Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Custom seating

For years, I avoided chairmaking. I think I may have heard a few "wiser" woodworkers discussing what a pain it was to build them, so I just adopted that attitude.

Well, I'm pleased to say I re-examined that opinion and have found that I very much enjoy the process of building a chair. It's possible that the reason I enjoy it is because it's a challenge. I like challenges.

Speaking of that, while trolling around the internet, in search of some chair information, I found a blog post on Rockler Woodworking's website about Bruce Boyd, an amatuer woodworker from Roseburg, Oregon. Apparently, Bruce is a huge Star Trek fan, and decided to build a replica of Captain Kirk's chair on the
Starship Enterprise.



What's most amazing is that this is the first piece that Bruce ever built.



I'm not sure how to reach Bruce, but if anyone out there knows him, I would appreciate it if you could have him contact me. I'd like to extend an invitation to attend the new Star Trek Experience if he ever visits Las Vegas... my treat.

Bruce's chair reminds me of something I built around 1997 - one of those pieces I built and sort of forgot about. A client of mine purchase a set of four stadium chairs when the city of Cleveland was demolishing the old Cleveland Stadium.


To say that this fellow was a Cleveland sports fan is a bit of an understatement. His entire house was filled with memorabilia, from autographed jerseys and balls, to helmets, bats, posters, and finally... a "couch" made of the stadium seats, made by yours truly. I don't have any pictures of the finished piece, just these images of stadium seats.


I basically built a platform that all four seats bolted into, forming a crude "couch" that four fans could sit in, while watching their favorite team.


Those seats were pretty disgusting - covered with numerous coats of paint, and a few dried blobs of chewing gum, as well. Add in the stenciled seat numbers, and you almost felt like you were sitting on the 50 yard line, except without the freezing temps.

For some reason, that "couch" always seemed like the perfect prop for an episode of Seinfeld.

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