Thread: Windsor chair Welsh stick chair seat

Hoop pine = soft
but you could use blackwood?

Failing that id send a message to Jon Grant who builds windsors chairs out at Molesworth. Homepage - Handmade Matters
When I made my democratic chair with John he provided jelutong (obv not native)
Alternatively if youre near cygnet drop a line or drop in to Peter Mark Rhodes. Peter Mark Rhodes - Furniture maker - Local Business in The Huon Valley Southern Tasmania

I have used blackwood for most of mine. They don't weigh much as most of them are cut away. i have used pine too.

Originally Posted by haggismuncher

Does anyone have suggestions for Australian (preferably Tasmanian) timbers that would make a good lightweight seat for a Welsh stick chair?
I assume that radiata pine isn’t strong enough.

I may end up painting the chair so need not be attractive wood.

I think Radiata Pine is strong enough for the seat.
A lot of US Windsor chair makers use pine for their seats and paint them.
Choose the hardest tight grain stuff you can find and let it sit out in the open for a while to adjust. Radiata can move around a bit if its just pulled from a timber rack and used straight away.

If you are going to paint it then I would use radiata on $$'s.


If you are going with a clear finish then I would use celery top pine or sassafras, largely because they are suitable and I like working with them -my third choice would be blackwood. All are available from Island Specialty Timbers out of Geeveston.

I also like hoop and klinkii pines, but they are rarely available now in Hobart.

Thanks everyone, my thinking was a mixture of price and weight. I am currently working on a Tas oak chair and the sheer weight of the seat is interesting.
So I thought why not have a painted seat and oiled hardwood legs and spindles. Lightweight options are basically limited to macrocarpa, radiata, or imported. I am going to leave off the Celery Top until I am more confident that I won’t screw it up.