Many people complain of broken arms on wooden chairs, and they do not know how to repair this. I had the same issue, and I decided to learn to fix the wooden chairs.
The wooden armchair is the most stylish and preferred furniture because of its unique design.
How to Fix a Broken Arm on a Wooden Chair? You can repair the broken arms of the wooden chair by adding mending plates and screws. For fixing the damaged arm joints, you need to add wooden wedges in front of them and then trim off the extra wood with a chisel. You can also add dowels into the broken area and then connect the broken pieces with some good-quality glue.
The armchairs are usually light in weight, so you can effortlessly lift them from one place to another.
In addition, the overall configuration of these chairs helps their owner quickly replace them from time to time to give your furniture a new look.
There are different benefits of an armchair that can increase the aesthetic appearance of your house.
You can easily place them in different rooms of your house like the kitchen, the living room, and the bedroom because they coordinate well with every piece of furniture and provide an extra setting area.
They are comfortable and available in different designs and colors. You can also easily place them in outdoor areas like the backyard, the porch, and the balcony with a cup of hot steaming coffee.
Due to some reasons, the chair’s arm becomes loose from its joints and breaks that can efficiently repair without extra equipment.
Make a secure dowel connection
You can quickly repair the chair’s broken arm by making a good dowel connection in it.
You can easily add dowels into the middle portion of the arm or the joint’s end, depending on the breakage area.
For this, you need to make a dowel hole into the damaged area by using a drill bit of the same size as your dowel, i-e 1/8 to 3/8 inch depending on the thickness of your broken arm.
Marking a dowel location
Separate the broken parts of the arm and make a drill hole of approximately 1 inch deep in one side of the arm so that the dowel can easily fit in that area.
Mark the location of the dowel on the opposite side of the broken wooden arm using a 3 1/2 inch long nail, cut off its head, and slightly insert it in the broken area. Now firmly press the broken pieces together.
The nail will mark a tiny hole into the opposite side of the broken piece, place the drill bit on that mark and make a slot of approximately 1 inch deep.
Making and connecting of the dowel
It would be best to use a dowel approximately 1/4 inch shorter than the overall depth of holes. The unoccupied space of the hole will accommodate more glue on both sides of the dowel and firmly hold the pieces together.
You need to bend the edges of the dowel with pliers and then sand it with sandpaper. This step will improve the glue distribution on the dowel edges and make the insertion accurate.
Now dip one side of the dowel into the glue and then insert it into the hole.
After that, add glue onto the protruding dowel end and spread the glue on both sides of the breakage area.
Connect both pieces by pressing the part that holds the dowel onto the other leg.
Clamp the sections together using a strap clamp after wiping the extra glue from the site.
Adding Mending plates on the broken area
Sometimes, the middle portion of the chair’s arm gets damage due to adding extra weight, which can quickly repair by adding mending plates.
You need to add glue to the damaged ends of the chair and fix it together. When the adhesive becomes completely dry, add mending into the base of the arm; so that it becomes less visible to people.
The mending plate must be long enough to support the damaged part and narrow enough to be less noticeable.
Making the mortise area
If you are concerned with the chair’s overall appearance, make a mortise hole in the backside of the broken parts. Mark the place of the mortise area and then cut it with the help of a chisel.
Most of the mending plates need a mortise hole of approximately 1/4 inch deep.
Therefore, you need to cut that space slightly wider than your mending plate so that you can precisely add a thick layer of wood glue to it.
Adding mending plate in the mortise
When the surface of the mortise is as smooth and deep as you want it, you need to add a thick layer of glue to its surface and then attach the mending plate with it.
If the plate fits accurately into the mortise hole, make pilot holes into the area with the help of a drill machine for attaching the flathead screws in it.
Dip the screws into the adhesive and then insert them into the pilot holes.
Now add a thick layer of wood filler or veneer patch on the top of the mending plate to give it a well-defined look that coordinates with the chair’s color.
Make a new arm of the wooden chair
You can also attach a new arm; you should carefully measure its size, so it fits perfectly into the arm’s joint.
For this purpose, you need to cut the piece of wood with a jigsaw by using the other arm as a template.
Now sand the sides of the new arm by using sandpaper for more define edges.
Connecting the new arm to a wooden chair
Mark the location of two dowel pins on the top of the arm support with the help of a marker. Drill the holes approximately 1/4 inch deep in that area and add dowel centering pins in it.
For marking the location of the dowel in the back of the new arm, you need to press the arm assembly on the top of the dowel centering pins and then drill it.
Add glue to the bottom of the drill holes and insert dowels in them.
Slightly tap the top of the dowel pin with the mallet and then fix the arm assembly with it. Next, add a layer of matching paint on the top of the new arm and let it completely dry.
Fix loose joints of the wooden chair
Loose joints can cause damage to the chair’s arm and most commonly cause breakage when you put some weight on it.
You can fix them by adding glue on dowels joints after cleaning the area and removing the old adhesive. Clamp this area and ensure that the glue dries effectively in these joints.
You can also repair the joints by adding wood screws. For this purpose, make drill holes in these joints according to the thickness of your chair’s arm.
You can also use a countersink drill bit for reaming the drill holes then insert the screws in them.
It will help insert the screws far enough in the hole that the head of the screws hides in them. After that, add wood filler on the top of the screws and sand the area.
Repairing the curve arm of the oriental chair
You can also repair the curved arms of the oriental chair that get damaged due to the damaged dowel joints.
Collect the pieces of broken joint and add a thick layer of epoxy on them and hold these pieces together for 5-10 minutes.
If the damaged joint has a missing part, you can repair them by adding a little wedge on the front of that part.
For this purpose, take a small piece of softwood and cut it in a wedge shape.
Add glue on this wedge and paste them with the broken joint. Trim off the extra edges of the wedge and mark the location of the dowel in it.
It would be best to chisel the dowel hole on the joint and then drill it. Then, remove the old adhesive from it and mix some new glue with the sawdust.
The sawdust will fill all the gaps in the joints and tightly hold the dowel in it.
You can also add a screw on the newly fixed connection and add a layer of wood filler on the top of that area so that it coordinates well with the chair’s color.
Related Articles:
How to stop wooden rocking chairs from squeaking?
