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Adirondack Chairs

Project by Thepps posted 169 days ago 853 views 15 times favorited 29 comments Add to Favorites Watch

I just finished building these two chairs just in time for my wife’s birthday. She was pretty excited as they replace a cheap, broken, plastic adirondack chair. We can finally enjoy our back deck a little more.

They are constructed entirely out of Jatoba, which if I might add, is a beautiful wood. This was the first time I used it and I am very happy with it’s outcome. It is a very hard wood, but not too much more difficult to work with than hard maple. I found a picture of these chairs online, and I built these as duplicates. They fold up for easy storage inside in the winter as we get a lot of snow in Michigan.

I finished it with 6 coats of teak oil. The oil really brought out the color and livened it up. I’ll probably wipe on a new coat or two every year to keep the color.

I’m curious to see how much darker they will become from sitting in the sun in the next few months.

Thanks for looking

-- Thepps, Grand Rapids, MI


29 comments so far

View wpreman's profile

wpreman

1486 posts in 610 days


posted 169 days ago

I really like the finish, you did a great job on these!

-- Bill, Florida

View John Stegall's profile

John Stegall

216 posts in 414 days


posted 169 days ago

The picture with it folded looks like it is bowing to your skill as a woodworker. May I just say it did the right thing. Beautiful!

-- jstegall

View a1Jim's profile

a1Jim

17007 posts in 474 days


posted 169 days ago

super job I bet they will last a long time,Well done

-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop Southern Oregon

View Thepps's profile

Thepps

27 posts in 651 days


posted 169 days ago

Ha, that’s pretty funny John. It does kind of look like it’s bowing down.

-- Thepps, Grand Rapids, MI

View Glenn's profile

Glenn

70 posts in 284 days


posted 169 days ago

Great job! I’m currently building some Adirondack chairs myself and hope they turn out 1/2 as good. Sure wish I had seen the plans for those before I started.

-- Glenn, Arkansas

View Kindlingmaker's profile

Kindlingmaker

1475 posts in 424 days


posted 169 days ago

YES YES YES Just what I have been looking for! You Did a great job! They are beautiful!

-- Never board, always knotty, lots of growth rings

View daveintexas's profile

daveintexas

338 posts in 773 days


posted 169 days ago

Wonderful looking chairs. And very timley I might add. Since I too am in the middle of constructing some Adirondack chairs. Mine are being built out of hickory, then probally stained/painted.
I really like yours out of the Jatoba.

Thanks for posting

-- MISSION FURNITURE-My mission is to build furniture

View stefang's profile

stefang

1655 posts in 231 days


posted 169 days ago

Beautiful chairs and workmanship. I can see why your wife is so happy with them.

-- Mike, American in Norway

View kerflesss's profile

kerflesss

132 posts in 265 days


posted 169 days ago

Really nice!!! Comfortable I’ll bet…. Very curious about how your finish holds up and wood may darken. Please do a follow up. Would be nice to find out. Whens the matching table gonna be finished?

View ratchet's profile

ratchet

301 posts in 684 days


posted 169 days ago

Abso-freakin-lutely nice! Best Ad. chairs i’ve seen to date. That they fold is a bonus.
Favorited for future ref.
Thanks a mil for sharing w us!

View Mario's profile

Mario

882 posts in 949 days


posted 169 days ago

Great looking chairs. Nice work and nice looking wood also.

Thanks for posting.

-- Hope Never fails

View LesB's profile

LesB

554 posts in 340 days


posted 169 days ago

Best looking Adirondack chairs I have seen and I especially like the fold for storage feature.

The teak oil finish will probably need a cleaning with oxalic acid every couple of years to brighten up the wood. That is what they do to teak on fancy boats. Because boats are out in the weather all year the teak is scrubbed annually with “teak cleaner” and oxalic acid, rinsed and then re-oiled. You can get the cleaner at any boat chandlery.

-- Les B, Oregon

View SteveB's profile

SteveB

51 posts in 955 days


posted 169 days ago

That’s a great looking job.

Would you share your plans?

-- Steve B - New Life Home Improvement

View CharlieM1958's profile

CharlieM1958

7666 posts in 1116 days


posted 168 days ago

These are absolutely stunning!

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

View FrankLad's profile

FrankLad

189 posts in 207 days


posted 168 days ago

Fantastic job! I agree about the wood… rich and beautiful. They look quite comfortable, too!

-- Frank, Mississippi, http://www.stoutwoodworks.com

View Thepps's profile

Thepps

27 posts in 651 days


posted 168 days ago

Thanks Les for the heads up on the ‘cleaner’. I’m curious as well to find out how the finish holds up.

SteveB: Unfortunately, I do not have any plans for this exact chair. I used the below link for the basic plan and modified it from there.
http://www.minwax.com/projects/pdfs/2006_Adirondack_Chair.pdf

The hardest part was determing the radiuses for the back supports. Since the back slats taper and flare out, it took a lot of trial and error. I’m not entirely sure what radiuses I used, but I believe the bottom support had an inner radius of 22” and the top support was 28”.

Thanks to everyone for all of the nice comments!

-- Thepps, Grand Rapids, MI

View SteveB's profile

SteveB

51 posts in 955 days


posted 168 days ago

Thanks for the link. Your implementation is much better than the plans.

I was mostly interested in how to do the folding bit.

-- Steve B - New Life Home Improvement

View Douglas Bordner's profile

Douglas Bordner

3427 posts in 961 days


posted 168 days ago

Sweet! Lie back and pop a cool one. You’ve earned it.

-- "Bordnerizing" perfectly good lumber for over a decade.

View Todd Thomas 's profile

Todd Thomas

4831 posts in 346 days


posted 168 days ago

the chairs look great…very well done

-- Todd, Oak Ridge, TN, Hello my name is Todd and I'm a Toolholic, I bought my last tool 10 days, no 4 days, oh heck I bought a tool on the way here! †

View tomakazi's profile

tomakazi

246 posts in 180 days


posted 168 days ago

Great looking chairs…I might make some for my living room. HaHa. What did the Jatoba cost? Are they heavy?

Thanks for posting,

Tom

-- I'm not here for your amusement. You're here for mine - Johnny Rotten

View DAN 's profile

DAN

6454 posts in 880 days


posted 168 days ago

beautiful work all around and very nice posting

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

View Splinterman's profile

Splinterman

4897 posts in 259 days


posted 168 days ago

Great choice of design, timber and finish…..well doneThepps.

-- I will just keep doing it till I get it right.

View Thepps's profile

Thepps

27 posts in 651 days


posted 168 days ago

Tomakazi: Yeah, the chairs are heavy, but not too heavy to lift. I can move them around rather easily, but I don’t think my wife could move them an inch. One good thing is, they will not blow around in the wind. :) Since Jatoba is an exotic, it is not cheap. It’s the most I’ve paid for any lumber. But I think it’s worth it to use quality hardwoods if I’m going to invest a lot of time into a project. Plus, I like experimenting with different woods. For the first few years in my woodworking career, I only used oak for every project. It’s nice to diversify.

-- Thepps, Grand Rapids, MI

View daveintexas's profile

daveintexas

338 posts in 773 days


posted 167 days ago

A question on the assembly of your chairs please.
How did you attach everything?
I looked at the zoomed pictures and I dont see any countersunk screw holes.
Did you use any screws? If so, did you plug the holes?
One last question- What is the height form the floor to the top of the seat at the highest point?

I ask the last question because I just finished one, the height is 13 inches from floor to top of seat, but after looking at it, it seems too low.

Thanks
Dave

-- MISSION FURNITURE-My mission is to build furniture

View amat55's profile

amat55

31 posts in 219 days


posted 167 days ago

This is a beautifully crafted work of art, your wife will be leaving all sort of projects on your honey do list, that means more shop time not a bad move. Happy wood chucking leo

-- "Well done is better than well said"

View Thepps's profile

Thepps

27 posts in 651 days


posted 164 days ago

Dave: I used exterior decking screws to attach everything (and a lot of them, about a full pound box of them). I plugged all of the holes using scrap jatoba and a plug cutter. It gives it a much more finished look. It’s also quite a bit more work. The highest point of the seat is 14”. It looked pretty low when I was building it as well, but it works. I think 13” would be fine as well.

-- Thepps, Grand Rapids, MI

View johnpoole's profile

johnpoole

74 posts in 363 days


posted 164 days ago

great looking project. never tried folding Adirondack.. we had a bad winter last year here in SC, both weeks of it. love your finish, keep us posted on how well it weathers.

-- it's not a sickness, i can stop buying tools anytime i want

View woodworm's profile

woodworm

8304 posts in 488 days


posted 47 days ago

Stunning design, built and finish. I like the foldable concept for most home furniture.
Great work!

-- masrol, kuala lumpur, MY.

View ken90712's profile

ken90712

351 posts in 86 days


posted 3 days ago

Nicest chairs I have looked at so far! I was a Michigan growing up, been in So Cal for 15 yrs now!

-- Ken, "Everyday above ground is a good day!"

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