This is my latest completed project. A couple of years ago, my wife purchased a similar antique bench from a tag sale. The original had been repaired many times, especially in regards to the attachment of the legs to the rails. The original is connected using dowels and some screws. I decided to make modifications to the design (Norm Abrhams Style) that would in theory improve the bench.
I decided to make the seat portion stavle by using a mortice and tennon approach for the frame of the seat. The tennon is cut all the way through so it is exposed on the backrounded portion of the seat. I also used Maloof style jointery to connect the legs to the seat. The maloof joint attaches to the tennon at the back of the chiar and into the side rail at the inside portion in the seat and the front of the leg. This should be extremely stable jointery and not fail as the original. The original also had a curved backrest midway down below the crest rail. I decided to keep this version in Maloof style by using spindles.
The bench is made of highly figured maple and finished with three coats of Waterlox. This was my first project that uses the Maloof style but is essentially an original style as the only thing identical to the original is the shape of the legs.
Sorry for the rotated photo, I am not sure how to change the orientation but thought it would be beneficial to show the jointery.
I decided to make the seat portion stavle by using a mortice and tennon approach for the frame of the seat. The tennon is cut all the way through so it is exposed on the backrounded portion of the seat. I also used Maloof style jointery to connect the legs to the seat. The maloof joint attaches to the tennon at the back of the chiar and into the side rail at the inside portion in the seat and the front of the leg. This should be extremely stable jointery and not fail as the original. The original also had a curved backrest midway down below the crest rail. I decided to keep this version in Maloof style by using spindles.
The bench is made of highly figured maple and finished with three coats of Waterlox. This was my first project that uses the Maloof style but is essentially an original style as the only thing identical to the original is the shape of the legs.
Sorry for the rotated photo, I am not sure how to change the orientation but thought it would be beneficial to show the jointery.
