Work Bench

it’s so beautiful.
A great reminder as to why we love wood.

Lovely

-- "Functional WoodArt" by Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

Looks great! Question: Are the stretcher/leg joints reinforced with screws?

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

Charlie,

Not the stretchers are not screwed. I just that Titebond Polyurethane Glue. It fills my voids and seems to be stronger in my option.

The tenons aren’t the best in the world, but they fit. The glue makes the difference.

I made a garden bench. It never sits level on concrete, and has always this little rock ever since I built it four years ago in Michigan. Now here in New Mexico, it is still solid.

If I did use screws, I would have used lag screws. One reason strength, or maybe to take it apart.

This project after all is what I make best. Out of 2” by’s. Now with a New Mexico ‘Twist’.

-- W. Kirk Crawford - Tularosa, New Mexico

looks nice and solid. I need to build myself another bench…

-- ~ www.darrylmasterson.com ~ www.woodworkingdungeon.blogspot.com ~

Looks like your approach is very similar to mine. I hope I’ll do as well. I have my top finished, but am in the middle of making the base. What did you use for a finish? Did you do the same for base and top?

I used the large Chinese quick release vises from Woodcraft. I’m sure the German Ulmia’s are superior, but at twice the cost and, like you, cost was a consideration for me.

Chapter #4 of my blog shows how I implemented the vises on mine.

Great looking bench!

-- Robert from Raymond, MS. "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence is therefore not a practice, but a habit." - Aristotle

Favorite name of nephew’s Monster Truck. Saw it once outside of arena and he was very happy.

Finish how about none. I hate to paint, or do finishing work. Hate clean up. If anything I will use Tung Oil or something like that.

As for the vice, I think that Chinese will work well enough for me.

Oh yes, got to add holes for hold-downs.

-- W. Kirk Crawford - Tularosa, New Mexico

Nice strong looking bench. Heavy top will withstand years of service.

-- Jesus is Lord!

There’s nothing like a good work bench. Yours is great! I like it.

-- Ron, Twain Harte, Ca. Portable on site Sawmill Service http://westcoastlands.net/Sawmill.html http://westcoastlands.net/SawBucks2/phpBB3

You guys and your benches!

Kirk – you’ve done a really nice job on this…

I need a real bench!

-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA

Dorje,

Could explain ‘real bench’?

-- W. Kirk Crawford - Tularosa, New Mexico

Yours is a “real bench” – if you look in my workshop pics, you’ll see my bench: sturdy base, but flatsawn 2X stock layed flat with a layer of 1/4” ply over the top. Very rough, not a good flat reference surface. Again, I need a real bench! (like yours and others!)

-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA

Thanks Dorje.

It is heavy and solid. And now to build some storage space between the legs.

Good luck.

-- W. Kirk Crawford - Tularosa, New Mexico

Looking forward to seeing what you decide to do under the bench…have some ideas about it?

-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA

Great bench!

-- You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. (Plato)

I have bench envy :) Dorje said it all ” You guys and your benches! ... I need a real bench”

Any plans to add a vise?

-- "so much to learn and so little time"..

Looks like a nice solid bench, worth it’s weight in gold.

Storage under the bench is usually wasted yet very important for the small shop.

I like your idea for the finish of using tung oil. I have used Watco Danish oil on surfaces that I did not want a film finish and if maintained it provides great protection. To maintain it all you have to do is reapply occasionally.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

Nice sturdy looking bench. We like the jackboard and the way you mounted it.

-- --Chuck

nice vice! I would only be slightly worried about having all those mechanical “teeth” at floor level (the mechanism that attaches the lower part of the extension to the table) you never know who might be walking around there, or what a moment of not paying attention could lead to.

is that how normally those are attached to the table?

-- My Drinking Club has a Woodworking Problem...

PurpLev,

The catch at the base of the leg isn’t reachable by just walking by. It going to take time to wear in.

As for how normally are they attached to a table/bench, Roy Underhill e-mailed me and said that most were using a peg and hole affair. I didn’t want to bend over.

-- W. Kirk Crawford - Tularosa, New Mexico