Chair Repair, a restorer's dream job. Part two

Let’s return to our imaginary chair, do you remember, the one that has movement in every joint and needs to be completely dismantled. On this chair there are no broken legs or other parts that may dictate we start our dismantling at any certain point. So we can say without any hesitation, that you should start by removing the front two legs from the side rails or the seat plank if a Windsor type chair. If stretchers are present between the legs, alternate your progress between all of the joints to ensure no one component or joint is over strained. Next, remove the side rails and stretchers from the back legs. If Windsor type removes stretchers from the back legs, then the back legs from the seat plank. Now separate the two back legs. Some types of chairs may require the crest rail removing first. You will, of course, come across chairs, which are a little different and also some with arms. However, the general format as described will be the same. You should now have a pile of assorted parts, all marked and labelled, in front of you. If woodworm has been present, or conditions or the chair’s life have been particularly bad, you may find a tennon or two broken. Now you may feel confident enough and have the means to tackle this yourself, if so and you feel it necessary, please write in for further advice. However, you may find this just a bit too daunting and require some help. Simply take the damaged components and the mating part to a professional repairer and have him/her make the necessary repairs for you. This will still be considerably less expensive than a complete repair to the whole chair and you will still be able to claim credit for the overall restoration. Make sure you first clean up the joints as described in a moment and you will earn the professionals appreciation and convince him you know what you are about.
For the next stage you are going to need hot water, a couple of old paint brushes… one about an inch wide and one about 3/8 inch wide. I keep a couple of old brushes especially for this job. They have a little cut off the length of the bristles; this stiffens them up nicely for scrubbing. This can be dirty work, so make sure you have a plastic sheet down if you are forced to work in the living room. You may also wish to wear some rubber gloves, the dirt really can be a job to wash off. Commence by placing the tennon over the hot water, while picking up some water with the 1inch brush and scrub, washing the joint and letting the water run back into the tub. Personally I use an old saucepan kept warm on an electric hotplate. You will soon be amazed at how much dirt you have washed off and find the water needs changing regularly. Work through all the tenons until you are satisfied they are completely free of grime and old glue. Washing out the mortise is a little more difficult and you may find some old glue left at the bottom of the mortise. This is unimportant unless it blocks full re-entry of the tenon, if so use an old chisel or similar to scrape away. The cheeks or sides of the mortise are the most important to clean. Use the 3/8 “ brush, tipping out accumulated dirty water as you go. Again work your way through all the mortises as you did with the tenons. Finally after all is clean, set all the parts out to dry overnight.