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Woodworking Bench

42K views 39 replies 20 participants last post by  TomFran 
#1 ·
Maple and Cherry work bench

I have always used my assembly table as a work bench but after recently acquiring a truck load of hard maple from a local farmer the first thing I decided to build was a new woodworking bench. I'm using the plans from a recent issue of Woodsmith Magazine. The first picture is half the top, a mix of hard maple and cherry. the other half is standing in the background.
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The base is also hard maple glued up from 4/4 stock
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As it's supposed to rain all weekend I hope to be able to post some finished pics by Sunday.
 
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#4 ·
Doc, I have had that same issue sitting by my computer for several months now. I had planned to get rid of my assembly table and replace it with a bench after I complete the two vanities that my wife and son have "commissioned". I enjoyed seeing your benchtop. Cherry and maple are my favorite wood combination so not only is this bench going to be functional it also is going to be a gorgeous addition to your shop.
 
#8 ·
Base finished

I spent most of today (Saturday) working on my Woodsmith Workbench, and didin't get very far. I was abe to finish the base and man isi it heavy. The stretchers lock in with wooden keys and even without the top the base is very sturdy.
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It took two to lift ijust the base down from the assembly table

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I alternated the cherry/maple wood on the lower shelf to match the top.
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It may appear a little short in this picture but there are some spacers to be addded which will add a few inches to the height. I also shortent the table by 10 inches to save space. I hope that wasn't a mistake.
 
#16 ·
Finishing andFastening the Ttop

Work on the work bench continured this weekend but slowly. The top was originally glued up in 5 sections each being planed before all were glued together. A few pics of the process.
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Yeah it's real heavy top alone is close to 200 lbs and 40 board feet of lumber
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Okay so here's the kicker. When gluing up the 5 sections it is done face down on the assembly table. Unfortunately when I took the clamps off and flipped it over I big Boo Boo. I had not flipped over the one plank with the dog holes for the tail vise. You will see how the dog holes don't line up with the others for the face vise. I was about ready to run it thru the band saw and retro fit the 3 tail vise sections but after thinking about an easier fix it came to me. Drill some 3/4 inch plugs and fill the goofs and drill some new holes. Now I just gotta find a 3/4 inch plug cutter.
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I thought I was real careful when gluing up the sectons and expected the top to be dead flat; NOT. A quick check with a straight edge revealed a fair amount of planing will be needed before this top will be flat. Might be an excuse for a new jack plane and a video of the process.
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Lastly the top will be applied with 4 threaded inserts into the underside of the top and bolts up thru the base. Photobucket
threaded inserts
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Next: flattening the top and addding the vises. (still on order)
 
#21 ·
A Perfectly Flat Top

Moving along with the woodworking bench. The previous blog showed the final glue up of the laminated top. even planing the sections before gluing didn't lead to a perfectly flat top. So that leads to the 64 million dollar question, how do we get it flat. Since I don't have 40 inch wide planer or sander I guess we'll have to look at other options. One method is to cross plane it with a fore plane or jointer plane (a very long bench plane). As I don't have a bench plane larger than a #5 bench plane, I decided this might be an opportunity for a new tool. Lie-Neilson fore plane $425. Since this iis more than I've spent on the whole project so far I decided to pass. I'm not that good with a hand plane anyway. So I turned to the guys a Fine Woodworking.com. The answer was to make a sled for a router with a flat bottom bit. Succesive passes over the top of the table knocks off the hight spots.. Picture below shows the jig, just to the left of the jig you can see the marks from the router passes about every inch. To the left of that is the marks are gone after light sanding with and orbital sander.
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You can see how the router slides bach and forth in the jig staying at a level setting while the entire jig moves left to right on rails clamped to the assembly table top and sides of the bench top.
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The result is a perfectly flat top side to side and front to back.
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Next week I hope to attach the top and the front and tail vises. Thanks for looking
 
#36 ·
Adding End Caps

Work on the bench continues with attchment of the endcaps. I posted this picture primarily to show this little trick on how to extend your bar clamps since most of us don't keep 7 foot clamps around. I'm sure this is old news to most but for those who have never tried it, it's a nice trick in a pinch.
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The cherry end caps are held on with double half inch splines. Getting these to line up was a little tough.
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Thanks for lookin.
 
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