Perfect Patio Chairs
The Family Handyman|March 2017

A classic design, reinvented for comfort and easy building

Ken Collier
Perfect Patio Chairs

This chair is hard to beat for comfort, economy and ease of building. The design is based on a couple chairs I’ve had at the family cabin for more than a decade. Being a fiddle with-it kind of guy, I modified the originals over the years, built others and eventually chose this design.

I think it’s about as close to perfect as you can get: It’s comfortable to sit in for hours at a time, the arms are wide enough to hold a drink, and you’re reclined enough for relaxation, but not so much that you’ll groan every time you get up (unlike with most Adirondack chairs). It will accept a common type of outdoor chair cushion, available at any home center, but doesn’t require one. It’s light enough to move around easily, and you can fit it through a doorway without contortions. Plus, it’s inexpensive and easy to build.

Skills, tools & lumber

This is a beginner to intermediate level project. If you have just a little experience with tools, you can do it. You’ll need an orbital or a random-orbit sander, a 7/16-in. wrench, six clamps and a drill. You can cut parts with a circular saw and drive nails with a hammer, but you’ll get faster, nicer results with a miter saw, an air compressor and an 18-gauge brad nailer.

I’ve built this design from both pine and cedar. Each pine chair will cost you about $60, cedar about $90. Cedar is a better choice if your chairs are going to spend much time out in the rain. You may find it hard to buy 1x3 cedar, so you may have to rip a 1x6 in half. Also note that rough cedar is usually thicker than 3/4 in., while pine boards come in the standard 3/4-in. thickness. When you’re building the seat and back, keep those different thicknesses in mind 

Build a prototype

Denne historien er fra March 2017-utgaven av The Family Handyman.

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Denne historien er fra March 2017-utgaven av The Family Handyman.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.