Thread: First Bench Advice

Anything is feasible, it's what's practical that counts.....

Given your limited experience & tool kit, I think it's sensible to keep your first bench as simple as you can - they don't have to be elaborate to be very useful. Go for weight & a well-braced form of construction. I would build the top & the undercarriage as separate units that can be dismantled rather than as one fixed unit. You could use a single large, wide chunk of cheap hardwood for the front section of the bench top, and mdf or something cheap & cheerful for the rest. This gives you a solid area to attach vises & various holding aids where you do all the heavy work - most of the remainder of a bench top is only there to accumulate clutter. Keeping your first bench strictly utilitarian has the advantage that you can rearrange it at whim, drill holes in it for holding devices, chop into it with chisels, hit it with saws or routers, and not worry a bit if you damage it. Down the track you'll know much better what you really want from a bench and also have the improved skills & probably better gear to make something to brag about.

The heavier the better is a good maxim for benches, but remember that sooner or later you'll need to move it. You'll find it a whole lot easier to do if it packs down into manageable chunks.

cheers,

Hi,
If the bench is to live outside then I would avoid plywood. I would be making it as weather resistant as possable. That more or less rules out a laminated top also. The top can be seperate planks screwed down with a small space between each to allow for movement. Recess the screw heads a bit and use gal hardware throughout. I would even look at treated pine if you can get old dry stuff. Check out this bench build for a general idea.
Building a Workbench - with Paul Sellers - YouTube

Regards
John

Good Morning Woolybugger

Think of your first bench as a learning project - your ideas will change over time, and your skills and aspirations will increase.

An open carport - direct/indirect sunshine, rain, humidity changes -is a very hostile environment for anything wooden, and metal components such as vices. They will degrade and warp.

I had the same problem at a previous house that did not have a real shed or even a carport; the only real storage facility was a disconnected outside loo - about 1 x 2 metres - but it had a door and was waterproof.

I got a cheap hand trolley and built a cupboard on it for tool storage. I worked on a rear verandah and each night I simply packed up my tools and wheeled them into the loo. For a work bench I got a solid core flush door and sat it on a pair of saw horses, plus I bought a pair of Zyllis vices (marvellous things). For planing, I just sat or kneeled on the "door bench" - very stable! Later I supplemented this with a pair of B&D Workmates. No dogholes, so I just screwed cleats onto the "door bench" - when it got a little dilappidated just got another door. This stuff also lived in the loo.

When I moved to my current house over 20 years ago I wondered how I would ever use so much space as my 15 x 25 foot shed. Now it is too small!




Fair Winds

Graeme

I still have my door and sawhorses for when I have to set up away from home.
Regards
John

Thanks for the advice guys. The carport has a back wall & is up against the fence, so it would not get any rain on it & I intend to keep it covered with a tarp when not in use.
Am I wrong, but I thought ply ( I was thinking of using marine for the top) would be more stable than MDF. When I have had sheets of MDF & ply sitting around the MDF seems to bend more than the ply.
Bunnings have 90 x 90 DAR laminated Merbau posts available, which I was thinking I could use for the legs. Although it would cost around $100, it would save a lot of time. Has anyone used these for bench legs or see a problem with them?
Can anyone recommend somewhere in Sydney (I am near Liverpool) to get the timber for the bench?

Originally Posted by 62woollybugger

Am I wrong, but I thought ply ( I was thinking of using marine for the top) would be more stable than MDF. When I have had sheets of MDF & ply sitting around the MDF seems to bend more than the ply.
Bunnings have 90 x 90 DAR laminated Merbau posts available, which I was thinking I could use for the legs. Although it would cost around $100, it would save a lot of time. Has anyone used these for bench legs or see a problem with them?

Wb, I would think marine ply is superior to MDF in many respects, especially water resistance. I guess people were thinking of cost (?). There's so much old hardwood chucked out every day, it seems a shame to have to buy bench wood, but you have to be in the right place at the right time, I suppose. It's also hard yakka cleaning it up without access to appropriate machinery.

I've used Merbau for bench parts and it's fine - easier to work with than Ironbark or Spotted Gum! Takes an excellent thread, too, if you ever wanted a traditional wood-screw leg vise!

Cheers,

This is a quickie, knocked up in a morning. It was meant for setting up basses but gets used for everything.Australian/New Zealand Luthiers Forum • View topic - Small Bench

I made a quickie "torsion box" bench with green shed materials. Surprisingly effective — zero thought, zero effort, very rigid, not insanely heavy. I put it together with milk crates for sawhorses, circ. saw, glue, nails & screws.

Materials:
7x 2400 90*45 (for box frames)
2x 2400*1200 sheets 12mm ply (for box covers)
4x Whatever you want for legs, I just laminated 2 90*45s together to make 90*90 posts. Choose your height.

Get the green shed fellows to rip the ply longways into 4x 2400 * 600 sheets.

Method:
You're making 2 boxes, both 2400*600. One is bench top, other is shelf/support.

Cut 1 of the 2400*90*45 into 4 pieces, 600 long each.

Cut 90mm off the other 6 2400-long pieces.

Crude end-join 2 box frames, with the 600 lengths on the ends, and 3x 2310 stretchers running in between (2 on outside, 1 in middle). I just screwed these together. You now have 2 2400 * 600 frames.

Cut corners out of 3 layers of the ply for the legs to go through. Measurement is ((leg dimensions) - 45). Leave one sheet whole for the work surface.

Glue & nail the ply to the frames, leaving you with one box with the bottom corners open, and one box with corner holes all the way through.

Stick the legs through the holes. Glue & screw.

Workbench complete.

(You could subsequently drill dog-holes into the surface if required; fixing a vice would be a touch trickier as there is no skirt on the torsion box).

Now you can use this workbench to plan & make your real, non-ghetto workbench! At least, that's what I'm doing

Edit: Obviously, the most important piece of equipment in this build is a set square — make sure your frames & legs are straight!!

no signal, how about some photos.

Hi Woolly,

I've been building my bench for a while now and have waded through a fair tranche of the available literature on design, configuration and hardware in the process. It's worth combing the Popular Woodworking and Wood Whisperer websites for design ideas. Chris Schwarz's books are extremely useful too, although the designs are involved if you are not properly tooled up.

This has only come out recently and could be very useful to you:

Build a Sturdy Workbench in Two Days with Christopher Schwarz | ShopWoodworking

It uses laminated Ikea countertops and a relatively straightforward frame to great effect. It's intended as a quick & highly practical build and would suit the hand and power tool user well.

First bench is definitely a learning experience and you'll get loads out of it if you do construct it yourself.

Cheers,

I wouldn't use the Beech IKEA bench top in SEQ! I fitted an Ikea kitchen a few years ago just before Brisbane flooded the first time. It didn't flood here but the wet weather caused the laminations to move every way possible. The longest sticks are about 500-600mm butted ends. IKEA stood by the bench and gave my mate full credit towards Granite tops.