Wooden dowels/pegs

[Araucaria]

I have just disassembled an old walnut armoire (c. 1900 I'd guess) - to move it. It wouldn't go through the doors or windows assembled.

It was held together with eight wooden dowels or pegs. They are - or were - about 7.5cm long and about 7 or 8mm diameter. Are these stock items sold in Mr Bricolage (or equivalent), or should I just make my own? If so, any suggestions about the wood to use? I wonder if it should be a good hard wood for strength, or something like pine for a degree of compressibility in the hole.

The dowels were in pretty poor condition and are not really re-usable. I am still amazed at the way the whole thing just slots together and then becomes a nice solid piece of furniture after hammering in just these eight pegs, four at each corner at the front, and four at each corner at the back.

[Chancer]

I have dismantled and transported a few of these and if it was French then it is possibly a lot older than you think.

These were the original flat pack furniture and the dowels will date it to be earlier than the introduction of metal brackets to hold it together sometime in the 19th century.

I am pretty sure that the dowels are oak and that is what I used to make a few replacements, they are pretty easy to make with a plane but to save your fingers its best to knock up a small wooden fixture that resembles a vee block with a stop pate on one end, the dowels only need to be somewhere near round, I bet yours are threepenny bit shaped, if they are round machined stock then the armoire is later than we think.

Funnily enough I am at the moment fitting a new bottom to my armoire which is right beside the PC although mine dates from between the wars and still has its shipping note on the back from a Paris Atelier. Cost me €5 in a brocante.

[Araucaria]

Thanks Chancer, oak it is then.

And you are right, the originals (which look as if they aren't even the same wood, from the colour anyway) are clearly handmade, and as you say threepenny-bit shaped. That rather dates both of us, doesn't it?

It's solid walnut, no veneer anywhere, and it might be a bit older than 100 years. The previous owner of our house left it behind (about the only thing he did leave) because he couldn't get it out and didn't know how to take it apart.

[andyh4]

Alternatively you can get beech dowels in the sheds 6mm 8mm 10mm - and 16mm to my knowledge.  Most of these are going to be shorter than what you have quoted.

And as an alternative 2m lengths of dowel which you can cut to suit are available in the profiles section from time to time.

[Théière]

Whats a three penny bit? [:)][:P]

[Chancer]

Its what my half crown becomes when someone creeps up on me unexpectedly whilst I am working [;-)]

After being frightened for the umpteenth time by my neighbour I tried to explain the threepenny bit / half crown phrase to him, it took a very long time and he was very confused before the penny finally dropped!

[Pierre ZFP]

I always thought that threepenny bit was rhyming slang for something else entirely [:$]

[Jonzjob]

[quote user="Théière"]Whats a three penny bit? [:)][:P][/quote]

Fick or wot![:P]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Threepence_%28British_coin%29