This last weekend I was able to get all of the lumber milled up and I started to glue-up the top. Dorje and I did a pretty good job picking out the lumber. There were very few knots I had to deal with. The small ones you might see in the photo are very close to the surface. It’s likely they will be milled out when I flatten the top.
Here is the first glue-up. It’s the front of the bench with the dog holes. I also got 2 other sections glued up.
You might be asking what that whole is at the top. That’s where I will be putting the Wagon for the Wagon Vise. I’ll be gluing the top in sections. This will allow me to get good clamping pressure on the laminated sections. I’m keeping the first glue-up under 6”, so that I can run it over my jointer to flatten the glue-up. I’ll then glue-up 2 sections which will be under 12”. This will allow me to run it through my planer, one last time.
I won’t have a lot of time over the next couple of weekends to work on the bench, but I hope I can at least get the last couple of sections glued up. After that, I should be heading down the home stretch.
-- Mike - http://inquisitivewoodworker.blogspot.com/
10 comments so far
newplane
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18 posts in 563 days
posted 212 days ago
looks good friend. i am in the process of making a bench as well
-- Dont just dream it, gett of your butt and live it!
GaryK
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8486 posts in 473 days
posted 212 days ago
Looks very good. Excellent lumber selection!
-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.
Damian Penney
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679 posts in 476 days
posted 212 days ago
Looking great, and I’m sure that the wagon vise will work really well. Perhaps you could attach the end cap with a big meaty dovetail; I love big dovetails on workbenches and it’s the one thing missing from the Holtzapffel, this could be the perfect spot to reintroduce it :)
-- I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso
Scott Bryan
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9095 posts in 307 days
posted 212 days ago
Hi Mike,
You are making progress. It is going to be nice to see the finished product (and I am sure that you will be glad when the woodworking is finished as well).
Thanks for the update.
-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.
John Gray
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697 posts in 371 days
posted 212 days ago
SUPER NICE you are giving me the bug…..but I’m building another kind now.
THANKS for the post
-- Only the Shadow knows....................
SPalm
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728 posts in 367 days
posted 212 days ago
Pretty, pretty, pretty. That is going to be one sweet bench.
-- Stevethepeeve -- I'm no rocket surgeon
Dorje
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1745 posts in 482 days
posted 212 days ago
Looking good! What did you say the spacing of the dog holes was going to be? Just over 3” – right?
One question that I hadn’t asked, but wondered about, is what’s the strategy to clean up the end grain once that big, heavy ~3” thick top is glued up?
Those boards did come out nice!
-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA
Mike Lingenfelter
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390 posts in 599 days
posted 212 days ago
The dog holdes ended up being spaced 3 3/8”. I ended up using the drill press, instead of the router to make the dog holes. After the final glue-up, I just plan to square up the ends using a circular saw.
-- Mike - http://inquisitivewoodworker.blogspot.com/
johnjoiner
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143 posts in 378 days
posted 212 days ago
Looks good, Mike.
I really like the look of the wagon vise. I’ll be interested to see how that goes for you. The rest of the holtzapffel seems so simple I’ve wondered if the wagon vise could end up taking 1/4 or more of the total build time.
-- johnjoiner
Mike Lingenfelter
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390 posts in 599 days
posted 212 days ago
The build so far has been pretty easy. The Wagon Vise has been pretty easy to work in. I think just gluing up the top is taking the longest.
-- Mike - http://inquisitivewoodworker.blogspot.com/