Workbench rescue

[trainingwheels]

Hi Guys,
I have a story to tell of an octogenarian who had to sell up his home and move to his family in QLD.His old bench was too darn bulky and heavy to pull apart and take with him so he left it in the garage for the new owners of his house. They moved in and promptly moved it out to my mechanics for some godforsaken reason.

One day I wondered in and saw this workbench sitting amongst the discarded engines and the oil drums. I admired the dovetails in the corners and the vices at either end.It was solid and heavy as. The next time i came past I saw that the mechanic was using it as a workbench to hold car parts and oil rags as he rebuilt a car next to it. I thought what an inglorious end for an old bench.

Some time later I drove past and saw the old bench sitting uncovered outside the workshop amongst car wrecks and scrap engines. Storm clouds were brewing and I thought that the old bench would not last long exposed to the elements.I fronted the mechanic and asked it I could have the old thing because I liked the way it was built and I need one for the garage. I nearly fell over when he said yes.It was going on Ebay anyway and I might as well get some use out of it.Scooore. So I borrowed a trailer and got the old thing loaded.Luckily the top came off the leg base bit I nearly gave myself a hernia and busted my poofoof valve getting it on.

The same week my Dad gave me his old workbench that was his father's before him. So I have gone from no bench to two. Luckily, 'She who must be obeyed ' tolerates me collecting this stuiff and I was allowed redesign the garage to fit them in. They are both in and set up now and they appear made for each other.I still have alot of tinkering to do to sort tools and have a place for everything but I am getting there.

The old bench is 1910mm long, 770mm deep with a 80mm thick top. It stands 820mm off the ground. The top rests on a square frame.There are two pieces of dowel affixed to the underside of the table top and they slot into holes in the support arms at either end. There are holes in the underside of the table that don;t go all the way through so I am assuming that screws or bolts also anchor the top. The work area is 425mm deep with evenly spaced square holes along the front edge.There are two well worn timber 'rods' that fit the holes and they are obviously some sort of support for the item being worked on

There are two vices on the table. The one at the right end measures 535mm long and 300 deep in the shape of a reversed 'L' . There are some beautiful dovetails in the front edge of the vice. The right hand vice does not move in and out for the time being because the guide collar for the rod of the vice has been unscrewed.Easily fixed. There are three holes in the vice section so a metal vice was once secured over it.

The original front vice at the left end of the bench appears to have been removed by a neanderthal vandal who subscribed to the bust rip tear method of doing things.Instead of studying how it came apart they took to it by ripping off the bottom support panel for the winder and timber guides.I now have a broken section that fits perfectly back in place and I hope I can clamp and screw back in place? CAREFULLY. I also have a length of timber that obviously goes on the underside of the table but do you think I can determine where it went and what it does.? Time will tell. The same vandal also sanded/stripped back the back wall of the sunken storage compartment that runs the rear of the bench top.I have no idea how to restore that back to original if at all.

I think that is all for now.I will try and add some photos.More can follow if you are interested?
Regards
Rob (TW)

[BozInOz]

Well I'll definately be following this thread.
I'm not envious however of the task ahead of you, you have an adventure ahead of you.

[artme]

Mate!! That is a find!!!

Lots of work but what the heck? Will be watching the progress.

[trainingwheels]

Thanks BozInOz and artme for your comments. I have added more photos.I see that I doubled up on one photo in the original post.D'oh. I am not sure if I should do a post in the restoration forum on here too or is that frowned on:?. Anyway, enjoy.
Regards
TW

[Farm boy]

Hi TW
my bench came from a workshop as they were throwing it out
i used a belt sander to clean my wood back,it was vicious but did a good job as it was covered in red lead paint
good luck with the restoration it looks a beauty
if you are up in lake macquarie look us up and i will show you my bench
greg

[trainingwheels]

Hi Greg,
Thanks for you input.Appreciate it.I am in two minds about what to do with the bench.Do I refinish it by sanding it back and getting rid of what I suspect is paint or do I just fix what is broken or cracked and let the finish that is on the timber continue to exist? Hard one to decide.Why not post some photos of your bench on here? I am down at Wadalba near Wyong.
Regards
Rob (TW)

[BobL]

I guess it depends what you want the finished piece to look like but personally wouldn't use a belt sander on that bench unless you can completely take it apart. A belt sanded piece always looks like a band sanded piece. A belt sander cannot get into all of the inside angles and if applied even a little too vigorously will leave a slight step around inside angles etc.

I reckon just hand sand it down to start with. It is probably coated in linseed oil which can be partially removed with steel wool and metho. Then see what it looks like.

Anyway, it's a beaut piece and good luck with whatever you decide.

[chippy 71]

Thanks BozInOz and artme for your comments. I have added more photos.I see that I doubled up on one photo in the original post.D'oh. I am not sure if I should do a post in the restoration forum on here too or is that frowned on:?. Anyway, enjoy.
Regards
TW
----------------------------

I wonder what that back rail at the bottom that looks like a handle is for and if it is a handle, why none at the front?????

It appears to be at both ends too.

Colin.

[trainingwheels]

Hi BobL & Chippy 71,
Thanks for your input. Bob, I don't think I want to transform it into anything too fancy if at all. I like the way it looks and the genuine well used appearance it has.I think painting it would detract from the appearance of the timber? So I am leaning towards a) cleaning the leg and shelf section beneath it to a degree that i can add a coat of something that is going to preserve and protect it from deteriorating any further without hiding too much and b) doing something I know not what to the top that will feed the timber and protect the beautiful (I think) joinery.I do not want to remove the oils and stains already on it because they add character. I took on board FarmBoys opinion about the sander but I don't trust myself on one because as you said I could and would stuff it up and and sand badly. Guarantee it :). I will have to research what liquid I could use that will feed the top timber and preserve it by being tough and hard wearing.From what I gather Linseed oil is too soft and not hard wearing enough?.My father in law suggested a coat of used engine oil on the section that the vandal sanded off to protect it.Not to sure about that tho. I am wondering if sugar soap would be effective enough to clean the legs with a cloth and minimal water?
Chippy 71 thanks for your observation.It is a strange set up isn't it? Three of the 4 legs have the rail of the shelf poking through and chocked.The front right has a bolt only.I can only assume it was purpose built that way for a reason? Possibly where it was originally didn't have room for the rail and chock to protrude or it is a locking system to help with the sway or the expansion/contraction of the leg system? The right rear chock is disintegrating but at least I have enough left for a template.

I have to tip the top section upside down and have a go at reattaching the vandalized vice mounting guides.Hoepfully they have left enough evidence on how it went together.
Stay tuned:2tsup:
Thanks again
Rob (TW)

[BobL]

Hi BobL & Chippy 71,
Thanks for your input. Bob, I don't think I want to transform it into anything too fancy if at all. I like the way it looks and the genuine well used appearance it has.I think painting it would detract from the appearance of the timber? So I am leaning towards a) cleaning the leg and shelf section beneath it to a degree that i can add a coat of something that is going to preserve and protect it from deteriorating any further without hiding too much and b) doing something I know not what to the top that will feed the timber and protect the beautiful (I think) joinery.I do not want to remove the oils and stains already on it because they add character. I took on board FarmBoys opinion about the sander but I don't trust myself on one because as you said I could and would stuff it up and and sand badly. Guarantee it :). I will have to research what liquid I could use that will feed the top timber and preserve it by being tough and hard wearing.From what I gather Linseed oil is too soft and not hard wearing enough?.My father in law suggested a coat of used engine oil on the section that the vandal sanded off to protect it.Not to sure about that tho.
Nooooooo - Used engine oil is horrible stuff and the only place for it today is to be sent back for recycling and it won't do anything for the wood that Linseed oil won't do. Unless you go to a two pack epoxy of some kind, then nothing will be hardwearing - you have to accept that a bench will ding and dent and live with it.


I am wondering if sugar soap would be effective enough to clean the legswith a cloth and minimal water?
I would not be worried about using plenty of water - the wood will dry out fine. Sugar soap will be OK but won't get out the deeply absorbed stuff.

[trainingwheels]

Thanks Bob.{grin} No, I will NOT be defiling the bench with engine oil.The only place I know for that stuff is fence posts or telegraph poles. SHMBO would kill me because of the stench.
I will use sugar soap to take the top layer of new grime off the stand but I will not be putting too much elbow grease into it.What is there can stay there after that token clean.I will leave the top well enough alone. Doing what you suggest I will not worry too much about a hard wearing coat, if it survived this long without one then it can continue as it is.
Thanks
Rob

[BobL]

Sounds good. You can always get a bit more aggressive with it later if you want to.

[trainingwheels]

Hi Guys,
I have started tinkering with the bench this weekend.While I had the top off working on it, i gave the bottom supports and shelf a clean with sugar soap and warm water.Nothing to drastic and no harsh abrasive scrubbing.It came up well and a good look over it found only the obvious cracking on the bottom leg and the termite munching on the back rail chock.

I turned my attention to the underside of the bench and looked for structural damage or weakness. None.Solid as.The two pieces of timber were found to belong to the front rail.The smaller broken piece fitted in behind the main front rail.I put it back in place, checked how it went before I glued and clamped.After a few hours I secured it with nails.

The thicker piece attached to it was obviously a runner of some sort.According to an imprint on the timber it had a parallel brother and they were anchored to a length of timber extending along the back of the bench. Obviously the bench top had a shallow drawer(s) and judging by the way it was built I would say that they were added later because the carpentry looked like an add on and not part of the original structure.If I find the rest of the drawer system (which I highly doubt) i will add some load bearing screws to the broken front support and slot the runners back in.

The bench top was as solid as when it was built.Some solid carpentry went into the design. The extra piece of shaped timber I had was obviously the support for the front vice..It was an intricate design of chiseled channels for the vices' worm drive? and timber guides. There was even channels through it for the dog holes. However the down side was that all the channels made it weak and when the securing plate for the worm drive was bolted to the inside of the support it cracked.There was just too little timber between the circular hole and a dog channel for the bolt/screw to go in to. Design was good but lacked follow through. Which leaves me to fix the problem somehow.

I am toying with the idea to secure a small flat piece of timber to the inside surface of the support.It will not interfere with either the dog holes or the timber guide rails for the vice.I will have to drill out the circular hole for the worm drive bit I can use the existing hole as a template.The securing plate for the worm drive can then be screwed to the new timber and get strength from it without relying on the damaged original mount. The original mount will have to be properly fixed back together using screws so that it is load bearing.I will have to be a genius to map out where I am going to place each screw so that I can attach the new timber without conflict. Failing that I will have to remake the original mount with the dog holes and guides.Ouch!!!:C. A last resort thing I think because it will just end up with the dame design failings.

For now it is glued in place from last night and I will pull it off shortly to get to work.

Here are some photos to explain what I was talking about.Enjoy and feel free to add some CC.

[arose62]

Maybe the front right leg has a bolt so that there are no clearance problems if you hold a long workpiece in the tail vice (L-shaped one) and it hangs down.

Another Central Coastie!

Cheers,
Andrew

[trainingwheels]

Hi Andrew,
Well done:) Why didn't I see that? D'oh.Obvious now.Probably because I have to get the vice up and running before I can use it to have that problem and see the blindingly obvious.
Thanks for the answer Andrew.You can see how I chose my nickname? They don't let me near sharp tools either.:U
Regards
Rob (TW)

[trainingwheels]

Hi Guys,
Thought I would update my progress.I went into the garage last night to clean up and ended up tinkering around with the bench.What a sweet way to see in New Years:). Luckily the neighbours could not hear the hammering and the sawing over the fireworks so all was good.

As you can see I was up to trying to fix the mounting for the front vice. The mounting block containing the guide holes for the vice had split.Not only did the mounting block contain the guide holes but also the vertical dog holes. The builder had made an intricate design but he had also made a thin and faulty design. He had used thick brass screws that were not only too short but were too thick and the timber had split. After the glue had set I removed the screws and added less intrusive screws that went all the way without straining the timber.

I saw that the collar designed to hold the worm drive was supposed to be fixed to the rear of the front rail.The previous attempt to mount the collar had split the timber between the circular hole for the worm drive and the right hand vice guide.The other mounting hole for the collar had to be placed over one of the dog holes and had obviously never been done.Once the timber had cracked the collar came loose and the vice was never used again.

With all the channels and holes in the mounting plate there was minimal room for screws.One screw would interfere with the path of another. I wanted to ensure that the collar was properly mounted as it was designed to do with two screws but the dog hole made it impossible. I decided that a 'thin' template had to go over the inside surface of the block to mirror what was there without interfering with either the vice guide rails or the dog holes. After scrounging through my 'never throw away and bits of timber' pile I ended up cutting out a template from a scrap of plywood sheet.Not pretty but at least the screws wouldn't split it. After much measuring and test fitting I got the template to fit snugly over the cracked block AND pass over the dog hole.effectively creating a usable chamber

The template was tacked in place and a circular hole for the worm drive was traced through from the front through the original hole so that it mirrored the original hole exactly. Off yet again came the template and the hole was drilled through the ply.By the end I was cursing the difficult and fiddly bit of timber I was trying to clamp.

It was mounted again and tacked.The vice was fitted and the collar was test screwed into place. The left screw in the collar was thicker and longer because there was more timber beneath the ply and I am hoping that the play will take most of the strain.A short screw the thickness of the play was used on for the right collar hole.Again hopefully the ply will take the strain.

I waxed up the vice rails and channels and test wound the vice in and out to see if anything popped.So far it is holding.I have added more screws to the template and now that I know where the mounting screws have gone I have been able to add more screws to keep the mounting block more secure and intact.Time will tell:2tsup:

Sorry for the long winded story but I am trying to put back together a jigsaw puzzle in my head.

Thanks for your interest:D
Regards
TW

[BozInOz]

any progress?

[rhancock]

The wedges in the through tenons would have been designed to allow the bench to be knocked down if required, I think, especially with the dowels holding in the top. They'd also allow the rails to be tightened up when required.

I think Andrew is right about the third leg being bolted to allow for clearance.

Its a great find, you're a very lucky man!