Replies

1. 
   oldusty | Oct 10, 2008 05:16pm | #1

     There are many ways , the way that Stickley used is to miter the four corners so Q sawn grain is on all four sides , they used a secondary wood as a filler in the middle.They used a lock miter , but a regular miter can be used .

         You can also make rabbet joint corners , with Oak the grain change and joint disappears if you use care in selecting the wood .

      For your application if I couldn't get the stock in the correct thickness I would only use two pieces of 6/4 or 5/4 to start out to make each leg with only one seam .

              dusty

          

2. 
   Lataxe | Oct 10, 2008 06:47pm | #2

   Brian,

   Showing quarter-sawn (medullary ray fleck) faces on all four sides of a leg is traditional in American A&C but I wonder why? It always looks unnatural to me and therefore "wrong" (aesthetically, not morally - just to be clear <g>).

   I've made many oaken pieces, most being some form of A&C (not all Mission though) and never made those style of legs. A piece looks better to my eye if the grain is well-matched and aligned (eg all quarter-sawn faces on the long-apron sides with all plain-sawn on the ends; or vice-versa). For me, the timber in such "honest" A&C styles must look (and be) solid rather than like something that's been veneered.

   Stil, if you want the traditional style the lock-mitre cutter in the router table is the way to go. I use this for other corner joints and, once it's setup right, it makes a strong and self-aligning joint. It's certainy easier to glue up than is a long plain mitre joint, which will slip out of alignment all too easily when being clamped. Wet glue is slippery!

   Lataxe

1. 
   MikeHennessy | Oct 10, 2008 07:56pm | #3

   "A piece looks better to my eye if the grain is well-matched and aligned (eg all quarter-sawn faces on the long-apron sides with all plain-sawn on the ends; or vice-versa). For me, the timber in such "honest" A&C styles must look (and be) solid rather than like something that's been veneered."

   Ditto that. Unless you're making a strict reproduction, I've never seen the need or advisability of messing with mitered legs. Solid stock if you can get it. If you can't, I prefer the lamination/veneer method, although my "veneer" usually ends up being 1/8" or so thick.

   I was always leery of filling a hollow leg with a plug since later differential wood movement could open the joints. It' also pretty difficult to fit the plug exactly in the void. I like solid legs, especially in A&C where there is so much use of M&T joinery. A not-so-well-fit plug makes such joinery problematic. Been there, done that, won't do it again.

   Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA

3. 
   charles888 | Oct 10, 2008 10:06pm | #4

   Brian,

   I've successfully done exactly what you are describing on several projects with good results.

   There are several variations on techniques that can be used for the veneer on the seam-sides of the legs. One way is as you described, a thin, commercial-thickness veneer applied.

   Another way is to take a thicker veneer, an 1/8" or 3/16" or so, that is sawn. The glued side of the veneer is surfaced and the side facing outwards is left with whatever saw marks are there. After the veneers have been glued to the leg, the rough outside faces are then surfaced (jointed, planed) to the final size of the leg. One potential advantage is that the thicker veneer is a little easier to manage while gluing it on. With a finished thickness of 1/16", you can chamfer the edges of the leg by 1/16", concealing the edge of the veneer.

4. 
   BenM | Oct 10, 2008 11:31pm | #5

   You've already gotten a bunch of good replies.  One other thing you could try is to find rift sawn wood where the growth rings go diagonally on the end grain.  Then all 4 sides look similar, not quite quartersawn but not plainsawn either.  The only trick is to find a 3-4 inch thick plank.