Lee Valley 01K71.01 User manual

1
Piano Stool Hardware Kit 01K71.01
This kit provides the key hardware components to make a height-
adjustable piano stool. It consists of a seat base and threaded
shaft assembly and a steel nut that provide a total seat adjustment
of 6". The seat base and threaded shaft assembly is mounted to the
underside of a piano stool seat, and the 3"long by 1.245"outside
diameter nut is mounted in a hole drilled in a wooden base/cap.
The design of the hardware components is such that there will
always be at least 2"of engagement of the threaded shaft in the nut
to prevent the seat from being spun out of its base. The instructions
that follow provide dimensional guidelines so you can design a
stool that suits your needs.
Design Considerations and Assembly
If you are building a four-legged piano stool, the footprint
should be larger in diameter than the seat diameter to reduce the
possibility of the stool tipping over. A three-legged design would
require a larger footprint, since three legs are less stable than
four. Our example shown in Figure 1 has four legs, with a 16"
diameter footprint and a 12"diameter seat. Figure 2 gives a top
view illustration, showing that a three-legged stool should have a
larger-diameter footprint than the four-legged stool.
The height of the leg/base/cap assembly should be approximately
2"shorter than the desired overall height of the piano stool when
the threaded shaft is fully lowered into the nut. The leg/base/cap
assembly shown in Figure 1 is 18", and yields a piano stool that
is 20"high when the threaded shaft is fully lowered into the nut,
and 26"high when it is fully raised.
The wooden base should be large enough to accommodate the
nut, which is 3"long with a 1.245"outside diameter and a 2"
diameter flange. (Our example has a 2"× 2"× 3"long base.) To
drill the hole in the wooden base, you will need a 11/4"drill bit
(e.g., spade, forstner, saw tooth) with a shank length of at least
4". The diameter of the hole should be just large enough for the
nut to slide in easily without having to force it in. An oversized
hole, however, may cause the mounting screws to break out of
the sidewalls, preventing them from fully engaging in the wood.
We recommend you test the accuracy of your drill bit in a piece of
scrap wood (of the same material you will use to make your piano
stool). Dry fit the nut into the test piece. If the fit is tight, gradually
make the hole larger with a half-round file or with sandpaper
wrapped around a piece of 1"diameter dowel. When you are
satisfied with the fit, make your base, and drill a hole through the
center of the base (repeating any adjustments that were required to
achieve a good fit). It is important that the hole be on center. While
a hand drill should produce acceptable results, we recommend
you use a drill press if possible. Insert the nut into the hole to test
the fit, and make any further adjustments as required. Remove the
nut and set it and the base aside.
The cap in our piano stool example in Figure 1 is 5"diameter by
1"thick. Drill a hole through the center of the cap (repeating any
adjustments that were required to achieve a good fit). Insert the nut
into the hole to test the fit, and make any further adjustments as
required. Remove the nut and set it and the cap aside.
Figure 1: Stool overview.
Seat
12"dia., 1"thick
Seat Base and Threaded
Shaft Assembly (supplied)
Steel Nut 1.245"dia.,
3"long (supplied)
Cap
5"dia., 1"thick
Base
2"× 2"× 3"
Legs
17"× 7"× 1"thick
Figure 2: Footprint of legs.
Four-legged stool with legs
outside seat diameter.
Three-legged stool with legs further
outside seat diameter than four-legged version.
Footprint
of Legs
Leg
Leg
Seat
Seat

Lee Valley Tools Ltd. Ottawa ON K2H 1C2 Canada leevalley.com
© Lee Valley Tools Ltd. 2018 551 INS-214_C
Note: You may combine the base and cap as one piece in your
piano stool design.
The legs in our example were made with 1"× 8"lumber and cut
with a bandsaw. To ensure the legs are all the same size and shape,
we recommend you make a template. To make the best use of the
wood, the legs may be traced and laid out as shown in Figure 3.
Dry fit the nut, cap and base together before final assembly of
the cap to the base (if two pieces) to ensure the through holes in
both pieces line up with each other. Join the legs, cap and base in
such a way as to produce a secure structure. For the stool shown
in Figure 1, we secured all joints using water-based wood glue
(polyvinyl acetate). We also fastened each leg horizontally to the
base, using one screw per leg, and secured the cap vertically to the
legs, again using one screw per leg. Each screw was counterbored
and concealed with a plug.
The diameter and thickness of your piano stool seat should be
suitably sized to support the weight of the intended user. Mark the
exact center of the under side of your wooden seat with a pencil or
scribe. Draw a 41/2" diameter circle around the center point. Align
the seat base with the circle.
Mark and drill pilot holes, then secure the seat base and threaded
rod assembly to the underside of the seat with four #12 flat-head
wood screws.
Glue the nut into the hole in the leg assembly with high-strength
slow-cure epoxy. Mark and drill pilot holes, then secure the nut to
the leg assembly with four #6 flat-head wood screws.
Apply desired finish.
Insert the threaded rod into the nut in the leg assembly. Turn the
seat counterclockwise to raise it and clockwise to lower it.
Figure 3: Nesting template to reduce lumber waste.
8"
11/2"
3"
17"
38"
Figure 4: Securing nut in the leg/base/cap assembly.
#6 Flat-Head
Wood Screws (4)
Steel Nut
Assembled
Leg/Base/Cap
11/4"dia.
hole
Flange