Thread: WIP - John's Workbench Mk2!!

Originally Posted by IanW

John, I'd be using the linseed, if I had such an excess of it, & sloshing it generously over the whole thing. As you say, your bench is inside & protected, and doesn't need to be hermetically sealed, so almost any finish you could name would do the job. I used Danish on mine, because like your LO, it was on hand & plentiful at the time.

The downside of linseed is the extended drying time. I have been reminded of that this week, after I soaked a bunch of wooden mallets in some BLO - it's been so long since I used straight BLO, I'd forgotten how long it takes!

Cheers,

Rightyo, linseed it is. Thanks again for your help Ian

Just curious tho, when would u use BLO and when would u use Raw LO?

Originally Posted by johnredl

I've just been thinking about a sliding deadman, am I able to retrofit one? Instead of routering a slot in the bottom of the benchtop, is there a reason why I can't glue guides after? Same question for the long stretchers.

The reason why I ask is that I've found some info on how to retrofit one on the 'woodcraft' website.

Am I asking for trouble? Why?...I probably do have the tools (for the stretchers, not dure about tge slot in the top) but I've never done this, so I thought that a retrofit might be easier...thoughts?

Hi John

Instead of using a routered groove in which to run the deadman, use a moulding that is vee-shaped ... /\ The underside of the deadman can be a mating /\ ...

Don't forget that the underside of the bench has the same connection. The mouldings could be attached with a couple of screws to aid in removal, if later needed.

The advantage is not just that it can be added at any time, but that it will not collect dust.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Regards from Perth

Derek

Attach a piece of aluminium angle under the bench and simply cut a slot in the deadman to guide it.

Originally Posted by johnredl

Just curious tho, when would u use BLO and when would u use Raw LO?

You use raw LO when you have all the time in the world and are not in the least bit anxious to use the item.

Honest answer - I don't really know why you would choose one over the other, apart from drying time. 'Boiled' linseed oil has been heated (tho not at boiling point), to initiate the polymerisation process. It also has metallic driers added, to further speed things up, which is why you don't administer it to your constipated dog or horse (or child). 'Speed' is very much a relative term, in this context, as we are talking weeks vs months for curing. However, since the end point is polymerised linseed oil in both cases, theoretically, they should be the same thing.....

There are several ways to attach a deadman retospectively, as you see. It only took me 20 plus years to get around to doing mine.

Cheers,

Cheers,

I've been trying to make 12mm jarrah dowels...by hand!

It actually has been working out quite well. The local engineering shop gave me a piece of offcut 4mm plate steel, which I drilled a 12mm hole in. I had some jarrah from cutting the tenons that I saved for this purpose (grain is going the right way).

The dowels are going to be used as pins for the mortise & tenon joints in the base.

Now to try out this pinned mortise & tenon joint thing...

that norseal stuff - a thin, slow drying epoxy.
I'd say that is has been made so that it hardens slowly to allow time for it to soak into the timber. From the product sheet it needs a UV protecting finish over the top (for external use) as the product sheet says -

Cannot be left exposed to direct sunlight as all Epoxies have poor resistance to ultra violet light radiation.

The benefit would be the encapsulation of the timber, meaning no moisture affecting the timber, so that the timber should be more stable.
I epoxy 'painted' the timber components in my bench, less the solid timber in the front apron and top.
Was it worthwhile?
Dunno. Epoxy costs more per litre than an oil based finish but it 'plugs' end grain and generally waterproofs like nobody's business. Its a bit of a belt and braces approach.
At the moment I'd say it was overkill, but I had enough epoxy mix 'at hand', that epoxy would have been wasted anyway, and I didn't care about finish or feel... so why not?
Give me a decade or so, and I'll have an opinion one way or the other.

btw.... nice bench and wip, finish line is coming up nice and quick now...

Originally Posted by Groggy

Attach a piece of aluminium angle under the bench and simply cut a slot in the deadman to guide it.

hmmm, that's a great idea, thanks Groggy

Originally Posted by derekcohen

Hi John

Instead of using a routered groove in which to run the deadman, use a moulding that is vee-shaped ... / The underside of the deadman can be a mating / ...

Don't forget that the underside of the bench has the same connection. The mouldings could be attached with a couple of screws to aid in removal, if later needed.

The advantage is not just that it can be added at any time, but that it will not collect dust.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Regards from Perth

Derek

Thanks Derek, I was thinking of this idea...except I was thinking about permanent. 2 great ideas for thought.

Originally Posted by Clinton1

The benefit would be the encapsulation of the timber, meaning no moisture affecting the timber, so that the timber should be more stable.
btw.... nice bench and wip, finish line is coming up nice and quick now...

Thanks Clinton. This is kinda what I was thinking. But I think that I am probably going to use linseed oil considering that I have it on hand. But I am keen to know how things go tho...keep us informed.

Goodness what a productive day !! How do you quickly flatten a bench top that weighs more than the average adult male, after the epoxy has formed miniature "Mt Everest's"?

Easy...you use an adult sized sander...
Attachment 191675

I spent a while staring at this bench top lying on a couple of saw horses, and then an equally long time staring at my tools. I found my Makita 100mm belt sander that needs 2 new wheels, ($152 price tag, but the man quickly explained how good the tool is, etc). Still doesn't change that $152 for 1 job is a little pricey . Back in the cupboard for another time I think.

So a trip to the local hire shop resulted in me coming home with a floorboard sander and some 25, 80, & 120 grit sandpaper for it. A great idea if I can pat myself on the back! Within 30-45 minutes, I had the base sanded to 25g, and the top finished to 120g. There is just a small bit that I have to do with the small electric sander. Overall a good result.

Which reminds me: What is the best way to fill the smallish holes in the top? Epoxy and sawdust, or will a coat of wax after linseed oiling do the trick?
Attachment 191678
(The top is Bluegum, with 4 evenly spaced unknown lighter stuff - any ideas what it is??)

The second exciting event is that I managed to get 4 out of the 8 mortises glued and pinned. Both short stretchers are on, leaving the long stretchers for tomorrow. The homemade pins worked fine as a matter of interest . I did have a slight argument with one of the joints, resulting in me loosing, but I figured that I can fill the gap with sawdusted epoxy (I have a huge quantity of it thanks to the floor sander!)
Attachment 191679

Nice work

That top looks pretty speccy
should look magic after the finish

no idea what the light timber is

Finally, the base is glued up. Although it does seem like its been taking forever to get to this point.



So now that's done, from what I understand, the next logical step should be to trim the dowels & tenons, fill the holes, and later sand/smoothing plane the base in prep for oiling.

I'm undecided on the tenons tho. For effect, I was thinking of leaving the tenons 10mm proud of the surface, with a 45 degree angle chiseled on each one. But again I'm after your thoughts...

Guys, I've got a question re the leg vice, as I've never used or made one before. The wooden screw for the leg vice is 2 1/2" diameter. The finished bench hight is 35" (890mm).

How far down from the top of the bench should I put the hole for the wood screw? The side stretchers are between 20-25" (ish) down from the top, so obviously somewhere between 6-20".

Also re mounting the wooden threaded block - would I need to countersink it 1/2" or so, or would gluing it to the inside of the leg be sufficient. All the stress should be towards the leg, not in a twisting motion, so titebond2 alone should be ok?

Thank you for the update and progress shots. Enjoying the process.