I severely broke Kari’s nice armchair. I was trying to slide it across the carpet even though I knew Ikea furniture is weak and the particle board that holds one of the legs on snapped. This really sucked because I really like the chair, and its one of the kitties favorite loafing spots, so I immediately started measuring.
The first thing I did was get a rough measurement of the chair and the location of the leg mount. With the measurements I was able to make a drawing in Fusion360 and apply Send Cut Send’s mild steel sheet metal rules.
Adding the sheet metal rules and using the Flange function turns the drawing into a 3D model.
I added another drawing and plotted the location of the bolt holes, then extruded the holes through the sheet
And finally I softened the corners with some large radius fillets. From here I was able to upload the design to Send Cut Send and order the laser cut sheet. It cost $33 for the single sheet but parts get significantly cheaper the more copies you order.
It took about a week for my steel to show up. SCS did not have an option to add a chamfer to the holes so I had to countersink them myself once the sheet arrived. I don’t own the proper tool but I do own a wide selection of drill bits so I made it work. Adding a countersink allows the head of the screw to sit flush with the surface of the steel, this is important because the screws that are closest to the leg are so close that they would interfere with the installation of the leg.
All I had left to do was screw the plate to the chair and screw the leg through the hole in the plate. It looks amazing and feels very secure, so secure in fact that I think I could have gone way smaller on the plate thickness and size. Once I was done I flipped the chair back upright and almost immediately the kitties were back to their favorite spot.
One Response
The kitties are so cute!