My obligatory workbench build thread

[michael_m]

Thanks John,

your bench was one of the ones that convinced me that pine was a viable wood to make the top from.

That, and I couldn't afford much else.

[michael_m]

Let me share one of mine with you.

Yesterday, after finishing getting the top pretty much flat (there are a few bits that are a little low, but they aren't in vital spots and can wait for the final flattening), I set about installing the first of the three vises that are going to go on the bench. On the front section, I'm having an L-shaped tail vise and a leg vise, and on the back section I'm putting an end vise - an old Dawn No. 7.

The Dawn is the one I started on first (because I'll need it to build the leg and L vises, but don't need any vises to install it).

But before I did all that, my wife had bought some bar stools from Ikea, and there were boxes to dispose of. My #2 helper had other ideas, so they became a fearsome dinosaur, which happily disposed of half the morning.

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First step after navigating the Mesozoic was to put a groove in the underside of the front to take a sliding deadman if I decide I need one. I may not, but it's a lot easier to put the groove in now than try to do it once the bench is completed. With a chisel and a Record 044 plough plane, it was straightforward and fairly fun.

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I also took the opportunity to square up the front edge of the slab with the flattened top.

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Then it was on to even up the ends of the tops, as I had left them long and uneven. My little circular saw has only 65mm depth of cut, so I had to finish off with a handsaw. Frankly, I think the saw along would do a better job, and I'll probably just use that for the other end when I get to it. Below, I have cleaned up the back section with my trusty WS A78 plane (which I am in love with - it's been so useful in making the base and doing all the fiddly stuff. It's also been very good on endgrain, better than my block plane), but the front is still untouched.

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Next, I cut out a recess to take the vise and chiselled out some slots to take the webbing of the backplate.

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(As a side note, this project has taught me how to sharpen quickly, consistently and effectively. My deforested forearms - and the ability to keep planing, slicing and chopping - are due to working out how to freehand sharpen. It's only taken me four years, and only needed me to watch Paul Seller's videos a dozen times. It has also made me pull out any number of old chisels that I bought in a job lot of 20 for $50 on ebay a few years ago, and never got round to using. The chisel above is one of those, and is my only 1/4 chisel. Good thing I have it, because I needed it, and it only took 5 minutes to reshape the bevel, sharpen and get to it.)

Then, with the base attached, the front of the vise went on, and voila! (or other stringed instrument of your choice), we have a vise!

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As you can see, I finished putting the vise on at about 8:30 last night, so after a little happy dance I came inside and left adding jaws for today.

[michael_m]

Today I had one aim only, to add wooden jaws to the Dawn Vise. My only problem was, I had no idea what wood I had that I could use. I wanted to use hardwood, rather than pine, so it was off to my wood storage.

I found a length of unidentified 19mm DAR hardwood which suited just fine for the fixed jaw. It is definitely hard wood. I needed to recess it a bit, and it took a deal of effort to pare away the 3mm or so of wood needed to fit it flush over the backpiece of the vise.

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The little piece of blue tape is my ol' faithful clamping system to fix break-out on the edges of the various bits of bench. a little bit of glue, the broken off shard in the right place, a bit of painter's tape and half an hour later, you'd never know I'd clumsily broken yet another bit of the top. Or the legs. Or the stretchers, or....

The moving jaw, I made from a bit of the timber framing from the house, that I'd saved from putting a BIR into the girl's room last year.

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Rough-sawn, cornice cement, not square, a nail sticking out of it. Its redeeming features are that it was there, it was the right size, undeniably a hard wood (some eucalypt, no idea which) and was thick enough to take holes for bench dogs.

So, I sawed it to length, planed it down (not that difficult) and by putting it in the jaws and tightening, worked out the correct angle to plane its face to get a proper close at the top when tight.

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And there it is. I have some leather coming in the next week or so from ebay that I'll use to line the jaws, and I may get around to chamfering the edges, but unless it needs alteration, that's it done. It opens to about 18cm (actually a bit more, as I'll explain below).

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Actually, there was one more thing to do, drill out the dog holes in the moving jaw. I did it with a bit and brace and all I can say is that I'm very glad the top is made out of pine and not hardwood, as I don't think my poor arms could cope with the strain.

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I haven't got around to making any bench dogs yet, so for proof of principle, I just grabbed a couple from my workmate to try. The idea behind the double dogs is so that I can use them to clamp bowls and irregular objects. I had an unfortunate slip in December trying to hold a bowl in one hand and use a chisel with the other (resulting in a trip to the hospital and a date with some fizzy blue glue), so I want some way to carve and attack them more safely.

The dogs got almost immediate use as I started on the next vise, the leg vise. As you can see, the split top showed its true colours and let me use the vise as a benchook, with the saw going down the middle between the benches.

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#2 helper was taking an interest in proceedings and comandeered the camera to take another shot of me in action.

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Then, with two lengths cut, I planed them flat and glued them together.

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And there they sit, waiting for me to come and unclamp them and turn them into a leg vise.

Now that's what I call a Good Friday.

[michael_m]

...look away now. I hadn't used my tablesaw for this build yet, but decided it was the best tool for trimming the ends of the chop square and level.

Actually, I hadn't used it for anything for the last 6 months; any through cutting has mostly been done by hand or on the bandsaw, and I'm preferring planes and chisels these days for non-through cuts. So it has just been used as a handy repository for any tools or miscellania I may have been using at the time. For those who think the tablesaw is the most important machine in the woodshop, you might wish to avert your eyes.

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Well, you were warned . Somewhere buried under there is a tablesaw and crosscut sled. It took me almost 15 minutes to clean up, and then less than a minute to cut the ends of the chop.

The split top came in handy again, to put the screw into the chop (I drilled the hole with the drill press, rather than a brace - I figured the accuracy was slightly more critical than elsewhere). I cunningly drilled a 30mm hole, just slightly larger than the screw diameter. This worked great vertically, but led to lots of problems later as the screw has a lot of slop in its garter. So I eventually redrilled to 35mm which made life easier.

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Then I placed the screw nut on to the leg and guide bar on to the chop, marked, drilled and screwed.

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The parallel guide bar I am taking from the 100th issue of Australian Woodsmith, where they used threaded rod rather than the more traditional wooden rail and pin. I liked the look of it but no idea if it would work or not. No matter, it was about $12 worth of materials, and it will be easy enough for me to retrofit the standard guide if I need to later down the track.

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Some modifications I decided on was to put a metal sleeve inside the leg for the threaded rod to rub on. I used a bit of plumbing pipe cut to length (note the use of the end vise )

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and hammered it home. Eased it in, and screwed it home.

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I was a little dismayed initially at how hard it was to turn the screw and thought I had stuffed up somewhere. I had, insofar as I had not accounted for the slop in the screw, and had too-tight a tolerance in the leg hole for the vertical and lateral movement of the screw in its garter. So, a bit of work with the rasp and that was taken care of. Then, my other brainwave was to use a handle, rather than the handle hole only to turn the screw. It was still a bit jerky, but the parallel guide helped a bit, lifting it a bit when it was fully extended also helped and it became acceptable for use. And a lot better than when I started. But I still went to bed that night not entirely happy with it or myself.

The next day I set about finishing the leg vise, starting with the stop for the parallel guide. In the Woodsmith article, they used a knurled wheel that you can purchase from them. Well, I had no desire to do that, or to wait in any event, so I made myself a foot wheel out of a nut and some plywood. I also wanted to make it big enough to be manipulated by foot alone, so I wouldn't have to bend down to set/reset it.

Ably assisted by a very excited helper #3wb 57.JPG I marked out with a compass the circle and drill points,wb 56.JPG then drilled around the edge of the circle

wb 58.JPG, before taking it to the circle-cutting jig on the bandsaw wb 59.JPG. Then, I drilled and chiselled a tight hole for the nut and persuaded it home. A quick test fit on the threaded rod, and all was good.

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Then, assisted by my ever-ready helper #3, it was time to shape the vise chop.
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This was not something that came to me in a dream, but from hours of looking at different designs on the internet and drawing, redrawing, erasing and drawing again detailed plans.

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In the Woodsmith plans, they used a cap nut on the end of the parallel rod. Neither Bunnings or Masters had one in 3/4 inch, so I decided to make a wooden decorative boss to cover a normal nut. 5 minutes on the lathe with a bit of pine offcut (of which I have a surprisingly large amount) and a splash of spraypaint later, I had my boss.

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While it was drying, I sanded and sprayed all the other hardware the same colour. It is a similar colour to the Dawn Vise paint, so hopefully will provide a bit of continuity to the look of the bench.wb 63.JPG

Before assembling the vise, I turned the screw nut around and rebated it into the leg, getting it closer to the garter, and making the leg move more smoothly again. That, combined with the weight I had removed in shaping the vise, make it run smoothly enough for me to be very happy with its action.

We had family over for Easter Sunday, so most of my afternoon was taken in socialising and enjoying the company of others . I came out after dinner and the kids were in bed and put the vise together. And here it is.


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The foot wheel works like a dream. I'm really glad I went for that as a design feature. It spins freely, tightens snugly with no slippage and works equally well in bare feet , thongs and gumboots . The movement of the screw is now good. I'm sure it could be better, but for a $40 screw, it's pretty good and more than fine for me. When I put a handle on it, I'm sure it will feel even better.

But, being a vise, how does it go holding things? The answer is, very well. It holds. and holds. And holds some more. In fact, it does all that a vise is meant to do. The wood didn't move when I planed it. With a bit more tightening, it didn't move when I thumped on it with a mallet, or when I put a longer piece in and hung off the end.

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All it needs is a handle and some leather (in the mail) on the faces, and it's done.

[artme]

Excellent stuphph Michael!!! A really well thought out and built bench.

Nothing complicated but it will do all you want it to do!!!

[michael_m]

Thanks artme,

as you can probably tell, I'm pretty happy with it; so far it has done everything I wanted it to, and more. It's also been a good skill builder for me.

I managed to get an hour in today and turned a handle for the leg vise. The wood is some old dark redgum which is similar to the paint colour, and hard as rocks.

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And that's it for the time being. Today was the last day of holidays, so it's back to work tomorrow.

When I get time over the coming months, I'll add and endcap and tail vise, a tool till/divider into the gap, add folding wheels and permanently attach the top to the base.

[IanW]

As Artme said, an excellent thread, Michael, and just the ticket to give any wavering woodies the confidence to start their own builds! Though from the quality of the construction, I think you were being a bit coy about your skill levels in your original posts. I particularly like your ingenuity in coming up with solutions for various parts & the way you've used what tools you've got instead of wailing about not having a super-duper PMV11-bladed wonder wood-eater for this or that process. An A+ thread!

Just a passing point: I prefer to use softer woods for vise jaw inserts rather than bone-hard woods like Eucalypts, because softer jaw usually grip better & are less likely to damage work pieces than hard stuff. I think radiata can make perfectly good jaw inserts if you have clean, clear pieces. I use whatever offcuts are available at the time, because as far as I'm concerned, these are sacrificial parts & I don't mind if they get a bit beaten up or take the odd hit from an over-enthusiastic sawing run. The exception is the front jaw of my home-made front vise, which is made from a scrap of left-over Walnut. It looks nice, but because it's 'precious' I tend to fuss about it instead of just concentrating on what it's holding. I've often thought I should add a sacrificial slip to the jaw, but the design of the vice makes that a bit awkward, and because I also plan to make a pivoting insert to hold non-parallel pieces, I keep putting it off. Part of the reason it's taking so long is simple procrastination, the other part is that I don't use the front vise all that much. The tail vise (which does have sacrificial inserts), gets more than 90% of the vise jobs on my bench...

Cheers,

[michael_m]

Thank you for your kind words Ian . I don't feel particularly skilled - I've only been at this woodworking lark for 4 years, all of it self-taught. A lot of that self-teaching has come from reading these forums, seeing what other people have done, and how they have gone about it.

I thought about using pine for the Dawn vise jaws, and didn't primarily because the wood of appropriate depth in pine that I had, wasn't long enough. I am a bit worried about it marking work (although it hasn't so far), but I'll put some leather on them and see how they go. If they don't work out, I'll make some new ones.

I am of two minds about the tail vise. The L-shaped bit I'm going to make out of hardwood, but I'm not sure whether to make the front face of it leather-covered hardwood, or to put a thin face of pine on it as well. Probably at this stage I'll leave it off, but put a pine pad on the top/leg where it clamps together.

[Christos]

I will also voice my sentiment and say that this has been a very good read to follow this thread.

[IanW]

.... - I've only been at this woodworking lark for 4 years, all of it self-taught. A lot of that self-teaching has come from reading these forums, seeing what other people have done, and how they have gone about it.

We've travelled the same road, Micahael. I just started out a few years sooner. You'll get lost a few times and go off on side roads that sometimes go nowhere & sometimes to very interesting places, and there's no fixed destination, but for me, it's been a great trip so far! You can certainly learn a lot from sources like books & magazines (the first few years of 'Fine Woodworking', which started in 1976, were a revelation & inspiration to me). The main thing is to get stuck in & have a go - most folks seem to surprise themselves at how well they manage, and every project increases your skill & knowledge, I reckon. And of course, this BB is a pretty good place to come for help & advice, too. Some of it will be conflicting, and some not too serious, but it's all good fun...

... I am a bit worried about it marking work (although it hasn't so far), but I'll put some leather on them and see how they go. If they don't work out, I'll make some new ones.

I am of two minds about the tail vise. The L-shaped bit I'm going to make out of hardwood, but I'm not sure whether to make the front face of it leather-covered hardwood, or to put a thin face of pine on it as well. Probably at this stage I'll leave it off, but put a pine pad on the top/leg where it clamps together.

Yep - jaw inserts are definitely a consumable item, and no big deal to change if they don't suit. The hardwood jaws will probably be fine, unless you take to working with lots of very soft woods; you simply have to be a bit more careful.

Leather pads are a good idea (they must be, 'cos I use them.. ). I like them because they are easy on the surfaces you are gripping, and reduce slipping, so you don't have to squeeze things quite as hard to hold them firmly. If you stick the leather on with a glue that remains a bit plastic (cheap PVA glue is perfect), you'll get a plenty strong enough bond, and it's easier to remove when they get badly scuffed-up & you want to replace them. I've replaced mine about once every 10 years, so far. Only down side is finding good, thick, leather at a price ordinary mortals can afford. Mine came from a country hardware store back when leather was still used a lot for various gaskets & washers. I've got enough left to do one more replacement on my bench, after that, I don't know where I'd find any as good as the stuff I've got.

Cheers,

[michael_m]

Thanks Ian. I have just got my leather, an offcut of nubuck (like seude but stronger) hide from ebay that's about 2.5mm thick (and cheap too) and should do the job admirably. I should have enough left over from the 6 jaws to put leather on the holdfast heads and on the bench dogs, when I make some.

I managed to pull another few hours over the last couple of days and have started on the tail vise install.

First order of business was to square the end and install endcaps. The squaring off was straightforward enough, just a few minutes with the saw, and then measure for the tenon. I cut the tenon with a circular saw, wb 73.JPG chiselled away the waste and cleaned up with a chisel and the 78 plane wb 74.JPG. Then, repeat on the other side, cut the sides and trim to size wb 75.JPG, and there we have two (hopefully) coplanar tenons.

Then I glued together the wood to make the endcap and went to bed.

The endcap is 64mm thick, made by gluing two lengths of 110x32 KD hardwood together. I used the drillpress to drill out the mortises wb 77.JPG, then started cleaning them up with the chisel. When I was making mortises for the legs, my wood was low on sawhorses and I just sat on it to hold the wood in place. I can't really do this on the bench, so after a little head-scratching, I had the brainwave of using the bench like it was meant to be and decided to put some holes in it for holdfasts.

I put the holes in the back slab, aligning them with the holes in the end vise. With a little nervousness, I drilled the first hole wb 78.JPG and let the holdfast do its work wb 79.JPG. I liked it so much, I put another one in wb 80.JPG.

A little bit of trimming and the endcap fit.

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Then, because I don't know when to stop (and it made measuring for the next parts easier), I installed the nut for the vise screw wb 83.JPG and bolted the endcap into position (the hole for the end bolt is enlarged to allow for a bit of wood movement) wb 84.JPG. And that was it for the day.

[Glenrob]

Beautiful work Michael. After reading of your progress and seeing the great on going pics, I feel like going back and taking my own bench building thread down.
I know already that mine won't come close to yours in any way.

Now I really AM depressed!

Bob.

ps. I envy you having all those wonderful little helpers at your feet or where ever else they may turn up. Mine have all grown up and moved away. I would love to have those times all over again. Enjoy.

[michael_m]

Thanks Glenrob for those lovely words, but I wouldn't say that my bench is all that special in the scheme of things - it's already getting its share of scratches, dents, cuts and dings, and some of the joinery (while perfectly functional) doesn't really bear close inspection, and would not pass muster in any formal setting. Case in point, witness the build of the tail vise:


I haven't had much extended time in the garage since school went back, so this has all been done on snatched half hours here and stolen hours there. I think it shows too - I made some silly mistakes because of interrupted processes, where I would mark things out one day, then come and cut them several days later, cutting them slightly off in the process.

It all started with dovetails. I haven't cut any before, and these were going to be big ones.

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But, nothing ventured, nothing gained, so I fired up the saw
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and cut me some dovetails
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Then, I made some half-blind pins (sounds easy, doesn't it? These took me almost a week from start-to-finish, or about an hour and a half of garage-time. Mind you, a lot of that was from trying to remember where I was up to.)

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And, lo and behold it goes together - with lovely designer gaps all over the place. There's a reason I'm not showing a close-up of the joint, it's more gappy than a 5 year old the day after a visit from the tooth fairy.
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It does hold together though, so I cut the through dovetails on the other end, paying more attention to the cutting of the pins

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and I was rewarded by a less-gappy joint. At this point, I grabbed a length of pine and drilled the dogholes. They look like this when they go into the vise:
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Then, I did nothing much for a week or so. Finally, I got a bit more time and was able to add the fourth piece - the captured runner - to the vise. I did a single dovetail at one end, and over-long finger joints at the other. they look a bit ugly on the inside, but that was actually a design-feature, rather than incompetence. It allowed me to adjust the overall length of the runner to make it square during the glue-up.

Here it is, all together

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From the top (and photobombed to boot)

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and from the reverse. Possibly the last time it will be seen too.

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To hold the vise in place, I made this piece. I have no idea what to call it - the under-endcap? the vise-holderer? the wood-n-it-be-vise? Anyway, it screws on to the underside of the endcap and stops the vise from racking and (hopefully) sagging.

Here it is, part-way made,

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and finished
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Then, the vise in place, with runners attached and hole drilled for the screw. It slides freely and evenly.

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And an underside view.
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And this is how I left it about an hour ago (just in time for Eurovision) - all glued up, waiting for a planing to level out the top, and the top plate to be put on.

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Given that tomorrow's Mother's Day and I'm on a school camp next weekend, that's probably how it will stay for the next fortnight or so.

Cheers, Mike

[Glenrob]

Michael,

Don't ever think that a few miniscule "gaps" on your first ever attempt at dovetailing is going to draw anything but admiration and praise from the great people of our Forum. Your work has shown nothing but excellent attention to detail and an enviable willingness to succeed, as evidenced by your continual on-going progress pics and the very clear and concise commentary you've provided with every update.

Heck, even at my age, I've yet to even attempt a hand cut dovetail, so don't think any less of your own progress. You're to be congratulated for the success you've achieved on your very first go at it.

My own bench build hasn't even progressed far enough to even consider such fine joinery. I'm still working on my wall cabinets! I figure that it's an easier thing to do before laying out timbers for the bench, to first finish all the parts that I can reach before the bench gets in the way. Besides, I've already goofed up on the two simple lower drawers. You'd think by now I'd have learned to plan things first, but some people just can't be told.

Anyhow, continued good luck with your bench, and give those great little helpers of yours a pat on the head for me. They are truly priceless.

Regards,

Bob

[artme]

Michael That is a standard of work that anyone would be proud to achieve!!

Give yourself a well deserved pat on the back!!!