| Project by treeman | posted 136 days ago | 1785 views | 9 times favorited | 24 comments |  |
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I have been wanting a proper workbench for a long time but between buying the lumber and vises I thought the cost was prohibitive. I finally got lucky and found a millwork shop that made custom moldings that was going out of business. I stopped in to see what he had and bought enough lumber to finally start my project. He didn’t have enough of any one variety to complete the whole bench so I bought pretty much what he had. This included poplar, 2 varieties of maple, white oak and sapele. Average price was just under $1.00 per board foot. I picked up the vices from Lee Valley and got underway.
The finished bench measures 28 1/2” wide by 75” long and 35” high. The top is a full 2 1/2” thick and the aprons are 6” deep. I don’t know how much it weighs but it IS heavy. I chose to go with 3/4” round dog holes because of their versatility and because it was easier to make them than square ones.
This image show the Veritas Twin Screw tail vice and looks down the bench from that end. You can see why I called it a workbench of many colors by the color variation in the top. The top is mostly maple with the front apron being white oak.
The front vice is a large quick release vice also from Lee Valley. The vice jaws are laminated maple and the end is hand cut dovetails. This bench was modeled after “The Essential Workbench” I found at Fine Woodworking.
The legs and stretchers are all mortise and tenon, hand cut. The legs attach to the feet with draw bored mortise and tenon. The stretchers are attached with wedged mortise and tenon joints. I cut the wedges from a small piece of sapele.
This shows the half blind dovetails used to join the ends to the front apron.
To finish the bench, I sprayed 4 coats of poly on the base and used a beeswax/turpentine/boiled linseed oil mixture on the top, I am very pleased with the end result and this thing will get much use in the future.
24 comments so far
SteviePete
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14 posts in 195 days
posted 136 days ago
Greatlooking bench. Just starting on my own “Steinway of the Workshop”. Thanks for the post. spj
-- Steve, 'Sconie Great White North
patron
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2372 posts in 233 days
posted 136 days ago
very nice bench ,
i’m sure you will have
many enjoyable projects ,
that spring from here !
-- david ,new mexico ,allheart
lighthearted
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21 posts in 205 days
posted 136 days ago
Beautiful Bench! Inspiring!
-- Chris
PineInTheAsh
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194 posts in 160 days
posted 136 days ago
Plus Ultra!
mzmac
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76 posts in 559 days
posted 136 days ago
Very nice bench love the joinery.
Neodogg
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88 posts in 319 days
posted 136 days ago
sweet! can I place an order, to go please…
-- If you can't fix it with a hammer, you've got an electrical problem!
Rudge
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39 posts in 514 days
posted 136 days ago
that bench is almost to nice to work on…great job….
-- 'Original Rudge' Muskoka, Cdn
CharlieM1958
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7599 posts in 1110 days
posted 136 days ago
Fantastic construction, and a great score on the materials!
-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"
a1Jim
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16577 posts in 469 days
posted 136 days ago
super great bench very well done
-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop Southern Oregon
Splinterman
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4827 posts in 253 days
posted 136 days ago
Hey Treeman,
That is one good looking bench…...nice finish….well done.!!
-- I will just keep doing it till I get it right.
PurpLev
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2732 posts in 540 days
posted 136 days ago
looks like a solid bench – I really like the many-colors aspect of it. much more interesting than the single-tones.
looks very well made as well.
-- When in doubt - There is no doubt - Go the safer route.
Dudley
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344 posts in 152 days
posted 136 days ago
Absolutely beautiful. Should be in the living room. BZ
-- Dudley Young USN Ret.
fred4999
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77 posts in 376 days
posted 136 days ago
Great work, almost too pretty to use, I really like the joinery.
-- Fred, Georgia
Todd A. Clippinger
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5632 posts in 991 days
posted 136 days ago
Nice – VERRRRY NICE!
-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com
spanky46
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736 posts in 282 days
posted 136 days ago
Very special! I don’t think it could be better unless it was mine! LOL
Nice job!
-- spanky46 -- Never enough clamps...Never enough tools...Never enough time.
Laserblue
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10 posts in 138 days
posted 136 days ago
That’s great! I wish I had the space for a bench like this
-- Disturbing the peace since 1975--
HenryH
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34 posts in 296 days
posted 136 days ago
Great work. I plan on building a version of this bench this fall, only a little smaller to fit in my very cozy shop. really great inspiration.
-- HenryH - PA
BTKS
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480 posts in 356 days
posted 136 days ago
Good job and great looking joinery. Wow, all handcut! BTKS
stevenb
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12 posts in 542 days
posted 136 days ago
Very good work, congrats.
-- stevenb
LifesGood1
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22 posts in 223 days
posted 136 days ago
Well….....WOW! Can’t really describe it other than WOW!
-- Jerod, Austin
Laserblue
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10 posts in 138 days
posted 136 days ago
it looks to fancy to use it….. :)
-- Disturbing the peace since 1975--
treeman
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149 posts in 341 days
posted 135 days ago
Thanks for all of the kind comments.
It is solid and sturdy and looks pretty nice right now BUT I built this bench to be used. Since completing it last week, I have used it on a daily basis and will continue to do so. I know it will show battle scars over time but they will just add character.
Beginningwoodworker
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4101 posts in 565 days
posted 135 days ago
Thats a cool looking workbench.
-- CJIII Future cabinetmaker
jockmike2
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7297 posts in 1138 days
posted 135 days ago
Beautiful bench. Masterfully made. You’ve already displayed your skill.
-- Mike. mwurm13@yahoo.com