I am looking for information on the best way to build 3 1/2″ to 2′ tapered legs 30″ long out of Quarter sawn oak. I am after the best look. I believe that all that I will be able to find in this cut in my area is 4/4 lumber. The only way I can think to build them is to miter the boards in a tapered length, assemble them and then straighten out the top of the leg. Then round over the edges. I am worried this will not look good and there is a better way out there.
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Tim --
Your approach can be made to work. In fact, it was fairly standard on better Craftsman-style furniture. The builders selected quartersawn 4/4 boards for the best ray fleck, and glued them together into a hollow leg with quartersawn faces on all four sides -- an impossibility with solid stock. Mitering the edges and putting the seams at the corners of the legs hides the seams between the boards.
If you taper your boards before you glue the four together to make a leg, be aware that the miter angle is not exactly 45 degrees. If you remember your high school geometry you can calculate it. If not, build prototypes with cheap wood, tweaking the miter angle until you get it right.
Putting a big roundover radius on the leg is likely to make the seam more obvious than a small radius.
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