Thread: New Roubo Split Top Workbench

Looks vaguely like Jarrah though what it would be doing in Townsville is anyone's guess.

My guess for the timber is Red Ironbark. Right colour and sounds like the right density. Heavy as.

After the trip to dubbeld I was informed it was red iron bark. That would explain the weight and hardness. Lots of sharpening in my near future methinks!

Now I have the two split tops back on trestles I have somewhere stable to work. The legs are another unknown hardwood I've had in the shed for years. They didn't float away. Once milled I had 135 x 62 to work with. I cut them to 910 long and marked them up. Even with a marking gauge the dark timber is very hard to to see marks or pencil on.
I cut the first tenon on the band saw. It was ok but I wasn't happy with the results. I then cut the next one by hand with a Japanese saw. It took a while but still not happy with results. Operator error. So I went back to band saw, put on a new wider blade, retuned it and cut the final two very satisfactorily in no time at all.
I then used a new 19mm brad point to drill out the base of the waste. A nice sharp mortice chisel helped to clean them up. A little more clean up and on to stretchers tomorrow.
Pedro

Nice work Pedro. I'm not far off starting my own version of a Roubo and will follow your build with interest.

Tony

Today I cut the dovetails on the legs.
I wasn't going to, I went down to make a new strop on a board, something I've sorely missed but kept putting off doing. Silly because it took 15 minutes and is perfect.
Then once I stropped the chisel I had been using yesterday and took some hair off my arm I was good to go.
First attempt at cutting was ok with the Japanese saw, 2nd attempt was dodgy. But on the right side of dodgy, so I could clean it up with sharp chisels. I then thought about the band saw. Very quickly I had three perfect cuts. But only on one side of each leg. Table only tilts one way. Oh well. I finished the rest by hand, which all in all seen pretty good.
Stretchers next.
Pedro

Hi all. Social isolation means lots of time for woodwork. Kids are happy on electronics and then in the pool when it gets hot. So I get plenty of time to mill the timber for stretchers. Then I set them up to cut what I could on the band saw. I had to do the cross cuts by hand which wasnt too bad. Then I marked up the mortises and began the very slow task of cutting them out. My little drill press wouldn't go high enough to drill out the full depth on the long face of the legs so I did one with a cordless drill. I've been cleaning up the tenon faces to fit the mortise. mortises. One down. 11 to go. Lots of sharpening. Tomorrow!

Hi all
First assembly of legs and stretchers. Went together pretty well, happy with the joinery. I got my eldest to help flip the top pieces then flip the frame and put it in position for marking the mortises. This is where I am veering away from the Chris Schwarz video with a split top instead of a solid piece. I was thinking of clamping a couple of 50mm blocks in between the tops to ensure no movement when I'm fussing around getting legs to stand square. The tops are pretty hard to move on their own anyway being so heavy, but I want to be sure. Once I have them as square as I can get them, then it's disassembly for the frame, drill the draw bore holes and the holes for a couple of coach bolts to hold the top down. I haven't started marking for the Benchcrafted leg vise yet either. Or sorted timber for the chop.
Still plenty of work to do.
I'm going back to work tomorrow as well. That will slow the pace somewhat.
Pedro

Hi all
It's been an interesting woodworking experience this, doing lots of things I haven't done before, using new tools and learning what I won't do again.
Building a bench out of ironbark is hard work, but it will be worth it in the end.
Have I mentioned that it's heavy? and hard?
I have some new gear to replace what went in the flood, including a new (used) router. I purchased a spiral upcut bit with this bench in mind, thinking I could clear mortises with it. It will do that and then some!
I was clearing the big long mortises for the criss cross included with my new vice. I used the router with a guide fence, didn't try to take too much at once, tried to vary the speeds but twice it got away from me, bit into the timber, pulled the bit from the machine and tried to drill it's way to china. Even when all I was doing was clearing the sidewalls and the bottom of trench after a long session at drill press with forstner bit.
Anyway when it works it is a great thing. But terrifying. I see a router table in my future.
I have marked the top for mortises. But I noticed a small disparity in the length of the end stretchers, so measure twice and all that......
I disassembled the frame, cleaned up the stretchers, drilled the draw bores (have I mentioned it's heavy?) and fitted the Benchcrafted leg vice. It's not complicated, but I didn't want to stuff up the install.
Then there was the router issue. So slowly slowly I got there.
It's in (I swear those photos were the right way up when I put them in) and works as advertised.
I spoke to Benchcrafted about using ironbark, they insisted vice chop needed to be 2.5 inch think, so I laminated half an inch of red ironbark to the gray face of the chop.
Disassembled again (heavier now with criss cross, vice screw and new thicker face) and I can shape the chop now, (and reduce the weight!)
Next step is awaiting the assistance of my eldest son to flip the frame back onto the top to double check my marking.
Then I can transfer marks from bottom to top, consider the need for a sliding deadman (it needs a long trench, and I'm still traumatised), cut out for planing stop, and contemplate assembly.
But work keeps getting in the way..............
Pedro
Oh yes, I purchased this HNT Gordon from someone on the forum, and have already given it a run on the ironbark. It's very nice, and works as advertised on aussie hardwoods.

No mistakes just adaptations, its getting heaver by the day

Hi all
Have made some progress. I have shaped the vice chop and cleaned it up, I'm very happy with the red ironbark over the grey.
Marked out mortises to the bottom with another dry fit, made some small changes, here's hoping they are right....
Began cutting out mortises.
I tried with the drill press and a 19mm brad point to hollow out the square mortises, but my light drill press didn't like it. And it was very fussy.
So I went back to an Irwin speedbor auger in 16mm on a nice long extension. Makes it easy to keep it at 90 degrees to the bench.
Then hand cut the dovetail ends, and used a circular saw to put multiple cuts in the dovetail waste. It knocked out pretty easily.
I used a jigsaw to chop up the cylindrical edges of the waste in the square mortise, heaps of cuts to knife line, then a chisel cleans it out relatively easily.
I love the 2inch wide chisel to cleaning up the mortise walls.
I had to slowly clean up the dovetails on the leg to get it in, but after a few goes and lots of hammer strikes, I have a fitted leg!
But then I had to get it out.
Now it is heavy...
One down, three to go.

Looks amazing, I am following with some interest as I have 2 Iron barks drying in the back yard at the moment. Hopefully in a couple of years I will be milling them down and a Roubo bench will be released from hiding. Might have to add a another trunk just to be sure of quantities.

Jase

Hi all
Major progress, bench is all together and I'm very happy.I got quicker with my leg mortise fitting process, and soon realised I would need a hand to put it togther.
So I bribed a couple of assistants with beer and pizza, and we put it together before we had too many. It went better than I thought, glue up not too messy and the draw bored jointed definitely pulled all the joints together nice and tight.
There was a fair bit of whacking with a sledge hammer to get the top down, but eventually it went on.
I put he Benchcrafted classic leg vice on, and it is a beautiful thing to use.
I needed a few days off after that, i was supposed to be working but managed to push my back a bit far that day, and need to take time off. Imagine how frustrated I was, knowing my bench was so close to being finished, but I couldn't even lift the roller door on the shed. I did say it was heavy........
Anyway I've slowly come good, I needed to clean up, cut off the drawbore pegs, and the wedged tenons on top. I tried a cut off saw but iron bark laughed at it. I ended up using a jigsaw with blade just above the bench surface. Then cleaned up with a low angle jointer.
A neighbour lent me his big Mak circ saw to clean up the ends, which went surprisingly well with only one pass. Hand sawed the last 10mm.
I need to fit a shelf, finish removing marks, a little flattening, fit the 4 lag bolts under the top (not sure it needs it) fit the HNT Gordon tail vise and drill dog holes. I drilled one as a test, it went ok and the holdfasts grabbed beautifully.
Pedro

Pedro

Nice going with the bench. One day I will get around to my attempt too. I have all the materials including hardware. I just need a new shed to house it. One of the advantages of the split top to my mind is that it makes a bench top that would otherwise be immovable ( at 600 x 2400 say) just bloody heavy for two people. I am sure the versatility in actual use will be very appreciated.

Just one small omission from many builds. Are you planning a sliding deadman?

Regards
Paul