The joinery for these flat, shaped stretchers commonly comprises simple lap, or halved joints, however, one also encounters bridle joints (fig. 1).
Fig. 1. The pine stretcher components.
After putting the stretcher together, it was veneered on top, inside and out; on all four sides with the exception of the outside back edge (fig. 2).
Fig. 2. The stretcher assembled and crossbanded.
With holes bored through the stretcher and also into the underside of the stand’s carcase, the legs, stretcher, feet, abaci and carcase were glued and assembled (fig. 3).
Fig.3. The completed stand.
Fig. 4. The bare chest-on-stand.
Jack Plane
Pegs and 'Tails 
Consider my hat “tipped” guv’nor. Simply lovely.
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Jack,
I’ve really enjoyed the progress. Looking great!
I made a similar piece this past year. It’s the 8th piece down on this article, the William & Mary spice box on frame. Based on the kind of furniture made in my home area of Chester County, Pennsylvania, USA.
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/editors-blog/award-winning-woodworking-from-pwm-readers.
Some more photos of the piece on my website: http://www.LineAndBerry.com
Anyway, your veneer work is inspirational.
–Wm. F. Brown
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Very nice indeed.
JP
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I like the stretchers…. Funny without knowing your project, I was planning for very similar stretchers for a customer dinning table. Merry Christmas.
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Well done. Are you and Mother Nature still at odds? Can you send some of your talents in this direction? Maybe the book will help.
Jim
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Yes, her furnace is set on high again: presently 34.5°C outdoors and 44.4°C in the shop (94°F and 112°F).
JP
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Quite a bit of progress in the last few days! Has the heat let up? I thought because of the heat you would have spent a lot of time on the computer, checking your email etc…But I see instead you braved the high temps and worked in the shop!!……any permanent results from the chest “making lots of cracking noises”?
What are the diameters of the balusters and the feet? They appear to be of solid, one piece and not built up to get the large diameters.
No need to say how well the chest looks….we are all impressed and waiting for the next progress report.
Might be a day late because of time zone differences but…Merry Christmas to you Jack.
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There is no structural damage, but evidence of shrinking can be seen in the crossgrain mouldings, which I’m not at all concerned about. It fits in with the loose/aged look.
JP
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My heart goes out to you, Jack. Here in the spruce bogs of central Maine we’re experiencing our second day of continuous snow. Gladly ship you some.
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For a few days in winter, I can see snow on the mountain peaks, but otherwise snow would be quite the novelty here.
JP
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Excellent work as usual Jack.
In the context of furniture, what are abaci, other than the plural of abacus ?
David
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In classical architecture, the abacus is the flat block at the top of a column.
In this scenario, abaci are the thin, bull-nosed blocks atop the leg turnings.
JP
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There are so many little details I want to bug you about. I’m waiting for the book, but I wonder about the decision to have a full shelf between the drawers as opposed to just a frame. Is that something that changed from era to era, or joiner to joiner, or some other reason? My other thought is about the veneer. Do you apply the vertical veneer first, or the top? I was thinking about it and I wasn’t sure if there’s an advantage to doing one over the other.
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My post on dustboards should answer your initial queries. In some regions, dustboards gave way to frames in the nineteenth-century. They are particularly popular in North America.
Regarding the sequence of applying the veneer to the stretcher; the edges are veneered first and the top face second. It’s traditional, but there may be a couple of reasons why.
If people were to rest their feet on the corners of the stretcher, there would be a greater chance of the vertical veneer being dislodged if it were applied after the top face veneer.
If there were no particular historical precedence to adhere to, I would still opt for veneering the edges first. It makes sense to me to clean up the vertical veneer and tooth the top surface before laying the top veneer.
JP
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Thank you, that makes a lot of sense. Be careful not to cook yourself out there.
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