Careful base selection is critical to a successful piece. In this article, Mario Rodriguez builds a simple chest and alternatingly adorns it with bun feet, saber feet, sled feet, and with ogee bracket feet, and he shows how easy they are to make. He explains why you need a base at all, shares the history and evolution of each type, and gets right down to showing how to make them. Bun feet are produced on the lathe and have a tenon at the top. He includes a template to cut a saber foot, which is done on a bandsaw. Sled bases are two parallel feet joined by a beam; the foot’s shape and finish must be crisp. There are a few ways to make ogee molding, and Rodriguez shares how he does it with an angled fence on the tablesaw. Photos and side demonstration details guide you through the construction processes.

From Fine Woodworking #135