Images Shaping the wood. The split wood is shaved to size on a shaving horse or in a vice using a drawknife before being planed to the sizes needed for the back, arm rail and spindles. Images Bending the wood. The back and arm rail are then placed in a steambox . They may sit in the steambox for up to an hour to become pliable.
Pegs hold the bent rail in place, and a wedge is added to achieve the proper curvature.
The rail then cools on the form . Images Shaping the spindles. The spindles are shaped with a drawknife and spokeshave to the size desired. The spindles of most handmade Windsor chairs vary slightly in size and shape because they are shaped using hand tools. Some chairmakers turn the spindles on a lathe.