Preparing the Pieces

• 1). Sand all boards with your belt sander. As you go, use progressively higher grits until the boards are glassy smooth. You will also sand the dowel rods by hand. Use the 200 grit sandpaper followed by the 400 grit sandpaper.
  
  
• 2). Pre-drill the dowel rods. Measure 4 inches up from the bottom of both the 36-inch and 18-inch dowel rods and drill a 3/8-inch hole, 1/2-inch deep. Using your protractor, place the flat end over the drilled hole, and find the 90 degree angle. At this exact point, drill another 3/8-inch hole, 1/2 inch deep. On those same dowels, measure exactly 4 inches up, and drill another hole with your 3/8-inch bit, 1/2 inch deep. Once again, using your protractor in the exact same way, find the 90-degree angle on the dowels, and drill 3/8-inch holes, all 1/2 inch deep. You will need to do this for every dowel rod until all are pre-drilled.
  
  
• 3). Notch the dowel rods. At the 16-inch mark on the 18-inch dowels, you want to use your Dremel tool with cutting head and cut a 1/2-inch notch for the actual 16-by-16 inch chair piece to sit in. You'll need to start at the 16-inch mark and cut the notch upward, making sure the chair piece can be pressed snugly inside, leaving 1 inch of wood covering the notch. Repeat this process on all the dowels at the exact same height. You'll have to be a real craftsman here, and make sure the notch is perfectly symmetrical, smooth and level.
  
  
• 4). Whittle the ends of the 1/2-inch dowels.Using your Dremel tool, shave or whittle the ends of the 1/2-inch dowels to 3/8 inch. Don't go farther than 1/2-inch long since they need to fit in the bracing holes that were drilled in the dowels. Don't take off more than is needed as they must be tight fitting. Again, you must be precise and a real craftsman to make this good.
  
  
• 5). Make peg holes for the ladder pieces. On the 36-inch dowel rods, you will need to cut out three peg holes for the ladder pieces. The holes will be 1 1/2 inches long and 1/2-inch wide and 1/2-inch deep, directly in the center of the dowel. You will bore out these holes using your Dremel tools cutting head, and they will be cut in at these intervals. The first one will be cut in at 2 inches from the top. The second one at 8 inches from the top, and the third one will be cut in at 14 inches from the top. You will do this for the opposite dowel as well.
  
  
• 6). Cut a lip in the ladder boards. On your three 1-by-2 inch oak ladder boards, you will cut a lip out from the edge that precisely matches the peg hole you have just cut in the dowels. Using the same Dremel tool and cutting head, the lip must only go 1/2-inch deep into the dowel and fit tightly.
  
  

Assembly

• 1). Start out by installing all the dowel bracing rods. Working your way up from the bottom, put glue in the holes as well as on the shaved ends of the dowel bracing rods, and insert them into their corresponding holes. They need to be loose and flexible until the entire chair has been put together, so do not wedge them in at this time.
  
  
• 2). Attach the 16-by-16 inch chair board into the notches. Again, leave it in loose for the time being. You do not need glue, since you will have made the notches so that the chair board is a snug fit.
  
  
• 3). Assemble the ladder pieces from the bottom to the top. The flexibility in the loose chair will allow you to flex the upper portion to allow you to fit the lips into the peg holes.
  
  
• 4). Tighten everything. Starting from the top ladder pieces, use a rubber mallet to tap the chair tightly together gently. From the ladder pieces to the chair to the bracing dowels, tap all these pieces in tightly.
  
  
• 5). Finish off the chair with a cleanup. Use a damp rag to wipe off any drips from the glue. You will need to let the glue dry overnight. This chair can be left to its natural wood beauty or stained.