While this is the beginning of my construction blog for the V8 Degree bench, I'm not actually going to get into the build just yet. There are a few more features that I didn't want to clutter the project post with and I've added a couple of demo videos on the vices. I thought it would be best to start with a full view of the bench and its operational features first and get into the construction process in the next segment.
This photo shows the dog hole inserts that hide and protect the end grain of the plywood top. It also shows the bolting arrangement for fastening the top to the legs.
This one shows one of the the "dog houses" at each end of the bench. This is about the only place you can see the plywood construction. I had to leave it as proof.
Finally here is the deadman and its corresponding shim (in the leg vice).
OK, here's just one more… just for fun. This one shows the "solid walnut" stretchers before installation.
On to the videos.
Disclaimer: These are not professionally done. They are meant only to show the features of the bench and the operation of the wedge powered vices. This is the most difficulty I will ever have operating these vices because I'm not very familiar with them yet and I was trying to operate them and describe them on video at the same time. Even at that I think these videos will show that the wedge vices are efficient and straightforward to operate. Please don't look at the bench in the background.
The first one is about the Leg Vice.
.....and the wagon vices.
Come on ! I asked you not to look at the bench in the background…......
Anyway I hope that made the bench a little more real to you and I look forward to getting into the construction next time.
Thanks for looking in and see you next time.
Questions Comments and critiques are always welcome.
NOTE: Most of this page can be avoided if you want to just drill your dog holes in the layered plywood. The inserts are the "Cadillac version".
Part of the plan for this bench from the start was that is was to use interlaid layers of plywood to make a solid monolithic structure that was absolutely rigid without using any fancy or difficult joinery. Another part was to hide and protect the edge plywood wherever possible for looks, strength and utility. The resulting strategy was to make "dog hole inserts" and lock them into the plywood layers. In order to do this without having to individually cut out 80 separate square holes with a jig saw I set up the first of the inter-lay assemblies.
This photo shows two stacks of 3/4" PW that represent the two halves of the bench top. Each stack is divided into two widths at a distance in from the outer edge equal to the distance in of either the inside or the outside of the square dog holes. This will become clearer as we go on. Each half top will be made up of two layers from each stack.
The pieces clamped up here represent the wider pieces from the stack on the left above and the narrower pieces from the stack on the right. Set up like this we can cut all the square dog holes with a skilsaw in very short time. (note: yes I know it's a Porter Cable but it's like xerox… right?)
Step #1) Lay out the dog holes on the top and front of the stack.
Step #2) Set the depth of the skilsaw and make several cuts.
Step #3) Clean it out roughly with a chisel.
Step#4) When you get to about here…..
... go back to the skilsaw and work slowly through the rebate with a sideways motion left to right and back to "plane" out the bottom.
When they're all done it should look like this. Wasn't that easier than cutting 80 square holes with a jigsaw?
Now we can inter-lay the pieces for the two half tops like this. The stack on the left is left loose to illustrate the inter-lay better. In each layer the dog hole is entirely cut in one side.
I made up the dog hole inserts in a long piece and then chopped them off. It's a quick way to get it done.
Cutting the last two rebates.
Next the bottom layer is made up. It is 1/4" bigger all around to fit in a rebate in the edge and end boards.
It also has cutouts in it to locate the tops of the legs and a hole for one of the leg members to lock in at the leg vice corner.
At this point we're ready for glue-up. If you're sure everything is perfectly fitted you can install the dog hole inserts and vices and glue them in as you go. I purposely made my vice holes a little sloppy and epoxied them in later for the very best possible grip and fit. The dog holes fit very snugly but I opted to pull them out after glue-up and re-set them later. I was keeping my options open. If I did it again I'd leave them in. Assembly here was liquid hide glue (Old Brown Glue) and air staples but 1 1/2" nails would work just fine.
And here we have two very solid, very flat 12" x 72" half bench tops, ready to go.
Sorry this was so long to get so little done but I wanted to be as clear as possible. The work doesn't take as long as the describing.
Next up: fitting the top frame joints and assembling the top.
Thanks for dropping in.
Questions, comments and critiques are always welcome.
Your blog is direct and informative. You make it look simple. Helps me think "I can do it. You should have a workshop for potential woodworkers in your area?
NOTE: Most of this page can be avoided if you want to just drill your dog holes in the layered plywood. The inserts are the "Cadillac version".
Part of the plan for this bench from the start was that is was to use interlaid layers of plywood to make a solid monolithic structure that was absolutely rigid without using any fancy or difficult joinery. Another part was to hide and protect the edge plywood wherever possible for looks, strength and utility. The resulting strategy was to make "dog hole inserts" and lock them into the plywood layers. In order to do this without having to individually cut out 80 separate square holes with a jig saw I set up the first of the inter-lay assemblies.
This photo shows two stacks of 3/4" PW that represent the two halves of the bench top. Each stack is divided into two widths at a distance in from the outer edge equal to the distance in of either the inside or the outside of the square dog holes. This will become clearer as we go on. Each half top will be made up of two layers from each stack.
The pieces clamped up here represent the wider pieces from the stack on the left above and the narrower pieces from the stack on the right. Set up like this we can cut all the square dog holes with a skilsaw in very short time. (note: yes I know it's a Porter Cable but it's like xerox… right?)
Step #1) Lay out the dog holes on the top and front of the stack.
Step #2) Set the depth of the skilsaw and make several cuts.
Step #3) Clean it out roughly with a chisel.
Step#4) When you get to about here…..
... go back to the skilsaw and work slowly through the rebate with a sideways motion left to right and back to "plane" out the bottom.
When they're all done it should look like this. Wasn't that easier than cutting 80 square holes with a jigsaw?
Now we can inter-lay the pieces for the two half tops like this. The stack on the left is left loose to illustrate the inter-lay better. In each layer the dog hole is entirely cut in one side.
I made up the dog hole inserts in a long piece and then chopped them off. It's a quick way to get it done.
Cutting the last two rebates.
Next the bottom layer is made up. It is 1/4" bigger all around to fit in a rebate in the edge and end boards.
It also has cutouts in it to locate the tops of the legs and a hole for one of the leg members to lock in at the leg vice corner.
At this point we're ready for glue-up. If you're sure everything is perfectly fitted you can install the dog hole inserts and vices and glue them in as you go. I purposely made my vice holes a little sloppy and epoxied them in later for the very best possible grip and fit. The dog holes fit very snugly but I opted to pull them out after glue-up and re-set them later. I was keeping my options open. If I did it again I'd leave them in. Assembly here was liquid hide glue (Old Brown Glue) and air staples but 1 1/2" nails would work just fine.
And here we have two very solid, very flat 12" x 72" half bench tops, ready to go.
Sorry this was so long to get so little done but I wanted to be as clear as possible. The work doesn't take as long as the describing.
Next up: fitting the top frame joints and assembling the top.
Thanks for dropping in.
Questions, comments and critiques are always welcome.
NOTE: Most of this page can be avoided if you want to just drill your dog holes in the layered plywood. The inserts are the "Cadillac version".
Part of the plan for this bench from the start was that is was to use interlaid layers of plywood to make a solid monolithic structure that was absolutely rigid without using any fancy or difficult joinery. Another part was to hide and protect the edge plywood wherever possible for looks, strength and utility. The resulting strategy was to make "dog hole inserts" and lock them into the plywood layers. In order to do this without having to individually cut out 80 separate square holes with a jig saw I set up the first of the inter-lay assemblies.
This photo shows two stacks of 3/4" PW that represent the two halves of the bench top. Each stack is divided into two widths at a distance in from the outer edge equal to the distance in of either the inside or the outside of the square dog holes. This will become clearer as we go on. Each half top will be made up of two layers from each stack.
The pieces clamped up here represent the wider pieces from the stack on the left above and the narrower pieces from the stack on the right. Set up like this we can cut all the square dog holes with a skilsaw in very short time. (note: yes I know it's a Porter Cable but it's like xerox… right?)
Step #1) Lay out the dog holes on the top and front of the stack.
Step #2) Set the depth of the skilsaw and make several cuts.
Step #3) Clean it out roughly with a chisel.
Step#4) When you get to about here…..
... go back to the skilsaw and work slowly through the rebate with a sideways motion left to right and back to "plane" out the bottom.
When they're all done it should look like this. Wasn't that easier than cutting 80 square holes with a jigsaw?
Now we can inter-lay the pieces for the two half tops like this. The stack on the left is left loose to illustrate the inter-lay better. In each layer the dog hole is entirely cut in one side.
I made up the dog hole inserts in a long piece and then chopped them off. It's a quick way to get it done.
Cutting the last two rebates.
Next the bottom layer is made up. It is 1/4" bigger all around to fit in a rebate in the edge and end boards.
It also has cutouts in it to locate the tops of the legs and a hole for one of the leg members to lock in at the leg vice corner.
At this point we're ready for glue-up. If you're sure everything is perfectly fitted you can install the dog hole inserts and vices and glue them in as you go. I purposely made my vice holes a little sloppy and epoxied them in later for the very best possible grip and fit. The dog holes fit very snugly but I opted to pull them out after glue-up and re-set them later. I was keeping my options open. If I did it again I'd leave them in. Assembly here was liquid hide glue (Old Brown Glue) and air staples but 1 1/2" nails would work just fine.
And here we have two very solid, very flat 12" x 72" half bench tops, ready to go.
Sorry this was so long to get so little done but I wanted to be as clear as possible. The work doesn't take as long as the describing.
Next up: fitting the top frame joints and assembling the top.
Thanks for dropping in.
Questions, comments and critiques are always welcome.
I know that I have said that there is no "fancy joinery" in this bench and there certainly doesn't have to be. There is however, in my own bench, a simple dovetail joint in the top frame corners. It is purely decorative and a box joint or even a butt joint would in fact do the job. If the wagon vices were not epoxied in, then the dovetails would have a real function but I personally would rather rely on the epoxy… it's a boat builder thing.
This is the joint I'm referring to and it's really quite easy.
I made up a little 1/4" MDF pattern and cut the rough recesses out with a router. I'm really not a dovetail guy but I'm sure this must be a somewhat standard way of doing it.
The pattern lines up with the corners of the end members via some sight holes and is tacked in place with a pin tacker.
I routed the recesses out about 5/8" deep and left them unfinished for the time being.
Then after cutting the tails on the bandsaw, I fitted each corner and marked the recess from the tails.
From there it was an easy job to finish them up with a chisel.
The next job was to set the vices into the end rail to lock their sides against spreading under wedge pressure.
Finally the side and end rails were rebated to accept the larger bottom layer of the plywood top layup.
This was actually done prior to the plywood layup in the last segment of this blog and that is the order I would recommend but I thought it would be easier to describe if I explained the plywood assembly first.
After reaching this point and dry fitting the assembled top inside the rails I left this part of the job and moved on to the leg construction.
I know that I have said that there is no "fancy joinery" in this bench and there certainly doesn't have to be. There is however, in my own bench, a simple dovetail joint in the top frame corners. It is purely decorative and a box joint or even a butt joint would in fact do the job. If the wagon vices were not epoxied in, then the dovetails would have a real function but I personally would rather rely on the epoxy… it's a boat builder thing.
This is the joint I'm referring to and it's really quite easy.
I made up a little 1/4" MDF pattern and cut the rough recesses out with a router. I'm really not a dovetail guy but I'm sure this must be a somewhat standard way of doing it.
The pattern lines up with the corners of the end members via some sight holes and is tacked in place with a pin tacker.
I routed the recesses out about 5/8" deep and left them unfinished for the time being.
Then after cutting the tails on the bandsaw, I fitted each corner and marked the recess from the tails.
From there it was an easy job to finish them up with a chisel.
The next job was to set the vices into the end rail to lock their sides against spreading under wedge pressure.
Finally the side and end rails were rebated to accept the larger bottom layer of the plywood top layup.
This was actually done prior to the plywood layup in the last segment of this blog and that is the order I would recommend but I thought it would be easier to describe if I explained the plywood assembly first.
After reaching this point and dry fitting the assembled top inside the rails I left this part of the job and moved on to the leg construction.
Paul, that looks like a very nice Dovetail…
... is there a darker wood lining the joint or is it just the Cut-Line with the edges slightly rounded to emphasize the line?
... it's hard to see in the picture.
I know that I have said that there is no "fancy joinery" in this bench and there certainly doesn't have to be. There is however, in my own bench, a simple dovetail joint in the top frame corners. It is purely decorative and a box joint or even a butt joint would in fact do the job. If the wagon vices were not epoxied in, then the dovetails would have a real function but I personally would rather rely on the epoxy… it's a boat builder thing.
This is the joint I'm referring to and it's really quite easy.
I made up a little 1/4" MDF pattern and cut the rough recesses out with a router. I'm really not a dovetail guy but I'm sure this must be a somewhat standard way of doing it.
The pattern lines up with the corners of the end members via some sight holes and is tacked in place with a pin tacker.
I routed the recesses out about 5/8" deep and left them unfinished for the time being.
Then after cutting the tails on the bandsaw, I fitted each corner and marked the recess from the tails.
From there it was an easy job to finish them up with a chisel.
The next job was to set the vices into the end rail to lock their sides against spreading under wedge pressure.
Finally the side and end rails were rebated to accept the larger bottom layer of the plywood top layup.
This was actually done prior to the plywood layup in the last segment of this blog and that is the order I would recommend but I thought it would be easier to describe if I explained the plywood assembly first.
After reaching this point and dry fitting the assembled top inside the rails I left this part of the job and moved on to the leg construction.
I know that I have said that there is no "fancy joinery" in this bench and there certainly doesn't have to be. There is however, in my own bench, a simple dovetail joint in the top frame corners. It is purely decorative and a box joint or even a butt joint would in fact do the job. If the wagon vices were not epoxied in, then the dovetails would have a real function but I personally would rather rely on the epoxy… it's a boat builder thing.
This is the joint I'm referring to and it's really quite easy.
I made up a little 1/4" MDF pattern and cut the rough recesses out with a router. I'm really not a dovetail guy but I'm sure this must be a somewhat standard way of doing it.
The pattern lines up with the corners of the end members via some sight holes and is tacked in place with a pin tacker.
I routed the recesses out about 5/8" deep and left them unfinished for the time being.
Then after cutting the tails on the bandsaw, I fitted each corner and marked the recess from the tails.
From there it was an easy job to finish them up with a chisel.
The next job was to set the vices into the end rail to lock their sides against spreading under wedge pressure.
Finally the side and end rails were rebated to accept the larger bottom layer of the plywood top layup.
This was actually done prior to the plywood layup in the last segment of this blog and that is the order I would recommend but I thought it would be easier to describe if I explained the plywood assembly first.
After reaching this point and dry fitting the assembled top inside the rails I left this part of the job and moved on to the leg construction.
I know that I have said that there is no "fancy joinery" in this bench and there certainly doesn't have to be. There is however, in my own bench, a simple dovetail joint in the top frame corners. It is purely decorative and a box joint or even a butt joint would in fact do the job. If the wagon vices were not epoxied in, then the dovetails would have a real function but I personally would rather rely on the epoxy… it's a boat builder thing.
This is the joint I'm referring to and it's really quite easy.
I made up a little 1/4" MDF pattern and cut the rough recesses out with a router. I'm really not a dovetail guy but I'm sure this must be a somewhat standard way of doing it.
The pattern lines up with the corners of the end members via some sight holes and is tacked in place with a pin tacker.
I routed the recesses out about 5/8" deep and left them unfinished for the time being.
Then after cutting the tails on the bandsaw, I fitted each corner and marked the recess from the tails.
From there it was an easy job to finish them up with a chisel.
The next job was to set the vices into the end rail to lock their sides against spreading under wedge pressure.
Finally the side and end rails were rebated to accept the larger bottom layer of the plywood top layup.
This was actually done prior to the plywood layup in the last segment of this blog and that is the order I would recommend but I thought it would be easier to describe if I explained the plywood assembly first.
After reaching this point and dry fitting the assembled top inside the rails I left this part of the job and moved on to the leg construction.
I know that I have said that there is no "fancy joinery" in this bench and there certainly doesn't have to be. There is however, in my own bench, a simple dovetail joint in the top frame corners. It is purely decorative and a box joint or even a butt joint would in fact do the job. If the wagon vices were not epoxied in, then the dovetails would have a real function but I personally would rather rely on the epoxy… it's a boat builder thing.
This is the joint I'm referring to and it's really quite easy.
I made up a little 1/4" MDF pattern and cut the rough recesses out with a router. I'm really not a dovetail guy but I'm sure this must be a somewhat standard way of doing it.
The pattern lines up with the corners of the end members via some sight holes and is tacked in place with a pin tacker.
I routed the recesses out about 5/8" deep and left them unfinished for the time being.
Then after cutting the tails on the bandsaw, I fitted each corner and marked the recess from the tails.
From there it was an easy job to finish them up with a chisel.
The next job was to set the vices into the end rail to lock their sides against spreading under wedge pressure.
Finally the side and end rails were rebated to accept the larger bottom layer of the plywood top layup.
This was actually done prior to the plywood layup in the last segment of this blog and that is the order I would recommend but I thought it would be easier to describe if I explained the plywood assembly first.
After reaching this point and dry fitting the assembled top inside the rails I left this part of the job and moved on to the leg construction.
I know that I have said that there is no "fancy joinery" in this bench and there certainly doesn't have to be. There is however, in my own bench, a simple dovetail joint in the top frame corners. It is purely decorative and a box joint or even a butt joint would in fact do the job. If the wagon vices were not epoxied in, then the dovetails would have a real function but I personally would rather rely on the epoxy… it's a boat builder thing.
This is the joint I'm referring to and it's really quite easy.
I made up a little 1/4" MDF pattern and cut the rough recesses out with a router. I'm really not a dovetail guy but I'm sure this must be a somewhat standard way of doing it.
The pattern lines up with the corners of the end members via some sight holes and is tacked in place with a pin tacker.
I routed the recesses out about 5/8" deep and left them unfinished for the time being.
Then after cutting the tails on the bandsaw, I fitted each corner and marked the recess from the tails.
From there it was an easy job to finish them up with a chisel.
The next job was to set the vices into the end rail to lock their sides against spreading under wedge pressure.
Finally the side and end rails were rebated to accept the larger bottom layer of the plywood top layup.
This was actually done prior to the plywood layup in the last segment of this blog and that is the order I would recommend but I thought it would be easier to describe if I explained the plywood assembly first.
After reaching this point and dry fitting the assembled top inside the rails I left this part of the job and moved on to the leg construction.
I know that I have said that there is no "fancy joinery" in this bench and there certainly doesn't have to be. There is however, in my own bench, a simple dovetail joint in the top frame corners. It is purely decorative and a box joint or even a butt joint would in fact do the job. If the wagon vices were not epoxied in, then the dovetails would have a real function but I personally would rather rely on the epoxy… it's a boat builder thing.
This is the joint I'm referring to and it's really quite easy.
I made up a little 1/4" MDF pattern and cut the rough recesses out with a router. I'm really not a dovetail guy but I'm sure this must be a somewhat standard way of doing it.
The pattern lines up with the corners of the end members via some sight holes and is tacked in place with a pin tacker.
I routed the recesses out about 5/8" deep and left them unfinished for the time being.
Then after cutting the tails on the bandsaw, I fitted each corner and marked the recess from the tails.
From there it was an easy job to finish them up with a chisel.
The next job was to set the vices into the end rail to lock their sides against spreading under wedge pressure.
Finally the side and end rails were rebated to accept the larger bottom layer of the plywood top layup.
This was actually done prior to the plywood layup in the last segment of this blog and that is the order I would recommend but I thought it would be easier to describe if I explained the plywood assembly first.
After reaching this point and dry fitting the assembled top inside the rails I left this part of the job and moved on to the leg construction.
I know that I have said that there is no "fancy joinery" in this bench and there certainly doesn't have to be. There is however, in my own bench, a simple dovetail joint in the top frame corners. It is purely decorative and a box joint or even a butt joint would in fact do the job. If the wagon vices were not epoxied in, then the dovetails would have a real function but I personally would rather rely on the epoxy… it's a boat builder thing.
This is the joint I'm referring to and it's really quite easy.
I made up a little 1/4" MDF pattern and cut the rough recesses out with a router. I'm really not a dovetail guy but I'm sure this must be a somewhat standard way of doing it.
The pattern lines up with the corners of the end members via some sight holes and is tacked in place with a pin tacker.
I routed the recesses out about 5/8" deep and left them unfinished for the time being.
Then after cutting the tails on the bandsaw, I fitted each corner and marked the recess from the tails.
From there it was an easy job to finish them up with a chisel.
The next job was to set the vices into the end rail to lock their sides against spreading under wedge pressure.
Finally the side and end rails were rebated to accept the larger bottom layer of the plywood top layup.
This was actually done prior to the plywood layup in the last segment of this blog and that is the order I would recommend but I thought it would be easier to describe if I explained the plywood assembly first.
After reaching this point and dry fitting the assembled top inside the rails I left this part of the job and moved on to the leg construction.
I know that I have said that there is no "fancy joinery" in this bench and there certainly doesn't have to be. There is however, in my own bench, a simple dovetail joint in the top frame corners. It is purely decorative and a box joint or even a butt joint would in fact do the job. If the wagon vices were not epoxied in, then the dovetails would have a real function but I personally would rather rely on the epoxy… it's a boat builder thing.
This is the joint I'm referring to and it's really quite easy.
I made up a little 1/4" MDF pattern and cut the rough recesses out with a router. I'm really not a dovetail guy but I'm sure this must be a somewhat standard way of doing it.
The pattern lines up with the corners of the end members via some sight holes and is tacked in place with a pin tacker.
I routed the recesses out about 5/8" deep and left them unfinished for the time being.
Then after cutting the tails on the bandsaw, I fitted each corner and marked the recess from the tails.
From there it was an easy job to finish them up with a chisel.
The next job was to set the vices into the end rail to lock their sides against spreading under wedge pressure.
Finally the side and end rails were rebated to accept the larger bottom layer of the plywood top layup.
This was actually done prior to the plywood layup in the last segment of this blog and that is the order I would recommend but I thought it would be easier to describe if I explained the plywood assembly first.
After reaching this point and dry fitting the assembled top inside the rails I left this part of the job and moved on to the leg construction.
I know that I have said that there is no "fancy joinery" in this bench and there certainly doesn't have to be. There is however, in my own bench, a simple dovetail joint in the top frame corners. It is purely decorative and a box joint or even a butt joint would in fact do the job. If the wagon vices were not epoxied in, then the dovetails would have a real function but I personally would rather rely on the epoxy… it's a boat builder thing.
This is the joint I'm referring to and it's really quite easy.
I made up a little 1/4" MDF pattern and cut the rough recesses out with a router. I'm really not a dovetail guy but I'm sure this must be a somewhat standard way of doing it.
The pattern lines up with the corners of the end members via some sight holes and is tacked in place with a pin tacker.
I routed the recesses out about 5/8" deep and left them unfinished for the time being.
Then after cutting the tails on the bandsaw, I fitted each corner and marked the recess from the tails.
From there it was an easy job to finish them up with a chisel.
The next job was to set the vices into the end rail to lock their sides against spreading under wedge pressure.
Finally the side and end rails were rebated to accept the larger bottom layer of the plywood top layup.
This was actually done prior to the plywood layup in the last segment of this blog and that is the order I would recommend but I thought it would be easier to describe if I explained the plywood assembly first.
After reaching this point and dry fitting the assembled top inside the rails I left this part of the job and moved on to the leg construction.
Ok, lets get into the leg assemblies. This is one of the really interesting parts of my bench. The leg assemblies end up as perfectly fitted finger joints with the very best possible glue joint but can be cut and assembled with butt joints and simple fasteners. I used a pneumatic stapler.
Here I have fitted the inner leg vice piece. It is 1 3/4" X 6" arbutus and is half lapped inside the face board up to one layer into the bench top. It is fitted here to act as a spacer while assembling the plywood leg members for the vice end of the bench. You can see, just inside this piece, that there is a hole that goes right through the top layers. This will be filled by the outer of the two plywood leg layers.
Here the two plywood leg members have been dry fitted. The first in its hole in the tabletop and the second (inner) butted against the bottom.
Pulled out for a photo op, the whole leg vice leg joint looks like this. It isn't that important here how the interlock works as much as that it does interlock in some way to make a rigid base for the vise. The second piece of arbutus on the outside is the movable vice component.
In this photo three recesses have been jig sawn into the 1 1/2" plywood leg member and the five layer top leg beam is laid up beside it…. all dry fits so far.
Now the top beam has been dry fitted and the five layer back leg has been added. You can see that the vice end piece now has jig sawn recesses for the bottom leg beam.
Finally the lower beam has been dry fitted and the leg is complete. The fact that the beam is not completely filling the space left for it in the bottom layer of the top is because at this point I was still planning to "plate" the plywood with 1/2" arbutus to create the solid wood illusion.
On to the free standing leg. This photo shows one of the alternating layers of the free standing leg. All joints are simple butts.
This is the other alternate layer. The joints are reversed here and the verticals run through the top, not the bottom. By alternating these layers the leg can be laid up with staples and glue to form a monolithic structure of immense rigidity and strength. It isn't even necessary that all pieces be full length. You can, with discretion, use up some short pieces in these leg layups with no loss in strength. It's very material efficient.
Here the leg is being assembled for a dry fit. It's easy to see how the layering will work.
This is a little video of how easy these parts are to assemble. It was actually shot to detail the use of hot glue, hence the dialog.
Last thing before the glue up was to jig saw holes for the stretchers.
Here are the legs all glued up, sanded and ready to assemble to the stretchers and table.
Here are the box beam stretchers…..
...And here is the whole assembly. This is as far as you need to go to have a solid base for your bench. The rest of what I did was just to make it a little prettier.
Same shot but right side up. The dog hole inserts are installed and glued in here but the vices are just sitting in place.
Next I got a little carried away and walnut veneered the legs. The original plan, as I said was to "plate" them with 1/2" arbutus. Hammer veneering it was easier.
and the stretchers.
Now I'm just having too much fun. Here the little solid walnut "feet" have been screwed on the bottoms of the legs and a bit of stain applied to accent the grain.
Well that about does it for the legs. Next up will be installing the vices and cosmetic top.
Hope this is understandable.
Thanks for dropping in.
Questions, comments and critiques are, as always, welcome.
Ok, lets get into the leg assemblies. This is one of the really interesting parts of my bench. The leg assemblies end up as perfectly fitted finger joints with the very best possible glue joint but can be cut and assembled with butt joints and simple fasteners. I used a pneumatic stapler.
Here I have fitted the inner leg vice piece. It is 1 3/4" X 6" arbutus and is half lapped inside the face board up to one layer into the bench top. It is fitted here to act as a spacer while assembling the plywood leg members for the vice end of the bench. You can see, just inside this piece, that there is a hole that goes right through the top layers. This will be filled by the outer of the two plywood leg layers.
Here the two plywood leg members have been dry fitted. The first in its hole in the tabletop and the second (inner) butted against the bottom.
Pulled out for a photo op, the whole leg vice leg joint looks like this. It isn't that important here how the interlock works as much as that it does interlock in some way to make a rigid base for the vise. The second piece of arbutus on the outside is the movable vice component.
In this photo three recesses have been jig sawn into the 1 1/2" plywood leg member and the five layer top leg beam is laid up beside it…. all dry fits so far.
Now the top beam has been dry fitted and the five layer back leg has been added. You can see that the vice end piece now has jig sawn recesses for the bottom leg beam.
Finally the lower beam has been dry fitted and the leg is complete. The fact that the beam is not completely filling the space left for it in the bottom layer of the top is because at this point I was still planning to "plate" the plywood with 1/2" arbutus to create the solid wood illusion.
On to the free standing leg. This photo shows one of the alternating layers of the free standing leg. All joints are simple butts.
This is the other alternate layer. The joints are reversed here and the verticals run through the top, not the bottom. By alternating these layers the leg can be laid up with staples and glue to form a monolithic structure of immense rigidity and strength. It isn't even necessary that all pieces be full length. You can, with discretion, use up some short pieces in these leg layups with no loss in strength. It's very material efficient.
Here the leg is being assembled for a dry fit. It's easy to see how the layering will work.
This is a little video of how easy these parts are to assemble. It was actually shot to detail the use of hot glue, hence the dialog.
Last thing before the glue up was to jig saw holes for the stretchers.
Here are the legs all glued up, sanded and ready to assemble to the stretchers and table.
Here are the box beam stretchers…..
...And here is the whole assembly. This is as far as you need to go to have a solid base for your bench. The rest of what I did was just to make it a little prettier.
Same shot but right side up. The dog hole inserts are installed and glued in here but the vices are just sitting in place.
Next I got a little carried away and walnut veneered the legs. The original plan, as I said was to "plate" them with 1/2" arbutus. Hammer veneering it was easier.
and the stretchers.
Now I'm just having too much fun. Here the little solid walnut "feet" have been screwed on the bottoms of the legs and a bit of stain applied to accent the grain.
Well that about does it for the legs. Next up will be installing the vices and cosmetic top.
Hope this is understandable.
Thanks for dropping in.
Questions, comments and critiques are, as always, welcome.
Ok, lets get into the leg assemblies. This is one of the really interesting parts of my bench. The leg assemblies end up as perfectly fitted finger joints with the very best possible glue joint but can be cut and assembled with butt joints and simple fasteners. I used a pneumatic stapler.
Here I have fitted the inner leg vice piece. It is 1 3/4" X 6" arbutus and is half lapped inside the face board up to one layer into the bench top. It is fitted here to act as a spacer while assembling the plywood leg members for the vice end of the bench. You can see, just inside this piece, that there is a hole that goes right through the top layers. This will be filled by the outer of the two plywood leg layers.
Here the two plywood leg members have been dry fitted. The first in its hole in the tabletop and the second (inner) butted against the bottom.
Pulled out for a photo op, the whole leg vice leg joint looks like this. It isn't that important here how the interlock works as much as that it does interlock in some way to make a rigid base for the vise. The second piece of arbutus on the outside is the movable vice component.
In this photo three recesses have been jig sawn into the 1 1/2" plywood leg member and the five layer top leg beam is laid up beside it…. all dry fits so far.
Now the top beam has been dry fitted and the five layer back leg has been added. You can see that the vice end piece now has jig sawn recesses for the bottom leg beam.
Finally the lower beam has been dry fitted and the leg is complete. The fact that the beam is not completely filling the space left for it in the bottom layer of the top is because at this point I was still planning to "plate" the plywood with 1/2" arbutus to create the solid wood illusion.
On to the free standing leg. This photo shows one of the alternating layers of the free standing leg. All joints are simple butts.
This is the other alternate layer. The joints are reversed here and the verticals run through the top, not the bottom. By alternating these layers the leg can be laid up with staples and glue to form a monolithic structure of immense rigidity and strength. It isn't even necessary that all pieces be full length. You can, with discretion, use up some short pieces in these leg layups with no loss in strength. It's very material efficient.
Here the leg is being assembled for a dry fit. It's easy to see how the layering will work.
This is a little video of how easy these parts are to assemble. It was actually shot to detail the use of hot glue, hence the dialog.
Last thing before the glue up was to jig saw holes for the stretchers.
Here are the legs all glued up, sanded and ready to assemble to the stretchers and table.
Here are the box beam stretchers…..
...And here is the whole assembly. This is as far as you need to go to have a solid base for your bench. The rest of what I did was just to make it a little prettier.
Same shot but right side up. The dog hole inserts are installed and glued in here but the vices are just sitting in place.
Next I got a little carried away and walnut veneered the legs. The original plan, as I said was to "plate" them with 1/2" arbutus. Hammer veneering it was easier.
and the stretchers.
Now I'm just having too much fun. Here the little solid walnut "feet" have been screwed on the bottoms of the legs and a bit of stain applied to accent the grain.
Well that about does it for the legs. Next up will be installing the vices and cosmetic top.
Hope this is understandable.
Thanks for dropping in.
Questions, comments and critiques are, as always, welcome.
using plywood for the base got got me thinking that it was time to start on my bench.
I have some of plywood and ply is cheaper than regular lumber.
That walnut venneer dramatically changed the picture…Wow!
Venneering will be a challenge for me. I have never done / learned it.
I guess I can resaw some 1/8 or 1/4 inch "skin" and glue it on ( just thinking out loud).
At any rate your design will come up much cheaper than most alternatives.
Ok, lets get into the leg assemblies. This is one of the really interesting parts of my bench. The leg assemblies end up as perfectly fitted finger joints with the very best possible glue joint but can be cut and assembled with butt joints and simple fasteners. I used a pneumatic stapler.
Here I have fitted the inner leg vice piece. It is 1 3/4" X 6" arbutus and is half lapped inside the face board up to one layer into the bench top. It is fitted here to act as a spacer while assembling the plywood leg members for the vice end of the bench. You can see, just inside this piece, that there is a hole that goes right through the top layers. This will be filled by the outer of the two plywood leg layers.
Here the two plywood leg members have been dry fitted. The first in its hole in the tabletop and the second (inner) butted against the bottom.
Pulled out for a photo op, the whole leg vice leg joint looks like this. It isn't that important here how the interlock works as much as that it does interlock in some way to make a rigid base for the vise. The second piece of arbutus on the outside is the movable vice component.
In this photo three recesses have been jig sawn into the 1 1/2" plywood leg member and the five layer top leg beam is laid up beside it…. all dry fits so far.
Now the top beam has been dry fitted and the five layer back leg has been added. You can see that the vice end piece now has jig sawn recesses for the bottom leg beam.
Finally the lower beam has been dry fitted and the leg is complete. The fact that the beam is not completely filling the space left for it in the bottom layer of the top is because at this point I was still planning to "plate" the plywood with 1/2" arbutus to create the solid wood illusion.
On to the free standing leg. This photo shows one of the alternating layers of the free standing leg. All joints are simple butts.
This is the other alternate layer. The joints are reversed here and the verticals run through the top, not the bottom. By alternating these layers the leg can be laid up with staples and glue to form a monolithic structure of immense rigidity and strength. It isn't even necessary that all pieces be full length. You can, with discretion, use up some short pieces in these leg layups with no loss in strength. It's very material efficient.
Here the leg is being assembled for a dry fit. It's easy to see how the layering will work.
This is a little video of how easy these parts are to assemble. It was actually shot to detail the use of hot glue, hence the dialog.
Last thing before the glue up was to jig saw holes for the stretchers.
Here are the legs all glued up, sanded and ready to assemble to the stretchers and table.
Here are the box beam stretchers…..
...And here is the whole assembly. This is as far as you need to go to have a solid base for your bench. The rest of what I did was just to make it a little prettier.
Same shot but right side up. The dog hole inserts are installed and glued in here but the vices are just sitting in place.
Next I got a little carried away and walnut veneered the legs. The original plan, as I said was to "plate" them with 1/2" arbutus. Hammer veneering it was easier.
and the stretchers.
Now I'm just having too much fun. Here the little solid walnut "feet" have been screwed on the bottoms of the legs and a bit of stain applied to accent the grain.
Well that about does it for the legs. Next up will be installing the vices and cosmetic top.
Hope this is understandable.
Thanks for dropping in.
Questions, comments and critiques are, as always, welcome.
Ok, lets get into the leg assemblies. This is one of the really interesting parts of my bench. The leg assemblies end up as perfectly fitted finger joints with the very best possible glue joint but can be cut and assembled with butt joints and simple fasteners. I used a pneumatic stapler.
Here I have fitted the inner leg vice piece. It is 1 3/4" X 6" arbutus and is half lapped inside the face board up to one layer into the bench top. It is fitted here to act as a spacer while assembling the plywood leg members for the vice end of the bench. You can see, just inside this piece, that there is a hole that goes right through the top layers. This will be filled by the outer of the two plywood leg layers.
Here the two plywood leg members have been dry fitted. The first in its hole in the tabletop and the second (inner) butted against the bottom.
Pulled out for a photo op, the whole leg vice leg joint looks like this. It isn't that important here how the interlock works as much as that it does interlock in some way to make a rigid base for the vise. The second piece of arbutus on the outside is the movable vice component.
In this photo three recesses have been jig sawn into the 1 1/2" plywood leg member and the five layer top leg beam is laid up beside it…. all dry fits so far.
Now the top beam has been dry fitted and the five layer back leg has been added. You can see that the vice end piece now has jig sawn recesses for the bottom leg beam.
Finally the lower beam has been dry fitted and the leg is complete. The fact that the beam is not completely filling the space left for it in the bottom layer of the top is because at this point I was still planning to "plate" the plywood with 1/2" arbutus to create the solid wood illusion.
On to the free standing leg. This photo shows one of the alternating layers of the free standing leg. All joints are simple butts.
This is the other alternate layer. The joints are reversed here and the verticals run through the top, not the bottom. By alternating these layers the leg can be laid up with staples and glue to form a monolithic structure of immense rigidity and strength. It isn't even necessary that all pieces be full length. You can, with discretion, use up some short pieces in these leg layups with no loss in strength. It's very material efficient.
Here the leg is being assembled for a dry fit. It's easy to see how the layering will work.
This is a little video of how easy these parts are to assemble. It was actually shot to detail the use of hot glue, hence the dialog.
Last thing before the glue up was to jig saw holes for the stretchers.
Here are the legs all glued up, sanded and ready to assemble to the stretchers and table.
Here are the box beam stretchers…..
...And here is the whole assembly. This is as far as you need to go to have a solid base for your bench. The rest of what I did was just to make it a little prettier.
Same shot but right side up. The dog hole inserts are installed and glued in here but the vices are just sitting in place.
Next I got a little carried away and walnut veneered the legs. The original plan, as I said was to "plate" them with 1/2" arbutus. Hammer veneering it was easier.
and the stretchers.
Now I'm just having too much fun. Here the little solid walnut "feet" have been screwed on the bottoms of the legs and a bit of stain applied to accent the grain.
Well that about does it for the legs. Next up will be installing the vices and cosmetic top.
Hope this is understandable.
Thanks for dropping in.
Questions, comments and critiques are, as always, welcome.
Ok, lets get into the leg assemblies. This is one of the really interesting parts of my bench. The leg assemblies end up as perfectly fitted finger joints with the very best possible glue joint but can be cut and assembled with butt joints and simple fasteners. I used a pneumatic stapler.
Here I have fitted the inner leg vice piece. It is 1 3/4" X 6" arbutus and is half lapped inside the face board up to one layer into the bench top. It is fitted here to act as a spacer while assembling the plywood leg members for the vice end of the bench. You can see, just inside this piece, that there is a hole that goes right through the top layers. This will be filled by the outer of the two plywood leg layers.
Here the two plywood leg members have been dry fitted. The first in its hole in the tabletop and the second (inner) butted against the bottom.
Pulled out for a photo op, the whole leg vice leg joint looks like this. It isn't that important here how the interlock works as much as that it does interlock in some way to make a rigid base for the vise. The second piece of arbutus on the outside is the movable vice component.
In this photo three recesses have been jig sawn into the 1 1/2" plywood leg member and the five layer top leg beam is laid up beside it…. all dry fits so far.
Now the top beam has been dry fitted and the five layer back leg has been added. You can see that the vice end piece now has jig sawn recesses for the bottom leg beam.
Finally the lower beam has been dry fitted and the leg is complete. The fact that the beam is not completely filling the space left for it in the bottom layer of the top is because at this point I was still planning to "plate" the plywood with 1/2" arbutus to create the solid wood illusion.
On to the free standing leg. This photo shows one of the alternating layers of the free standing leg. All joints are simple butts.
This is the other alternate layer. The joints are reversed here and the verticals run through the top, not the bottom. By alternating these layers the leg can be laid up with staples and glue to form a monolithic structure of immense rigidity and strength. It isn't even necessary that all pieces be full length. You can, with discretion, use up some short pieces in these leg layups with no loss in strength. It's very material efficient.
Here the leg is being assembled for a dry fit. It's easy to see how the layering will work.
This is a little video of how easy these parts are to assemble. It was actually shot to detail the use of hot glue, hence the dialog.
Last thing before the glue up was to jig saw holes for the stretchers.
Here are the legs all glued up, sanded and ready to assemble to the stretchers and table.
Here are the box beam stretchers…..
...And here is the whole assembly. This is as far as you need to go to have a solid base for your bench. The rest of what I did was just to make it a little prettier.
Same shot but right side up. The dog hole inserts are installed and glued in here but the vices are just sitting in place.
Next I got a little carried away and walnut veneered the legs. The original plan, as I said was to "plate" them with 1/2" arbutus. Hammer veneering it was easier.
and the stretchers.
Now I'm just having too much fun. Here the little solid walnut "feet" have been screwed on the bottoms of the legs and a bit of stain applied to accent the grain.
Well that about does it for the legs. Next up will be installing the vices and cosmetic top.
Hope this is understandable.
Thanks for dropping in.
Questions, comments and critiques are, as always, welcome.
I think your plywood design is genius. All that laminated plywood is extremely strong and rigid. Plus you don't have to worry about the wood expanding, twisting, etc.. The veneer makes your bench look as good as any other work bench I have seen.
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