Tip #61 Build a Lawn/Patio Chair
If you've priced well-designed,
sturdy, outdoor furniture, then you
know you'll be well ahead if you
built it yourself. Our outdoor
furniture plans give you the oppor-
tunity to construct durable, easy-to-
build lawn furniture at a fraction of
retail prices. And you'll enjoy hour
furniture (and the satisfaction of
having built it yourself) for years to
come.
We designed the chair to be
very adaptable. With a few dimen-
sion changes, it can easily become a
lounge chair or love seat. If you
change a few more dimensions, you
can have a bench/sofa (but you
must increase the thickness of stock
for the seat slats to 1-1/8 inches).
Our comfortable lawn chair is
constructed of number two white
pine which we selectively picked.
Why white pine for an outdoor
project? Mainly to show you an
alternative to the more expensive
weather-resistant woods. Our chair
is treated with a transparent pen-
etrating oil stain that's especially
formulated for exterior use. Better
quality stains contain additives that
repel water, resist mildew, and
protect wood from the sun.
For outdoor projects, you're
still better off paying extra and
choosing a good weather-resistant
wood, such a redwood, cedar, oak,
teak, or even pressure-treated
lumber.
1. Cut all the stock to size
according to the List of Materials.
(Make your size adjustment now if
you're building a variation of our
chair.) Care should be taken to
avoid knots, especially when using
treated lumber.
2. Use a shaper head and fence
to radius two edges of the seat
supports (B). A 1/2-inch radius is
preferable, but if a router is used, a
smaller radius is acceptable.
3. Transfer the patterns (from
the plan grid) for back supports (A)
and seat supports (B) to large piece
of paper. Lay the back and seat
supports on the pattern and mark,
cut, drill, dowel and glue at the
correct angle to fit your pattern.
4. Use a bandsaw or jigsaw to
cut the newly created "side" -- back
(A) and seat (B) sub-assembly -- to
the correct shape. Sand for final
assembly.
5. Transfer the pattern for the
front legs (C) and the back legs (D)
to paper. Lay the front and back
legs on the pattern and cut, drill for
end dowels, and sand for final
assembly.
6. Drill, dowel, and glue the
legs (C & D) to the side sub-
assemblies at the proper angles
according to the pattern.
7. Attach the side/leg assem-
blies to the spreaders (E) with 3/8-
inch dowels (G) and glue. Use extra
care at this stage to insure
squareness.
8. Attach slats (F) to the back
supports (A) with screws (H). Use
a 1/2-inch wood block to space
slats parallel and at 1/2-inch inter-
vals.
List of Materials
Finished dimensions in inches
A Back supports (2)
B Seat supports (2)
C Front legs (2)
D Back legs (2)
E Spreaders (2)
F Slats (20)
G Dowel Pins (26)
H Screws (40)
3/4 x 6 x 28
3/4 x 6 x 21
3/4 x 3-1/2 x 14
3/4 x 3-1/2 x 12
3/4 x 3 x 18
3/4 x 2-1/4 x 22
3/8 dia. x 1-1/2
#8 x 1-1/4 Flat Head Wood Screws