Thanks: 0
Needs Pictures: 0
Picture(s) thanks: 0
Results 1 to 9 of 9
Thread: workbench questions
-
16th October 2017, 07:49 PM #1GOLD MEMBER
- Join Date
- Oct 2007
- Location
- vic clayton
- Posts
- 1,042
workbench questions
other than lack of availability are there reasons why laminated smaller dimension timbers are used in the bench tops other than say some 14"x3" sticks ( that I just happen to have lying around) does it make the top more stable? any ideas.
Some people are like slinkies - not really good for anything, but they
bring a smile to your face when pushed down the stairs .
-
16th October 2017 07:49 PM # ADSGoogle Adsense Advertisement
- Join Date
- Always
- Location
- Advertising world
- Posts
- Many
-
16th October 2017, 07:53 PM #2
No reason, if they are stable use them.
I am learning, slowley.
-
16th October 2017, 10:09 PM #3
As said if they are stable use them. By stable the nearer to quarter sawn the better. Also if they have stayed flat for a few years then chances are good. Back before sawmilling was common a traditional bench top would usually have been a single bit of wood.
Regards
John
-
17th October 2017, 03:31 AM #4
if they are stable use them.
However, a bench laminated from narrower strips, say 2" wide by 3" thick is in general more stable -- i.e. stays flatter -- than one made from 2 x 14" wide boards.
It all depends on whether your 14" material is flat or quarter sawn.
BUT
if you do have good 14" wide material, another question is -- is it too "valuable" to use in a bench build? Can it be resawn into 14 x 1 boards and used for table tops, or sawn into 14 x 3/4 and used for flat or raised panels?regards from Alberta, Canada
ian
-
17th October 2017, 06:24 AM #5GOLD MEMBER
- Join Date
- Apr 2011
- Location
- McBride BC Canada
- Posts
- 3,543
We see a lot of laminated glueups as a means of making a "value added" product from SPF scrap and junk off cuts.
It exhibits excellent dimensional stability. Not so in a bench top made of 4x4 fence post timbers.
I find it very useful and also very interesting to look at, even as 1 x 12" for doors and tops.
Nice to see the grain and knots run 8' left to right across a set of cupboard doors.
-
17th October 2017, 11:59 AM #6GOLD MEMBER
- Join Date
- Jun 2014
- Location
- Seattle, Washington, USA
- Posts
- 1,857
My bench is made with two honking big slabs. There's no reason that won't work. I think the laminated concept is a more modern approach, both because it may be a bit more stable, but probably moreso because large boards like what you have are much harder to find.
Build it with what you've got.
-
19th October 2017, 10:02 AM #7GOLD MEMBER
- Join Date
- Apr 2011
- Location
- McBride BC Canada
- Posts
- 3,543
Sure laminates are more modern as adhesives technology is catching up.
Big, old-growth is harder and harder to find and more and more confrontational to log off.
Up above me, there's stumps like table tops maybe from the 1920's???
I'd pay a fortune for boards from that.
Biggest cedar stump I've measured was 16' across.
A real reason is to make use of scrap. The public has a hissy fit with waste.
And, it's usually very highly figured, unlike bigger SPF pieces.
Take finger-joint for example. If you really needed a 2" x 4" timber, 1 kilometer long,
it can be very easily made from crap as short as 6". It comes out like toothpaste.
I made my 8' x 32" workbench top with 2x6 floating on a frame for the first year.
After that, as a general purpose bench, I guessed that the wood had dried and stopped moving.
So, it all got bolted down. I could have used screws but I guessed that I could shim the thing with washers
if I ever got fussy about flat.
-
19th October 2017, 01:01 PM #8SENIOR MEMBER
- Join Date
- Feb 2016
- Location
- Perth WA Australia
- Posts
- 828
Given that the boards are 3" thick, the liklihood of this happening is low, but with wider boards you can cause some cupping when you go to laminate them together.
Plus most jointers are in the 6/8" range so will be hard to get everything square, but if you're not fussed and just want something to work off it could work, either way you'll be spending a fair chunk of time flattening the top once its all glued together.
-
20th October 2017, 12:11 PM #9GOLD MEMBER
- Join Date
- Oct 2007
- Location
- vic clayton
- Posts
- 1,042
thanks for the replies, pretty much what I thought, regarding flattening I'll put each board through my 15" jointer then thicknesser clamping will be done with my frontlines so that eliminates pretty much any misalignment. the biggest issue I have is lack of time.
cheersSome people are like slinkies - not really good for anything, but they
bring a smile to your face when pushed down the stairs .
Similar Threads
-
Workbench questions?
By bubblegoose in forum THE WORK BENCHReplies: 3Last Post: 7th July 2016, 05:04 PM -
a few workbench questions
By jzfredricks in forum THE WORK BENCHReplies: 18Last Post: 9th April 2010, 08:21 PM -
questions for a workbench
By MatMann in forum THE WORK BENCHReplies: 2Last Post: 23rd October 2008, 11:54 PM -
workbench questions
By trueman in forum THE WORK BENCHReplies: 12Last Post: 1st March 2005, 07:45 AM -
Workbench Questions
By Steve_DownUnder in forum THE WORK BENCHReplies: 6Last Post: 17th May 2004, 03:49 PM