CHAPTER III
Reseating a Chair; Hand Caning
In many localities it is impossible to find a professional to reseat caned chairs either by hand or with cane webbing. Many chairs in good repair and worthy are relegated to the attic because of broken or sunken seats. Upholsterers generally will not be troubled with such jobs of caning for the work does not pay unless there is an amount sufficient to keep them steadily employed. Usually they are not adept enough to do such odd jobs as may come to them, even tho willing to do the work, within a time consistent with sufficient money returns.
Chairs of ordinary size may be caned for a minimum of $1 and a maximum of $2. If the holes have previously been bored, much labor is thus avoided, and the charge is naturally made less. The professional cane weaver has various ways by which he determines the cost for recaning a given seat. Perhaps the most common method employed is that of charging so much per hole. This is from 1 to 2 cents. The difficulty in handling very fine cane is also a factor in deciding what to charge. Usually a casual looking over of the chair by the expert is all that is necessary to fix a price. No charge of less than $1 on a hand caned seat will sufficiently remunerate the worker. [Fig. 18] shows a hank of cane and rolls of machine woven cane.
Any boy who has had instruction and sufficient experience in caning in the manual training shop may readily undertake jobs of caning. The boy who will investigate will find that he may work up a sizeable trade in chair seating in a short time. In fact several boys will not overcrowd a given field. Such work will pay the amateur well. He does not, nor cannot expect professional wages. It is of considerable value from the pupil’s standpoint alone, that is, this correlation with his manual school activities. The amount of pay initially is not the main question; it is the educational value derived. He would undoubtedly find willing help at his shop at any time a job of peculiar treatment presented itself.
The Process.—Many chairs which the owners would wish hand caned have no holes bored for the work. They previously held machine woven cane. [Fig. 19] shows a sketch of a chair bottom of ordinary or standard shape. The area is irregular. The sketch shows the method of determining the location for the holes.
FIG. 18. HANK OF CANE AND ROLLS OF MACHINE WOVEN CANE.
As stated in the discussion of the seven steps in caning, the holes are invariably ½ in. from the inner edges of the rails. In this instance the line from which the holes for the front rail are located is parallel with the front rail; it is coincident with the line on which the holes are bored. The line on the back rail must be parallel with it; the line runs thru the center of the center hole. The lines on the side rails are parallel to each other and at right angles to the first two. These four lines are shown as dash lines on the drawing. Their function is simply to determine the location for the holes to be bored on the lines ½ in. from the inner edges of the rails. Those lines are shown in the sketch as full lines.