Thread: Nicholson knock down build - timber advice needed

If anyone is interested in the T-nuts check the link below. Still need to pick them up in person but they look very sturdy in the picture (top left) and are only $2.95 each + GST.



"T" Nuts | Flexliner | Levelling Feet

somewhere I have the issue of Popular woodworking where Chris Schwarz goes though building this bench.

Things to note
1. Chris used threaded steel plates rather than T-nuts to retain the bolts.
2. Chris buys his bench timber at his local home center -- i.e. Bunnings. He buys wood intended for framing houses. Where we would use a 4 x 2 hardwood, the Yanks use 2 x 6 softwood.
3. Chris buys large dimension wood 2 x 6 (140 x 38), 2 x 10 (240 x 38) and 2 x 12 (290 x 38), because it comes from bigger trees and usually has fewer knots and is straighter. If you can find straight mostly knot free 4 x 2s it will be a fine substitution -- you'll just need to do some edge or face jointing.
4. Chris times his bench wood buying to coincide with when his home center opens a new pack of wood -- that way he gets to sort through the pack for the best lengths.
5. Don't discount the versatility of a crochet combined with a Moxon style vice and/or planing stops on the bench itself.


I'm not sure that treated pine is a suitable bench timber. Untreated would be better.

apart from the weight (and looks) you could substitute 25 or 38 mm MDF when making the legs and aprons of the bench.

Since you're in WA, I would do everything I could to source Jarrah. Look on Gumtree and find it recycled, go chop down a tree... whatever you gotta do. If you can't get Jarrah, look for another Eucalypt. In my opinion they're among the best workbench woods in the world.

Cheers,
Luke

Originally Posted by ian

somewhere I have the issue of Popular woodworking where Chris Schwarz goes though building this bench.

Things to note
1. Chris used threaded steel plates rather than T-nuts to retain the bolts.
2. Chris buys his bench timber at his local home center -- i.e. Bunnings. He buys wood intended for framing houses. Where we would use a 4 x 2 hardwood, the Yanks use 2 x 6 softwood.
3. Chris buys large dimension wood 2 x 6 (140 x 38), 2 x 10 (240 x 38) and 2 x 12 (290 x 38), because it comes from bigger trees and usually has fewer knots and is straighter. If you can find straight mostly knot free 4 x 2s it will be a fine substitution -- you'll just need to do some edge or face jointing.
4. Chris times his bench wood buying to coincide with when his home center opens a new pack of wood -- that way he gets to sort through the pack for the best lengths.
5. Don't discount the versatility of a crochet combined with a Moxon style vice and/or planing stops on the bench itself.


I'm not sure that treated pine is a suitable bench timber. Untreated would be better.

apart from the weight (and looks) you could substitute 25 or 38 mm MDF when making the legs and aprons of the bench.

Actually wound up buying that issue in PDF form, figured it would be better than trying to nut out the plans by eye.

Regarding the mounting plates, I've looked around and really struggled to find anything similar locally. Some construction suppliers have similar plates for hanging threaded rod but they have minimum quantities and they're not small.

Originally Posted by Luke Maddux

Since you're in WA, I would do everything I could to source Jarrah. Look on Gumtree and find it recycled, go chop down a tree... whatever you gotta do. If you can't get Jarrah, look for another Eucalypt. In my opinion they're among the best workbench woods in the world.

Cheers,
Luke

Ive thought about that but I feel like it will be very costly and then there's the weight to consider. I live alone, if I need to tear this bench down and move it I'll need to be able to do it without any help.

This is a timber yard near me that actually has online prices. Some are good some not so, but I use it frequently for comparisons of timber prices so I have some idea of cost while planning a job.

https://www.nst.net.au/#about

Cheers Lappa, always handy to have a comparison that ain't Bunnings!

bueller
I should have included in my earlier post that Chris's preferred wood for bench building is whatever is the cheapest from your local supplier. That's why he shops at his local home center.

Cheers Ian! I'm thinking I should probably cruise around to a few yards and see what they have in stock, at least then I can get a decent feel for what's available on the ground here in Perth. Definitely not keen on getting stuff from Bunnings, the last few times I've been there looking it's been really hard finding stuff that's not warped to hell.

I would be very, very careful in making deliberate efforts to make your bench lighter. This is something you'll appreciate a few times throughout the life of the bench, but absolutely hate for the other time that you're actually using the bench.

My first bench was too light, and it took almost no effort to skate it across the floor while planing. It drove me absolutely insane. It reached a point where I was ready to just throw in the towel with the hobby.

Money, sure. That's a good reason not to use hardwoods (but I still recommend them), but if you focus too much on reducing weight - which is a cardinal "do not" rule when building a bench - then just keep in mind not to reduce it too much.

To further reference the Chris Schwarz book, I'm pretty sure one of his pillars of good bench construction is "Always add mass".

Good luck,
Luke

Originally Posted by Luke Maddux

To further reference the Chris Schwarz book, I'm pretty sure one of his pillars of good bench construction is "Always add mass".

38mm MDF is relatively inexpensive and a good way to add mass.

What I've donefor extra mass is store my clamps on the bench's shelf.

The trick with shopping for bench building wood at Bunnings et al is to wait till a new pack of timber is opened and pounce on the "good" stuff

The legs will be 90mm x 140mm with a 90mm thick top and 45mm thick aprons, does that sound solid?

Re: Bunnings timber - ahhh yes the last few times I've been looking there the racks have been half empty, I was probably there just before new packs were opened.

Just picked up the T-nuts, they're very good quality for the price. 3mm thick zinc plated steel with each one weighing in at 74g.