| Blog series by jmos | updated 03-20-2012 06:07 PM | 7 parts | 54566 reads | 53 comments total |
Part 1: The Plan
I thought I’d try blogging for my workbench build. I currently have a Sjobergs Duo 1500 workbench. It’s not a terrible bench, but as I get more into hand tools it just doesn’t cut it. At under 100lb, I end up having to keep one foot on the front stretcher while I plane to keep it from moving around. I decided I needed a new bench with some heft. I did some research online, and bought Chris Schwarz’s new workbench book “The Workbench Design Book, The Art & Philosophy of Building Be...
Part 2: Milling the Top
Well, I got some time to spend in the shop. The first thing I did was build some saw horses per the design in Schwarz’s book. I figure I needed some additional space for this build, I also figured I could use the saw horse later, so I got that done. Next I milled up the lumber for the top. The LVL worked fairly easily. I had three pieces, (2) 7’ and (1) 8’. These thick long cuts are where I start wishing I had a full cabinet saw instead of my 1.75hp hybrid. Anyway,...
Part 3: Gluing Up the Top and Milling the Base
I’ve actually been able to get a fair amount of time in the shop lately (thanks Dear). I got the top all glued up. I started with groups of three or four boards. My intention was to joint each group, and then glue two up to make a section about 12” and do a final pass through the planner. While I was laying out the clamps, I had a rather obvious idea that turned out to work really well. I used some scraps I had that had been jointed so they were flat and clamped a...
Part 4: The Base
Since last time I’ve been working on the base. I used 4/4 red oak, so there was lots of milling and gluing up of stock. It was a bit tedious, but I think I’m finally getting the hang of using the jointer efficiently. From the beginning I had planned to make this bench knock down in case I need to move it in the future. The original PWW bench was also knockdown, where the short and long stretchers were bolted on. I decided instead to make the two ends solid assemblies and bo...
Part 5: Twin Screw Endvise
I’ve been working on the end vise. I wanted to get that mounted next so I could figure out if it would impact the placement of the top on the base. I wanted a twin screw vise for dovetailing. As I mentioned previously, I’m using two Lee Valley end vise screws for the end vise. I thought about buying their twin screw (Or Lie-Nielsen’s, or Hovarter) but couldn’t come up with the money. I also considered building a Moxon vise for dovetailing and just using a more ...
Part 6: Leg Vise and Assembly
Things are moving right along. One thing I knew I would need for this project was a 3/4” upcut router bit I could do plunge cuts with for the dog holes, as well as for routing a groove in the top for the sliding deadman. I didn’t want to spend a fortune for a carbide bit so I tried the HSS bit from MLCS (item #7498). Overall I was very happy with it; more later. Once I had the end vise installed I could decide exactly where to mount the top on the base. With the base upsid...
Part 7: Finished!
Well, I haven’t gotten a lot of time in the shop lately, but I did get two coats of BLO on the bench, and I’m calling it complete. Overall I’m happy with the way it turned out. I might still ad a shelf underneath, or I’ll just store my bench jigs on the floor underneath. I installed a wall mounted shelf and tool rack, so most of what I need easy access to is just behind the bench in easy reach. I’m happy with how the LVL worked out...
