My community group is redoing a large social hall and is replacing 150 chairs. The company that they are thinking of using does not use all mortise and tenon joinery for the aprons. The front apron is m & t, the side aprons are glued and screwed to the inside of the legs and the back apron is biscuited into the side aprons. Is this typical for production run chairs? This certainly is not how I build chairs but I am not building 150. Appreciate comments on this, they would like my feedback and I am not familiar with if this is typical for a production shop. Appreciate your thoughts.
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Replies
Look up a commercial furnishing company that supplies restaurants. I am sure that there are other choices. It sounds like you are looking at cafe chairs. I would go to a good restaurant and ask them where they get tables and chairs.
Our community center has several hundred chairs all the same. They stack in units of 5 and have a metal frame with a comfortable cushion seat. Very durable and comfortable but not made of wood.
150 chairs is alot of chairs. Very likely the chairs were chosen based on the price. As in "these chairs are the best chairs weve seen staying within our budget." I'm sure there are better made chairs available but better made makes for a bigger price most times.
For how long do they need to last?
Chairs are a consumable in such settings - they wear out and budgets need to work on replacement over time.
Even so, that sounds like a recipe for early failure - people and especially children tend to rock back on chairs and that places a lot of load on the joints that are to be held with nothing but screws - not ideal IMHO.
Is there a reason for wanting wood? Metal is generally cheaper, more comfortable and lighter, so easier to stack. Stacking wooden chairs can be done, but it does require that the back of the seat is narrow, and of course wood is susceptible to damage in stacking operations.
If your social hall is multipurpose, you may be best served by some type of stacking banquet chair with chair movers. Like a chair dolly to stack and wheel them around on.
I’ve recently redone a similar size space with folding plastic tables and folding plastic chairs. It’s what we could get here and hold up to the elements in Hawaii. I ordered most of it through Costco due to shipping costs.
I used to travel for a living (300+ days/yr) and visit many large facilities for presentations and meetings. Most of them used some sort of stacking metal banquet chair. I suppose wood ones exist. I just wouldn’t want the wear and tear that will happen to them.
I’d recommend looking at hotels, restaurants, and church suppliers for cost + shipping considerations. Chairs seem to be about $40/ea +shipping.
https://www.webstaurantstore.com/lancaster-table-seating-navy-fabric-crown-back-stackable-banquet-chair-with-silver-vein-frame/164BNQCRNVY.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=GoogleShopping&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-YrVsPjKgwMVYgCtBh0J4QHOEAQYAiABEgIYRvD_BwE
https://churchchair.com/catalog/agentType/ViewType/PropertyTypeID/3/Type1/Banquet%20Chairs/Banquet-Chairs