Friends of ours bought a hot tub last year. They invited us over. It was everything we expected – a great time. Kids and adults had a blast.
What they also had that they didn’t say were some fabulous new patio chairs. Large, sturdy and super comfortable with a deep seat.
They were very much like the wood patio chair set out in this DIY tutorial. Eerily similar. I wonder if my buddy used this tutorial to build them.
Anyway, I liked the chairs so much I wanted to feature this build (with permission via the CC license at Instructables).
Related: DIY Projects | DIY Baby Mobile | DIY Home Theater | DIY Dining Table | DIY Patio Furniture | DIY Kitchen Island | DIY Adirondack Chair
Specifications
- Estimated cost: $95
- Time: 2 Days
Materials:
- 4×4 Douglas Fir (5)
- 7/8″ Dowel (1)
- 2×4 Lumber (1)
- 5″ Lag Screws (14)
- 3″ Weather Rated Screws (24)
- Wood glue
Tools Used
- Dust Mask
- 7/8 Forstner Bit
- Drill/ Driver
- Flush Cut Saw
- Miter Saw
- Cutech Jointer
- Measuring tape
- Table Saw
- Bessey Clamps
- Jaw Horse
- 2 in 1 Jig Saw
- Multitool Oscillating tool
Phase 1: Cut the Wood
To cut the the 4×4 Douglas fir lumber, a miter saw was used. Once cut, a jointer removed some of the wood to reduce sanding effort at the end.
Phase 2: Joint Cuts
In order to easily assemble the chair, all the joint cuts were done first with a table saw. Rabbets were cut in on the ends of the three of the wood pieces to be used for the seat.
What if you don’t have a table saw? A reciprocating saw, circular saw or hand saw all do the job.
TIP: Once the cuts are done, ensure they fit together before actually assembling.
Phase 3: Put the Arms Together
Time to put the chair arms together. It’s shaping up fast. One thing (among many) that I love about this project is it’s relatively simple compared to other furniture.
Start arm assembly by laying out the wood as illustrated above. Before screwing with the lag screws, use wood glue and clamp it all together nice and snug. Keep them clamped until the glue is dry.
Screw time: use a 7/8″ drill bit and create 1.5 inch holes at the center of each joint. With a smaller bit, drill holes in the center of each of the larger holes.
Secure the arms by driving in lag screws.
Phase 4: Put Together the Chair’s Body
With arms assembled, it’s time to put the chair together which involves attaching the chair back and bottom to the arms.
Phase 5: Plug the Holes
The holes were plugged with a 7/8″ dowel. With a touch of glue on the dowel, they were inserted with a rubber mallet.
Phase 6: Put Together the Seat
The seat assembly starts with putting into place the pieces on the far end of each side. Note, do not glue or screw these pieces at this point… that’s done at the end.. Once done, the support piece for remaining seat slats was glued and screwed (clamped). The remaining slats were secured with two screws.
Finally glue and screw the outer pieces on each side.
Phase 7: Sand and Finish
If you like the rough style, leave it as-is. If you prefer it finished, sand it and apply some wood conditioner. Once wood conditioner is dried, stain the chair. In this example, cherry stain was used. For further weather-proofing, add a couple layers of polyurethane.
Final Phase: Admire and Enjoy
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Source: DIYCreators.com (Get the full free plan here) used with permission per Creative Commons license via Instructables).
