Garden Benches and the Mitered Leg

In a previous post we described the floating top and the edge profile we use in our benches and tables. Today we focus on the mitered leg.

A mitered leg is formed when two long pieces of wood are cut along their length at a 45-degree angle, then the two 45-degree surfaces are glued together to form a 90-degree angle. In the photo below, you see three sets of glued up legs for an order of benches. Above them is a set of table legs, a little longer and little wider than the bench legs. (By the way, that’s the frame of a prototype adirondack rocker next to the dining table legs.)

There are several excellent reasons to use mitered legs in outdoor furniture. In most conventional outdoor furniture, bolts are used to join legs to frames. Over time, these can work loose and weaken the joint. We’ve all sat on chairs or benches that highlight the I’m-Beginning-to-Fail Wobble. They don’t inspire confidence.

Our furniture is different. You can’t see it very well in the photograph below, but a little shelf called a “rabbet” was cut into the tops of the legs before the leg blanks were glued up to form the finished leg. The frames of the bench or dining table rest on these shelves.

(Technically, these shelves significantly reduce the “sheer” forces operating on the screw and glue joint and make the leg/frame joint quite strong.) So when you sit on one of our benches, your weight is not only resisted by stainless steel screws and waterproof glue but also by the shelves on the legs. On other benches, the bolt does all the work.

The other notable advantage of a mitered leg is that we can select wood to show attractive grain on two sides of the leg. You can’t do that with a conventional square leg which often will show a good side and a not-so-good side to the outside world. So not only is there a great structural benefit to the mitered leg, there’s also an aesthetic advantage as well.

The mitered leg is a distinctive and useful feature that we think adds great value to your purchase.