LumberJocks Woodworking Forum banner
13K views 19 replies 8 participants last post by  htl 
#1 ·
Where I started and where we're going...

Workbenches. We all have them. We all love them. Are we ever satisfied with them? Probably not. Or at least, I'm not. I guess to fully appreciate my current journey, you should know where I began.

I don't think that I have a photo of my very first workbench. At least, not one readily available. However, I can paint the picture verbally. I wanted to start reloading. For those of you who are unfamiliar, reloading is building your own bullets. This was back around 2010 or so. Anyone who is a firearms enthusiast knows that at that time, ammunition was very difficult to find and expensive to procure. I got a wild hair one day and decided to build a reloading bench. The fact that I had a sum total of ZERO in the way of knowledge of or necessary equipment or components for reloading (or bench building, for that matter) might have discouraged a lesser (read wiser) man, but nonplussed, I bravely began blazing the path to being able to shoot more/cheaper.

Only the finest of materials would suffice for this bench, so I wisely chose either Lowe's or Home Depot (don't remember which) as my supplier. I, in my infinite wisdom, selected 3/4" pine boards as the beefy top to my first bench. I attached a 2Ă—4 to the studs (at least I hope that I hit the studs!!!) in my garage, and the screwed 3 pieces of 2Ă—4 into the top of that. I ran the 3/4" boards across those and propped up the front with 2Ă—4 legs that were very poorly cut.

There you have it. My first bench. It wasn't really level. It wasn't really strong. It wasn't really even a bench, but what it was was the first step down a road that I may never reach the end of.

It didn't take me long time realize that I MIGHT be able to ever so slightly improve on my initial design.
I decided that if ever given the opportunity to build another, and really- after the solid construction of the first, would that time ever come…- I would build a solid base using 2×4s and 4×4s.

I thought that if I ever did acquire the equipment and components needed to begin reloading, I MIGHT want something a little sturdier. Luckily, a promotion and a move to a new house afforded that opportunity.

Upon arrival at the new house, I put my plan in to place. I wanted this to be the bench to end all benches. I built it - using only a drill and a circular saw - bigger than I intended. I cut down 6 legs from pressure treated 4Ă—4s and framed those out with 2Ă—4s. I hadn't discovered the necessity of measuring at this point, so my bench ended up being slightly (ok- a lot) taller than I intended. 45" of tall. It was also 8 feet wide and 36" deep. As I said, it was to be the bench to end all benches.

Now, at that point, I actually did acquire reloading equipment and components, and certainly wasn't strapped for space. My bench could comfortably accommodate 8-10 people and was plenty beefy. I had not yet discovered the importance of things like sanding, gluing, jointing or planing. Even without that knowledge, I knew that if there were ever an opportunity to refine my design (and at this point even I - as inexperienced as I was - knew that it wouldn't be long before I would create a reason) I would make a few changes.

The opportunity to further refine my design presented itself relatively quickly. By this point, I had started edging into the quicksand that is woodworking. I had begun acquiring tools, but had no real method for storage. My refined workbench was going to be slightly smaller and would be butted up beneath a pegboard tool wall.

I still had not purchased a planer or jointer, but I had learned the trick of running the 2Ă—4s through a table saw to knock the rounded edges off allowing the boards to be butted together without the "valleys" between them. This was the result:

Wood Table Shelf Shelving Desk


Overall, I was thrilled with the newest iteration of my workbench. Little did I know that the journey was just beginning.

In the next entry, I will discuss the last bench that I built and its pros and cons. Then, I will discuss my most recent bench build and bring you along on the journey as I continue my quest for a better bench. Thanks for reading!
 

Attachments

See less See more
2
#2 ·
The best bench so far...

After building the last iteration of Workbench 2.0 (technically, I guess I should call it Workbench 2.1), it did not take long for me to decide that I was still less than thrilled with the final outcome. In addition, I had delved further intro the land of woodworking, and had also acquired a jointer and planer. YouTube was filled with videos of people making workbenches with laminated tops. Thick and heavy, it seemed clear to me that this was the type of bench that I wanted to build.

Jay Bates was one of my favorite content providers, and it just so happened that he released a video of his bench build right around the time that I decided to build one of my own. I watched his build many, many times. I knew that I did not have the space in my garage for a bench as large as his, but I did want to build a bench with a thick laminated top and big beefy legs.

I would have loved to build the bench out of hard maple or similar, but I also knew that realistically, that wasn't going to be an option. Southern yellow pine was going to have to do. I went a bought a stack of 2×10s and got to work. First, I ripped the lumber down to 4" x 48" boards. After jointing and planing, I laminated the strips into 4 sections that when joined would make up the top. I intended to use dowels to line up the sections, and measured very, very carefully. Apparently, not carefully enough. The dowels did not line up. Plan B (hence my name…) was pretty simple. Screw it, enough glue and clamps and it will work out…

Wood Flooring Gas Hardwood Electrical wiring


In hindsight, it would have been much smarter if I had glued up smaller sections and then run them through my jointer and planer. Since I did not think to do that initially, it led to a TON of sanding. I grabbed the trusty "Chicago Electric" belt sander and went to work. After several sanding belts - the top was flat-ish. The bottom? Well, nobody was ever going to see it.

Next, I turned my attention to the legs. Again, cut from 2Ă—10s the legs ended up 3 3/4" thick and were joined by stretchers of the same thickness. The mortises were the issue. This was my first attempt at mortising. Using a Buck Brothers 1 1/2" chisel, I went to work. I got them cut, but let's just say that they won't win any beauty or accuracy contests. They were slightly oversized, but hey, the legs fit!

Finally, I moved on to cutting the dados for the stretchers. I have a Dewalt contractor's saw. Basically, that means no dado stack. I cut dados (9 total. One extra due to stupidity…) at 3 3/4" an 1/8th of an inch at the time. My wife nearly filed for divorce. Anyway, after all of that was done it was time for assembly!

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Creative arts


I got everything together, and in a feat of truly Herculean strength, I managed to get the bench flipped over. I gave it a couple of generous coats of natural danish oil and called it done!

Table Furniture Property Product Rectangle


Table Wood Hardwood Plank Wood stain


The bench has served me very well. Heavy and bulky, it's not going anywhere. At 48" x 36", the top is massive. I added a 10" Eclipse vise to the front and have also drilled some dog holes. It is absolutely the best bench that I have built. Not perfect, but solid as the day is long, and I imagine that it will outlive me. Still, It didn't take long for me too decide that I could do even better… We'll save that for next time.
 

Attachments

#3 ·
The best bench so far...

After building the last iteration of Workbench 2.0 (technically, I guess I should call it Workbench 2.1), it did not take long for me to decide that I was still less than thrilled with the final outcome. In addition, I had delved further intro the land of woodworking, and had also acquired a jointer and planer. YouTube was filled with videos of people making workbenches with laminated tops. Thick and heavy, it seemed clear to me that this was the type of bench that I wanted to build.

Jay Bates was one of my favorite content providers, and it just so happened that he released a video of his bench build right around the time that I decided to build one of my own. I watched his build many, many times. I knew that I did not have the space in my garage for a bench as large as his, but I did want to build a bench with a thick laminated top and big beefy legs.

I would have loved to build the bench out of hard maple or similar, but I also knew that realistically, that wasn't going to be an option. Southern yellow pine was going to have to do. I went a bought a stack of 2×10s and got to work. First, I ripped the lumber down to 4" x 48" boards. After jointing and planing, I laminated the strips into 4 sections that when joined would make up the top. I intended to use dowels to line up the sections, and measured very, very carefully. Apparently, not carefully enough. The dowels did not line up. Plan B (hence my name…) was pretty simple. Screw it, enough glue and clamps and it will work out…

Wood Flooring Gas Hardwood Electrical wiring


In hindsight, it would have been much smarter if I had glued up smaller sections and then run them through my jointer and planer. Since I did not think to do that initially, it led to a TON of sanding. I grabbed the trusty "Chicago Electric" belt sander and went to work. After several sanding belts - the top was flat-ish. The bottom? Well, nobody was ever going to see it.

Next, I turned my attention to the legs. Again, cut from 2Ă—10s the legs ended up 3 3/4" thick and were joined by stretchers of the same thickness. The mortises were the issue. This was my first attempt at mortising. Using a Buck Brothers 1 1/2" chisel, I went to work. I got them cut, but let's just say that they won't win any beauty or accuracy contests. They were slightly oversized, but hey, the legs fit!

Finally, I moved on to cutting the dados for the stretchers. I have a Dewalt contractor's saw. Basically, that means no dado stack. I cut dados (9 total. One extra due to stupidity…) at 3 3/4" an 1/8th of an inch at the time. My wife nearly filed for divorce. Anyway, after all of that was done it was time for assembly!

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Creative arts


I got everything together, and in a feat of truly Herculean strength, I managed to get the bench flipped over. I gave it a couple of generous coats of natural danish oil and called it done!

Table Furniture Property Product Rectangle


Table Wood Hardwood Plank Wood stain


The bench has served me very well. Heavy and bulky, it's not going anywhere. At 48" x 36", the top is massive. I added a 10" Eclipse vise to the front and have also drilled some dog holes. It is absolutely the best bench that I have built. Not perfect, but solid as the day is long, and I imagine that it will outlive me. Still, It didn't take long for me too decide that I could do even better… We'll save that for next time.
The lap joints for your stretchers wasted away way too much of the posts, fyi.
 

Attachments

#7 ·
The search for inspiration...

As I stated in my previous blog, my first laminated top bench was as solid as anything that I could have hoped for. That being said, before I had even finished building it, and I dare say that I am not the only one that does this, I had already envisioned what I would do differently if I ever built another bench. I built the first laminated top bench to be approximately 48" long by 36" wide. I wanted to have a lot of surface area, but did not have a lot of space for a long bench. Also, the bench was the same height as all of my other work surfaces which is 40". Now, I am not a tall guy. 5'9". I think that I grew used to taller benches when I sort of kind of accidentally built my first real bench at like 44" tall.

I knew that if I were to build another bench, I would want to make it longer, more narrow and not as tall. In addition, I wanted to make it more visually appealing. Now, I don't want a showroom bench. I want a bench that looks good, but one that I am not going to stress WHEN it gets dinged or splattered with stain.

The search for inspiration began with scouring the interwebs and sites like LJs and Pinterest (yeah, I said it). I also completed the required reading, The Workbench Design Book by Christopher Schwarz.

Font Table Musical instrument Pianist Keyboard


In his book, Schwarz went into great detail about many features and techniques that were exciting and I really wanted to include many of them in the plans for my next bench. I got carried away in dreams of tail vises and tool trays. Dreams of hard maple and sliding dead men and draw boring were entertaining for awhile, but then reality came crashing in. If I built a bench like that, then I would absolutely be terrified to damage it.

I continued my search for inspiration. I found it on the American Workbench website. If you haven't seen the benches that they offer, then I suggest you stop reading my ridiculous blog and get over to their website post-haste. They have some incredible offerings.

Table Furniture Wood Wood stain Rectangle


Table Furniture Rectangle Wood Wood stain


Taking inspiration from their designs, I put together the basic outline for my next bench. The one major design element that I took from Mr. Schwarz was that I wanted the legs to be flush with the front of the bench for work holding.

In the next blog, I will discuss my plan, and describe the first portion of building my better bench.
 

Attachments

#8 ·
The search for inspiration...

As I stated in my previous blog, my first laminated top bench was as solid as anything that I could have hoped for. That being said, before I had even finished building it, and I dare say that I am not the only one that does this, I had already envisioned what I would do differently if I ever built another bench. I built the first laminated top bench to be approximately 48" long by 36" wide. I wanted to have a lot of surface area, but did not have a lot of space for a long bench. Also, the bench was the same height as all of my other work surfaces which is 40". Now, I am not a tall guy. 5'9". I think that I grew used to taller benches when I sort of kind of accidentally built my first real bench at like 44" tall.

I knew that if I were to build another bench, I would want to make it longer, more narrow and not as tall. In addition, I wanted to make it more visually appealing. Now, I don't want a showroom bench. I want a bench that looks good, but one that I am not going to stress WHEN it gets dinged or splattered with stain.

The search for inspiration began with scouring the interwebs and sites like LJs and Pinterest (yeah, I said it). I also completed the required reading, The Workbench Design Book by Christopher Schwarz.

Font Table Musical instrument Pianist Keyboard


In his book, Schwarz went into great detail about many features and techniques that were exciting and I really wanted to include many of them in the plans for my next bench. I got carried away in dreams of tail vises and tool trays. Dreams of hard maple and sliding dead men and draw boring were entertaining for awhile, but then reality came crashing in. If I built a bench like that, then I would absolutely be terrified to damage it.

I continued my search for inspiration. I found it on the American Workbench website. If you haven't seen the benches that they offer, then I suggest you stop reading my ridiculous blog and get over to their website post-haste. They have some incredible offerings.

Table Furniture Wood Wood stain Rectangle


Table Furniture Rectangle Wood Wood stain


Taking inspiration from their designs, I put together the basic outline for my next bench. The one major design element that I took from Mr. Schwarz was that I wanted the legs to be flush with the front of the bench for work holding.

In the next blog, I will discuss my plan, and describe the first portion of building my better bench.
My take on workbenches is to let it evolve into something that suits your needs. So many woodworkers obsess with this design or that. The plethora of books, blogs, etc, on workbench design are a testament to that obsession.

Mine started simple and over time became a bench that suits my needs perfectly.
 

Attachments

#9 ·
Construction begins...

I had to temper my desires when it came to dimensions, features and materials in the design of workbench 3.0. Again, I wasn't going to be building the bench from anything fancy. Good old southern yellow pine was good enough for my first laminated top bench. It has held up amazingly well (with the exception of various stain/shellac splatter). Very few scratches/gouges/dents have marred the surface, and what has could be easily cleaned up with a little planing and sanding.

In addition to sticking with pine as the construction material of choice, I also decided that I wanted to also reuse as many of the boards from the workbench that this newer bench was replacing. That was going to limit the thickness of the top due to the fact that the previous bench was constructed of 2Ă—4s. That meant that after cleaning up those boards, I would be working with a top thickness of 3 1/4". There are a few reasons that I am really ok with this limitation.

1. By using materials that I have on hand currently, my additional expenses are limited.
2. I also will not be permanently attaching the top to the base. This way, down the road, I can have the ability to upgrade the top to thicker/better material down the road.
3. Finally, I really want to make this top in a certain manner. I want to coat the top with a thick layer of shellac. The reason for this is that when I get around to replacing this top with hard maple (or similar) - and that should be sooner rather than later - I want to repurpose this top as the top to a new desk for my home office.

I started this build by tearing down the bench to be replaced. What a mess that created!!!

Wood Table Shelf Shelving Desk


Motor vehicle Wheel Automotive tire Wood Tire

Wood Floor Flooring Ladder Hardwood


After clearing out enough space to work, I cut the boards to length, 60", and planed and jointed them to the proper thickness. Following all of that, it was time for the glue up.

Wood Table Hardwood Wood stain Plank

Table saws Wood Radial arm saw Saw Milling


Wood Table Luggage and bags Tool Gas


Tire Wheel Wood Floor Vehicle registration plate


It felt great to get a start on this project. I was thrilled with where it was going.

In the next entry, I will discuss the steps taken to complete the construction of the top and to cut the mortises.

Thanks for reading!
 

Attachments

#10 ·
Construction begins...

I had to temper my desires when it came to dimensions, features and materials in the design of workbench 3.0. Again, I wasn't going to be building the bench from anything fancy. Good old southern yellow pine was good enough for my first laminated top bench. It has held up amazingly well (with the exception of various stain/shellac splatter). Very few scratches/gouges/dents have marred the surface, and what has could be easily cleaned up with a little planing and sanding.

In addition to sticking with pine as the construction material of choice, I also decided that I wanted to also reuse as many of the boards from the workbench that this newer bench was replacing. That was going to limit the thickness of the top due to the fact that the previous bench was constructed of 2Ă—4s. That meant that after cleaning up those boards, I would be working with a top thickness of 3 1/4". There are a few reasons that I am really ok with this limitation.

1. By using materials that I have on hand currently, my additional expenses are limited.
2. I also will not be permanently attaching the top to the base. This way, down the road, I can have the ability to upgrade the top to thicker/better material down the road.
3. Finally, I really want to make this top in a certain manner. I want to coat the top with a thick layer of shellac. The reason for this is that when I get around to replacing this top with hard maple (or similar) - and that should be sooner rather than later - I want to repurpose this top as the top to a new desk for my home office.

I started this build by tearing down the bench to be replaced. What a mess that created!!!

Wood Table Shelf Shelving Desk


Motor vehicle Wheel Automotive tire Wood Tire

Wood Floor Flooring Ladder Hardwood


After clearing out enough space to work, I cut the boards to length, 60", and planed and jointed them to the proper thickness. Following all of that, it was time for the glue up.

Wood Table Hardwood Wood stain Plank

Table saws Wood Radial arm saw Saw Milling


Wood Table Luggage and bags Tool Gas


Tire Wheel Wood Floor Vehicle registration plate


It felt great to get a start on this project. I was thrilled with where it was going.

In the next entry, I will discuss the steps taken to complete the construction of the top and to cut the mortises.

Thanks for reading!
Ummm, thanks Divya, but I think you misunderstood the "wood" we discuss here.
 

Attachments

#11 ·
Mortise and Tenon Joinery... Just writing that makes me feel like a SUPER WOODWORKER!!!

DISCLAIMER!!! THis post only contains a small portion that relates to Mortise and Tenmon Joinery. It just made me feel all tingly to include that in my title. Sorry for misleading you.

At the end of my last blog entry, my workbench top was in the glue up stage. I glued up the top in 4 sections that would allow me to combine 2 and BARELY be able to run them through the planer. I was shooting for a top that was 60" long and 25"wide. both 12 1/2" sections maxed out the capacity of my Dewalt 734 Planer, but wow, did that cut down on the sanding. Following leveling of my now 2 sections of workbench top, I glued up the entirety of the top. I did not use any dowels or biscuits in joining the separate sections, but through careful gluing, clamping and the use of cauls, I was able to get the 2 final pieces very close to perfect. A little low angle jack plane action and some sanding, and everything was perfectly aligned.

Wood Floor Gas Hardwood Workbench


While I was waiting for the glue to dry in my various top glue ups, I began working on the base of the bench. In the second entry of this blog, I posted some photos of my previous laminated top bench, and some of those who for whatever reason actually read the blog - seriously, why would you read what I write? - pointed out that I had cut away too much of the legs in my previous bench. I didn't use half lap joints, but rather cut away more like 2/3 of the legs. As I replied to those posts, that is one of the reasons that I love this site. I had not even noticed how much of the leg I had cut away. Obviously, I wanted to adjust that in the base for my new bench.

I cut 2Ă—10s down to 4" wide to laminate for the legs and stretchers. My intention was for my bench to end up at 34" tall. Apparently, that is the magical height for workbenches according to my reading. That meant that my legs would need be 30 3/4" tall to end up at at 34". As you may remember if you have punished yourself by reading my previous entries, all of my other workbenches are 40" tall. Losing 6" of height is a big adjustment for me.

Also mentioned in my previous laminated top build, I screwed up in cutting the dadoes, cutting one extra due to stupidity and failing to double check the orientation of the leg to ensure proper placement. I wanted to ensure that did not happen again. Either my skills have improved, or I got lucky, regardless, I was successful i cutting the dadoes properly. I also cut the tenons at the top of the legs at 2 3/4" as I wanted non-through tenons.

Wood Floor Flooring Tool Table


Wood Table Rectangle Hardwood Tool


Wood Automotive design Rectangle Flooring Table


Now to the mortises. In my previous attempt to cut mortises for a workbench, I used a dull Buck Brothers chisel to cut them. This time, I went with a new mortising tool, the Porter Cable Corded Drill with a large Forstner bit. I used this to hog out the majority of the material.

Circuit component Gas Electrical wiring Wood Engineering


Following the Porter Cable chisel, I did employ a Stanley Bailey chisel that had been properly sharpened. I CANNOT tell you how much of a difference the sharp chisel made in the cutting of the mortises. Of course, if you are reading a blog on LumberJocks, you are probably already aware.

Wood Flooring Rectangle Floor Wood stain


Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


The cutting of the mortises was something that I was pretty anxious about. Getting those cut and cleanly, was something that I was very excited about.

In the next entry, I will discuss the finishing of the top and the base, and we will assemble the bench. Thanks for reading!
 

Attachments

#12 ·
Mortise and Tenon Joinery... Just writing that makes me feel like a SUPER WOODWORKER!!!

DISCLAIMER!!! THis post only contains a small portion that relates to Mortise and Tenmon Joinery. It just made me feel all tingly to include that in my title. Sorry for misleading you.

At the end of my last blog entry, my workbench top was in the glue up stage. I glued up the top in 4 sections that would allow me to combine 2 and BARELY be able to run them through the planer. I was shooting for a top that was 60" long and 25"wide. both 12 1/2" sections maxed out the capacity of my Dewalt 734 Planer, but wow, did that cut down on the sanding. Following leveling of my now 2 sections of workbench top, I glued up the entirety of the top. I did not use any dowels or biscuits in joining the separate sections, but through careful gluing, clamping and the use of cauls, I was able to get the 2 final pieces very close to perfect. A little low angle jack plane action and some sanding, and everything was perfectly aligned.

Wood Floor Gas Hardwood Workbench


While I was waiting for the glue to dry in my various top glue ups, I began working on the base of the bench. In the second entry of this blog, I posted some photos of my previous laminated top bench, and some of those who for whatever reason actually read the blog - seriously, why would you read what I write? - pointed out that I had cut away too much of the legs in my previous bench. I didn't use half lap joints, but rather cut away more like 2/3 of the legs. As I replied to those posts, that is one of the reasons that I love this site. I had not even noticed how much of the leg I had cut away. Obviously, I wanted to adjust that in the base for my new bench.

I cut 2Ă—10s down to 4" wide to laminate for the legs and stretchers. My intention was for my bench to end up at 34" tall. Apparently, that is the magical height for workbenches according to my reading. That meant that my legs would need be 30 3/4" tall to end up at at 34". As you may remember if you have punished yourself by reading my previous entries, all of my other workbenches are 40" tall. Losing 6" of height is a big adjustment for me.

Also mentioned in my previous laminated top build, I screwed up in cutting the dadoes, cutting one extra due to stupidity and failing to double check the orientation of the leg to ensure proper placement. I wanted to ensure that did not happen again. Either my skills have improved, or I got lucky, regardless, I was successful i cutting the dadoes properly. I also cut the tenons at the top of the legs at 2 3/4" as I wanted non-through tenons.

Wood Floor Flooring Tool Table


Wood Table Rectangle Hardwood Tool


Wood Automotive design Rectangle Flooring Table


Now to the mortises. In my previous attempt to cut mortises for a workbench, I used a dull Buck Brothers chisel to cut them. This time, I went with a new mortising tool, the Porter Cable Corded Drill with a large Forstner bit. I used this to hog out the majority of the material.

Circuit component Gas Electrical wiring Wood Engineering


Following the Porter Cable chisel, I did employ a Stanley Bailey chisel that had been properly sharpened. I CANNOT tell you how much of a difference the sharp chisel made in the cutting of the mortises. Of course, if you are reading a blog on LumberJocks, you are probably already aware.

Wood Flooring Rectangle Floor Wood stain


Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


The cutting of the mortises was something that I was pretty anxious about. Getting those cut and cleanly, was something that I was very excited about.

In the next entry, I will discuss the finishing of the top and the base, and we will assemble the bench. Thanks for reading!
Looking good, It always surprises me how 2 bys can look once run through the planer.
 

Attachments

#13 ·
Final Assembly and Finish!!!

After cutting the mortises, tenons and all the dadoes in the legs, I felt like I was in the home stretch. The first thing that I did following all of the cutting and milling was sand EVERYTHING to 320. Probably further than necessary, but I don't think anyone has aver said, "Man, I wish that I hadn't sanded everything so well." Anyway, after sanding everything down, I started thinking. If you are anything like me, you know how dangerous that can be.

I decided that I was getting nervous about my target height for the bench. I intended for the bench to end up at 34". According to all of my readings, 34" is a highly recommended height for workbenches. Now, I am 5'9". In the past, I had built all of my benches at a minimum of 40" based on the fact that the very first real bench that I built was ridiculously tall at 44" (mainly because I was ignorant). I had grown accustomed to taller benches, and seeing a final height of 34" was pretty disconcerting.

I decided that I wanted to make the bench a little taller. The problem was that I had already cut the legs. How could I make them taller? The answer was pretty simple. I was going to add - and I am sure that there is an actual name for this, but I don't know what it is - stretchers as feet. I laminated a couple of 2"x4" pieces remaining from the legs. Then, I took them to my bandsaw and cut a curve on the front.

After sanding them down, I began staining the legs and feet. I selected Sedona Red from Minwax. I applied 2 coats to all of the leg material. After the 2nd coat, I was not pleased with the color. It was very pink. I then decided to add some red mahogany to the Sedona Red. That darkened it up pretty nicely in my opinion. I clear coated the legs with spray spar urethane.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Sculpture


Wood Wood stain Flooring Hardwood Plank


Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Hardwood


I then turned my attention to the top. I decided that I wanted to put a round over on all the edges of the top. I took my palm router and rounded over the front and one side. It was only AFTER I routed the round over on the side that I decided that I wanted the top to be a little longer. How was I going to fix that? I decided that I would simply cut 2x material to cap the ends. I was going to fill in my roundover by mixing sawdust and glue and really packing it in there. It turned out ok. Not beautiful, but it worked.

For the finish on the top, I knew I wanted a glassy smooth finish. I also knew that I wanted to leave the wood natural as far as color. I took Zinzer's Clear Shellac and thinned it 50/50 with Denatured Alcohol. I padded it on, sanding with 400 after the 2nd, 3rd and 4th coats. For the 5th and 6th coats, I sanded with 0000 steel wool. I applied a final coat and was done.

Table Wood Desk Interior design Flooring


Table Wood Tool Workbench Flooring


Hood Wood Car Vehicle Wheel


Table Wood Workbench Tool Machine tool


On to assembly!!! I used glue and screws to attach the legs and stretchers. After getting that part of the assembly, I was able to manhandle the top on to the tenons. I did not use any glue or screws to attach the top. As I mentioned in previous blog entries, I intend to replace the top relatively soon with a beefier hard maple top. I will then take the current top, and repurpose it into a desk for my home office - which is the reason that ai wanted the glassy smooth finish.

Table Furniture Wood Writing desk Desk


The bench was finished!!!! I was very happy with the final result! I was also very happy to be finished with this project. It was long and I was ready to move on to something else. I was done…but wait. You know, the bench is pretty nice. BUT, it would be awesome to add a tool cabinet to the open space between the legs! Dammit! Not done yet…

In the next entry, I will describe the construction of the the tool chest and wrap this build up for good. I think…

Thanks for reading!
 

Attachments

#14 ·
Final Assembly and Finish!!!

After cutting the mortises, tenons and all the dadoes in the legs, I felt like I was in the home stretch. The first thing that I did following all of the cutting and milling was sand EVERYTHING to 320. Probably further than necessary, but I don't think anyone has aver said, "Man, I wish that I hadn't sanded everything so well." Anyway, after sanding everything down, I started thinking. If you are anything like me, you know how dangerous that can be.

I decided that I was getting nervous about my target height for the bench. I intended for the bench to end up at 34". According to all of my readings, 34" is a highly recommended height for workbenches. Now, I am 5'9". In the past, I had built all of my benches at a minimum of 40" based on the fact that the very first real bench that I built was ridiculously tall at 44" (mainly because I was ignorant). I had grown accustomed to taller benches, and seeing a final height of 34" was pretty disconcerting.

I decided that I wanted to make the bench a little taller. The problem was that I had already cut the legs. How could I make them taller? The answer was pretty simple. I was going to add - and I am sure that there is an actual name for this, but I don't know what it is - stretchers as feet. I laminated a couple of 2"x4" pieces remaining from the legs. Then, I took them to my bandsaw and cut a curve on the front.

After sanding them down, I began staining the legs and feet. I selected Sedona Red from Minwax. I applied 2 coats to all of the leg material. After the 2nd coat, I was not pleased with the color. It was very pink. I then decided to add some red mahogany to the Sedona Red. That darkened it up pretty nicely in my opinion. I clear coated the legs with spray spar urethane.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Sculpture


Wood Wood stain Flooring Hardwood Plank


Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Hardwood


I then turned my attention to the top. I decided that I wanted to put a round over on all the edges of the top. I took my palm router and rounded over the front and one side. It was only AFTER I routed the round over on the side that I decided that I wanted the top to be a little longer. How was I going to fix that? I decided that I would simply cut 2x material to cap the ends. I was going to fill in my roundover by mixing sawdust and glue and really packing it in there. It turned out ok. Not beautiful, but it worked.

For the finish on the top, I knew I wanted a glassy smooth finish. I also knew that I wanted to leave the wood natural as far as color. I took Zinzer's Clear Shellac and thinned it 50/50 with Denatured Alcohol. I padded it on, sanding with 400 after the 2nd, 3rd and 4th coats. For the 5th and 6th coats, I sanded with 0000 steel wool. I applied a final coat and was done.

Table Wood Desk Interior design Flooring


Table Wood Tool Workbench Flooring


Hood Wood Car Vehicle Wheel


Table Wood Workbench Tool Machine tool


On to assembly!!! I used glue and screws to attach the legs and stretchers. After getting that part of the assembly, I was able to manhandle the top on to the tenons. I did not use any glue or screws to attach the top. As I mentioned in previous blog entries, I intend to replace the top relatively soon with a beefier hard maple top. I will then take the current top, and repurpose it into a desk for my home office - which is the reason that ai wanted the glassy smooth finish.

Table Furniture Wood Writing desk Desk


The bench was finished!!!! I was very happy with the final result! I was also very happy to be finished with this project. It was long and I was ready to move on to something else. I was done…but wait. You know, the bench is pretty nice. BUT, it would be awesome to add a tool cabinet to the open space between the legs! Dammit! Not done yet…

In the next entry, I will describe the construction of the the tool chest and wrap this build up for good. I think…

Thanks for reading!
Nice looking bench. I went through a similar thought process on putting a cabinet in the base of my bench. I recently replaced that cabinet with drawers, so I need to update my blog series.
 

Attachments

#17 ·
The last part...

So the bench was DONE. I was very happy with the way that it turned out. It was solid, it was heavy, it was visually appealing and it was going to be around for a long time. Just in case you don't remember what it looked like:

Table Furniture Wood Writing desk Desk


Ok, I'll admit, I just wanted to show it off. Anyway, because I was so pleased with the bench, I decided to rearrange my entire shop. This led to some storage issues. Also, the bench that I dismantled to make room for the new bench was the bench where I mounted my drill press and my belt/disc sander. Now, I also had to find new homes for those pieces of equipment.

I decided that I would take the bench what formerly was my MAIN workbench (the previously completed laminated top bench} and move it to the opposite wall. In moving that, it created the opportunity for my to move my table saw station (see my projects for details) to the opposite wall, as well. Initially, I moved my drill press and combo sander to the top of my previous laminated top bench, but I wasn't thrilled with that. Both machines pretty much eliminated any usefulness that bench could provide.

I decided that I would leave the drill press there, but would move my combo sander to one of my miter saw wings. As my miter saw station is centered around a former tv cabinet with fold up wings (again, see my projects/workshop for details), I have deep wings. Therefore, I could place the sander on the end, be able to access both the belt and the disc and NOT lose any miter saw capacity.

Those 2 pieces of equipment now had new homes, but I still had some storage issues as a result of the reorganization. In contemplating possible solutions, I realized that the new bench had a perfect base for adding a tool cabinet. I decided to take full advantage of that.

In the interest of using the materials that I had on hand, I built the cabinet using 1/2" plywood. I began by constructing the sides and back, using squares to ensure that my angles were at 90'.

Table Wood Floor Shelving Kitchen


Picture frame Wood Table Interior design Floor


Then, using pine ply, I constructed drawers (a total of 7) at various depths. I wanted at least one deep drawer to house a standard circular saw and another tool or 2. The remaining drawers were going to hold my sandpaper discs and sheets. The rest of the drawers were not reserved for anything immediately, but I knew that it would not take them long to find tenants.

I did not wat to shell out $150 for the drawer slides, so I cut runners from scrap wood and I coated them with paste wax. I finished the drawers with shellac and paste wax. I stained the drawer fronts, again 1/2" ply, with the mix of Sedona Red and Red Mahogany that I used for the base of the bench, but I ran out of the mix. I had to finish one drawer front with just Red Mahagony. I brushed on 3 coats of satin poly. I installed brushed chrome drawer pulls/knobs, and was done with the cabinet.

I placed the cabinet in its new home, and installed a block below it that would butt up against the front stretcher, keeping the cabinet from sliding out the front of the bench. As the bench was up against a wall, it wasn't necesssary to install a block on the backside.

Table Cabinetry Furniture Chest of drawers Drawer


Cabinetry Furniture Dresser Table Wood


About half of the drawers are still empty, bit I know that will not last long. I WAS DONE!!!! Man, I was thrilled with the final product. It looked great and was very functional. I just hated that such a good looking bench was butted up against a wall that had shop fixtures that had been contracted with no concern for aesthetics. It was a shame that they were so ugly. It sure would be nice if I could do something about that. Dammit, AGAIN!!! Still not done. At LEAST one more entry in my apparently never ending bench project…
 

Attachments

#18 ·
The end - for real this time... I think...

In the previous entries of this blog series, you have, if you have punished yourself by reading all of them, been taken through the inspiration and design, the material selection and the construction of my new work bench. Then, you were dragged along as I constructed a tool cabinet underneath the bench top. God bless you for your patience.

Cabinetry Furniture Dresser Table Wood


I was very happy with the look of the bench and my new drawers. Unfortunately, it became clear to me that my aesthetically pleasing new bench was butted up against a dingy wall adorned with shop fixtures that, while functional, were ugly. For example:

Shelf Shelving Wood Rectangle Gas


Wood Hardwood Flooring Machine Tool


The first thing that I did was to take everything off the wall. Then, I hung a couple of pieces of 3'4" birch plywood, sanded it to 220 and finished it with boiled linseed oil. All of the stuff that was on my sanding storage station had already found new homes in the drawers in the workbench. I definitely had to do something about my drill station. I wanted something that looked good. Here is what I came up with:

Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Hardwood Luggage and bags Bag Tool


Again, made from birch ply and finished with BLO, I banded the edges with walnut. After that, it was just deciding what I wanted on the wall, and building holders for everything. Here is the finished result.

Laptop Personal computer Computer Wood Table


Furniture Table Property Cabinetry Building


I will say that I am thrilled with the final result, and honestly, very ready to move on to something different.

Thanks for reading (and bearing with me…)!
 

Attachments

#19 ·
The end - for real this time... I think...

In the previous entries of this blog series, you have, if you have punished yourself by reading all of them, been taken through the inspiration and design, the material selection and the construction of my new work bench. Then, you were dragged along as I constructed a tool cabinet underneath the bench top. God bless you for your patience.

Cabinetry Furniture Dresser Table Wood


I was very happy with the look of the bench and my new drawers. Unfortunately, it became clear to me that my aesthetically pleasing new bench was butted up against a dingy wall adorned with shop fixtures that, while functional, were ugly. For example:

Shelf Shelving Wood Rectangle Gas


Wood Hardwood Flooring Machine Tool


The first thing that I did was to take everything off the wall. Then, I hung a couple of pieces of 3'4" birch plywood, sanded it to 220 and finished it with boiled linseed oil. All of the stuff that was on my sanding storage station had already found new homes in the drawers in the workbench. I definitely had to do something about my drill station. I wanted something that looked good. Here is what I came up with:

Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Hardwood Luggage and bags Bag Tool


Again, made from birch ply and finished with BLO, I banded the edges with walnut. After that, it was just deciding what I wanted on the wall, and building holders for everything. Here is the finished result.

Laptop Personal computer Computer Wood Table


Furniture Table Property Cabinetry Building


I will say that I am thrilled with the final result, and honestly, very ready to move on to something different.

Thanks for reading (and bearing with me…)!
That is great. I am motivated to organize my workspace.
 

Attachments

This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top