Bar height (30″ seat) bar stool plans

Parts

Cut list

Kerf 1/8″ included. Every cut runs edge to edge.

Steps

• Tape measure
• Speed square
• Pencil
• Drill/driver
• Clamps
• Safety glasses
• Hearing protection
• Dust mask
• Circular saw and a straight edge (or have the store cut the sheets)
• Countersink bit
• 3/8″ drill bit for counterbores
• Two bar clamps at least 24″ long
• Jigsaw for the rounded corners
• Sander, 120 and 180 grit

Underlined words have a short explanation: hover or tap them. All of them are on the glossary page.

1. 1Before you start

   Read every step once, start to finish, before you buy or cut anything. Each step names the parts it uses by letter; the parts list gives their sizes.

   Set up somewhere flat with good light. A pair of sawhorses with a sheet of plywood on top makes a fine work table.

   Wear safety glasses whenever a tool is running, hearing protection for saws, and a dust mask for sanding and for cutting treated wood or sheet goods. Tie back long hair and loose sleeves. Keep children and pets out of the work area.

   • Tip At the store, pick straight boards: hold each one up to your eye and look down its length. Skip boards that bow, twist or have big knots near the ends.
   • Tip Measure twice, cut once. Most mistakes are a misread tape, not a bad cut.

2. 2Cut and label the parts

   Cut every part on the cut list. Cut the longest parts first: if one goes wrong, it can still become a shorter part.

   To mark a cut, hook your tape on the end of the board, make a small V with its point exactly at the measurement, and draw a square line through the point with a speed square. Put an X on the waste side.

   Cut on the waste side of the line, so the blade's kerf (about 1/8″) comes out of the scrap, not your part. Cut sheets with the good face down when using a circular saw: the blade splinters the top face.

   Write each part's letter in pencil on a face that won't show, and stack the parts by letter.

   Sand the faces before assembly while they're flat and easy to reach: 120 grit, then 180.

   ✓ Lay the parts out and count them against the parts list. Measure a few: if one is off by more than 1/16″, recut it now.

   STOP. Let the saw reach full speed before it touches the wood, keep both hands clear of the blade's path, and never reach under a board you're cutting. Support long boards on both sides of the cut so the blade doesn't pinch.

3. 3Build the two side frames

   Lay two legs (B) flat on the bench, 12″ apart on the inside, with their floor ends lined up against a straight board.

   Mark where the side apron (C) goes: its top is 28 5/8″ up from the floor end, level with the top of the legs, and its outside face is 3/8″ in from the outside of the legs. That small step is a reveal; it hides any tiny misalignment.

   Spread glue on the end of the side apron (C), clamp it in place and drive 2 screws, 2 1/2″, through the leg into its end. Drill a 1/8″ pilot hole first and countersink the head.

   Fit a side stretcher (E) between the same two legs with its bottom 9 1/2″ above the floor end, centred in the leg thickness. Spread glue on the end of the stretcher, clamp it in place and drive 1 screw, 2 1/2″, through the leg into its end. Drill a 1/8″ pilot hole first and countersink the head.

   Build the second side frame the same way, as a mirror image of the first: lay it on top of the first to check that the legs and aprons line up and the reveals face out on both.

   • Tip Mark the outside face of every leg with a pencil X before you start, so pocket holes and screw heads end up where you want them.
   • Tip Wipe glue squeeze-out with a damp rag before it dries; dried glue blocks stain and paint.
   • Tip Drill pilot holes about 1/2″ or more from the ends of the legs so they don't split.

   ✓ Measure each frame corner to corner both ways (the diagonals). They match within 1/16″, and the two frames match each other when stacked.

4. 4Join the side frames

   Stand both side frames up on a flat floor, aprons facing each other.

   Fit the front apron (D) between the front legs and the back apron between the back legs, tops level with the side aprons. Spread glue on the end of each apron, clamp it in place and drive 2 screws, 2 1/2″, through the leg into its end. Drill a 1/8″ pilot hole first and countersink the head.

   Fit the front and back stretchers (F) between the legs with their bottoms 12 1/2″ above the floor. They sit at a different height from the side stretchers so the joints in each leg don't run into each other. Spread glue on the end of each stretcher, clamp it in place and drive 1 screw, 2 1/2″, through the leg into its end. Drill a 1/8″ pilot hole first and countersink the head.

   Before the glue sets, measure the diagonals across the top, from the outside corner of one front leg to the opposite back leg, both ways. If they differ, squeeze the long diagonal with a clamp until they match.

   • Tip If it rocks after the glue has cured, set it on a flat floor, find the long leg and sand a little off its foot, checking often.
   • Tip Clamp across the frame from leg to leg while the glue dries; pad the clamp jaws with scrap so they don't dent the legs.

   ✓ On a flat floor all four feet touch with no rocking, and the frame is 15″ wide and 15″ deep at the legs.

5. 5Glue in the corner blocks

   Each corner block (G) fits across an inside corner, touching both aprons, with the leg behind it. Cut both ends at 45° so the long side measures 5″.

   Drill two pilot holes through each end of the block, square to the angled face, so screws go into the aprons. Then drill a 3/16″ hole straight down through the middle of the block, and from the bottom widen it with a 3/8″ bit 2 3/4″ deep, leaving about 1/2″ of wood at the top. The seat is screwed on through these holes later with short screws.

   Spread glue on both angled ends, press the block into the corner with its top flush with the top of the aprons (the seat will rest on both), and drive two 2 1/2″ screws through each end into the aprons.

   Why: the stool gets pushed sideways every time someone sits down or scoots it. The blocks turn each corner into a small triangle, and triangles do not rack.

   • Tip Don't overdrive: the screw heads should stop just under the surface, not sink deep and strip the wood.

   ✓ Hold one leg and push the top of the opposite leg sideways. The frame does not shift or creak.

6. 6Glue up the two-layer top

   Lay one top layer (A) good face down. Spread an even coat of glue over its whole back with a small paint roller or an old card, right out to the edges.

   Set the second layer on it, good face up, edges flush all round. Drive 1″ screws up from the bottom layer every 6″ around the edges and a few in the middle to clamp it while the glue dries (they stay hidden underneath).

   Wipe off squeeze-out with a damp rag. Leave it flat for at least an hour.

   Sand the edges flush, then round every edge and corner with 120-grit paper. To round the corners, trace around a jar lid at each corner, cut to the line with a jigsaw and sand smooth.

   Fill any small holes in the plywood edge with wood filler, let it dry and sand again.

   • Tip Screws only from the bottom layer: put them in from the side that will face down.
   • Tip A two-layer top is stiff and heavy enough to feel solid, and the doubled edge looks like a thick slab.

   ✓ Look along the edges: there is no gap between the two layers anywhere.

7. 7Screw the top on

   Turn the top (A) upside down on a blanket and set the frame upside down on it, centred, so it overhangs the legs by 1/2″ on every side. Measure all four sides to be sure.

   Drive a 1″ screw through the hole in each corner block (G) into the top. Nothing longer: a longer screw would come out of the top.

   • Tip Put a strip of masking tape on the drill bit as a depth stop if you drill pilot holes into the top.

   ✓ Turn it over: the overhang is 1/2″ all round and the top doesn't move when you push it sideways.

8. 8Test the stool

   The front stretcher (F) is the footrest, 12 1/2″ off the floor: about 17 1/2″ below the seat, where most people's feet land. Sand its top edge round so shoes don't scuff on a sharp corner.

   Before anyone uses the stool, sit down slowly, then rock gently side to side and front to back. Nothing should creak, shift or rack. If a joint moves, add glue and a screw there before going further.

   Put one foot on the footrest and press down hard: it must not flex or creak.

   ✓ All four feet touch the floor. Stick felt pads under them so the stool slides without scratching.

   STOP. Don't stand on the seat or the footrest to reach a shelf.

9. 9Finish

   Ease every sharp edge and corner with 120-grit sandpaper so nobody gets a splinter.

   Sand all over with 180 grit, always along the grain (the direction the wood fibres run). Scratches across the grain show through stain.

   Wipe off the dust with a barely damp rag and let it dry.

   Paint, stain or a clear coat (water-based polyurethane is the easiest). Apply thin coats with the grain, let each dry fully, and sand lightly with 220 grit between coats.

   Let it dry for the time on the can before using it.

   • Tip Try your finish on a scrap of the same wood first: stain looks different on every board.