Building a bed help

[John Grabowski]

I am getting ready to build a bed for my wife's bday. I have lots of 4/4 stock. Has anyone made bed posts using 4/4 stock and mite ringing them together to make about 3.5 x 3.5 inch square leg? Is this something that is going to be strong and durable? If I choose this plan, I am going to domino the legs together and reinforce the inside with poplar.

What are your thoughts?

Any and all suggestions are appreciated.

John G

[Jamie Buxton]

Yes, that is a good way to make a post. Bevel the edges of each face, so the joint seams fall at the corners of the post. Nobody will ever notice them. The Craftsman furniture builders like Stickley used to do it this way, so they'd have quartersawn lumber on all four faces of the post. They used a big lock-miter joint to make the post easier to glue up.

[Jeff Monson]

John I've used my domino to do the exact operation you have described. It works very well, the domino's will help for alignment, strength and make it much easier to clamp up. As Jamie described, this is a fairly common way to produce those posts.