Comfy Pallet Adirondack Chair

I love sitting in comfy chairs around a fire, especially in the fall as the leaves are falling off the trees. My dad built an adirondack chair a few years ago out of regular wood so I decided to make one out of pallets. I built two at the time and now my friend asked if I could make him one so I decided why not make an instructable out of it. I am sorry for some of the photos that are dark, I didn’t realize the flash was off.

I tried to keep this simple

Tools

· Drill

· Drill bits

· Saw of your choice

· Scrap wood

· Clamps (not necessary but helpful)

· Sand paper

· Random Orbital Sander (not necessary but helpful)

Materials

· Wood (of your choice I just love pallets)

· Screws (if you are keeping the chair outside make sure they are exterior screws)

To have a chair, you first need a solid foundation. To make the legs, first cut two boards to 20” long. With another two boards that are at least 30 inches, cut a 25 degree angle at one end. Now measure up 15” on the 20” board and mark a line. Next take the board with the angle and line the angle up with the front of the shorter board and the top at the 15” mark. Drill some pilot holes into the boards and screw them together, making sure the screws don’t come through the other side. Now cut the longer board so that the end of it is flat on the ground while the 20” board remains vertical. Make a second pair of legs for the other side and mirror it so they are opposites of each other.

Now cut a few boards two 20” wide, this is going to be the seat. Take some scrap pieces of 2x4s and clamp them onto the legs so they can standup freely and are easier to work with. On the leg that is on the angle mark 20” from the front. Lay out the cut boards on the legs in the order that you would like going from the front to the 20” mark. When you have it the way you like it screw some pilot holes in and screw the boards onto the legs

The next step is making the back rest. To make it measure the space in-between the two legs, it should slightly be shorter than 20”. Next cut a board to the length that you just measured. Next cut a few boards to 31”. Lay them on the shorter board in the order that you would like them to be. Drill pilot holes in them and screw them together. With the help of a lovely assistant figure out what angle you would like the backrest to be at. When you have it how you would like it get your assistant to hold it at that angle while you drill pilot holes and screw it into the legs.

Measure horizontally from the front of the chair to a few inches beyond the back rest. Cut two boards to this length. Next measure how wide these boards are and add 20” to those measurements. Cut a board to that length, this is going to attach the arm rests to the back of the chair. Lay it out so it looks like U and screw it together. Now Screw the top of the U to the vertical leg and screw the backrests onto the bottom of the U. With a few scrap pieces of wood attach them to the side of the leg and to the bottom of the arm rest for some more support.

If you used pallet wood like me you will know that it is going to be extremely prickly so take some sand paper and smooth it down. A random orbital sander makes quick work of this step. If you want paint or stain the wood now’s the time

Sit back and relax, just make sure the stain or paint isn’t still wet. If you have bit Sat in a chair like this before be prepared for the most comfortable chair in the world. Make one, make a few, make however many you want. They are simple to make and if you do it the way I did it will only cost you some time and some screws. Have fun building and thanks for reading.