Iron Bark bench

[Jasethebeginner]

All

Some wisdom if you care to share.

I have the lumber from 2 Iron Barks drying in my back yard at the moment, they were felled in the front yard and I am keen to use it. The plan is to build a split top Roubo work bench. Currently I plan to use the trunk sections for the legs and stretchers, cutting the legs as large as I can get out of them. The trunks are devoid of heart wood thanks to various creepy crawlies that have since moved on. I was thinking I would fill the voids, if needed, with Iron Bark dowels. I was also thinking of using the larger branch pieces for the tops, laminated to get the required dimensions. That would mean leaving the heartwood in the branches.

My questions - Am I looking at this backwards should I be using the laminated branches for the legs etc and cutting the hollows out of the trunks and laminating them up for the tops?

Will leaving the heartwood in the branches cause any issues. Normally I would not be using heartwood if it can be avoided, but with the bits I have been playing with it dosent seem to be any different. Its Iron Bark after all.

Thanks

[orraloon]

Your clasic roubo bench has legs about 150mm square. Anything more than that is really not required. In ironbark that is going to be very heavy. As to branch wood its regarded as being difficult and of course leaving the pith in timber usually leads to cracking. How big are the bits of timber you have to work with and how long since it was felled. The best bet is laminate up the top from the straitest grained wood you have avoiding the pith. Even half a roubo top in ironbark will take some serious lifting so give some thought to how you will handle the build.
Regards
John

[Cgcc]

I have a bench with 90mm Merbau posts as legs (sold at Bunnings, was building without a bench). That is a tough and relatively dense wood - but not as tough as ironbark. In practice it feels about right.

I agree with the concern indicated by the previous poster about lifting. Australian hard hard woods are really dense. 150mm square for example would be crazily heavy - and remember you're going to need to flip this over.

[delbs]

After said heavy dense bench is built, has anyone encountered uneven floors for benches this heavy and did any find a particular type of threaded heavy duty feet for the bench? or just shims perhaps?

[Fuzzie]

After said heavy dense bench is built, has anyone encountered uneven floors for benches this heavy and did any find a particular type of threaded heavy duty feet for the bench? or just shims perhaps?

Mine was made form Ironbark reclaimed from joists and beams from an old pool deck renovation. The benchtop ended up weighing about 120+kg and impossible for a single person lift. The base is knockdown but each frame is still pretty heavy. I ended up having to hire an engine hoist to lift the top when I moved recently. The base needed shimming under one leg in the original shed, I just used 3 ply. It didn't need shimming in the new workshop. To shim a leg I used a medium size crow bar to jack the end up and slip a shim under the leg.

[Cgcc]

No threaded insert will be rigid enough. Rembert it's the lateral force that will wobble. Just jam shims / post-it notes / playing cards under

[Jasethebeginner]

Many thanks all

Yes it will be very heavy, I do however already have an engine crane and a couple of 1.5 ton trolley jacks courtesy of a 4WD project. With some careful thought and pre-planning I should be able to move the various bits as required. Once it is in place I don't think it will need to be moved more than annually (cyclones aside)

One of the trees was standing dead for approx 3 years and has been down in the yard for another year. When it was cut the dust/chips off the chainsaw were dry and I think I could start milling this one now. The other came down in a storm and has only been drying for a year, it has some time to go yet.

As for the branch material, anything that would mill smaller than about 80mm squareish when the sap wood is removed is to small I think. It would then be a puzzle getting the pieces fitted together for the best result after laminating.

A mate is having what he thinks is a large Iron Bark removed from his yard in the not to distant future. I will be asking if I can buy the trunk off him (he will most likely just chip it otherwise), this may negate the use of the branches I have but would delay the project while it dries. I think an experimental bench top may be made to see how it goes.

Thanks again

[riverbuilder]

I think this may top mine as the heaviest bench in human history :U
Even with hollow legs and wheels, mine still weighs 148 kgs. This ironbark one will certainly top that. Keen to see how it comes out.

[Jasethebeginner]

I did some rough calcs and came in at approx 220kg, before a shelf, vices etc was added. I am revising my design somewhat. It is still going to hefty

[BobL]

If you're going to chainsaw mill it, make sure you remove the bark before milling. The bark collects grit/dust and will quickly blunt chain.
I still have most of the slabs I milled from a log back in 2011.
Was also thinking of making a bunch from it.
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