Best joint style for "Void stool"

[Hans Loeblich]

Howdy folks. Over thanksgiving I visited some family in Boston and got a chance to see the ICA museum.
In the gift shop I saw something called a void stool. It's a stool in the shape of an outline of a typical stool. It's kind of silly, but I need a stool for my garage and figured it would be fun to build
one, as opposed to paying an art museum price of >$200 for a bit of plywood.
Here is a link to their online store that has a picture of the thing.
http://www.icastore.org/store/product/5004/Void-Stool/

It looks simple enough, with all the cuts being simple straight plywood rips.

My only question is what would the best method be to join these boards together. From the picture there does not appear to be any visible screws in the piece, and I don't recall seeing them either when I was there in person(though I didn't look at it very closely). The geometry of the thing does not appear to be inherently stable(I can easily picture the short horizontal pieces under the seat buckling) so I want to be sure the joints are as solid as possible.

Do you think biscuits be the way to go for something like this?

The description in the store says:

Void was originally built out of cheap plywood and crafted using crate-making techniquesWhat would a crate-making technique be?

[Lee Schierer]

Crates generally employ boards nailed near the ends into the end grain or edges of the boards of the adjoining side. Dovetails or finger joints would be exceptionally strong in that design.

[Todd Crawford]

I would tend to agree with lee on this one - dovetails are the way to go......

[Peter Quinn]

Sure, mitered dovetails would do it. I'm also thinking loose tenons with a domino or lock miters would work well and be easier to create. You could also use dados and screws, then veneer the exterior one face at a time to cover the screw penetrations, sort of veneer, flush trim, repeat as you go.

If the plywood in question is the finished veneer, I'd guess full blind mitered dovetails would be your best bet, and that should keep you in the shop for a while. Otherwise, a careful coverup job should conceal all joinery regardless of what you choose.

[John Keeton]

I know this is off topic. But when an old country boy that well remembers no indoor plumbing, reads a thread title that says "void stool", there are some old, but not so fond, memories that are stirred. Most include a slop jar in the middle of the night, when it was way to cold to get out of bed.

Sorry, just had to comment!

[Ted Shrader]

John -

Same thoughts went through my mind. "Void" sure caught my eye.

Hans - Lots of ways to make the joints have been discussed. Pick one and show us some pictures! :D

Regards,
Ted

[Aaron Berk]

I'd go biscuits, quick and cheep. I have yet to be let down by a biscuit in my shop.
If the add says crate making techniques, and then sells it for $200+. I'd be willing to bet biscuits and glue would be a vast improvement over the original joinery.

And watch out for any voided stools laying around, they can be a nasty problem.

[John Lucas]

I would tend to stay true to the original. Butt joints, prfobably glued and nailed. Flat black on one side of the ply and natural or gray on the other. And cheap ply, like A-D. Otherwise, with all the joinery that has been mentioned, it is sow's ear time.

[Josiah Bartlett]

I'd use a lock miter bit, it would be a pain in the neck to biscuit and glue up that many joints at once. With the lock miter you would get nice corners and not worry about having exposed plies except on the ends.

[Bill Huber]

I like it a lot and just may have to make one of them.

I think on the second and third 90 from the top I would use a row of dowels and on the others just 3 or 4 across the whole depth.

Now I can also see another stool that would slide into the first one. It would be made out of solid wood and just fill the void.

[Jim Kountz]

Id go with biscuits or spline miter joints and do some sub assembly. No need at all to try and glue the whole thing up at one time.

[Aaron Berk]

I like it a lot and just may have to make one of them.

I think on the second and third 90 from the top I would use a row of dowels and on the others just 3 or 4 across the whole depth.

Now I can also see another stool that would slide into the first one. It would be made out of solid wood and just fill the void.



Filling the Void..... what a wholesome thought.

[Brent Ring]

Sliding Dovetails would be a thought at well!

[David G Baker]

As a kid we also had the slop jar and no inside plumbing. When I read the "void stool", memories came flashing back of Sears and Roebucks catalogs, treks through heavy Michigan snow, bad smells, lime, wasps and an older brother that liked to find ways of trapping me in the outhouse. :o
I like the stool pattern and think that it would be very functional.

[Vince Shriver]

"...Otherwise, with all the joinery that has been mentioned, it is sow's ear time."

I'm with you John, and the fancy joinery isn't going to turn this pigs ear in to silk purse. Different strokes for different folks, I guess.

[Maurice Ungaro]

I know this is off topic. But when an old country boy that well remembers no indoor plumbing, reads a thread title that says "void stool", there are some old, but not so fond, memories that are stirred. Most include a slop jar in the middle of the night, when it was way to cold to get out of bed.

Sorry, just had to comment!

Well, I'm originally from Kentucky and that's what I thought too!

[Chris Padilla]

Nail it! :D

[John Schreiber]

I like it a lot and just may have to make one of them.

I think on the second and third 90 from the top I would use a row of dowels and on the others just 3 or 4 across the whole depth.

Now I can also see another stool that would slide into the first one. It would be made out of solid wood and just fill the void.
I'm with Bill, I can just see something like this made with CDX plywood and either dowels or box joints, then a highly polished 18th century walnut stool stored inside.

Of course, when it said void stool, I first thought of old times.

[Brian Penning]

Anyone else shaking their head over the thing's price? And yes I do call it a "thing".