these defects get to me but Megan’s joking helped me brush off the perfectionism. I’m embracing the “humanness” of my first chair.
Today, commitments were made as the legs and stretchers were glued into their rightful seat holes. Albeit an exciting moment, I was a bit shaken when I realized this wouldn’t be a time for relaxation. Since Chris didn’t share much information on the gluing process until the exact moment, I hadn’t thought ahead to the operation being hasty due to the glue’s quick drying time. For which I’m thankful; his task-to-task teaching style allows me focus on each chore at a time leaving less space for overthinking whatever will follow. He enlightened me to the procedure he’s been using his entire chairmaking career, a step-by-step he’s done so often that “in case something goes wrong” he has time for repair. Ominous… and ironic because while wedging the legs onto the seat, two wedges I’d cut for myself cracked and had to be excavated. Turned out the block from which those wedges were cut was a dud, Chris quickly lent some of his white oak wedges to replace my timid red oak collection which was soon thrown in the scrap pile. A night of dry time is all that’s needed before the sticks will be put into place.
Note: I woke up today to a sore upper back, arm and shoulder muscles… jack planing stretchers and legs for over an hour has touched me in ways I didn’t know possible
Christopher Schwarz
Jan. 4, 2024
Today we glued up the undercarriage to Kale’s first chair. It went (almost) without incident.
It was also an opportunity to learn some of our “shop words” – the things we say to each other day in day out.
At Popular Woodworking, the most-said phrase was, “For those people and that money,” for whenever you did a half-assed job. Cynical, yes. True, yes. But not inspiring.
Today Kale and I talked about animal glue – and glue-ups in general. That you have to prepare to glue up a chair using the same series of tasks/ruts every time. Leg No. 1 points to Mortise No. 1 in the seat. The stretchers are dry-assembled and placed on the underside of the seat and in the correct orientation. And you’ve got all the necessary tools (even the ones you’ll need in an emergency) at the bench.
We do all this because: “As soon as you open the glue, your IQ drops by 30 points.”
The “smart you” has to help the “glue-sniffing you” because people make dumb mistakes when the glue is out.
After we got the legs in place, we began driving the wedges. The first wedge split. The second, also split. I got the third wedge in. Then we moved to the second tenon. The first wedge split….
When this happens, you have some crap wedges. I gathered up the ones on the bench, threw them away and fetched wedges from my personal collection.
“The wood hates you, and it wants you to die.”
We say this whenever the wood misbehaves. Almost every day, I think.
Kale got the rest of her wedges in, and we set aside the undercarriage to dry. Then Kale tenoned the sticks and began asking about combs.
She favors the traditional Welsh shape that looks like a crown. Or Micky Mouse ears. It’s a great choice, of course. And she asks for some images of combs so she can refine her idea.
One of the greatest resources we have is our library. Not just the physical one, but the images we hoard on our hard drives. I gave her a Print on Demand (POD) book I made through Lulu of my favorite Welsh chairs and their combs. These are images I’m not allowed to distribute to the public, but a student can use them.
Kale is also absorbing Swedish stick chairs this week by looking through the great book “Träsmak” by Mats Palmquist.
God, there is so much important information you can’t get on the internet.
A Lesson on Wedges
Here’s the lesson I gave Kale about selecting wedge stock.
If you want wedges that don’t split and you can hit as hard as a nail, you have to look at the shimmering medullary rays1 in oak and ash. Take a close look at this photo of a blank I cut for red oak wedges.
This blank is garbage and we’ll burn it. Look how the rays tilt off to the right. The pores tilt to the left (don’t worry about the pores). This piece of wood would make crap wedges.
Take a look at this blank.
Here the pores run off to the right (again, ignore the pores). But the rays are vertical. This block will make incredibly strong wedges. Here’s what they look like:
See that oak wedge in the middle? It’s gold. It has a 7° included angle and dead-straight grain. It is unlikely to crack.
If you can’t see the rays, look for the bits that look like silvery fish. They are slightly darker than the surrounding grain, but they aren’t porous like the pores that make the cathedrals.
“As soon as you open the glue, your IQ drops by 30 points.” I think of this every time I start a glueup. Or at least I think I do. 30 points doesn't leave a lot in the tank.
Would love to hear about the process of excavating those wedges and replacing them