Project by Woodbridge | posted 02-12-2020 01:34 PM | 1478 views | 0 times favorited | 10 comments | ![]() |
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The workbench at the woodworkers club, a bolt together commercial bench, was old and rickety. It shook more than the vibrating bed in a cheap motel and it was time to replace it with a new and functional workbench.
With the help of some club members we built a new bench based on the “Hybrid Roubo Bench” featured in John Tetrault’s Fine Woodworking Magazine’s video series.
The new bench is made from wood that we had in the club’s woodshed. We think it is pine, its been there a while.
The bench is 62” long, 24” wide and 34” high. The top is a shade under 3” thick and made by laminating several boards together. The quite heavy and rock solid. It does not move.
The legs are 4” thick x 5” wide and were made by laminating two 1” thick boards on either side of a 2” thick core. This made cutting the joinery for the dovetail tenon quite easy. The stretchers were made using a similar method.
The legs are joined to the top and bottom side rails with through tenons which have been draw-bored and glued. The legs and top connect via a mortise and tenon joint into the top.
The two stretchers join the leg assemblies together and the dovetailed through tenons are held in place with walnut wedges. We used some walnut for the vice chops on the two Record 52 1/2 vices taken from the old bench. A series of dog holds were drilled along the bench to be used with the end vice.
The sliding deadman is also made from walnut.
A bottom shelf made, supported by cleats on the stretchers was made from ash and a piece of oak (ie whatever was in the Club’s wood shed)
The bench can be moved by lifting up the front end with a small levered dolly made with two wheels and some 3/4 inch pipe.
Finally we did a bit of relief carving and added the club name to the front of the bench.
-- Peter, Woodbridge, Ontario
10 comments so far
swirt
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6107 posts in 4024 days
#1 posted 02-12-2020 02:12 PM
Looks like a great bench for the club.
-- Galootish log blog, http://www.timberframe-tools.com
shipwright
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#2 posted 02-12-2020 02:55 PM
Nice work Peter. This will be a great improvement I’m sure.
-- Paul M ..............the early bird may get the worm but it’s the second mouse that gets the cheese! http://thecanadianschooloffrenchmarquetry.com/
BurlyBob
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#3 posted 02-12-2020 03:43 PM
That’s a great looking workhorse of a bench.
AJ1104
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#4 posted 02-12-2020 04:07 PM
Nice job and a great replacement. I hope you all enjoy using it.
-- AJ
scrapwoodworker
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#5 posted 02-12-2020 07:32 PM
Beautiful bench!
therealSteveN
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#6 posted 02-13-2020 03:07 AM
Looks to be a massive, solid bench, plenty of holding capability, and a transfer so it can be here for storage, and there for work.
I’ve been a fan of that method of picking up a heavy tool, or now a bench and then allowing it to sit flat on the ground for use, ever since I first saw it in a shop piece back when they started doing shop pieces in the magazines.
Hope everyone in the club sees the value in this bench.
-- Think safe, be safe
Woodbridge
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#7 posted 02-13-2020 03:27 PM
thanks for the comments everyone.
My pointer/jointer combo has the tri cycle wheel system with a levered dolly and I borrowed that idea for the bench. One of the members donated a bunch of casters to the club and it just happened that it included a set of the prefect type of casters for this application.
-- Peter, Woodbridge, Ontario
Chiaroscuro
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#8 posted 02-16-2020 02:54 AM
Nice work!
-- Todd
SubVette
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#9 posted 02-20-2020 05:07 PM
Nice job
-- John in Florida
DocSavage45
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#10 posted 05-17-2020 08:11 PM
Peter,
You got bench making done sir!
-- Cau Haus Designs, Thomas J. Tieffenbacher
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