Porch Rockers
Rocking on the porch is an American tradition.
Autumn is taking a rocking chair break on the shop porch
We Deliver Comfort and Beauty to the Porch
Rocking chairs on porches became traditional because they benefit living. You can get outside, and move, and relax, and look about the place, and think up solutions, celebrations, blessings,...or not think at all. In one of our chairs, you won't be thinking about an edge, flat, or misalignment that is annoying your muscle or bone.
See why our rocking chairs are comfortable.
...And Weeks Porch Rockers make the house look better.
The Weeks Rocker® for the Porch in Sapele
Price includes delivery in the lower 48 states.
Guarantee: Our rocking chair will be the most comfortable, the most beautiful, and the best constructed rocking chair you have ever experienced or you may return it. We will refund your money and pay for shipping both ways.
For rockers, footstools, and side tables without customizing delivered in the lower 48, you may:
For customizing,
to include dining or custom furniture,
for delivery to other locations,
or for any other question,
you may use the form below or call, text, or email.
Specifications
Sapele, Entandrophragma cylindricum
Sapele trees grow in tropical Central and West Africa, from Cote d'Ivoire to the Congo. They grow tall and straight and clear. Sapele is in the same scientific family as mahogany, Meliceae.
The wood is rot resistant. It is used for furniture, cabinetry, doors, windows, flooring, veneer, musical instruments, and boats. Click here to learn more.
Ron, CEO of Dakota Lumber, has this to say: "The Sapele lumber we provide to you is produced in the Republic of the Congo. We buy only from the most reputable importers. The trees are harvested and the lumber produced according to the standards of the Forest Stewardship Council. The lumber is the most remarkably consistent lumber we sell. We will stock and store to your specifications and quantity needs. You have the peace of mind of knowing your lumber is harvested and manufactured to FSC standards and you can message that to your client base. You are also helping a very economically challenged part of the world."
Construction
The contours of the porch rocker are the same as those of all our rocking chairs, making it guaranteed to be the most comfortable porch rocker you will find.
We designed this chair to accommodate the shrinking and swelling brought on by changes in humidity. See Wood and Moisture. We mortise and tenon the seat boards together with spaces between to allow for expansion and contraction. We leave the front leg tenons proud where they come through the arms.
Finishing for the Porch
The photo below is of a freshly oiled new porch rocker and one that had been on our showroom porch for twenty years. The chairs will turn grey. But the color can be renewed. See Porch Rocker Maintenance.
The structure of the chair on the right is sound and the joints are tight.
There are two categories of finish for outdoor wood: penetrating and surface coating. Oil finishes are penetrating. Varnish and paint are surface coating. Oil finishes and varnish admit light, so you can see wood figure and color. No light makes it through paint. But sunlight brings Ultra-Violet light, the bane of finishes.
An oil finish will erode and degrade so that the wood begins to look and act unfinished as the color fades to gray. A washing and reoiling will renew the surface and color. See Porch Rocker Maintenance.
An outdoor varnish will resist this graying, but as it fails, it cracks and peels and splits, and must be removed--a near industrial process--or it must be regularly sanded and revarnished. Do you have a yacht with wood trim and a deck hand?
We do not varnish outdoor wood. We use a penetrating oil. The chairs will turn grey. These are the levels of attention to the surface that patrons tend to settle on:
- nothing
- occasional washing
- periodic washing and re-oiling--from every couple of years to once a decade
For all three levels of attention, the chairs are sturdy and those who rock are comfortable.
Finishing for the Parlor
Some people like this wood (figure and color) and the joinery of the chair (robust and exposed) and want a rocker of it in the house. For them, we finish as we would our other chairs; Sapele takes a fine sheen and surface.
Specifying this finish will usually delay the shipping date given above, but the price would be the same. Just tell us you would like an indoor finish on the Order Form, or a Request for Quote, or by phone or email. We'll calculate the shipping date for you.
Porch Rockers in Service
Photos from Patrons
Porch Rockers in Review
We get words of support from patrons.
December 21, 2023
Sir/Madam:
The Weeks rocker arrived in great condition and my wife helped unpack the box. (I tried to make it a surprise, but she figured things out from the picture not the box.)
My wife then proceeded to sit in the chair for the next few hours, marveling at the comfort, fit, and finish.
She did the same thing the next day.
Thank you.
B.Raymond, Nebraska
Porch Rockers in Progress
Weeks Rocker®
Character and Benefits