Thread: WIP- Workbench

Ok, well I didn't end up getting a chance to work on my bench today.
Here is where i'm at now. As you can see iv'e got all the pieces for the top cut and ready to be machined and glued together. The third photo is the pieces for the legs and some of the stretchers. Again thanks to Ian for loaning me his saw - good bloke!

Hopefully i'll get time during the week to run the pieces through the jointer and thicknesser.
In regards to the design, iv'e decided that I probably won't put a sliding deadman on this bench. The twin screw vise will be quite wide (i can clamp up to 24" between the vise), so i'm going to be put dog holes on the front right leg so I can use holdfasts to secure longer pieces. I might even instal the runners and put a rebate in the top so I can instal a sliding deadman in the future if I ever want to.

I also need to get some more clamps, i'm thinking of getting some jet sash clamps. Does anybody know how much these are, around the 800-1000mm range?

Thanks,

Andy

Thanks for the update, I'll keep watching. Does not matter how slow or quick you are.

the wood looks good

hope the glue up goes well

I jointed some of the pieces for the top yesterday, i'm hoping to do a few more today and get atleast another 2 sections glued up. I'll end up with about 6 glued up sections which will equal 650-700mm width.
I'm thinking of taking these to a joiner and getting them to square them up for me (getting heavy - less accurate).

I'm looking forward to start building the frame. Iv'e decided on a dovetail for the long stretchers, which should be interesting and fun. I can finally use my LN dovetail saw that has only had use on practice pieces !

If this bench isn't built by the end of January, it won't get touched until the end of next year as i'll be away and overseas for work for most of next year, so I got to get into the workshop more (7 weeks holidays in starting in December should help!)

I'll post some pics later,

Andy

Andy - at the risk of sounding like an authority (which I'm certainly not) I suggest your nice LN dovetail saw is an inappropriate tool for cutting joints on large members like bench parts. At 15 ppi, this saw is much happier cutting material less than 50mm thick. You'll do it, eventually, but you'll find it slow going & hard to keep accurate. To cut bench-sized pieces, I'd be reaching for larger saws with 8-10 tpi.

Getting a water-tight fit straight off a saw becomes more difficult as the pieces get larger. For crucial fits, I still use the way we were shown at school, which is to cut about .5-1mm outside the scribe line, and pare to the line with a sharp, wide chisel. You will get neater & more accurate joints this way.

For example, this is how I make a double-shouldered tenon - I couldn't get it perfect any other way, despite having one or two decent saws to choose from!

Ok, some good and bad news!

Iv'e decided to stop building the bench. I'm going to be away prety much all of next year and i'd like to spend the next few months of workshop time building projects that iv'e wanted to build for a while. I still want to build a bench eventually, but just not right now.....

To fund these new projects, I need to sell all of my blackbutt. There is ALOT of it.... There is another 8 slabs that havn't been cut. If your interested in taking the lot, send me a PM and we can discuss it.


Andy

I am going to count your year away as included in the assembly time, should make my 3 years look not quite so bad

A good decision I think, the timber will move around a bit while you are gone, especially any joints.

I'll still have it finished way before your bench

I think it's the best thing to do, it will also give me some extra cash to buy some timber for those projects iv'e been eager to build!

O my.

Understandable wanting to get other projects completed.

Andy - did you already buy the vise hardware for your bench? Interested to know what you got, and what you thought of it.

(cut to image of the wide open grassy plains in Africa, with vultures silently circling....)

Your experience of using Blackbutt has pretty much convinced me to use Vic Ash for my construction. I can't afford hard maple either !

There is nothing wrong with blackbutt, it's just dense which is great for a bench.

I had spoken with Len Havorter in regards to the vises and was about to buy them (i was sent an invoice) but had the feeling that I probably wouldn't finish it in time and that I wanted to build some projects I have in mind. So I didn't order.

The timber is up in the market forums.

Andy

Hey Andy,

bummer that, I know you were looking forward to the bench build. I've finally finished mine, and am about to start a (belated) WIP. I've also done a quick youtube vid of it that I'll include. Check out my new post in this section.
Good luck with your travels in the new year. Make sure you come back in one piece!
TN