Acorn Bed: A Turned Post Bed From The 1800’s

This bed style is one of my favorites; large diameter posts with deep coves and beads and a long gracefully tapered vase topped by acorn finials. Void of the decorative excesses of reeding, fluting, and heavy carving that plague many period high-style beds, this design is attractive without being overdone, and the somewhat short 5-1/2 foot tall posts are a good match for the eight foot ceilings in the guest bedroom of our home.

Bed posts of this style were very popular in the first quarter of the nineteenth century. Like all traditional turnings, the posts on this bed are a series of coves and beads, which are easily shaped with various sizes of spindle gouges. However, there is some work to be done with the skew, such as the pommels (the transition between the square and round portions) and the double beads at the top of the posts.

In traditional spindle turnings, whether it's a bed post or a stair baluster, coves and beads are often joined to form an ogee, or vase. There are three ogees on this post, the long vase shape above the spade foot, the long vase that comprises much of the upper portion of the post, and the short vase just below the acorn finial. Once you mastered coves and beads, shaping an ogee becomes easy; it's simply a matter of joining the two profiles together.

Traditional beds use post-and-rail, mortise-and-tenon construction which is held together with large bed bolts. This construction creates a strong framework while allowing the bed to be disassembled.

Before turning I straighten and square the posts on the jointer and plane them to thickness. Then I carefully mark the centers; a small error will cause the turned areas of the post to be eccentric to the square portions where the rails join.

My first cut at the lathe is with a skew as I cut the pommels (photo 1). Afterwards I use a roughing gouge to create cylinders. I turned the first post from a full-scale drawing. Afterwards, I hung the post on the wall behind the lathe (photo 2) for use as a guide when turning the remaining posts.

Photo 1	Photo 2

 Next, I use a parting tool to cut the various segments of the lower post to diameter (photo 3). I use a spring caliper to check each diameter as I'm turning (photo 4).

Photo 3	Photo 4

Now I use a large spindle gouge to shape the long vase above the foot. Starting at the small diameter of the vase I shape a cove and then a bead (photo 5). The spade foot is simply a taper. After cutting the taper with a large gouge I use a block plane to smooth the surface (photo 6). Photo 7 shows the completed lower portion of the post (the easy part!)

Photo 5	Photo 6

Moving on to the upper portion of the post, I begin by turning the major diameters with a parting tool. Next, I use a skew to turn the large bead that flanks the pommel and a gouge to turn the large cove (photo 8). Even though the post is large it will still flex and chatter if left unsupported; a steady rest positioned near the area where I'm working provides solid support.

Photo 7	Photo 8

As I turn the cove I use a skew to turn the vee that flanks the cove (photo 9). A small spindle gouge allows me to shape the cove without catching on the sides (photo 10).

Photo 9	Photo 10

As I work my way toward the top of the post the next segment is another bead flanked by a large, somewhat deep cove (photo 11). Although I use the completed post as a visual guide I check the cove diameter to ensure that the post look identical (photo 12).

Photo 11	Photo 12

The next step of the turning requires a lot of stock removal. I use a large spindle gouge in this area (photo 13). Like a large plane, the large gouge will provide a truer surface while a small gouge will create a lot of ridges. Creating this shape is one of the most difficult parts of the post. When the shape starts to get close I set the example on top of the turning and compare the profiles (photo 14).

Photo 13	Photo 14

The final segment of the turning has the finest details. After marking the linear dimensions I use a parting tool to cut the diameters (photo15). With each of the major diameters turned to dimension I’m ready to shape the coves and beads (photo 16).

Photo 15	Photo 16

I begin by shaping the large double beads (photo 17). Then I turn my attention to the cove under the beads. Although the cove is deep it is not wide enough for a large gouge (photo 18) so I use a small gouge and a series of light cuts (photos 19 & 20).

Photo 17	Photo 18
Photo 19	Photo 20

Then I use a skew to turn the small diameter double beads below the cove (photo 21).

Photo 21

Above the large double beads is another deep cove, then a short vase and then it’s on to the acorn (photo 22) and a quick check of the details in the upper part of the post (photo 23). With the posts turned it’s time to cut the mortises for the bed rails (photo 24).

Photo 22	Photo 23
Photo 24