Bannister back chair – simple jig saves the day

In an earlier post, I mentioned that I had decided to “sight” bore the stretcher mortises on the chair.  Big mistake!  I’m loathe to build fixturing for a “one off” project.  Call me short sighted.  Call me cheap.  But sometimes, you’ve just got to do it.  So after realizing that my original boring method yielded a far less than perfect result, I vowed to plug and re-bore with the assistance of some sort of drilling guide.  I opted for something very simple, knowing that, in all likelihood, it would end up in the kindling box when I was finished.

Three blocks of scrap, same section dimensions as the posts, “rubbed” together,  inscribed with the correct drilling angles for the side stretchers.  A fourth block, beveled at the seat pitch angle is inserted and provides the correct angle for the seat rails.  As simple as that.  Down, dirty, quick and easy!  Why didn’t I do this from the start?  Answer:  Being 70 only means you’re older, not necessarily smarter.  Plus you forget techniques, rules, etc., if you haven’t used them in the past two weeks or so!

The result was rewarding.  Assembly required only a few gentle taps and, voila, the chair sits perfectly!

The arms are roughed in.  Now begins the “clean-up”, fettling the details.  With any luck, we’ll set Santa’s milk and cookies along side the chair.

BTW, here’s a thought you may want to share with  family, friends and neighbors who are unable to put down their communications devices whilst driving:

“Honk if you love Jesus.  Text if you want to meet him.”

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