Then, a few sheepish "I hate to bother you" emails and I figured that I need to clarify. I pointed out the search box because I thought that it would be helpful. Please feel free to contact me, but be patient for my reply, as lately I've been overbooked!
Here is some of what has been taking my time. The class in Atlanta was small, but a great success. I've been using this simple drilling aid to help students drill the bow.
I know, I know, it's better to teach skills then jigs, but coming in at the end of a 65 hour work week and asking students to drill their bows by eye (which is a very achievable skill, by the way) proves to be a bit inhumane. Some visual guidance is helpful, such as placing a spindle near the hole and against the bow, but I figured, why not take a minute and make the aid more focused.
The jig is basically a tuning fork shaped block of wood with a dowel drilled into it that fits in an aluminum tube that sits in the mortise in the deck. The aluminum tube make the jig adjustable for height. The rubberband around the dowel locks the height.
Here you can see that pointing the top of the "tuning fork" helps find the center. Notice that the spring clamp is place so as to not affect the position of the "fork".
I've used this in a couple of classes now, and the chairs come out great and the meltdowns have stopped! There are plenty of hurdles in this race and I think that this fits fine within the goals of learning, having fun and building a great chair.
Plus, the result speak for themselves.
Here is another student from last week. Jack has made about 30 chairs, so he was ready to tackle my most complex style.
We had fun making this one and I got to bone up on teaching it, which is good because it's one of the classes I'll be teaching soon on my travels.
Jack really befriended Rocket, I had to tear him away from the poor dog just to get some work done! So Jack, this one's for you.
