Knock-down, or collapsible furniture is slightly more complicated to build than furniture fastened together with screws or nails, because the furniture pieces must work in unison upon completion. Typical collapsible furniture utilizes a mortise and tenon joint in conjunction with wooden pegs to hold the furniture together, without the need for fasteners or glue. Other methods include mated slots, or the more modern approach of using locking hinges.
Instructions
1. Lay a plank of 60-inch 1-by-12 lumber flat on your work table. This is the bench seat. Measure in 3 inches from each end of the seat and place two planks of 10-inch 2-by-2 lumber across the seat so that the ends of the two lumber planks measure 1 inch in from each long side of the bench. These are the first set of bench cleats.
2. Drive four 2 1/2-inch wood screws evenly through the cleat into the underside of the bench seat to secure the cleats to the bench seat.
3. Measure in 2 inches from the inside edge of the first two cleats, and position two more planks of 10-inch 2-by-2 lumber parallel to the first two. Secure the second set of cleats to the bench seat in the same manner as you did the first. The two pairs of cleats sandwich the tops of the bench legs and keep the bench seat in place.
4. Place two planks of 17-inch 2-by-10 lumber flat on your work table. These are the bench legs. Orient the legs so that the 17-inch sides are running parallel to the 10-inch side closest to you -- the bottom of the legs being the closest and the top of the legs being the farthest.
5. Measure 4 1/2 inches down from the top of the legs and mark a 2-inch long line down the center of the leg. On a mortise machine, cut a 2-inch wide and 2-inch long mortise in each leg. A mortise is a hole, usually square or rectangular, that mates with a tenon, or notch on the end of another piece of lumber.
6. Lay a piece of 58-inch 2-by-4 lumber flat on your work surface. This is the for the bench. Measure in 4 inches from each end of the cross support and mark a line across the 4-inch face. Using a table saw with a dado set, cut a tenon on each end of the cross support that is 4 inches long, and 2 inches high-by-2 inches wide. The tenons mate with the mortises cut into the legs.
7. Cut a 1-by-1-inch mortise an inch in from the end of each tenon on the , using a mortise machine. The mortises accept a tapered peg, which holds the leg and cross support planks together.
8. Cut a piece of 5-inch 1-by-2 lumber in half across the diagonal on a band saw to create two tapered pegs to match the mortises on the end of the cross support tenons.
9. Sand the components of the collapsible bench with fine-grit sandpaper. Apply the wood finish of your choice, and let it dry thoroughly before assembling the bench.
10. Fit the tenons of the cross support into the mortises on the legs. The tenons should protrude out the other side of the legs by 2 inches. Insert a peg into each of the mortises on the tenon ends and use a rubber mallet to hammer the pegs in until they are tight.
11. Fit the bench seat on top of the legs, with the legs sandwiched between the two sets of cleats on the underside of the bench. To collapse the bench, reverse the assembly process.
Tags: cross support, bench seat, from each, Measure inches, flat your