I’ve really wanted to learn sketch up since it feels like a handy thing to know. Your use case for chairs is great. I still don’t have a great mental picture of what X rake and Y splay should look like, let alone modifying mortise locations to fit legs under the seat etc.
Besides the concept of the rake and splay giving the chair stability, it's really up to the chairmaker until you get to the extreme rake and splay where the leg tenons might fail. For me, there's a range where it looks "right" and that's why I learned how to use SketchUp to help me play around with some numbers so I can visualize it before committing to them in a build.
Find some pictures of some chairs and critique how you feel about the leg placement and its rake and splay. And of course, let me know if I can help you out with anything.
I’ve really wanted to learn sketch up since it feels like a handy thing to know. Your use case for chairs is great. I still don’t have a great mental picture of what X rake and Y splay should look like, let alone modifying mortise locations to fit legs under the seat etc.
Besides the concept of the rake and splay giving the chair stability, it's really up to the chairmaker until you get to the extreme rake and splay where the leg tenons might fail. For me, there's a range where it looks "right" and that's why I learned how to use SketchUp to help me play around with some numbers so I can visualize it before committing to them in a build.
Find some pictures of some chairs and critique how you feel about the leg placement and its rake and splay. And of course, let me know if I can help you out with anything.