Replies

1. 
   SteveSchoene | Jul 18, 2008 01:11am | #1

   There is a pretty good drawing, of the basic oval paterae, and photos of some variants as well as guidance of techniques of making them in Jeffrey P. Greene American Furniture of the 18th Century. 

   Greene reports that based on a New York price book, a worker would have to make, and inlay, 2 1/2" oval "patrie" with 12 straight points, fill'd up at the end with different wood, and a single string around. at a pace that would allow him to complete 5 of these in a single 11 hour day.  Better hurry. 

   (Likely the single day's labor was spread over parts of a couple of days to allow for some glue drying time.)  Greene uses a 7s 6p daily wage rate for New York in 1796--which he suggests equates to $1.00.  As a reference, commodity prices were, depending on the index used roughly 60% higher in 1796 compared to 1772. 

   
   

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   Edited 7/17/2008 6:16 pm ET by SteveSchoene

2. 
   RMillard | Jul 18, 2008 02:27am | #2

   Paul,

   Which type are you looking for, the quater round, half round or the oval?

   Rob Millard

   http://www.americanfederalperiod.com

    

    

1. 
   mapleman | Jul 18, 2008 04:55am | #3

   Paul,

   Sorry for the hijack.

    

   Rob,

   Just picked up the August issue of Popular Woodworking. Loved the article! Loved your pieces! And loved your photography! Are you a regular contributor, or was this just luck on my part?  (it's my first issue)

   Lee

1. 
   RMillard | Jul 18, 2008 12:26pm | #4

   Lee,

    

   Thanks!

   I'm not a regular contributor. This was the second article I have wrote for them ( I hope to do more, but who knows).

   Linda Watts, the art director, did a fantastic job with the photos.

   Rob Millard

    

2. 
   PaulMooreAR | Jul 18, 2008 04:43pm | #5

   I am looking for the oval design.

   Thanks for responding.

   Paul

3. 
   RMillard | Jul 19, 2008 03:31am | #6

   Paul,

    

   Attached is a photo of a oval fan I made today. It is photographed over a 1/4" grid to give you a scale to go by. I took this photo with the camera dead level and used a good lens, so it is distortion free.

   Rob Millard

   http://www.americanfederalperiod.com

   
1. 
   RW | Jul 19, 2008 05:44am | #7

   any time you'd like to just slap together a photo essay of how you put one together, I'll read it!Real trucks dont have sparkplugs

2. 
   PaulMooreAR | Jul 21, 2008 02:43am | #8

   Thank you very much.  This is exactly what I was looking for.

   What are the different woods you used?

1. 
   RMillard | Jul 21, 2008 02:56am | #10

   You're welcome.

   The one in the photo is holly with black dyed veneer, but I have also used Satinwood. I find satinwood shades just a little better than holly, but it is more difficult to cut.

   I get the dyed veneer from Constantine's or Certainly Wood. It is sometimes called black dyed Costello (as in Elvis) and it is a pretty contrary wood. It tends to fracture along the grain lines, quite easily.

   These fans are fun to make and when the finish is applied the 3D look is incredible. Be sure to post photos of the completed project.

   Rob Millard

   http://www.americanfederalperiod.com

3. 
   JeffHeath | Jul 21, 2008 02:55am | #9

   Rob

   Nice fan!  Are you darkening the shadow edge with hot sand, or is there a new and improved method.

   Jeff

1. 
   RMillard | Jul 21, 2008 02:59am | #11

   Jeff,

   It is just very fine sand used to shade the edges of the fan. I aim to have the shading uniform right from the skillet, but sometimes I plane the edge of the segment to make them uniform.

   Rob Millard

   http://www.americanfederalperiod.com

    

1. 
   mbholden | Jul 21, 2008 02:55pm | #12

   Rob, PMFJI, but from that I answer, can I assume that you shade a credit card sized piece and then cut to shape?

   Or are you cutting to shape and being very careful with the shading?

   Mike

1. 
   RMillard | Jul 21, 2008 03:07pm | #13

   Mike,

    

   I cut the veneer just large enough to get two segments out of one piece of veneer. In this case they were about 5/8" x 1 7/8". This maximizes the yield and minimizes the time spent shading.

   Rob Millard

   http://www.americanfederalperiod.com