Headboard Build along
#11
Hello all: This is a headboard I designed in the early ninties. It was featured in Taunton's Home Furniture Magazine in 1996. I had a request recently to revisit the piece, but in Walnut( the first few I did were in Cypress). I took a few pictures as I built this one, and thought I'd share the process with you all.
I begin building these headboards hunting for curves, patterns in boards that will allow me to showcase them in this curvey piece. The backposts are glued up front to back making sure the roll doesn't cut thru the lamination exposing the glue line(8/4 usually takes care of that. I have resorted to a face veneer on the back posts in this bed.
The main focus is the panels, so I search for something special. In this case, I had some wonderful feathered crotch to use. These were cut into 3/32" veneer and applied using a vacuum bag and a bending form made from blue foam(who knew it was such a great form material,thanks JGROUT) Normally I would have made a ply form or MDF. Foam does the trick easily and cheaply. Two layers were formed arount 1/8" baltic birch.

The basic stucture is pretty straight forward, the top curved piece is bandsawed and trued up with a compass plane. Again, that's a curve I try to find in a rough board. I don't worry about exposing short grain too much because it's held in place quite solidly by the side posts, the center piece, and the top cap.

Positioning the top curve I draw as many lines as I can to the side posts to help me cut the mortise with a Japanese Rip saw. The tenon next and fine fitting for a close joint. The curved piece bends a little to help get the joint perfect if you don't get it the first time.

Cut off the tops of the side posts, carefull to stay in the plane of the top of the curved piece. If you cut it a little strong to the plane, you can adjust it later with a sharp block plane. Remember it's all endgrain at that point.
Measure the angle where the center piece hits the main cross bar, this is a straight angled cut and it leaves the curved cut at the top of the center piece a 90 degree cut( easier to bring to a nice fit). The center piece is held with slip tenons at the bottom and screws at the top. Here's where you can compress the top curved piece to hold it in position.


I forgot to take a few more pictures here, but the bed is assembled with clamps at this point(without the cap piece) and I use a router with a wing cutter to form the dado for the panel. I carefully cut the panel to shape and fit it into the frames. I then glue everything up and add the cap piece. A note on the cap piece, I strip laminate it from one piece of wood and keep it in sequence. I built a MDF curved form(flat on the bottom) and use the vacuum bag to laminate it into the curve.(sorry, no picture).
Here's what the headboard looks like all glued up with finish.



At home in my client's house.
Reply
#12
Stunning. Elegant curves. Amazing walnut. Thanks for sharing the process.

Bob
"All that I do or say is all that I ever will be"

Billy Joe Shaver, Old Five and Dimers Like Me
Reply
#13
WOW!!!
Reply
#14
Awesome
The curves really make it.
Rusty
Poppa's Woodworks
Reply
#15
Oh my!!!!!!!!!!!!
"I tried being reasonable..........I didn't like it." Clint Eastwood
Reply
#16
That looks great. In how many directions does the curve flow? Just one or more?
Reply
#17
Beautiful. I love the curves. Is there a foot board, too? Please tell me more about how you created the form with the blue foam. Did you bandsaw small sections and stack them together or mill away from a big panel?

John
Reply
#18
Hey John:The curve is the same to the side as it is from front to back so one template serves both curves. My bandsaw cuts a maximum of 11" so I cut the foam cross wise at 11", drew the curve with a sharpie and cut three sections. I glued the foam back together with thick superglue and faired it with a sureform. It was so fastand simple, I made two forms so I only had one glueup. With my old method of an mdf forms I'd have to do two overnight glue ups.
Cheers, Bill
Reply
#19
Thanks Bill. I'm going to have to try that on a future laminating project.

John
Reply
#20

Totally gorgeous!! Thanks for sharing.

g
I've only had one...in dog beers.

"You can see the stars and still not see the light"
The Eagles: Already Gone
Reply


Forum Jump:


Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)

Product Recommendations

Here are some supplies and tools we find essential in our everyday work around the shop. We may receive a commission from sales referred by our links; however, we have carefully selected these products for their usefulness and quality.