design is intended to be attractive andcomfortable but simple enough that any-one with basic woodworking skills canbuild it. I used dado and half-lap joineryfor most of the connections and fastenedthe joints with exterior wood glue anddeck screws. These joints are stronger thanplain butt joints but are not difficult to cre-ate. I used a table saw and router for mostof the milling operations, but you couldachieve similar results with a circular saw.

All parts are cut from standarddimensional lumber (1x6s, 2x4s and2x6s) available at most home centers. Theseat slats are shorter than 4 ft. to allowthe use of common 8-ft. boards. Becausethis glider was destined for a semiprotect-ed porch location, we made it frompoplar and applied exterior-grade paint. If

you plan to place the glider outside, use amore weather-resistant lumber such ascedar, redwood, cypress or white oak.

Cut out the partsWhen milling the stock, first cut it tolength; then rout any dadoes or rabbetsand rip it to the final width or cut theshaped profiles. Next, cut the framepieces to length. Note the 2-degree mitercuts on the ends of the three seat supportsand the bottom of the center backrest.

Locate the rabbet and dado positionson each piece (see drawing, p. 14). I useda router equipped with a 3/4-in.-dia.straight bit to cut the dadoes and rabbets.Clamp matching parts together, makingsure that the layout lines are aligned, androut them at the same time (photo 1,

12 HANDY JA NUARY / F E B RUARY 2 0 0 5

Easy GliderBuild a comfortable outdoor seat in time for spring

by Vern Grassel

When you’re choosing a spot toenjoy a spring morning, youcan’t beat the gentle rhythmic

motion of a glider. Combining the looksof a bench with the action of a rocker anda swing, gliders appeal to just abouteveryone. And because they don’t requirea structure above for support, gliders offermore placement flexibility than swings.

The most common glider designsincorporate a bench-style seat frame thatrides on four swing arms attached to abase frame. Glider swing arms can bemade of wood or metal. We used metalswing arms (see SOURCES ONLINE)because they feature enclosed bearingsfor smooth operation and long life andwere inexpensive and easy to install.

Building a glider isn’t difficult. This PHO

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ARK M

ACEM

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Our glider featuresmetal swing armsthat are easy toinstall and providea smooth glidingmotion.

3"

3"(rear)

3/4" rad.

4-1/2"

3/4" rad.

2"

2"

2°

2°

2°

2"

1" 1-1/2" 1-1/2"

2-1/2"

1-3/8"

1-1/4"

13-3

/4"

2-3/4"

1/2"

13-3/4"

3/8"3/4"

3/4"Notch M only

3/4"

Notch forLeg D

Notch back slatto fit armrest

3/4" (typ.)

Bevel front 22°

Half-lap legs and rail Bevel top 10°

Bevel back of P 10°

3/4 x 1-1/2"notch (typ.)

Half- lap

3/4" deepnotch

Glider hardware,2 x 1/4" stainless steelcarriage bolt and nut

All squares = 1"

1/4" dia. holes

1/4" dia. hole (typ.)

1/4" roundover onexposed edgesof armrest

SEAT RAILSCROSS SECTION

SEAT SUPPORTS

ARMREST

R

R

AB

B

L

I

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I

DETAIL 1

BACK LEG

BACKCENTERSUPPORT

1

C

C

D

D

D

X

X

E

E

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F

F

G

G

G

H

H

I

J

J

K

K

J

K

K

L

L, M

M

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N

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P

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PORCH GLIDER

14 HANDY JA NUARY / F E B RUARY 2 0 0 5

ILLUSTRATION BY GABRIEL GRAPHICS

above). If you don’t have a router, you cancut the dadoes and rabbets with a circularsaw (see “Circular Saw Option,” p. 16).

Once you’ve cut all the dadoes andrabbets, rip the straight pieces to theirfinal widths. Rip a 10-degree bevel

along the top edge of the front seat rail J(photo 2) and the back edge of the frontseat slat P. Rip a 22-degree bevel alongthe front edge of the top crosspiece N.

Next, you’ll need to cut the shapedpieces. I made hardboard templates

(photo 3) first before drawing thecurves on the actual stock. I transferredthe pattern for each piece (see drawing)to a full-scale grid of 1-in. squares thatI drew on paper.

Draw the patterns on the full-scalegrids as they appear in the illustrations.Fasten the patterns to 1/4-in. hardboardwith spray adhesive and cut them outwith a jigsaw. Sand the edges of thetemplates smooth and trace them ontothe stock. Then cut out each piece witha jigsaw (photo 4, p. 16).

Tip: To make cutting the stock easi-er, I placed a piece of rigid-foam insula-tion that is thicker than the maximumblade cutting depth under the work-piece. The foam supported the work-piece and waste, allowing me to stopand reposition during cuts withoutreclamping along the edge of the table.

After shaping the parts, clamp thematching pieces together and sand themso that they are identical. Sand all sur-faces smooth and ease the edges — Iused a 1/8-in. roundover bit on all edgesthat did not mate with other pieces.

JA NUARY / F E B RUARY 2 0 0 5 HandymanClub.com 15

MATERIALS AND CUTTING LISTKey No. Description Size

Base FrameA . . . . 2. . . . . . Front/back base rails . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 3 x 39 in.B . . . . 2. . . . . . Side base rails . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 3 x 18-1/2 in.C . . . . 2. . . . . . Base feet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 3 x 25 in.D . . . . 4. . . . . . Base legs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 2-3/4 x 12 in.

Seat FrameE . . . . 2. . . . . . Back legs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 5-1/2 x 35-1/4 in.F . . . . 2. . . . . . Front legs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 2-3/4 x 22-1/2 in.G . . . . 1. . . . . . Center back support . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 5-1/2 x 24-1/2 in.H . . . . 2. . . . . . Side bottom rails . . . . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 3 x 20 in.I . . . . 2. . . . . . Armrests. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 3-1/4 x 21-3/4 in.J . . . . 1. . . . . . Front seat rail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 2-5/8 x 46-1/2 in.K . . . . 1. . . . . . Back seat rail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 3 x 44-1/2 in.L . . . . 2. . . . . . Side seat supports. . . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 3 x 20 in.M . . . . 1. . . . . . Center seat support . . . . . . . 1-1/2 x 3 x 20 in.N . . . . 1. . . . . . Top crosspiece . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/4 x 1-3/8 x 47-1/2 in.

Seat slatsO . . . . 8. . . . . . Back slats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/4 x 2-1/2 x 47-1/2 in.P . . . . 1. . . . . . Front seat slat . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/4 x 2-1/4 x 47-1/2 in.Q . . . . 1. . . . . . Second seat slat. . . . . . . . . . . 3/4 x 2 x 44-1/2 in.R . . . . 5. . . . . . Seat slats. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/4 x 2-3/8 x 47-1/2 in.

Use a straightedge to guide the router while cutting the rabbets and dadoes.Make several passes, lowering the router 1/8 to 1/4 in. with each pass.

Rip a 10-degree bevel along the topedge of the front seat rail J (pictured)and the back edge of the front seatslat P, and rip a 22-degree bevel alongthe front edge of the top crosspiece N.

Make templates for each shaped piece by transferring the drawings to a 1 x 1-in.grid adhered to hardboard. Then trace the template onto the workpiece.

22

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SHOPPING LIST1x6 x 8-ft. poplar (4)2x4 x 8-ft. poplar (6)2x6 x 8-ft. poplar (1)Glider hardware (Rockler No. 58330; 1)1-1/4-in. exterior-rated screws1-5/8-in. exterior-rated screws2-1/2-in. exterior-rated screws1/4 x 2-in. exterior-rated carriage bolts (8)1/4-in. exterior-rated locknuts (8)Exterior-grade wood glueExterior satin or semigloss paint

Side bottomrails

Front seatrail

Back seatrail

Seat supportSeat support

16 HANDY JA NUARY / F E B RUARY 2 0 0 5

Cut the profiles with a jigsaw. Support the workpiece with 1-1/2-in.-thick rigid-foam insulation. The foam and workpiece must be thicker than the maximumcutting depth of the blade (see inset).

Use the center seat support assembly to mark the position of the seat supportson the seat side assemblies.

Assemble the framesAssemble the base frame first. Positionthe base sides in the rabbets cut in thebase stretchers and fasten them with glueand 1-5/8-in. screws. Then fasten thebase legs in the notches of the base feetwith glue and 2-1/2-in. screws. Completethe base assembly by gluing and screwingthe base sides to the base legs.

Assemble the seat frame by fasteningthe legs to the side bottom rails and thecenter seat support to the center backsupport with glue and 1-1/4-in. screws.Note: Keep the screws clear of the gliderhardware bolt holes. Use the center seatsupport assembly to locate the position ofthe side seat supports on the side assem-bly (photo 5). Attach the side seat sup-ports to the side assemblies with glue and2-1/2-in. screws. Trim the bottom corners

44

55

Assemble the base and seat frames. Fasten the joints with exterior-rated glueand screws.

66

Circular saw optionIf you don’t have a router, a circularsaw and chisel work well for cuttinglarge rabbets and dadoes.

Break out the wood remainingbetween the kerfs with a hammer,and clean up the half-lap mortiseswith a sharp chisel. Hold the chiselflat to avoid digging deeper intothe stock.

Clamp identical pieces together andgang cut each joint with a circularsaw. Make several passes to removethe bulk of the waste material. Use aspeed square as a saw guide.

Center seatsupport assemblyCenter seatsupport assembly

Maximumcutting depthMaximumcutting

Seat sideassemblySeat sideassembly

1-in.radius1-in.radius

Rockler Woodworking and Hardware(glider brackets, No. 58330), 800-279-4441

For online information, go to www.HandymanClub.comand click on SOURCES ONLINE.

18 HANDY JA NUARY / F E B RUARY 2 0 0 5

of the side assemblies to 1-in. radius.Next, fasten the front and back rails

to the center seat support assembly withglue and 2-1/2-in. screws. Fasten theseat support assembly to the seat sideassemblies with glue and 2-1/2-in.screws (photo 6). Finish the seat frameby fastening the top crosspiece to theback legs and the armrests to the frontand back legs.

Attach the slats to the seat framewith 1-5/8-in. screws. Drill pilot holesand countersinks through the slats for

each screw. Start with the bottom back-rest slat and work up, leaving about 1/2 in.between slats. Notch the fourth slataround the armrests (photo 7). Fasten theremaining backrest slats and then moveto the seat slats, starting at the front ofthe seat. The second slat must be cut to44-1/2 in. to fit between the front legs.

Install the glider hardwareAttaching the metal swing arms is theeasiest step of this project. The manufac-turer recommends installing the swing

arms parallel to each other and perpendi-cular to the floor. However, we foundthat positioning the arms with the bottombearings inside of the top bearings pro-duced a much better gliding motion. Weusually do not recommend deviatingfrom manufacturer recommendations,but in this case we doubt the change willaffect the life of the swing arms.

Drill a 1/4-in.-dia. hole at eachswing arm mounting position (seedrawing). Fasten the swing arms with1/4 x 2-in. galvanized or stainless steelcarriage bolts and locknuts (photo 8).

Before applying any finish, testthe glider’s operation. If everything isworking properly, remove the hardwareand apply exterior finish. I applied onecoat of primer and three coats of exteri-or satin latex paint with an HVLPsprayer. If you chose a rot-resistantwood, you could apply exteriorstain and sealer instead. u

Mark the position of the armrests onthe fourth back slat. Cut notches in theback slat to fit around the armrests.

Fasten the swing arms with 1/4 x 2-in.galanized or stainless steel carriagebolts and locknuts.

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