Benchtop

I have to make My son & family a pair of end tables this Christmas since I made a sofa table for my other son last year. (my first project posted here)
Before I tackle something else, I wanted to upgrade my workbench which was purchased from K-mart about 20 years ago that had some kind of pressed sawdust top.
I did the plan in Google Sketchup but couldn’t get that file to upload to here. (If someone knows how to do that, let me know. I couldn’t get it to upload to photobucket, either)
Since I’m big on doing things cheaply, (remember, I turned tool handles out of sticks from a neighbor’s woodpile) I decided to use up a bunch of used 2×4’s given to me by my brother-in-law…can’t get much cheaper than that.
I found a couple of bench pics to use as a guide and made the benchtop based on them. Dimensions are 24×60 in.
I ripped the 2×4’s in half and glued them up, drilling the dog holes (is that the right term… if so, where did it come from) before assembly & gluing.
I had the smaller vise, and bought another at Harbor Freight on sale (of course) for about $15.00. It didn’t have a dog thingie, but I did a bit of modifying to add one.
I flipped the location of the vises since all the benches I’ve seen pictured have them the other way & most people are right handed, and being left handed, it seemed like the right thing to do, although I really don’t know if it matters. I added that little trough thing, too, not sure what it’s for, but all the really cool benches seem to have them, and I’m sure I can use it to accumulate junk.
Since I’ve really gotten into hand planes recently, This was my first opportunity to use them for something other than just making shavings. It’s truly amazing how well they work. I can’t believe I spent so many years not using them.
I even finished it with “recycled” varnish. (What, you’re asking is recycled varnish?)
Our community has a hazardous waste disposal center, and they have a “recycle room” where unopened, disposed of paints & varnishes are available for us to take them home to use. I picked up several gallons of never opened polyurethane varnish at no cost.(probably a lifetime supply) (Am I cheap, or what???)
Now that I’m done with the bench, It’s time to get to the tables…Christmas is nearer than I thought. -SST

-- Accuracy is not in your power tool, it's in you