DIY
Seeking advice for fixing antique wooden chair with broken leg
I recently picked up a set of these cool old wooden chairs, and didn't notice until a few days later that one of the legs is broken all the way through. It's really hard to see because it's a hairline crack until you apply some tension to spread it open.
Ideally I'd like to completely disassemble the chair to remove the leg and glue/clamp it, but not really sure where to start with disassembly. is it worth it to do, or is there some other way?
Discussion
I've seen youtube woodworkers use a shop vac to pull glue into a tight crack, so you might be able to get away with not disassembling at all.
I think there is someone eating that leg
Split in two, hollow out, stick steel rod, put together. Just glue won't be safe
How would you recommend splitting in two? The crack seems to be right where the spindle inserts into the leg, I don't know if that makes it more complicated.
Take the leg off, and sculpt a new one out of the same type of wood to replace it. It is quite the undertaking to match the shape and stain, but that chair will never be completely safe to sit in with a cracked leg. Especially a back leg. People like to lean back...
edit: Doh. forgot to address your question: If you are replacing the leg, use a cutoff tool to remove the sections where it's attached, then peel the bits of the leg off the joinery of the spokes, back and seat. Only cut into the broken leg, not the chair bits that are good.
Do it slowly and carefully and try to keep your cutting to a small as an area as possible. You'll need that leg profile to help shape the new one.