Cape Cod Chair

I am a colonel in the United States Air Force Medical Service and am stationed at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa Florida as the medical group commander.
In December 2009, I left Tampa for a deployment to Joint Base Balad, Iraq.
My first real deployment in 24 years of service in the Air Force.
It hit home in mid-December that I was leaving for Iraq when I had to pack away my work shop at the house.
I have been a serious woodworker since 1999. My forte is mostly clocks, shadow boxes and pens, but I’m willing to venture outside my comfort zone.

When I arrived at my deployed location, I was please to find out that there was an expeditionary (aka austere) self-help shop on the installation and in fact it was located right around the corner from the hospital I would be working in.
After establishing where my office was located and seeing each of the executive offices on the south side had patios, I decided one or more Adirondack chairs would be a nice addition to the space.

After “Googling” Adirondack Chairs on the net, I reviewed several options that popped up until I settled on the design I found on Thingstobuild.com.

Editors note: http://www.thingstobuild.com is a subsidiary of https://www.buildeazy.com/

I printed the design and then contacted the self-help shop to gain access for my project.
I was told by the enlisted manager that I was welcome to come over, get safety certified and have access to the shop to build the chairs. He explained that I could make the chairs out of any material I wanted as long as it was pine. Yes, the only building material in this expeditionary self-help shop was pine.
I told him my preference then would be to make them out of pine.

Over the next three Sunday mornings, I was able to produce three of the chairs with only minor modification from the original design (pictures attached).
The chairs have been a big hit and they are in fact much more comfortable than I had anticipated.
Even the Air Force Surgeon General who was visiting thought they were fantastic.

This project was a great way to get my woodworking fix while spending six months 7,000 miles away from family and home.
My first project when I get settled in back in Tampa, FL will be to make some not-so-expeditionary Adirondack chairs for my wife and me.
Thank you very much for making these designs available.

DENNIS L. BEATTY, Col, USAF, MSC

I adapted you Adirondack chair plans to make a garden bench that I wanted to show you. I simply made a back support piece then carried the seat planks right up and over the back. Thanks for the basic plan. Mimi, France

Here are the chairs I made from your plans. I made them from pallets.
Sent from my iPod
Joel

Dear BuildEazy,
Here’s my Adirondac Chair, I substituted 6 x 2’s for the arms and I used tannalised timber throughout. Thanks for a super plan BuildEazy, I’m starting another one next week!!!
Mark, Dublin, Ireland.

Adirondack chairs and Greenhouse.
I just wanted to send along pictures of two recent Buildeazy projects that I completed.
My wife and I love to spent time outside in our ever expanding garden so we thought a greenhouse, using your plans, would be a great addition to our planting hobby. (See photo of the greenhouse https://www.buildeazy.com/greenhouse/).
The greenhouse plan was simple, well laid out and easy to understand. I am sure that we will enjoy it for many years to come.

The second project was a pair of adirondack chairs.
I searched the web and viewed many different styles of adirondack chairs, yours however was most like the chairs that I remember from years ago at a family lake house.
I used several pieces of 1x12x12 cedar that I had in storage to complete these chairs and side table.
After finishing with 3 coats of clear satin spar varnish they are not only good looking but will hold up to the elements for years to come.

We are currently searching your plans for our next project. Thank you for providing such a great website!
Kevin and Valerie Cowan Upstate South Carolina

Hi, Thank you for the wonderful plans. I really enjoy making the Adirondack chairs. I make them with pressure treated wood for legs and bottom and with pine for rest, I have made for 14 so far and give them to friends and family as gifts.
Bob Letendre, Swansea MA

Hi Buildeazy Team,
Thank you very much for your perfect plan!
In Hamburg I’ve seen these chairs in a similar design 20 Years ago.
Here in Germany they call them a ‘Hummel Chair’. In 2008 I decided to build some wooden chairs and I remembered the look of those chairs.
My internet search brought me to your homepage. The material I used was the rest of my Siberian Larche constructed terrace.
The first chair is finished, the second will be ready next weekend. I’m very satisfied and proud to built them.
Kai, Hamburg in Germany

I found these plans very easy to follow. I used western red cedar. It took me about 5 hours per chair. My wife loves them.
I also built a matching table. Thanks for the great website.
Ben Davidson

Just a big thanks from sunny cape town south Africa…just built the Adirondack chair …had lots of fun doing it…and wow how comfortable and sturdy. Thanks for a great plan Wayne Haylett CT ZA

Hello from Upstate New York my fellow wood workers !
Owning a construction firm I started creating items for my wife that she and I wanted in our home (Entertainment Center, Dinning Room Table and Chairs, etc). Only being 30 minutes away from the Adirondack Mountains we are always on an adventure in our spare time. Going to the Adirondack Museum in the summer last year we discovered these nice rustic chairs. My wife begged me for a few months to make a set for our new deck over looking the St. Lawrence River. I thought it would be a special gift to give her on Christmas. With only 12 hours total on both chairs they were beautiful. I woke up about 4 am on Christmas morning and put them in our living room . The next morning I was relaxing in them watching TV in one of the chairs. She came out and just cried ! SHE LOVED THEM !!! Now they stay in the living room because they are so comfy.
Thank You So Much !!
John and Leslie Alexandria Bay, NY

Thanks for the plans!

I built a couple of these chairs last year and they are a real hit with everyone who sits in them.
Steve Brockton, Northampton, England

Hello from Glasgow Scotland just finished the chair and its looking very smart with its new coat of olive green preservative. apart from misreading the chair frame angle of 106deg. I cut it at 160deg. which turned the side frames into the back and front stretchers so all was not lost! and a bit of a struggle at the final assembly “only one pair of hands im afraid”it turned out great I would recommend this project to anyone now for the two seater version and some decent weather to try them out so thanks again for everything . Danny Fay Scotland

I have completed 2 of these chairs and what fun I had doing so. The chair are in my tv room because of its comfort. Have orders to make more so it goes to show great plan, great project and great comfort.
Brent Nicol Cape Town Somerset West

Greetings from sunny South Africa – this time from the whale watching capital of the world : HERMANUS !!
I have also just completed the Adirondack chair using – as a basis – your fantastic FREE plan ! And what A beautiful chair it turned out to be !! I am really so pleased with my Adirondacks ( I made two ! )
After some thinking, looking at pictures of other Adirondacks, and planning in my head, I made the following
Changes to your basic plan :
6 Back slats instead of 4
Raised the Leg to 600
Instead of using a 45mm arm with an angle at the back, I opted for a 45mm upper back frame cut at an angle and fitted below the arm at the back
A more flowing pattern for the arm brace
Increased the chair frame size to 180 X 30 X 1000
The above changes made for a really handsome chair – and I am rightly pleased ! Thank you, Buildeazy, for Helping me with a lovely project !
Please put me on your mailing list for forthcoming free plans !
Morne

Hey thanks a lot for the Adirondack chair plan, It worked out fantastic although I haven’t decided on a finish for it yet.
I added a few modifications to the plan because I really needed the chair to fold for storage, just thought maybe some others may also be interested in how I did this although it isn’t rocket science as I’m sure you would agree.
During the build I wasn’t really sure if the mods would work properly, but I can assure you they do.
I could have went with another design that folds as part of the plan but decided against it due to liking your robust design so much. Over the moon for my first wood project, now for some footrests and a table to match.

Hi, just wanted to say Thank you very much for being so generous with your plans for the Adirondack Chair.
I really enjoyed building these chairs and your plans are so easy to follow. Cheers.

Here’s my handiwork! Great chairs! I used eastern white cedar 1x and laminated two pieces for the arms.
I needed to add an extra brace near the top of the backs in order to keep the boards straight, but it worked out fine.
Stain is Behr clear redwood. Thanks for the great plans!
Peter Brown

Greetings, Buildeazy Team.
I bought the plans for the Adirondack Chair a few weeks ago. Siwsan said she wanted a pair, so what could an obedient and well trained husband do but say, ‘Yes, dear’?
A fairly easy build, the first one took a few days, the second,less than a day.
Now to make a pair for my brother and wife, in Rtorua?. Such is life, but they are very dear to me, these two.
Problems during the build, nothing major, really, the photos (Included) will show a slight change in the front of the arms on one of the chairs. A semicircular front will become the standard from now on.
Also, for short people, the front leg will be reduced by 50mm not, as one might suspect, from the bottom of the leg, but the top. This to keep the ground to seat height correct.
For the next two, I shall cut the angle where the top back support attaches to the rear of the arms, first, before I cut the taper to the arm itself. Much easier to do it this way, and increases safety when cutting, as it means the Compound mitre saw will always be cutting to my right, and controlled by my stronger arm.
The top and bottom back support rails will be installed dry, uncut and then scribed as to the cuts needed to provide full support for the four back rest upright boards. Then, of course, glued and screwed into their permanent position. The off cut from these will be an infill piece to close the gap between the last seat rail and the front of the back boards.
The tops seat rails were rounded on the edges, somewhat roughly, and smoothed to provide an even contour at the contact areas for the users legs.
Because these chairs will always be outside, and enjoying New Zealand?s stronger sunlight, with the hole in the ozone layer, and tempered by a high rainfall in our specific area, all joints are glued with a foaming gap filling polyurethane adhesive and screwed with stainless steel screws. Attaching the front legs to the seat sides is the only joint not glued, but held with two galvanised coach bolts.
All in all, a well thought out design. I will take progress photos of the next two, describing each process and why.
Bob P.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B26nIjvsYVc&feature=youtu.be

Great build. I made one change that made the chair a bit more sturdy in the arm rest area. Instead of using nails to attach the arm rests with the legs, I chose to attach 2 pieces of wood (on each side) of 3 x 2 1/4 with screws (pictures attached). It’s not visible from the top or sides of the chair and looks fine even when you squat down to look. This gave the arm rests a very sturdy hold to the legs. I used a piece of scrap from the 1×6 wood left over. Overall it’s a great looking chair and now I’m in trouble because the better half wants a second one and a matching table. I’m thinking stain/sealer to keep the wood grain look. What do you think?

These plans were simple to follow for me. Western red cedar was used. I spent roughly 5 hours on each chair. Thank you for the useful information.