Show me furniture that looks totally hand made

[Paul Comi]

I'm getting really interested in building things, especially shaker style furniture. It doesn't help that my wife was in my shop today and said "so, when did you get all these planer things?" Uh oh... I told her "I only have about 10. You should see some of the other guys!

The more I learn about designing and building furniture, the more I am drawn to traditional construction methods and styles and I am interested in seeing stuff you guys have made using mostly hand tools. I don't have a problem being a purist-I don't have the patience to take rough lumber to workable size using the table saw, jointer and planer, but from that point forward, I'd just like to see stuff that appears to be produced in a traditional heirloom way. When I post questions about furniture examples elsewhere, I end up getting posts of things obviously made with dovetail jigs, modern drawer slides exposed, etc. and short of seeing pictures of peoples tool cabinets I don't think I've seen any posts of actual projects made by hand very often. When I saw Martin's shaker inspired try it really motivated me to make one of my own and now that I have, I want to keep going...

[John Hart]

Boy did you come to the right place Paul. May I direct you to the Neanderthal Forum.....More of what you're after than you can shake a stick at!! (I can shake a stick at quite a lot!!:D ) Beautiful and wonderous things in there by some of the finest craftsmen I've ever seen.

[David Scarborough]

Hey Paul,
check out my post of a mantle clock in the forum. 95% done with hand tools. If I can get my hands on a decent set of hollow and rounds, plus a few other molding planes, I'll be set.
Enjoy the creek, theres a ton of info here

Best,

Dave S

[Richard Wolf]

I can suggest two resourses. Mike Dunbar's book. "Building a Windsor Chair" which is a very inspirational book. Another is "Make a Chair From a Tree" . Aurthor, John Alexander. The book is out of print, but it is avaible on video tape or used on amazon.
Chairs are great handmade projects.

Richard

[Rob Millard]

Paul,

With my furniture, I use power tools only to a point, and then take over from there with hand tools. I feel that the result is a piece that could not be distinguished from one made only with hand tools. For an example please go to http://home.woh.rr.com/federalfurniture/

Rob Millard

[Alan Turner]

My Newport Kneehole Desk was almost enitrely handmade. http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=19366

As Rob points out, many of the 18th and early 19th Century pieces made today are heavily influenced by the use of hand tools.

[Greg Ladd]

I see from your link that you are somewhere in western Ohio. I'm in Elida, just outside of Lima.

Greg

[Paul Comi]

Paul,

With my furniture, I use power tools only to a point, and then take over from there with hand tools. I feel that the result is a piece that could not be distinguished from one made only with hand tools. For an example please go to http://home.woh.rr.com/federalfurniture/

Rob Millard

Man Rob, that is simply awesome. I skimmed over your article because I'm taking care of my 3 yr old right this moment, but I'm looking forward to reading it again after printing it out. You're my hero :cool:

[Paul Comi]

My Newport Kneehole Desk was almost enitrely handmade. http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=19366

As Rob points out, many of the 18th and early 19th Century pieces made today are heavily influenced by the use of hand tools.

Beautiful and inspirational work. Thanks for sharing.

[Roger Everett]

I'm a firm beliver in learnig first the manual ( hand ) method of doing, before going to the power tool. Give one a better understanding of the process and desired results. Once I learn a skill that way, I want to plug it in. Through history craftsmen have allways used the latest technology, time has always related to $$.
I'm reminded of the story of when the first Queenanne chair was designed and made. The lady went storming into the woodworkers shop demanding, why has it taken 2 years to make her chairs. He looked her right in the eye and stated the they would have been done, but they keep having a problem finding a place to plug in their Poter Cable router.

Allan, that is totally beautiful, you should br very very proud of you acomplishment.
Roger

[John Bailey]

Robb, Alan,

My goodness, It's a good thing I don't make furniture, I'd have to quit!! Great looking pieces.

John

[Alan Turner]

I have a bunch of heavy machines, but it is the hand work that to me is the most satisfying.

Right now I am resizing what I was told by my clients was a late 18th Cen. piece, a table with three drawers, to fit in a place in thier home. I tried to talk them out of destroying this piece's integrity, but that is what they want. Anyway, I need to lessen the width by 10", and lessen the depth by 8". What this means is that I need to recut all of the aprons and the associated tenons. Well, that would not be difficult if it were a square piece, but there is not a straight board in this piece. For example, the front apron, wihch is really two rails, sags about 1.25" in the center. There is no way to put a machine on this work, so out with the tenon saw and start recutting tenons. It is of hard maple, incredibly wormy. The fine dust, even from the hand work, is amazing. I have never worked on a piece of this age, and it is quite interesting. I am just about done with the structure, and next will fight with the clients about the drawers. They want me to just shorten them and make them narrower to fit the resized openings, but my strong preference is to use the third plank that I removed from the top, and make 2 new outside drawers. At present, the drawers are so poorly made that they are just rebated and nailed. Since I love making drawers, I would prefer to make new ones of the old wood. We'll see if I win this argument, but I am not holding my breath.

Take the time to learn the handtools and your satisfaction from the craft will increase, at least in my humble view.

[Paul Comi]

I have a bunch of heavy machines, but it is the hand work that to me is the most satisfying.

Right now I am resizing what I was told by my clients was a late 18th Cen. piece, a table with three drawers, to fit in a place in thier home. I tried to talk them out of destroying this piece's integrity, but that is what they want. Anyway, I need to lessen the width by 10", and lessen the depth by 8". What this means is that I need to recut all of the aprons and the associated tenons. Well, that would not be difficult if it were a square piece, but there is not a straight board in this piece. For example, the front apron, wihch is really two rails, sags about 1.25" in the center. There is no way to put a machine on this work, so out with the tenon saw and start recutting tenons. It is of hard maple, incredibly wormy. The fine dust, even from the hand work, is amazing. I have never worked on a piece of this age, and it is quite interesting. I am just about done with the structure, and next will fight with the clients about the drawers. They want me to just shorten them and make them narrower to fit the resized openings, but my strong preference is to use the third plank that I removed from the top, and make 2 new outside drawers. At present, the drawers are so poorly made that they are just rebated and nailed. Since I love making drawers, I would prefer to make new ones of the old wood. We'll see if I win this argument, but I am not holding my breath.

Take the time to learn the handtools and your satisfaction from the craft will increase, at least in my humble view.

Oh my gosh... how...depressing. These clients would be better off resizing their house instead of changing a piece of history.

[Dev Emch]

Many have already posted much good info....

Here is my one tip to this thread. Use a scrub plane, such as the one from LN, to dress all surfaces which face inside to your work item. Leave this to almost the end so you can get all your precision joinery and exterior surfaces done prior to glue up. Lastly, use the scrub plane to dress all interior surfaces. After all, how many really nice orig. items used 4 knife, carbide tipped planers to dress the interior surfaces?

[Rob Millard]

I'm glad you liked the article. I will be replacing the chest on frame article with one on making an inlaid tea caddy in couple of weeks, so be sure to print it out if you want to be able to refer back to it.

Rob Millard

[Paul Comi]

Already did :-)

[Paul Comi]

Rob, I just saw your clock with inlay. If I keep looking around that SAPFM site I'm going to end up being too intimidated to do woodworking at all. The level of craftsmanship there is simply amazing. I swear, I feel like I'm qualified only to nail together 2 x 4's after seeing your work. Are you self-taught?

[Rob Millard]

Paul,
Yes, I am self taught. I started building reproductions about 9 years ago. The woodworking part is easy, you just saw, chisel or plane to a line, but the finishing took a couple of years to get to a level where I could be satisfied with my work. It would have taken less time, but I was influenced by a couple of books who’s authors were poor finishers.

The shelf clock was one of my favorite pieces, the dial combined with the veneer work, made for a dramatic appearance. My favorite piece is one I posted on this site back in March, a Seymour tambour basin stand.
Rob Millard

[Paul Comi]

Paul,
Yes, I am self taught. I started building reproductions about 9 years ago. The woodworking part is easy, you just saw, chisel or plane to a line, but the finishing took a couple of years to get to a level where I could be satisfied with my work. It would have taken less time, but I was influenced by a couple of books who’s authors were poor finishers.

The shelf clock was one of my favorite pieces, the dial combined with the veneer work, made for a dramatic appearance. My favorite piece is one I posted on this site back in March, a Seymour tambour basin stand.
Rob Millard



Let's just turn this thread into a Rob Millard shrine ;) When you say you're self taught, do you design yourself or reproduce things from samples and plans? Learning the design aspect of woodworking seems to be as hard as the actual woodworking and I haven't even begun to do any finishing.

[Rob Millard]

Paul,

I have a total lack of design ability, so I must be content with copying (stealing) the designs of some long dead craftsman. I've made only 4 pieces from plans, and of those, I was only happy with one. I much prefer to work from photos of an original and scale from them.
The self taught thing is really a misnomer, because I read everything I could find on period furniture, so I had many teachers.
Rob Millard

[Charlie Plesums]

I'm glad you liked the article. I will be replacing the chest on frame article with one on making an inlaid tea caddy in couple of weeks, so be sure to print it out if you want to be able to refer back to it.

Rob Millard
That will be a shame. I recommend that you post both, not replace the old. It is an excellent article.

[Paul Comi]

That will be a shame. I recommend that you post both, not replace the old. It is an excellent article.

I agree. Clicking around in that website isn't the easiest thing to do either, but there is some nice work to see so its worth it.

[Geoff Irvine]

Originally posted by ALAN TURNER
"Right now I am resizing what I was told by my clients was a late 18th Cen. piece, a table with three drawers, to fit in a place in thier home."

Totally dumbstruck... personally I would resize the house and send the 'clients' to a good shrink. Only upside of this very sad tale is that at least you get to see the original makers techniques and may learn something. At least if someone like yourself is doing the job it will be done in sympathy to the original and it keeps it out of a woodbutchers hands.

[Alan Turner]

Well, as it turns out, I am not the first fellow to remake this table. Perhaps I will be the last. There is strong evidence that the table was resized, or remade, on a prior occassion. When I cannot tell. Maybe the 30's or so? The top was three 11" planks of 6/4 hard maple. My task was to remove the back plank. Upon doing so, I saw that it had been drilled for dowels. But, the dowell holes were empty, and did not match similar holes in the mating plank. What I assumed were breadbaord ends made in the traditional way turned out to be end caps, nailed on. One set of nails were old heavy square nails, and another set were modern nails, round wiht round heads. Some of the square nails were intact, but some had been cut off with a hack saw, and the cut end, on the back side of the end caps, were rusted.

My clients succombed to my passionate pleas and I will now start building a set of three drawers, using the rear plank for the drawer fronts. Thank goodness. The "original" drawers were quite poorly made. The sides were let into rebates on the back of the drawer fronts, and then nailed. I will dovetail up a set of drawers. The opening are so non-square that this will not be an easy task, but it if far better than finding a use for the small stash of tremont nails that I have but rarely use. I am still working through what wood to use for the drawer parts. I have old SYP factory wood that I can resaw. The "original" parts were pine, now quite weathered and grayed. I am not sure how to recreate this look, but may have a finisher do the touch ups, etc., as this is not my favorite work.

Well, I am just about ready to heat the glue pot and put this guy together so I can cut the runners and get after the drawers. This project takes up too much shop space to dwaddle.

[Paul Comi]

Pictures, pictures! All of us armchair quarterbacks are wondering what you're doing.

[Alan Turner]

Paul
I will try to get around to that. I am a poor photographer, and since it is not my interest, I tend to avoid it. But, that said, I do know the cardinal SMC rules. No pix, it just did not happen.

Let me tell you about the fish I almost . . .