New Bench

[TommyC]

Gday all,

I started work on my new bench on the weekend. Ripped up some Blackbutt into strips and laminated it back together to form the worktop slab. Ended up being 12 1/4" x 1 5/8" x 60" (im building it in imperial)
Sanded the slab flat and smooth. Very dusty in the shed last night!!!

Next step is to make up the section for the tail vice and dog holes....

TC

[scooter]

Good onya Tom, good to get started on something, innit?

Wot about some pics mate? Bit of a pain to do (when you're rattling along making progress you don't want to stop to take pics) but is good to record your journey and share it with yer brothers.


Cheers mate...............Sean

[TommyC]

Shall do scooter. How was the Barbie?

[scooter]

Great, Tom we all had good fun, food, & fellowship :D

More Fs than me honeymoon :p


Cheers................Sean

[TommyC]

some pictures of stage 1 of my new bench. And one of my current bench, so you can see why i need a new one. The dog is just there for his good looks.

[BrettC]

Tom,

Can see why you want the new bench, should be good - keep the pics up.
What are you going to use for the joinery? M&T? Do you intend to build a cabinet to go under the bench?

Looks like you're gunna have a nice top to go on it.

Cheers.

[TommyC]

Joinery will be a bit of a mixture, including Mortice and Tenon, Finger joints, loose splines, and plain old nuts'n'bolts. I'm following a plan in a book i just bought, and as is my usual way, i try to follow along as closely as possible to the detail in the drawings.

[TommyC]

have spent a bit more time on the bench since last post, made up the section of the top with the dog holes, and some other bits. Today was an absolute bugger, I made a stooopid mistake. I was in the process of joining two parts together, both of which had taken quite a bit of effort to prepare, and i glued them wrong way round. i realised this after a serious glue up, with about 12 clamps, and the usual swearin and sweatin. Had to pull the mongrel apart, re glue it and start again, only to find that it wasnt quite right anyway. GRRRR. mornig wasted.

[TommyC]

Redid saturday's stuffup. Much better to tackle these things with a clear head. Took my time, laid everything out and checked it BEFORE I opened the glue bottle. Laid out my clamps and dry fit it first. fit together nicely and took about 1/2 an hour. What an amazing difference in quality of work when your not putting yourself under stress!!

[TommyC]

Well, so much for the progress shots, but i have now finished building my bench. I followed plans from a woodworking book, and am very pleased with the result. In the 24 hours since its been finished, i have cut and fitted a niezentite mortice and tenon joint all with hand tools (not my normal method) and stabbed myself with a chisel, not serious.

[McFly]

Nice work Tommy. It's looking sweet.:2tsup:

I see your helper is the same as mine. :D What's his name?

I'm also building a bench, similar to yours except with a large metal tail vice and 2 rows of dog holes. You must be pretty stoked to have finished. I know I will be when mines all done.

[Auld Bassoon]

Excellent bench Tommy; you must be very happy with it :)

[TommyC]

Thanks McFly,

Helper is Charlie, and is only an occasional helper. He was having a holiday at our house at the time that picture was taken. Its a dogs life.

[TommyC]

Thanks Auld. I saw you posted some pics of a new bench yourself not so long ago, what a difference a solid bench makes, dont you think?

[johnc]

Impressive effort, and you are quite right a sturdy bench does make life a bit easier. Out of interest which book did you take the plans from? it doesn't look unlike one of the Lee Valley plans, or the workbench book for that matter.

Cheers, John.

[TommyC]

The plans were from one of the Time Life Custom Woodworking series (The Home Workshop). American Book. I have seen quite a few similar benches around too.

[Harry72]

Looks good Tommy!

[scooter]

Looks great, mate :)

[Wongo]

Beautiful workbench. I don't know how I could miss it.

[Tex79]

Great bench. I can only dream of the day I have the room for a nice bench like that, enjoy. :U

[TommyC]

Thanks blokes.

[Dan]

I believe that vice on the end is called a Wagon Vice (http://www.woodworking-magazine.com/blog/Wagon+Vise+Version+40.aspx). What I'm interrested in is how the moving piece is guided?

[TommyC]

dan, the tail vice is a block with a groove cut into either side. Once the grooves are cut, I ripped the vice block in half, separating top from bottom, across the grooves. The top and bottom of the block are then fitted into the space in the benchtop, and screwed back together aroiund two keys (15mm x 15mm in section, one either side). The vice screw then activates the vice in and out.

[BobR]

I could do with a nice new bench like that. You won't know yourself after the old one. Great work.