Thread: Bench build way overdue

Hi Swifty. Looks great and clever wedge design for your stretchers. Cant wait to see more photos!

This sure isn't going to be "just another bench build", its going to be special

With the cooling temperatures in Perth it has meant better quality time in the shed. SWMBO gave me a job making a kitchen shelf for her, so a little delay in advancing with the bench. But I have managed to straighten out the planks for the bench top, in the end I used a 2.7 meter straight edge and a 7" circular saw to trim the edges flat and square. Ughh, horrible noisy dusty job it was too, I didn't enjoy that part at all! Look at that mess! Anyway, I now have seven flat edges that I can use to rip on the table saw prior to gluing up the top. They're standing on edge in the photos below, ultimately they will be probably 48 mm thick, which will be enough for me.

I have now ripped all the boards for the top and glued together. I started to plane the top surface, but I doubted my ability to completely flatten it using hand planes and winding sticks alone (more like fiddlesticks in my case, I thought to myself...). Maybe I'll get there one day. As a flat reference surface is the most important aspect of a bench, why bother to make one if it won't be flat? So I rigged up a stainless steel square section frame and made a sled for the router, and used a 50mm surface planing bit in my router and proceeded to flatten. It worked quite well, there were a few minor ridges between the passes which easily sanded out using 80 grit in a ROS. I ended up with a truly flat bench top! And a dusty mess everywhere in the workshop, so although successful it wasn't particularly enjoyable, but never mind. The final thickness was a smidgen over 45 mm, so just "qualifying" for the 1 3/4" class suitable for bench dogs.

Next up is to do the end caps and apron, and attach the tail and front vices.

The end cap for the tail vise is fixed via a tongue and groove, and fixed with two cylinder bolts. The apron has had its dovetails cut and the Veritas twin-screw tail vise has had its initial install. The end is in sight now, just a bit more joinery, other end cap and attaching the quick-release front vise to go, then drill the dog holes and then a final coat of BLO.

Nice Ive just Installed the Veritas Twin Vice also and Love it I pushed mine out to maximum length and love the Versatility it brings to the Bench got to say I neally lost the locking clip on the chain 2-3 times before she snapped into place! Fun huh

Yes Lou I like the veritas vise, can't wait to put it to proper use!

Meantime I have completed the pins for the half-blind dovetail at the Tail Vise end of the bench. A reasonable fit, the view from above shows I need to take a bit more off the inside of the inside of the dovetails - 3/16" ought to do it - to get the apron flush with the side of the top. I thought that would be easier than deepening the gaps between the pins, and I really don't want to take the end cap off again, it can stay there forever now.

The other end cap and apron were fitted, and then the dog holes were drilled. The quick-release front vise was installed, in the photo the top has been turned upside down to do this. The top is screwed on to the tressels. The whole thing has been given BLO + turps finish. All that was left to do was turn the crank for the front vise, which I did using blackwood. I am hopeful this bench will help me a lot, and it is a big improvement on what I had previously. I can't believe I took so long to make one. Just need to reorganize the shed now...or maybe get ready for my next project, Building My New Shed! Thanks for reading,

Cheers
Swifty

That's a very nice bench Swifty, it will repay the effort many times over.

Swifty,

That NG Rosewood looks a real treat! You lucky ducky!

Cheers,
Siggy