Chair height change

LimerickGray

hey folks

Is there anyway to increase height of these chair? Keeping looks etc.

floor to seat top 45cm
Seat top to table bottom 26.5cm

Legs do not screw out as glued etc.

legs are beech I think. I presume 16 new legs plus fitting would be more than cost of chairs.

dathi

most chair heights are between 43 and 48 cm so you are bang in the middle also the 26.5 cm from top of chair to table is what is usually aimed for.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tycoonest-Adjustable-Furniture-Levelling-Protector/dp/B0CCTP7DLD/ref%3Dsr_1_53?adgrpid=127657241413&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ZMVFimQbFpRZJY7lhdhZNa0ceJW94m9vNUO6u3Iu87WpixcsEQwUPjv-O4rWnQTYYYa2JrFZjZlkx0zpPJPxQ7D_lDunhIBi-B9Z_eiVB4bzZl1j1PFjoZsTPbHuxenaM5aOYe00KMPhwKupbTKCf8tPV4ekoBMfiesQsNjAG3G2taSRW9zAHhXCc3MEDI6vaYoQ7EUJeGgip53F2u1VPRs4cRElYfvpTNXVbAZR4UBIHTA8t7QsPnMzyixDk2t-BtuIPgazaRPzqpdVQ5jEnsxjjddXNppr2ZlnsMF5iyk.rzVHr-DS4fWveYMisR6nVI-Qa7NUP4izwFNmx-0TMSY&dib_tag=se&hvadid=550124422259&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=1007872&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=b&hvrand=15073418606633794825&hvtargid=kwd-358647289149&hydadcr=8196_1756665&keywords=chair%2Bextender%2Blegs&qid=1720080468&sr=8-53&th=1

something like this?

magicbastarder

are the chairs too low, or the table too high? you know where i'm going with that question…

LimerickGray

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122337768#Comment_122337768

I know but I like the table height. Chairs look too low regardless

magicbastarder

it wouldn't be an easy table to reduce the height of anyway.

LimerickGray

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122338126#Comment_122338126

I know. Working out angles and each leg is a different length. It will be

LimerickGray

another way is cut off the legs of chair very high up. Get someone to turn new legs. Drill for dowels or inserts. Anyone here interested in doing this for me? Our towels stir enough for this anyway?

LimerickGray

Siri. Are dowels strong enough for chair legs? With glue perhaps.

magicbastarder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122338459#Comment_122338459

more complex than it sounds, i reckon (speaking as a amateur wood turner, who's never done any production turning).

sourcing stock, turning 16 legs, finishing them, and then trying to fit them sounds like a fair heft of work - and you'd pay at least €300 a day for the time of a professional turner.

LimerickGray

original is beech and I’m guessing that much beech would be more than the chairs. If including labour etc.

magicbastarder

the stock would work out at about six quid (or less) per leg.

https://www.strahanonlineshop.ie/products/beech-planed-all-over?variant=47729703158097

based on your requirements, i'm not sure you'd get three legs from a 1200mm length; but even if you didn't, sixteen of the 600mm lengths (44mm x 44mm) would do.

LimerickGray

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122338779#Comment_122338779

16x. Beech 600x44x44 is only €90. 1200 doesn’t do 3 legs for me.

Someone to do it now though.

magicbastarder

based on your username, i suspect you're the wrong side of the country from the woodturner i know (a chap called seamus cassidy) who might have been interested - at the right price!

he'd probably be able to do the turning part in his sleep…

LimerickGray

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122339420#Comment_122339420

I’m in limerick. I could collect from someone but need them fitted to chairs too

LimerickGray

I think I could do myself if the hole was done in the leg.

Havenowt

No need to make new legs. How much do you need to raise the height of them by?

2-4"? buy small length of beech. Cut to 6" blocks. Drill a recessed out a hole 2.5" deep to the diameter of the the chair leg, Glue in leg and screw from the top if you want. This will more that support the leg.

Get the blocks of beech turned down to the size of the leg. Job done… stain or varnish if required.

CelticRambler

Well … Havenowt beat me to it. I was going to ask how much higher you want the seats (if it's "looks" alone that's the problem, I think the problem lies with seat back rather than the legs/seat, but that's a whole other kettle of worms)

Anyway, assuming you still want people's legs to fit underneath the table, I'd limit the lift to about 6-8cm. Then

• Cut each leg off flush with the seat base.
• Find a suitable piece of timber from which to cut blocks 1-2cm taller than the chosen lift height and 2cm wider than the chair leg diameter
• Drill out a recess to receive the top of the leg
• Turn or otherwise shape them to blend the block to the top of the leg and glue
• Drill and fit a threaded rod through the block into the leg
• Fit a threaded insert of the right size and in the appropriate place on the seat base.
• Dry fit, adjust the angle of the top of the insert if required
• Stop there and use them if you're confident in the heft of the threaded components; otherwise glue and screw.

LimerickGray

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122339674#Comment_122339674

I like this idea. I could even leave the blocks square as ‘hidden’ under chair.
I noticed my original message was wrong. The distance from chair to table is 36cm. This is the issue I think. I’ll need a rise of 5cm to bring that to circa a foot.
only a 2inch block needed. Would it be ok to just glue the leg into the recess in the block or best to use threaded insert also?

LimerickGray

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122339815#Comment_122339815

if I go with this method,

would 44mm square lengths of beech work?
if I push the legs into recess by 40mm (if that’s enough?). If I want to gain 50mm total, the the block needs to be 90mm long total.

Can you recommend inserts for this please

What type of bolt goes into the leg insert to connect to the base insert? What length would it need to be?

lol at this point would be essirr but new chairs lol. They seem quite well made but an odd shape.

I also had another set of legs for the table and I’ve attached them. Table is now 75 high and don’t want it lower.

Sadly my friend that reconditioned the chairs and made the table is not with us anymore I remember he had 800mm lengths of ash and beech

CelticRambler

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122340418#Comment_122340418

lol at this point would be essirr but new chairs lol. 

A YouTubing furniture maker I follow recently remarked that his peers will post endless videos showcasing their tables, bookcases, office desks, kitchen cabinets, fantasy creations … but never chairs! Because, he said, they're way too much trouble and you could never recover the cost of the materials, never mind the time as well. :-)

Anyway to answer your questions (sorry for the delay - bogged down in a "softer materials" project taking three times as long as expected … )

• threaded inserts : I get most of my speciality hardware from AliExpress. Buying local isn't really an option for me (rural France = 100km round trip to the nearest decent supplier, who probably won't have whatever I need in stock on the day I go there)
• threaded rod/bolt : I'd opt for 8mm, either cut to length from a 1m long rod or chop the heads off whatever 8mm bolt I had to hand. No particular reason for choosing this diameter, other than it seems to be a great all-rounder, so I have lots of kit in that size.
• length needs to be the longest depth you can get in the seat (say 15mm?) + decent purchase in the leg (aim for 20mm) + the depth of your spacer (you say 50mm) = 85mm total.
• depth of any recess in the spacer block : it depends … No, really, it depends - on how over-engineered you want the assembly to be an how you want it to look. Recessing the cut leg will prevent it from moving sideways, and for this purpose, you probably only need about 5mm. That'll contribute no strength to the joint, though, so all the stress will be borne by the glue and/or bolt. The deeper the recess, the more solid the joint. The same applies to recessing the spacer block into the underside of the seat. In addition, if you want to shape the spacer block (e.g. curve it from the seat base into the leg) you'll need to allow extra material in every direction - that'd be a personal creative choice, as few people are ever going to see whatever you do there!

If you decide to go ahead, good luck and let us know how you got on.

LimerickGray

very informative I’ll try an old chair and see how it works It doesn’t need to be perfect a hidden under chair

CelticRambler

One afterthought : remember that any height you add to the leg will have the secondary effect of widening the spread of the legs on the floor. This'll be great for stability, but might create a new "look" that's as unsatisfactory as the problem with the height that bothers you at the moment.

Before you get stuck in, I'd suggest cutting four pieces of PVC pipe of an appropriate diameter - to fit over the end of the legs as they are - and of a length that'll give you a net 5cm extra. Paint them to match the wood ("close enough" will do for this purpose) and slip them onto each leg.

Spend a few days looking at this new-improved-extra-high-extra-wide chair in context and from different angles. If you're happy with the situation, grand - go ahead with the permanent change; if not, cancel the project while you can reverse the modification in ten seconds, and it won't have cost you any more than piece of pipe and a can of spray paint.

LimerickGray

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122354557#Comment_122354557

that’s a very good idea. I’m going to do that on one of the chairs and see how it works for me.
On a separate matter? Why make a chair like this? People want circa 30cm between table and chair top. This is 36cm and makes legs sore to sit and difficult to eat. Table s normal 75. Why.

LimerickGray

The backs are very low too I think. Perhaps they were for a school loo

CelticRambler

Maybe they were never meant to be used as dining room chairs? Could they have been made for a waiting room of some sort?

In any case, here endeth my participation in this discussion (and on boards as whole) for a week or so : am off to spend a week immersed in the performance arts rather than the crafty kind. :-)

Wossack

cushions

LimerickGray

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122356984#Comment_122356984

I thought this at first too but the backs are very low. Perhaps I could change the backs too. lol

I remember the story of the man with the 100 year old shovel. 100 years except he had changed the handle 20 times ets

LimerickGray

I made a mockups of the chair base to practice this. If I cut off the legs and replace with longer/extended- do I need to splay or can I attack at 90deg to the base? Will it matter? It’s certainly easier

LimerickGray

attach not attack. Lol