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by
Paul Lewis
photos: Roger Yip
illustration: Len Churchill |
TREE BENCH |
A
tree bench is a simple solution to outdoor seating,
and it comes with built-in shade |
In
the summer, every backyard should have a cool place to lounge.
I saw a potential spot around our willow tree. More like a tree
deck than a tree bench, the dimensions of this design are loosely
based on a bench I admired on a visit to Sedona’s Tlaquepaque
Arts & Crafts Village in Arizona. It was the only tree bench
I’ve seen without a backrest. This simplifies construction:
the tree trunk itself is a natural support for your back. The
flat surface is wide, with room to stretch and relax. There’s
even space to spread out a meal, although the similarities to
the Arizona bench end there.
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| BELOW:
scribe the shape of your tree on the platform slats
with the compass set to span the gap between slats
and tree. |
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I
chose an open-legged base vs. the closed-in base of the original.
And while the Arizona village benches were painted a pleasing
shade of blue, I opted for clear-coated, natural cedar—a
better-looking choice for my yard.
Start with the legs. Cut all four
to length, then lay out the mortises on the inside faces of
the legs. This two-part process begins by removing most of the
waste material for the mortises using a 1"-dia. Forstner
bit in a drillpress. Clamp a scrap wood fence on the drillpress
table to help you make overlapping holes 1 5/8" deep along
the length of each mortise. I used a 1/2"-dia. bit in a
table-mounted router to remove the rest of the waste. Careful
paring with a razor-sharp chisel also does the job.
Cut the rails to length, then
lay out the tenons on the ends of each one. The tenons are 1
5/8" long. I made them using a sliding compound mitre saw,
set to take 1/4"-deep cuts. Make multiple passes on each
side to form the cheeks of the tenons. I also added a temporary
auxiliary fence to the saw to make sure the cuts were flat.
Test-fit each tenon in its own specific leg mortise, adjusting
tenon size with a sharp chisel as needed.
The legs are tapered for good
looks. Draw the angled profile on the inside face of each one
according to the plans. I cut the tapers using a bandsaw, although
you could use a jigsaw or even a handsaw for roughing out the
shape. Use a stationary belt sander or a sharp hand plane to
clean up the edges.
Dry-fit the legs and rails in
position around the tree, then use a weatherproof adhesive such
as polyurethane glue or Type II or Type III PVA glue for permanent
assembly of the parts around the tree trunk. All main bench
parts need to come together outside, and polyurethane is my
favourite glue for outdoor use. Apply it sparingly, first dampening
the surfaces with water from a spray bottle. Polyurethane adhesives
need a bit of moisture to cure.
Clamp the rails and legs together
until the adhesive has cured, then enlist a friend to position
the assembly in the correct spot. Once you’re satisfied
with the location, mark the position of the legs on the ground,
then move the frame far off to one side. Next, it’s time
to install one round concrete paving brick (sometimes called
a “paver”) in each of the leg locations under the
tree you marked earlier.
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PART 1 | PART 2 | PART
3 |
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