I am doing a reproduction from a piece which is about 30 years old, has been in three different countries and travelled the sea for about 13,000 miles. It is in perfect condition, besides breaking all the joinery rules in my book. So, I’m hesitant to copy the joinery and would appreciate advice from joining experts who know about wood movement.
In the attachment, the color hatch lines indicate the boards used and the grain direction. My dilemma is figuring new joints for joints “A”, “B” and “C”. On the existing piece, joint “C” is mortise and tenon, which should be fine, joint “B” was done with a joint bit and my concern here is wood movement with the different grain directions. I don’t know what was done with joint “A”, but there is some kind of joint as the piece is solid.
The original piece was Brazilian Walnut (Imbuia) posts and trim with something close to Pau Marfim, for the main headboard. Finish was mineral oil and paste wax.
Any ideas?
Replies
Jellyrug,
I might try a barefaced tenon for the joints you describe. Put the shoulder on the back of the headboard so that if the wood moves you won't see a gap. Then I would glue it to the horizontal rail and let it float in the post. A 1/2" or 3/8" long tenon would probably be sufficient for the post and maybe use a 3/4" or 1" for the rail connection.
Edit: Depending on the width of the board you may want to use a double tenon for the glue joint.
J.P.
http://www.jpkfinefurniture.com
Edited 2/22/2005 9:47 pm ET by j.p.
J.P.,
Thanks for the advice, your solution will work.
I looked at this project long and hard though and I'm also concerned about the joint at the top of the headboard, where the two boards meet. I'm not comfortable with the cross grain and the width here, as the joint may open after time with wood movement.
One solution was to run the grain on the headboard sideways, but then there is the molding and it also has carving applied below the molding (not shown), which creates problems.
I think I'm going to cheat on this one and use MDF with resawn veneer for the headboard and the rail attached to the headboard, as this will result in closed joint lines and running the grain direction to look good.
I guess the question is, is veneered MDF Fine Woodworking?
The customer is very particular about the piece looking the same as the original, I'm not sure if I dare mention MDF?
Hey Jelly, whenever I know that a joint is going to move, I like to accentuate the joint by rounding the the edges with sandpaper a little, this way it becomes a detail rather than a defect. Would that work with this design?
Jellyrug,I think you can still go with solid wood and not be concerned too much about the grain direction. There doesn't seem to be a cross grain problem with the joint at the top of the headboard, at least I dont' think so. The bottom portion of the back of a shield back chair has this same type of situation and the problem is overcome by using a sliding dovetail or a dovetail key.For your situation you could use a floating tenon or biscuits or a regular mortise and tenon and not have any problems. How thick is the headboard?If you change the grain direction then you run the risk of having the piece cup.Yes,veneered MDF is fine woodworking.J.P.
http://www.jpkfinefurniture.com
Jellyrug,Just curious to know what you worked out with the client? I was also wondering if you would be able to use slightly wider boards and have less of a miter angle at the top of the headboard so the grain direction was a little closer to horizontal and the pieces may tend to move together when expanding or contracting.J.P.http://www.jpkfinefurniture.com
J.P. We are using resawn veneer to match grain and figure on the headboard only. The rest will be solid all in Cherry.
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