My latest project......Sharon's Custom Porch Swing.....

[Ken Fitzgerald]

We have a small covered patio. In the spring, summer and fall, my wife likes to sit in a cheap metal swing and read. The cheap metal swing is an eye sore so I offered to build a wooden replacement. I had already ordered Norm's swing plans. My wife, however, didn't care for the dimensions so she gave me custom sizes. Thus I broke out the drawing board and drew my own plans and patterns using Norm's NYW plans as a basic guide.

I would have loved to use teak but at $31 and $33 a bd. ft. for 4/4 and 8/4 teak, I didn't want to refinance the house to build her a swing!:rolleyes: LOL!

Thus I elected to use white oak and finish it with Epifane's high gloss marine varnish.



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There are 50 mortise and tenon joints in this swing. The only tenons not double-pinned are the ones on the vertical back slats. The others tenons were cross-drilled with 2 - 3/8" holes and 2 - 3/8 oak pins were glued in, cut and sanded flush and then finish applied.

Though this is a relatively simple project, it was a real educational experience for me. Prior to this swing I had made maybe a dozen m/t joints. I learned a lot about sharp tools....hollow chisels.......hand planes and bench chisels. Truly a lot of lessons in this swing!

The only exposed hardware are the 4 stainless steel bow eyes I ordered from a marine supply place in RI. Even the nuts and washers for the bow eyes were countersunk, plugged with oak plugs and sanded smooth before finishing. Shown in this next picture are the plugged bow eye hardware countersunk holes and the one after that demonstrates the plugged seat slat mounting screw holes.

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The stainless steel screws for the seat slats were counter-sunk. The holes were plugged and sanded smooth before finishing.

Again....simple project but very educational.

[Gordon Eyre]

Very nice job Ken. Your wife ought to be very happy with this swing.

[Jim Rimmer]

Great looking swing, Ken. I recently finished a project (posted here somewhere) that had 50 M&T joints - it is a learning experience. I'm sure your wife will get a lot of enjoyment from the swing.

[Bruce Page]

That looks like a comfy place sip a sarsaparilla!

[Jay Jolliffe]

Nice job Ken...There was a time that i wanted to make one for our porch but it never happened....Looks nice...

[Andrew Hughes]

Looks good to me too.Must be heavy that quite a bit of with oak.I love the way my shop smells with white oak in it.Spicey

[Phil Thien]

That is fantastic Ken!!!

I can't wait to hear her next request.

[Roger Myers]

Great job Ken.... I also have one on my to-do list.... Yours is an inspiration!

[Kevin Bourque]

I like the white oak vs. teak choice. Very nice.

[Mike Henderson]

Very nice job. One thing I'll point out is that clear finishes don't hold up very well outdoors - they tend to start peeling off. Around here, it takes about a year, but it depends on how much direct sun the swing gets. I did a swing and put a clear finish on it but eventually had to paint the swing.

One other thing I learned is that you need to seal the end of each piece of wood. So it's good to seal the bottom of the back slats before you install them. If your swing never gets wet it won't matter but if it gets wet, the water will come up the end of the wood and discolor the bottom of each slat. The water gets into the mortise and works its way down the mortise, then up the back slat. The finish doesn't really stop it because when you use the swing, it tends to crack the finish where the two pieces meet and water will get in.

Doing an outdoor piece requires thinking differently than making an indoor piece.

Mike

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Thanks everybody for you kind comments.

Mike....I am hoping this clear finish will last. It's under a covered patio and will only get direct sunlight in the extreme winter months. Our winter days here tend to be extremely cloudy so even then it's rare it will get direct sunlight.

and Mike......I built the frame.....and finished the frame and seat slats separately.......with the screw holes predrilled in the seat slats. Then I installed the seat slats, glued oak plugs into the screw holes. I cut the plugs off...sanded them smooth and finished the plugs.

A neat trick I learned from a guy at another woodworking website that minimizes damage to the finish....if you are using 3/8" holes for your recessed screws..... the vent holes in sanding discs for most disc sanders is the same size. So...I took an old sanding disc, put it over the glued-in plug....used a Japaneze pull saw to cut the plug of as close to flush as possible.....then using the same sanding disc in the same manner, I used my ROS to sand down the plug until it was flush. The old disc acts as a barrier and minizes damage to the entire surface. I was very pleased with the result.

[Brian Kent]

Beautiful work, Ken. I just finished a white oak garden bench with Epiphanes varnish. Great minds…

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Brian.....I just saw your bench......was admiring it .........and thinking the same thing. In fact, I had read a post where you recommended Jamestown Distributing as a supplier for Epifanes. Their price was 1/2 of what I paid on Amazon a few days earlier and my order had already shipped. I did order my stainless steel boweyes and some other hardware from Jamestown. Their service was quick, well priced and their URL now is listed in my hardware supplier favorites.

The structure of your bench and my swing are very similar! I like the design of your top back rail!

[Paul Cahill]

Very nice. Nothing like doing something as a learning tool - and hopefully it will hold up to the elements.

Paul

[Jerry Olexa]

Nice job, Ken...Well done!!!

[Jim Becker]

Outstanding, Ken!

[Mike Null]

Ken

Great job. I like your finish.

I've had one of those on my to do list for years but every time I look at it it looks like too much work. My experience with MT joints is similar to yours but I've been pretty happy with the choice of that joint.

[Mike Skees]

Very nice!! That will certainly look good on the patio and should last for several lifetimes.

[Jack Camillo]

Oh, how lovely indeed. Thanks for posting.

[Kent A Bathurst]

Looks great, Ken - nicely done.

[Van Huskey]

Great job Ken!