Recent content by daveknuth

I am attempting to make a dining /parsons table (I prefer 18th stuff but the kids don't like it). I am making it out of solid wood and I plan to make 4" aprons on the end of the table the same grain direction as the top which means the apron will have very short, vertical grain. Can I cross...

I am having a 30 x 40 building put up soon with a 10 x 30 storage area inside the 30 x 40. That leaves a 30 x 30 or a 20 x 40 (with a 10 x10 alcove) shop area depending on where I put the storage area. Which is better for a shop: a 30 x 30 square or a 20 x 40 (with small alcove) rectangle?

I am redoing a chair I made 44 years ago for my Mom which I now have. It needed some improvements so I proceeded to make the seat thickness narrower by 1/2" and made the front rail  round instead of having a flat part. The first picture is before I did anything, the second and third are in process.

How do you finish walnut with maple inlay? I like walnut that has a brown color which I get by staining with orange dye but I’m afraid it will ruin the maple. I am afraid I might have to settle with unstained walnut.

I recently built two wing chairs for my daughter. I assume that I need 2 1/2" coil springs for the base of the chair but I cannot locate any. Does anyone have a source for such a spring?

I, like many of you, love an old finish but how to achieve it is a challenge. I have been to public places with hand rails and I have often thought - that is what I want to replicate - a well worn, rubbed, low sheen look. So I made a sample of dye stain and then wiping stain (SWilliams) and then...

I really enjoyed the opportunity to participate in the Winterthur SAPFM Furniture Program. Thanks to all who made it possible. In the Selected Objects Study, one of the pieces was a Philadelphia Queen Anne arm chair. Where the arm and the back post meet, a through mortise and tenon joint was...

I inherited a table from my Mom and I am making it more acceptable to a 18th century furniture lover

How does one go about asking permission to copy a piece in a museum that doesn't normally do that or at least has not been approached about it. Thanks for any help.

I am making a Philadelphia chair with through tenons. Did the original chairs have wedges in the tenon in the back or were these repairs add later? I saw a close-up picture of a reproduction from Kittinger and it had no wedges in the back. Also what is the best way to do the through tenon so...

When finishing open pore woods (mahogany and walnut) should the pores be filled? Were the original 18th century pieces filled? I used to fill but got lazy and quit doing it but I think it looks better filled.

I live in a small community in Indiana which was settled in 1852. We have a museum and heritage village of several old buildings, an apple press and saw mill.  What kind of furniture was made at that time and how was it made. If anyone has any info, I would appreciate it.