This book is one of the series of Handbooks on industrial subjects being published by the Popular Mechanics Company.
Like Popular Mechanics Magazine, and like the other books in this series, it is "written so you can understand it."
The purpose of Popular Mechanics Handbooks is to supply a growing demand for high-class, up-to-date and accurate text-books, suitable for home study as well as for class use, on all mechanical subjects.
The text and illustrations, in each instance, have been prepared expressly for this series by well known experts, and revised by the editor of Popular Mechanics.
Suitable for Dining Room Use
Details of Chair Construction
A mission chair suitable for the dining room can be made from any one of the furniture woods to match the other articles of furniture. The materials can be secured from the planing mill dressed and sandpapered ready to cut the tenons and mortises. The material list can be made up from the dimensions given in the detail drawing. The front legs or posts, as well as the back ones, are made from 1-3/4-in. square stock, the back ones having a slope of 2 in. from the seat to the top. All the slats are made from 7/8-in. material and of such widths as are shown in the detail. The three upright slats in the back are 3/4-in. material. The detail drawing shows the side and back, the front being the same as the back from the seat down. All joints are mortised in the posts, as shown. The joints, however, can be made with dowels if desired. If making dowel joints they must be clamped very tight when glued and put together. The seat can be made from one piece of 7/8-in. material, fitted with notches around the posts. This is then upholstered with leather without using springs. Leather must be selected as to color to suit the kind of wood used in making the chair. The seat can also be made with an open center for a cane bottom by making a square of four pieces of 7/8-in. material about 4 in. wide. These pieces are fitted neatly to the proper size and dowelled firmly together. After the cane is put in the opening the cane is covered over and upholstered with leather in the same manner as with a solid bottom.
A library light stand of pleasing design and easy construction is made as follows: Square up a piece of white oak so that it shall have a width and thickness of 1-3/4 in. with a length of 13 in. Square up two pieces of the same kind of material to the same width and thickness, but with a length of 12 in. each. Square up two pieces to a width and length of 3 in. each with a thickness of 1-1/8 in.
If a planing mill is near, time and patience will be saved by ordering one piece 1-3/4 in. square and 40 in. long, two pieces 1-1/8 in. thick and 3 in. square, all planed and sandpapered on all surfaces. The long piece can then be cut at home to the lengths specified above.
The 13-in. piece is for the upright and should have a 1/2-in. hole bored the full length through the center. If the bit is not long enough to reach entirely through, bore from each end, then use a red-hot iron to finish. This hole is for the electric wire or gas pipe if gas is used.
The two pieces for the base are alike except the groove of one is cut from the top and of the other from the under side, as shown. Shape the under sides first. This can best be done by placing the two pieces in a vise, under sides together, and boring two holes with a 1-in. bit. The center of each hole will be 2-1/2 in. from either end and in the crack between the pieces. The pieces can then be taken out, lines gauged on each side of each, and the wood between the holes removed with turning saw and scraper steel.
The Completed Lamp
The width of the grooves must be determined by laying one piece upon the other; a try-square should be used to square the lines across the pieces; however, gauge for depth, gauging both pieces from their top surfaces. Chisel out the grooves and round off the corners as shown in the sketch, using a 3/4-in. radius.
These parts may be put together and fastened to the upright by means of two long screws from the under side, placed to either side of the 1/2-in. hole. This hole must be continued through the pieces forming the base.
The braces are easiest made by taking the two pieces which were planed to 1-1/8 in. thick and 3 in. square and drawing a diagonal on each. Find the middle of this diagonal by drawing the central portion of the other diagonal; at this point place the spur of the bit and bore a 1-in. hole in each block.
Saw the two blocks apart, sawing along a diagonal of each. Plane the surfaces on the saw cut smooth and sandpaper the curve made by the bit. Fasten the braces in place by means of roundhead blued screws.
To make a shade such as is shown in the illustration is rather difficult. The shade is made of wood glued up and has art glass fitted in rabbets cut on the inner edges. Such shades can be purchased ready to attach. The sketch shows one method of attaching. Four small pieces of strap iron are bent to the shape shown and fastened to the four sides of the upright. Electric globes—two, three or four may be attached as shown.
Construction of Shade
The kind of wood finish for the stand will depend upon the finish on the wooden shade, if shade is purchased. Brown Flemish is obtained by first staining the wood with Flemish water stain diluted by the addition of two parts water to one part stain. When this is dry, sandpaper the "whiskers" which were raised by the water and fill with a medium dark filler. Directions will be found on the filler cans. When filler has hardened, apply two coats of wax.
Details of Construction of Library Lamp Stand
The metal shade as shown in the sketch is a "layout" for a copper or brass shade of a size suitable for this particular lamp. Such shades are frequently made from one piece of sheet metal and designs are pierced in them as suggested in the "layout." This piercing is done by driving the point of a nail through the metal from the under side before the parts are soldered or riveted together. If the parts are to be riveted, enough additional metal must be left on the last panel to allow for a lap. No lap is needed when joints are soldered.
A better way, and one which will permit the use of heavier metal, is to cut each side of the shade separately and fasten them together by riveting a piece of metal over each joint. The shape of this piece can be made so as to accentuate the rivet heads and thus give a pleasing effect.
For art-glass the metal panels are cut out, the glass is inserted from the under side and held in place by small clips soldered to the frame of the shade.
Pleasing effects are obtained by using one kind of metal, as brass, and reinforcing and riveting with another metal, such as copper.
Details of Home-Made Porch Seat
The illustration shows a very comfortable and attractive porch chair that can be made with few tools and easily procured material. Most any kind of wood will answer, says the American Carpenter and Builder, but if open grained wood, such as oak or chestnut, is used, the parts should be filled with a paste filler. If the natural color of the wood is not desired, the wood may first be stained, the filler being colored somewhat darker than the stain.
Procure enough lumber to make all the pieces shown in the detail drawing and finish to the dimensions shown, being careful to make the corresponding pieces exactly alike in order to preserve the perfect symmetry which is necessary in work of this kind. In boring the holes care must be taken to keep both edges of the holes sharp and clean. The holes should each be bored until the spur shows; the bit should then be withdrawn and the rest of the boring be done from the other side. The semicircular notches are made by placing the two pieces edge to edge in the vise and placing the spur of the bit in the crack. The 1-in. bit is used. As it will be difficult to finish the boring of these blocks from the second side, the parts remaining may be cut out with the knife after the pieces have been separated.