Furniture Plans - Step by Step from Inspiration to Reality - Part 4 of 8 - Prototypes
- Filed under: Furniture Building Tips
Prototypes
This next step can be a breeze, but make sure that you’ve spent due time on the last step - theory.
The reason why the theory part is so important is simple - waste. If the theory behind your design isn’t quite complete or thought through, you may end up building something that really won’t be of any use. Now this does not mean that the prototype will have an aura of greatness about it - its a prototype! It will be ugly, multicolored, unfinished, snarly, and it will also prove to you that your theory is good and areas that need improvement. Most importantly though, it gives you the confidence to move on to the next steps.
There are so many ways to go about proving to yourself that your theory is sound. If you’re designing something that is similar in function to something that already exists (in size, main dimensions, weight, etc.), use that as your starting point. For example, Plan Canvas’s Chair 00006 is a set of two bar stools that can be made from plywood. The prototype for these stools was actually an existing shop stool that had the same outer locations for the feet, and the same height of the seat. I then double checked the size of the seat by cutting up a piece of scrap wood and sat on it! I didn’t want to make a seat that was too small; nobody would ever sit on something uncomfortable!!
On Chair 00002, I didn’t know if the back of the chair would be stable or not if someone leaned up against it. I have a mechanical engineering background, so I ran some numbers using MathCAD and found that the design could have 200 lbs pushing on it and deflect less than a 1/16″. So I had convinced myself that it was a good design before even building a prototype (and wasting time and material).
For Table 00003, I didn’t know if it could be a table AND a chair, so I built a prototype and sat on it. Works great!
Another example of a prototype was for Chair 00004 - the main focal point of this series. I originally didn’t design in cross braces for the legs. I didn’t want them. They didn’t look like they fit in the design. But I wasn’t sure. So I built up the bottom half of the chair from some wood and tried it out (see the picture below). It didn’t work.
The seat was far to flimsy from side to side, and the dowels didn’t like being in a bending moment (the seat tried to bend the dowels out of the legs). So I added cross braces to the prototype, and wammo!! Great design (I like it better now with the braces), minimal changes to the concept, and it worked!!!
So here are some ideas for how you should run through prioritizing how to go about taking your design through the prototype stage:
Goal - A prototype will allow you to have confidence in your design and allow you to make your final design that will work and look right
- Step 1 - Look at your design and based on your experience, look for areas that you question for either function or appearance
- Step 2 - Figure out what you can build to mimic this area of concern - use only as much as you need, you may not need to build the whole thing
- Step 3 - Build up your prototype. Spend just enough time to prove out your function or appearance
- Step 4 - Take note - With your prototype if front of you, make sure you take note of everything of value from it. Mess with it, look at it, tip it over, whatever. Use it and note important aspects of it!
- Step 5 - Implement it - Refine your concept to incorporate what you’ve learned. This is pretty important as we set up for the next steps. Keep in mind sizes of parts, how many you really need, how to fasten them together, will you be able to assemble it, etc.
This part is really fun, since your concept (or part of it) will see the light of reality! A little bit of your creation in the real world. Remember - the prototype has value only if you learn from it!
The next portion of the series is practicality - how to achieve your desired piece while using as little material as possible!
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