Thank you all, thank you for your kind comments.
William Roscoe, I will be pleased to tell you how I mated the spindles to the head board, but first I would like to 'splain what I mean when I say this chair took me 80 hours to build.
I kept a log of the time I worked on the chair. But, I did not count the time it took to re-do some of the parts because I changed the design. For instance, I made two sets of spindles because I didn't like the effect of the first set...and I didn't count the time I spent on the first set. I made two sets of arm rests and only counted the time on the second. I made three head boards and three sun discs and only counted the last set as time towards the chair. (Now I realize I should have made four or five more until I got it right).
So, that is how I came up with 80 hours, and I am sure that the next time I make this chair it will take about 80 hours. But, 80 hours is no great accomplishment. The standard Maloof style rocker usually takes an experienced chairman 50 to 60 hours to make and I am sure some can make them quicker.
So William, as for the spindles. First I made a pattern of what I wanted the top of the spindle to look like. Then, while shaping the spindle I made sure that the back side had a flat area where it would join the head board. Then, I attached the top spindle pattern to each spindle with double sided tape and used a flush bearing router bit to shape the tops. I also used the spindle top pattern to make a female pattern that I could use to route out the recess for each spindle. I struck an arc, from the chair seat, across the head board centered on the top of the center spindle and used that line to orient the female pattern for each spindle.
After that, each spindle fit snugly into it's recess so I epoxied it and then screwed the spindle top to the head board and pegged the screw hole.
Now, I clamped the head board at its approximate location on the back legs and then scribed each spindle to the chair seat. When they were all flush with the chair seat, I screwed each to the chair seat from underneath and then pegged those screw holes. There may be a better way, or a different way to do this, but I'll stick with what works for me.
Woodguy1975...I see from your avatar that you make Maloof style chairs and you obviously have a keen eye for detail. And you are right, I may have some influence from Hal Taylor in my chairs. Essentially, I worked out the elements of the Maloof chair on my own back in 1996, and I was delighted to find out how very simple in concept it was. But, a year or two ago I communicated with Bill Kappel and I adopted a few of his techniques. That's probably the connection to Hal Taylor. I think Hal and Bill are colleagues.
I used a 5 degree cant on these chairs, but for some reason I think that Hal Taylor uses a 6 degree cant. But they do look similar, I agree. Everyone seems to have small differences that they introduce, just as Maloof himself introduced small changes over the years.
Of course, many of the chair makers take lessons to learn to make chairs, and then hold classes where they pass on what they learned and that keeps a certain consistency going. I am sure I would benefit from taking lessons from Hal Taylor, or Bill Kappel, or yourself. I'd probably be more efficient. But I like the serendipity that comes now and then when I work things out on the fly and I guess I am a dyed in the wool autodidact. Hopefully, when we meet someday I'll have the chance to pick your brain for a detail or two.
hpm67...I tried..oh how I tried...to get those pictures on the posting to be right. I think it took me almost as long to figure out how to post those pictures as it did to make the chair. I am inept when it comes to computers, sad to say. I did manage to get the pictures in my gallery albums to expand when they are clicked, though. Some of them show details pretty well.
Sharp Blade... I would be pleased to share with you and with any other NC Woodworker what I know about making these chairs. But, be warned, I am self taught and I may have taught myself some poor technique. I can show you how to make the basic Maloof style rocker, help you with the jigs needed, and help you to branch out from there with your own designs if you want.
I am convinced that anyone with an interest and the time needed can make one of these chairs. There are no secrets to these chairs and no really difficult techniques, that's the genius of them. Hundreds of woodworkers have made them. All you need are the basic tools, or access to them, and the willingness to try. I don't charge for lessons, I just ask that you "pay it forward" someday when you have the chance.
I have already agreed to work with one NC Woodworker on a chair and I'd be pleased to have a few more join in, if you are interested. We could meet at my shop from time to time and communicate by phone or email for the rest.
If you are interested, pm me and we'll get to work. Maybe someone with expertise in Google Sketch Up or something like that could volunteer to sketch the plans as we go along. That way, you would have a chair building manual to read after you've built your own Maloof style rocker. I think it would be fun.
