# Bowling Alley Workbench



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*

So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).

So, I really would like to make this one a keeper, and not have to redo this bench unless I really fancy it in the future with lots of extra time on my hands and nothing better to do with it (hence - not likely it'll happen), and in order to do that, I figured I'll make this one as close as I can to the 'ultimate' bench for me- having the things I need, and could use the most.

obviously the vises play a major part in this - after thinking it through, I decided to dump the idea of a tail vise for it's tendency to rack, and drop below the surface of the bench itself. and go with a wagon vise. I still need to figure out how to make the rails for it to ride as I'll most likely use the Lee-Valley Tail Vise screw for that one (budget) - sure I'd love to have one of them $350 benchcrafted vises... but I could find better uses for $350 right now. the other vise I wish to have is a shoulder vise which will let me clamp boards vertically without any guide rods in the way for endgrain work (joinery).

All of this is based on the fact that I have 1 large slab of 77"x24" which is the bowling alley and has nails and god knows what else in it - so drilling it for bench holes or the likes is out of the question. I will be skirting it with maple boards that I have at hand, and some breadboards to keep it aligned and secure on both edges. and dog holes will go into those.

Anyways - here is the preliminary design, any feedback, ideas, suggestions, and what not - are MOST WELCOME!


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## GaryK (Jun 25, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


Looks like a good design.

You may want to put the horizontal pieces across the front on the flat. This will make room for some cabinets below the top. Then use wider ones on the back to prevent racking. I think I used 2×12's and have no problem with racking.

For the base of mine I used Southern Yellow Pine. A lot cheaper than hard wood and very strong. My bench hasn't moved one inch no matter how much force I use. This allowed me to use more wood for a more substantial base. for example the legs are three 2×6's laminated together.

Check out mine to see what I am talking about:


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


Looks like a good design. If yours is half as good as Garys you'll have a winner.


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## kiwi1969 (Dec 22, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


With people mentioning your lack of space, how about replacing the bottom stretchers with a row of drawers for tools etc. Other than the fact you work backwards ( joke ) it looks like this design would serve you well.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


Thanks for the responses. I chose this type of legs as opposed to the Roubo flush look because of esthetics- I like this look. and I'll probably have a workbench helper that will hold the other side of long boards/panels when clamped to the side of the bench. I know I'm sacrificing functionality with looks here, but I'm ok with that aspect.

Kiwi - you are wrong, everyone ELSE is working backwards. I'm the only one that's right! (errr…. Left that is).

As far as space - yes I will have a set of drawer cabinets between those stretchers (similar to FWW the Essential workbench boxes of drawers) - I like the idea of keeping it off the ground so that I can vacuum under the bench, or pass DC pipes under if I need to. but I might try to go with GaryK's suggestion and do the horizontal support on the flat and have freestanding drawers cabinets under the bench - GaryK - how did you get those cabinets under the bench? are they butting against the flat support? or are they overlapping on top of it? I also might change the 2×3 hardwood legs, with something more stout after considering GaryK's 6×6 legs…

P.S. the reason I'm out of space, is cause I have 2 bowling alleys in my garage… once I have this thing setup, I can relieve the space where I have my current bench, and reorganize a bit to clear a lot of space… just need to start with 'step 1: make new workbench'

Thanks again for the ideas.


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## Moai (Feb 9, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


that bench looks great!
Both vises have an excellent performance….in my last project, when I was working with the mortises at the top (heavy top!) I really saw the need of this shoulder vise, I love the simplicity and effectiveness of this vise.

Keep in mind this vise works with a long threaded rod that crosses the slab all the way, as a buttress, to support all the forces.


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## ellen35 (Jan 1, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


and when you are not woodworking…can we find you bowling????


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


Thanks Francisco. I do play to have 2 3/8" threaded rods that will go through the bench and support each of the vises.

Ellen - what do you mean "not woodworking"? is that even allowed? (I think I missed that part in the manual)


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


Purp,

The flush look of the Roubo are there for more than asethicts, they provide places for both clamping and dog holes. Plus with flush stechers you can add a sliding deadman. It really depends on your plans for working with hand tools. Other than having flipped the bench in Sketchup, everything else looks great!


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## Timbo (Aug 21, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


Purplev-

*Kiwi - you are wrong, everyone ELSE is working backwards. I'm the only one that's right! (errr…. Left that is).*

Give it up man they will never understand us "right minded" lefties! I am also building a bench in the correct configuration.

Are you planning on working more with hand tools on this bench?


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


haha, Tim, everyday I find that we have more and more things in common - I'm still pretty sure we are 2 difference people though 

most of my work on this bench will involve freehand-router work, and handtool work which will mainly be planing/jointing by hand, and also mortising, and dovetail work. I will probably also use this as an assembly table when I can for smaller projects (drawers/boxes/etc)

based on suggestions here- I have already beefed up the legs to 4×4 lumber (from the original 2×3) and added a sliding deadman (still not finalized whether it'll ride the upper stretcher, or run on a 3/4" pipe) - while still keeping the original base/legs design.:


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## Timbo (Aug 21, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


Purp, check out this video http://www.khalafoud.com/media/Roubo.wmv a little over half way through you will get to see how a removable leg vise works, a deadman could work the same way. I went with 5"x5" legs like the Roubo bench then mortise and tenon the stretchers with drawbore.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


Damn Tim, thats the same bench that sIKE send me a pic of - I must admit - it looks pretty incredible, but:

1. I already have the maple top - and don't want to mess around with that - so It'll be hard to get that 4" top from my 2" plank.

2. those screw vises look like $$$$ - not to mention the handcrafted wagon vise - thanks a lot - I'm really trying to avoid seeing it, cause everytime I do I find it harder and harder to resist - but I really should, as all of those are just completely out of my budget. right now I'm trying to make the best with what I've got without having to go overboard (pun intended).

But I do like that bench - looks extremely efficient and convenient. and I'll take to heart that removable vise/deadman idea and see how best I can incorporate that into my current design.


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


Told ya she was purty!


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## GaryK (Jun 25, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


PurpLev - To answer your question. It's one big cabinet resting on that bottom stretcher on the bottom and against the one in the back. It's bolted to the one in the back only.


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## kiwi1969 (Dec 22, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


You lefties are so militant! I actually write left handed, everything else I do is right handed. No idea why. good luck with the build, i,ll be watching.


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## bigike (May 25, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


that bench is great but the planes are even greater thats all i had my eye on was how tuned they were wish i can get mine as tuned as that but anyway the vid was a good one thanks tim! also purplev from one lefty to another nice bench go for it!!! i had the same idea to make a lefty too but my shop is too small right now so i have a door on some 2×4's to get me through for now but keep us posted on your work?


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


kiwi - since you write with your left… you might be able to get accepted to our militia - just fill in the form and send it over 

bigike- thanks. I already did some modifications, and I think I'm gonna go with my later own design. I finally have some room to expand - and as blogged lately got a little bowling alley treasure - so although wasn't planning on it- all of a sudden I find myself in the midst of a sudden workbench project. I wish I had more time to plan it out and think if through - but I ain't complaining. I'm fortunate enough to have gotten what I was waiting for


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## Beginningwoodworker (May 5, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


Going to be a nice workbench.


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## Stevelegh (Feb 4, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


We have a left handed and right handed user in the family workshop. How can we provide for both without having different tables and equipment?


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


Steve, you can either put a vise on each side…. or one in the middle  (just kidding about the middle one as it would be in the way and very inefficient for actual work).

the best bet though would be to figure out what work you're planning to do with the bench, and design the bench to match your requirements.


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## AaBD (Aug 9, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *Conceptual Design 1 - feedback appreciated*
> 
> So after we've got the bowling alleys. now it's time to put them to to use (not really 'now now' but … you know what I mean).
> 
> ...


cool idea. love to see how it turns out.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*

So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:










and the Roubo Bench (the one I was drooling over was Jameel's bench from handcrafted vises), I decided to take the things that would work best for me today, based on materials that I have available today - while keeping an open door for future changes.

here are the features I am going for:

*1.* wagon vise - tail vise abilities, without the sagging, and without the screw protruding away from the benchtop

*2.* Leg vise - this will give me 9" clamping capacity without screws/guides in the way, and longer pieces can be clamped on the side of the vise - close enough to the original idea of shoulder vise - but doesnt protrude from the bench as the shoulder vise would - and not being in the way.

*3.* under cabinet storage - some may not like this - but I need to use any space I have - so this is critical. I do want to keep it off the floor to allow placing other things on floor level if needed -and also leave some access space under the benchtop to reach for benchdogs, and place other accessories there.

*4.* lets not having end-grain touching floor - for moisture reasons - and I also like the look of the 'feet'

so here is what this came out to:









As usual - any thoughts, ideas, criticism, suggestions are most welcome - I still have the ability to go back and use the original design which is only different in terms of the shoulder vise.

Thanks for reading - and thanks in advance for any comments.


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


Very nice Sharon. I like you rational for your design.


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


Looks great though you still have it flipped in SU >. How thick is your top now and how did you build it up as you stated the bowling alley bits were 2" thick?


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## Kirk (Apr 20, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


Yep, got to have a 'Dead Man'.

W. Kirk Crawford
Tularosa, New Mexico


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## kiwi1969 (Dec 22, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


neat idea on how to make the leg vice flush with the top.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


Hey guy looks good bring it on.


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## boboswin (May 23, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


I can't see a tool well and the side vise should be on the oppostie end for me as I am right handed.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


lol, Thanks all - *sIKE* - I think it's a bug in my sketchup - seems like every bench I design in it comes out the 'other way' the top is 2" thick - with the skirts being 4" which would hide the wagon vise mechanism, and give me another surface I can clamp boards to with a regular clamp (long boards)

*kiwi* - the leg vise IS flush with the table top - there are 3 legs on the right side of the bench - the 2 legs mirroring the left side, and a 3rd leg that sits flush with the table top and acts as the clamping surface for the vise. this leg supports the top, and reaches all the way to the floor (end grain - couldn't help it) where it's curved out to give it a nicer look, and reduce the end grain on the floor.

*Bob* - I'm not a big fan of a tool well, I always seem to end up clamping a board on the top with the tools in the well UNDER the board… I find it works better for me when I place the tools in an overhead cabinet, or on the side/drawer.


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## gfixler (Feb 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


What's that thing with the holes in it?

-dummy


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## Timbo (Aug 21, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


So was it the video of Jameel's bench that sent you over the top? I like the leg vise better, but does it have an extra piece? something does not look quite right. I think the front leg and the front edge of the top should be the rear clamping surface for the vise. Are you going with a wood or metal screw?


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


Gary - that is a deadman its used with pegs to support long boards in accompany with the front vise.

Timbo - thanks, I would like to make this design work. the front edge of the top (it's actually the skirt 4" high, 2" thick) and the front leg are flush and are indeed the rear clamping of the leg vise as you can see here :









the front leg is mortised to take the horizontal base parts in.

I'm planning on using metal screws from lee valley as my budget is limited. it WILL also have a bottom parallel guide that is not in the sketch at the moment.


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## Timbo (Aug 21, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


Aha better view, I see now. That looks well supported.


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## gfixler (Feb 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


Now I get it. Thanks!

Next question - what keeps the clamp parallel with the table leg when you clamp a piece in there? It seems it would want to bend toward the leg at the bottom. My understanding of bench vises is pretty minimal.


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## aj_houston (May 20, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


Looks really good. Nice details.

BTW-did you do these drawings in SketchUp or something else? I've messed with Sketchup a little and used to do AutoCAD professionally, curious to know what people are using these days.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


*Gary* - as I stated to Tim, there IS a parallel guide on the bottom of the leg vise which keeps it from binding to the leg - it's just not yet in the sketch as this is just a preliminary sketch to get a feel for proportions, size, and general look. you can see that parallel guide here: Jameels' Roubo Blog

*aj* - Thanks. this is in sketchup, I've used many others (AutoCAD,Maya,formZ,etc) but find sketchup to be the fastest, lightest, and easiest to use when it comes to woodworking - precise measurements in a snap, and joinery made easy. sketchup has picked up really well recently in WW forums - finewoodworking, and popular woodworking have both adapted it and have online tutorials, books, and online library of models for it.


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## blackcherry (Dec 7, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


Good luck my friend on this endeavor… I know you thought this one out for quit some time, take you time enjoy the process this one will be with you for quit some time. If at all possible go for the heaviest and hardest wood you can find, it will pay major dividend in the long run, and last but not least when your done have a banquet of lobster and wine to enjoy the rock of future projects…your friend Blkcherry


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## Jon3 (Feb 28, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


I'm guessing based on the inverted photo you're a lefty, right?


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


Thanks *BC*... I'm still thinking it through as I want to do it once and be done with it -while still be happy about it in the long run.

*Jon* - that's right….err.. I mean - Left (reminds me of the movie clockwork with Jon Clease if anyone saw it….lol) - how do you you like that handcrafted wagon vise on yours? I'm going to try and make a similar one based on Jameels blogs.


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## normanfans (Jan 30, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *Design B...B...Because I said so. -more criticism please*
> 
> So after giving some food for though, and going back and forth between 2 designs - my original one:
> 
> ...


Regarding tool well: I use a tool drawer with wheels so I can drag it around, much like what those girls use in hair salons for clips, brushes, combs, etc. It is helpful enough for me, but I am not a big lumber pro like most of you here.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*

so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).

This idea turned to be disastrous. The nails are hardened steel, and twisted making the job of pulling them out
ridiculously almost-impossible. and the lumber being rock-maple didn't really help much either. half of the nails pulled out after some cursing and fightings, the other half either snapped off in half (leaving half of the nail in the wood - without the nail head - making it even harder to get out) or just wouldn't budge.

I spent a full day, and was able to take apart ~6 laminated board - half of them still have broken nails in them (so mission NOT accomplished even on those). this was a test piece and was only ~60" long- the real thing is ~25 of those, and at ~80" long.

I want to build a bench so that I can do woodworking - the idea of spending ~14 full days pulling nails does not appeal to me. I have decided to dump this idea, and go back to the drawing table.

The current idea now is to leave as much of the top as I possibly can AS IS, with the nails holding the laminations. while taking apart the MINIMUM amount of boards to give me (1) dog holes strips, (2) an extension (to keep the dog holes from having interferences from the legs), (3) leg vise (yes, gonna make it from the same material), and (4) a few more strips to double up the top's thickness around the perimeter for clamping applications, and for a sliding deadman ( and later on a sliding 2nd leg vise). yes. it's still quite a bit of nail pulling - but much less than the original plan, and some of those can wait for later, so the nail pulling can be done in steps. I'm still not keen about this nail pulling thing, but I already have some of the boards done… so it'll be minimized.

this is what I'm planning to have (notice the top is made of 1 large piece that is what I'll leave with the nails in):









the top will be ~2 1/4" thick of hard rock-maple. the edges will be skirted at 4" thick to hide the rails for the sliding deadman, and the vise mechanism. it will also be beefed up a little on the inside to make the edge of the top 4" for clamping applications around the edges.

here is what it should look like:









I have already committed to this design over the weekend, as I went to HD to pick up the lumber for the legs. while at HD. I noticed their lumber is marked as HEM-FIR and another as SPF - not being familiar with those species (I'm familiar with DOUGLAS-FIR but that seemed different, and SYP (Southern Yellow Pine)) I went to 2 of the local lumber employees at that store. 1 didn't know what it means ("errr…. I think it's some sort of FIR" - brilliant … I figured that much myself) and the other regarded the SPF (after getting back home and googling it - now I know it's a combination of Spruce-Pine-Fir) as "Premium Lumber"... I asked him if he's sure the 'P' stands for Premium and not for Pine…. another genius… needless to say - I went home researched those names, and went back to pick up the HEM-FIR which is slightly less capable of Douglas Fir -but since I only need it for the base, it doesn't matter much. It has nice straight grain patterns.

After getting back home, I ripped the lumber on the Bandsaw to a more manageable size - which I then jointed 1 face (finally tuned the jointer perfectly and was getting great results) - then planed 2nd face on the planer and brought everything to uniform thickness. then jointed 1 edge on jointer, and ripped 2nd edge on the TS. this was the first "heavy duty" ripping job I've done on the Ridgid table saw and it performed beautifully- however I believe that using a ripping blade would work much better than the WWII in this case. At that point I setup a stop on my miter gauge at 32 1/2" from the blade, and cut the ends of the boards all to length. I left 4 boards at 33" (1 for each leg) which will be the tenon that will align the top with the base (I'm not too keen about routing any mortises in the top with all the nails- so I kept it to a minimal size and depth - just to align it, not really to fasten them together).

Next came the glue up process - it left some things to be desired. 1 leg I glued all 4 pieces at the same time as opposed to the other legs which I did in 2 halfs which I then glued up together. that one leg shows some gaps in the seems - I guess the cauls weren't good enough at glueup time. live and learn.

After glue up - it was hand planing galore! there is just something so relaxing and satisfying in seeing those seem lines between the boards disappear as you plane them down. I used my #4 smoother, and a card scraper to even out the seems, and clean out the sides of the legs (not much to plane down, as the glue up was pretty much on the money). so here is what I've got to start with:









these are 5"x5"x32 1/2" with a 1/2" tenon sticking up from it. Next will be mortising and connecting each pair of legs together.


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


I used the bowling alley for the middle boards and used walnut, cherry and maple for the side pieces that I drilled for the dog holes.

I marked where the holes would be drilled and them used glue and nails to put my new boards on. I just kept the nails away from where the holes would be drilled.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


I know Karson - my problem, is that except for the bowling alley, I don't have any other lumber that I could use for the top -everything else I have it shorts (3' max) and a combination of cherry/maple/mahogany/oak - pieces that are hard to matchup, and I'd rather use for smaller projects. I figured, if I can get just enough of this material off and clean it out- I'll have something that will match the rest (not really in terms of color - I would actually rather get a nice accent if I could- but in terms of thickness and length)


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


Man that is looking good! Did you decide to go with the Roubo base?

Sorry to hear about the difficulty in pulling the nails. Have you seen this review":http://lumberjocks.com/reviews/647 on a tool for pulling nails.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


Thanks sIKE, I mean it- you're first response made the wheels start turning, and then Tim came and it just blew away. yes , it'll basically be a Roubo, but with a 2.25" top with a 4" thick skirt.

I've seen that tool, and the problem is that the only reviews on it (even on Amazon) seems to be coming from the manufacturer. - mmmmmm, call me skeptic, but I need a bit more proof before pulling the trigger on ANYTHING ONLINE. I'm using a cat-paw and a hammer, and rockmaple is amazingly hard. not sure how much leverage this tool would be able to supply to get these nails out… although I am VERY curious about it -if only I could find it locally.


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


What I've also done is use an air tool that has a thin grinding blade. I've heard them called muffler tools for cutting rusted bolts off mufflers.










I used it to grind the nails off and would actually go below the surface and then pry the board off. Cut the nails again and then pry. I was able to take many boards off that way.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


Thanks Karson, I'll give this a try- I have a metal 4" grinder (and a 2.5"). did you leave the cutoff nail pieces in the wood doing that? or did you punch them out somehow?


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## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


It may be that you have already tried this but you didn't mention it, so have you tried hammering them out? You can try either direction. In reverse its just banging on the point (trying not to bend the nail). You should be able to get some of the nail up and thus making the rest easier to pull. You can also try using a nail set and hammering the nail through front to back. Also turning the claw 90 deg to the 'normal' way of grabbing the raised nail allows you to pinch the nail in the claw and can sometimes provide better leverage. No matter what its going to be time consuming to get them all out…


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## Timbo (Aug 21, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


I feel your pain, I re-claimed some 150 yr old red oak from a farm house being remodeled, There were a ton of nails and they broke off, just had to dig them out. Anyway the legs look good, glad to see your making progress!


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


These nails are hardened and they don't bend they break.

I would grind as much off as I could below the surface (Side) and then pry the board of the nail rements. If it the nail stuck in the piece that I was prying off I'd use a punch to drive it out.










Both the cutoff tool and the punch sets I got at Harbor freight

Since the invisable side (where all of the nailing is done) when you get finished. It's no problem , visually or structuraly trying to get rid of as much nail as you could before you pry the board off.

On a bowling alley the nails are driven into the grove on the board. On mine the nails were hardened and went through 2 1/2 boards.










I'd try to get as much of the nail gone through grinding so the board would pry off. These boards are not glued to one another in the bowling alley the are just nailed together. The only glue that I found was when their was a end to end joint in the boards. Since the nails were random you had to be very careful sawing the alley.

I used a nail cutting board in a skill saw to get the blank down to the approx size )length) and if there was no nails then I'd trim it up on my table saw.

On this mini bench I added walnut to the sides and drilled my bench dos in there.










My mini work bench.


My larger one.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


Yes *Kason*, My top is the same - the nails are going through 2 1/2 boards - so in essence, there is a grouping of 3 nails every 6" or so in EACH board… it's a nightmare. I'll try the grinding method, and punching the remnants out with a punch (now I really have an excuse to get a punch set). Thanks for the tips - they are most useful at a time like this.

we'll see- I might get lazy, and drop the skirt idea, depending on how much those nails bite back.

*jlsmith* - I tried hammering them, cutting them, pulling them, pushing them, sweet-talk them, took them to the movies, fancy dinner….nothing worked…

*Timbo* - since you have the experience. I'll leave my garage open - could you stop by and kinda take them nails out for me sometime when you have a moment? - THANK YOU


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## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


I had a nasty battle with some old 3" twisted shank nails when I was trying to reclaim some lumber from a remodeling I was doing… nasty bit of business… I wish you patience and perseverance.


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## normanfans (Jan 30, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


Not sure if this helps, but for all nail problems I use a Nail Hunter - but I suspect yours could be a deep seeded problem!


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


Thanks Norma, I do have a nail hunter, and it works well for some applications but not for this - not even close. But I did find a work process to deal with those nails and blogged about it.


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## ChrisMc45 (Jul 28, 2010)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


From the SketchUp drawing, the double-dovetails to hold the end-caps look very challenging! I am working through my own bowling-alley bench creation (solid-core doors from base bowling alley, not rock hard maple), using your works as inspiration. Very well thought-out thus far.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Back to Square1... Committed to new Design - legs are ready.*
> 
> so After setting on the last design (see previous post in this series) I went out to disassemble the bowling alley laminated top - the purpose was to remove all the nails, so that I can drill the dog holes, and also laminate it in a double stack to give me a 4" top on the perimeter (5" in from the edges - for clamping purposes, and leg attachments).
> 
> ...


Thanks ChrisMc45. looking back I'd probably do the dovetails differently (design wise). would be interested to see your own creation. you should post it!


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*Look at them Legs...*

Picking up where I last left off (each leg glued, and hand planed to clean out the glue lines), It was now time to get some assembly done.

First thing First - gotta trim all legs to same length/height since during glue up some boards decided to move about. I decided to use a reference point that I could use on all legs that would match them all up - since different legs had different boards that moved around - the only reference point that I could use (and the best one of them all) was the longer board protruding from the top of each leg - those I can easily register my fence against.

I bolted an AUX plywood fence to my incra miter gauge (so easy to do - gotta love those T-slots) and set a stop that the tenon on each leg would register against, and trim ~1/16" off the base of the leg, this way I know that all the bases are exactly the same length from the top of the tenon.

Next I rotated the leg end to end, and positioned the stop on the miter gauge fence so that the saw will trim ~1/16" off the shoulder of the tenon - and trimeed both shoulders on each tenon - now, I have 2 shoulder on each tenon that are exactly the same distance from the base of the leg, making them on an even plane.

At this point, my legs were all identical, and ready for some boring.

I registered all the legs against the table saw fence. this put all the legs on the same plane (TS table top) and the bases were all aligned with one another (against the TS fence):









Yes - the legs completely cover the TS table top.

No - my TS table top is not small

Yes - the legs are THAT big.

After the legs are aligned to one another, I marked the lines for the lower rail, and it's corresponding mortise on 1 leg, and transfered the markings to the rest of the legs. This way I can actually mark once, and cut twice (or 4 times in this case):









After that I used the drill press to bore the mortises. I used a 5/8" drill bit and overlapping holes. Then I used the TS, and Bandsaw to cut tenons on the rails that would match those mortises. the tenons were cut slightly thicker, and then final fitting was done with a block plane and a 2 1/2" chisel (don't have a shoulder plane, so had to be creative).

on a normal Roubo bench, this would be sufficient to hold the legs together. however , since I'm going to utilize the Bowling Alley nailed-together top, I decided to add another support that would keep the top aligned and flat. I did notice that since the top is not glued, it can bow and cup if held only on the edges. the solution? a 2nd rail installed flush with the top of the legs for the top to sit on.

I decided to join the top rail using a sliding dovetail since it'll make sligning the rail with the leg top easy, and add structural support: 









The tails on the rails were cut on the bandsaw. the rail does not go all the way to the bottom of the rail, but stops ~1/2" short - this was done because my drill bits are only 2 1/2" long, and I was planning to use the drill press to get rid of most of the material for the sockets. This actually proved to also help with the next step I was facing - transferring the tail to the legs.

I placed the rails on the legs and because they had the shoulder on the bottom, it helped aligned them with both the inside of the leg as well as the tenon on top. I transferred the tail to the tenon only. then used a handsaw to cut the sides of the socket- this in effect transfered the lines to the rest of the leg.

I chiselsed the socket part that was on the top-tenon to have an even plane on top of the leg for the drill press to plunge into. Then, most of the material in the socket was removed with the drill press. leaving me with the sides of the sockets, and it's bottom to chisel out, and fit to each tail:









Leaving me with these legs: 









the legs and lower rails are Hemlock-FIR (aka "what-homedepot-carries") and the top rails are Douglas Fir. interesting enough, HD only carries douglas-fir in 4"x"4, but the 2×12 are hemlock-fir. the top rails are actually the lumber I was originally planning to use for the actual legs (original design) - look how small they look compared to the new legs. lol. I ran out of hemlock-fir material, and didn't want to get a full board, just for these 2 rails… and since they will not be seen anyway, I figured I might as well put the douglas fir to use. at least some of it.

Before I can glue this up, I need to get the vise screws from LV so that I can bore the legs to take the vise screw, and it's nut. of course - before I can do that, I need to actually place the order with LV… (I think that's how it usually work).

Next step? mill and join the front+back stretchers to the legs.


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Look at them Legs...*
> 
> Picking up where I last left off (each leg glued, and hand planed to clean out the glue lines), It was now time to get some assembly done.
> 
> ...


How funny, I was just looking to see if you had made any progress…I am getting bench envy again! Your making nice progress can't wait to see the stetchers next!


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *Look at them Legs...*
> 
> Picking up where I last left off (each leg glued, and hand planed to clean out the glue lines), It was now time to get some assembly done.
> 
> ...


Nice job on the legs and getting the ends assembled. It's looking great.


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## Bureaucrat (May 26, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Look at them Legs...*
> 
> Picking up where I last left off (each leg glued, and hand planed to clean out the glue lines), It was now time to get some assembly done.
> 
> ...


Great looking legs! Looking like this will be a real nice build.


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## ellen35 (Jan 1, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Look at them Legs...*
> 
> Picking up where I last left off (each leg glued, and hand planed to clean out the glue lines), It was now time to get some assembly done.
> 
> ...


That bench is not going to move once you build it!
I am so impressed with your legs (the ones you built, I cannot comment on YOUR legs!!! )! )
Ellen


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Look at them Legs...*
> 
> Picking up where I last left off (each leg glued, and hand planed to clean out the glue lines), It was now time to get some assembly done.
> 
> ...


Thanks everyone.

ellen - the secret is squats and shaving… err… squares and planing that is…


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## ryno101 (May 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Look at them Legs...*
> 
> Picking up where I last left off (each leg glued, and hand planed to clean out the glue lines), It was now time to get some assembly done.
> 
> ...


That's some progress! I'm getting inspired… I'm planning on using some leftover Mahogany 4×4 stock I have for the legs on mine, and thinking about getting some Mahogany 2×4s for the rails…

I really like the dovetailed rails, I might incorporate that into my design as well… I too noted the need for cross-grain support for the top, and was planning on simply attaching something to the top of the leg assembly with mortise/tenon… Not sure if I have enough 4×4 to make the legs go all the way up (as they say…), but I think your design is superior, and will provide a better support framework for the rediculously heavy top.

I've been also thinking about a method to be able to incorporate bench dogs perpindicular to the long edge of the top, and have come up with an idea of cutting the top and using hardwood cross pieces that I can glue in, kinda like this:









whaddya think?


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Look at them Legs...*
> 
> Picking up where I last left off (each leg glued, and hand planed to clean out the glue lines), It was now time to get some assembly done.
> 
> ...


Ryan, I originally (look at the first/second post of this blog) was going to use as similar design for the legs as you mention - 2 posts running vertical, and a horizontal support on the top (and bottom). for functional purpose I changed the legs so that they are (will be) now flush with the side of the table for clamping applications, and for cosmetic purposes moved the horizontal rails in between the legs so as not to have long/end grain showing on the sides. structurally speaking though - both should be just as strong and capable.

As for the cross grain idea - this would work if you do it right - I would strongly suggest AGAINST gluing this up though - as you'll have lumber trying to expand/contract in different direction which will work against the glue lines, and might in the long run break this apart (most likely). A different approach might be necessary here (bolts, half glued tenons…and the likes to let the wood some room for movement).

yes, it's a tricky situation, and a tricky material to use. but hopefully we'll make the most of it with little sacrified.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*

July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).

After completing the basic construction for the leg ends last installment. It was now the time to connect those with rails. The rails are 45" long with 2 1/2" tenon sticking on each side (to a total length of 50" - do the math). They are made of 2 2×4 that were jointed/planed as little as possible (to keep as much material, but get it flat) laminated together. All the tenons in this table are rounded off with chisels since I was too lazy to square off the mortises, and since there wasn't really any visual need to square them, I kept it all round - fresh off the drill press. 









As you can see, the front rail is extended with a 45 degree tongue that will hold a sliding vise later on (and perhaps a sliding deadman sooner).

the tenons were cut oversized with the bandsaw, and fitted with a block plane and chisels. last time I did this I felt like It would have been easier if I had a shoulder plane - but this time around it seems that using a block plane with a wide blade, makes more sense, and easier to overlap the strokes as opposed to a narrow shoulder blade- the only thing I'm left with at the end is a narrow strip near the shoulder that is easily cleaned with a chisel.

Now that the rails fit in the legs, it's time to bore them for the bolts as I would like to be able to take this apart one day when I need to move it elsewhere.

I bored a 3/8" hole in the middle of the leg mortise and counter bored it from the outside (to conceal the bolt head). I then placed the rail in the mortise, and using a 1' long, 3/8" drill bit bored the rail while maintaining alignment with the hole in the leg:









I haven't seen anyone post anything online regarding this method of boring holes for leg bolts, so I figured I'd shed some light on the way I'm doing it. I'm using long drill bits for this purpose. these can be found in electric supplier, or might even be at the box-office-stores in the electric isle. these are specialty bits designed to drill inside walls between floors without having to break open the sheetrock. they come in length from 1' to 6', some more flexible, some less. for boring leg bolts, I use the shorter type (1 foot) and make sure they are not flexible so that they'll keep a straight aligned line with the leg hole, and not flex sideways:









Once the legs were bored to take the bolts, I used to drill press to bore a perpendicular pocket hole to take the nut, and a washer. I didn't really care much for the look of this hole as eventually it'll be hidden under a shelf, so I didn't put too much time into making it pretty- the only things that were looked for were functionality - keeping the shoulder of the hole flat and square to the rail (where the washer will be), and making sure the hole is small enough so it doesn't take too much material off, but yet large enough to take the washer, and have some room to reach the nut. I actually made it large enough for future possibility of putting cross grain piece of wood in there if the washer is not enough. but for now - the washer is all I'm going to place in there:









I must say that the Drill press, and the Table I made for it played a major role in this project, and both performed really well and made things go smoothly and repeatedly, both on the horizontal plane, and on the vertical as well.

After all of that was done, I did some cleaning (scraping). I added masonite layer to the bottom of each leg (since I'm not too excited about having end-grain sitting on the concrete floor here), and chamfered the edges. put it all together for dry fitting, and since I really couldn't resist - I man handled the bowling alley behemoth onto the legs.

I was able to use the floor and the legs as pivot points to lift the top on the legs, but there's absolutely no way I can lift this thing up in the air - not even 1/8" off the floor… I'm not really sure how I'll take this thing off to finish the legs as they are not glued yet, and I still need to mount the vise hardware in the right leg assembly. but for now - I couldn't resist the chance to get a glimpse of how this thing will eventually look. to be honest, I didn't realize how big this thing is going to be (80"x30")... this is some major real estate to work on compared to my current 60"x24" workbench (which works great). I'll just have to use some temporary staging while I take each separate leg end to work on… no worries. 









oh well… time to get some rest as I conjure how to tackle the next step - getting those nails out… so not looking forward to this.


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## ellen35 (Jan 1, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Coming right along, Sharon. It is a great blog!
Love watching your progress as you wrestle with this.
I'm sure it will be a treasure…and outlive us all!
Ellen


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## Beginningwoodworker (May 5, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Looks good so far.


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## gfixler (Feb 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Now that's starting to look like a bench!


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Thanks everyone… had some time to get a cup of coffee, and rest my palms and fingers from all the scraping, that was a LOT of scraping.

*pat*- I'm somewhat tall (5'11") and have long arms. I designed the size based on how far I can easily reach without over-reaching , and rounded the number off to get 30". currently my 24" bench works well, but when things start to accumulate on it- I'm not left with much room for the actual piece I'm working on. I figured ,I'll have it a bit wider than what I have now, this way I can have the tools in the back, while I work on the piece in the front.


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## Rog (Feb 10, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Nice work and I like the fact that you use Dewalt Tools. some don't like them but they make a big difference in my ability to work with wood and don't kill my pocket book. Keep up the good work. Rog


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## pommy (Apr 17, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Sharon thats looking to cool mate what are you using for your sides

Andy


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Those are some good looking stems you made there! Man you really got it coming your way. Keep up the work and you will soon have one awesome bench!


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## Ottis (Apr 17, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Nah…looks like to much. You need to have me come by and haul it away for you.lol. Seriously…that is one nice bench….one for the grandkids to use some day !!!


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


very cool


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## ryno101 (May 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Wow, that's coming together quickly!!! Nice looking bench, and Ellen's right, it will outlive us all!

Let me know when the final assembly's happening, I'll give a hand getting that ridiculously heavy chunk of lumber lifted.


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## Russel (Aug 13, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


I have been following your work on this all along, but have not really commented because there's very little I can say beyond, "Good Work". Watching this come together is great.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Thanks Guys  I had some time this past week, so things moved along (mostly) as planned.

*Pommy* - the endcaps might be maple or walnut, or some other piece of yet to be identified lumber that I have lying around. the skirt is going to be maple.

*Don* - if you can lift it - be my guest… lol

*Ryan* - It'll definitely outlive us all, I just hope then when we move it won't decide to outlive us all and stay in it's current location lol. as for final assembly - I'm not sure I'm going to be taking this top off, I might end up continuing all work with it on top of the legs. but I'll let you know if I need help with it - Thanks!

*Russel* - Thanks. sometimes just acknowledging something is all the comment one needs


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## Jon3 (Feb 28, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Winchester is like right next door. I can come over and help you knock that off the legs.


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## Jon3 (Feb 28, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Also, did you see the wedge technique I used to get my legs out? Do you have some sawhorses?


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Rain Rain go Away - Rail Rail Done Today*
> 
> July, and it was pouring rain here in Boston, MA. for the past week. go figure. (although today it cleared out which is really nice). but enough about the weather (as if this will stop us).
> 
> ...


Thanks *Jon* - I appreciate it. right now there are no mortises in the top yet, it just sits on the legs tenons - so no need for wedges to pry it apart - but It's a great method, and I may use it in the future when in need. I don't have sawhorses (well, I do - but they are plastic , and in no way can support this 400+lbs top.) but I do have some 4×4 douglas fir that I'll use as temporary legs while I take each leg for final treatments, and glueup.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*

Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.

Originally I tried to get the (2.5" hardened) nails out by using a cat's paw and a hammer to pull each nail out of the 2.5 laminated hard-rock maple strips. I figured once I get all the nails out of the top strip, it'll just free it from the lamination, and be nails free… one strip at a time, until I have them all cleared out. I guess I was wrong. as you can see in this illustration - each nail is driven through 2.5 strips, and as such, it has a lot of surface contact between the nail and the wood creating the most friction and resistance this nail could have:









After a full day of hard labor, aching muscles, and some major bruises on the back of my right hand from missing some hammer blows. I had nothing much to show for it, as most of the nails either got broken off, or didn't even budge to my miserable attempts.

Now that I have the base put together (dry fit) and the rough floor slab on top of it, I tried a different approach. What I did this time was pry each strip apart from the "main" slab by hammering a large all metal (body) screwdriver between the last strip and the rest of the slab to create a gap - placing a wooden wedge , and moving on - ending up separating the entire strip from the main slab just enough that I can fit the cat's paw L shape end into it, and pry it even more apart until I can slip also the nail-pulling side of the hammer in there as well, and using both tools, pry the strip completely apart from the main slab each strip still with the nails in it - but none of them broken - this results in 2 things, both positive:

1. This is a very easy method to separate the strips apart (compared to the previous attempts at least). it proved to be somewhat fast, and methodical. 
2. Now that the nails are only driven through 1 laminated strip (compared to 2.5) there is much less surface contact between nail and wood, and less friction and resistance once it come to pulling the nail out. What more -the tip of the nail is now accessible, and can be hammered out whereas before I had to DIG under the head of the nail and by doing that also messed up the maple strips.


















So after only a couple of hours I was able to release all of the strips that will contribute to the dog hole strip and to the buffer between the dog holes and the skirt. I also started cleaning and flattening the area under the top where it'll rest on the legs (so far only did the right side):









as you can see, the underside of the top is covered with tar looking layer (I guess it was used in the bowling alley to protect against moisture or leaks through the floors). I used a scraper to clean as much of it as I could before moving to the planer. as you can see, there is a price to pay as it completely marred my #5 planer - this is one of those times that I'm really glad I don't have a $300 plane… as this would really have pissed me off:









luckily, cleaning the scraper is easy enough, and restoring the buck-bros plane would not take much time and effort. a much easier process than restoring a router bit - and the reason why I did not (yet) use my router to clean and flatten this area.

So now I have the main slab according to my plan, and the strips of maple for the dog hole strip and buffer strip - things are starting to look better and better, and this was much easier than I had experienced earlier and then I expected things to be. In fact - I'm tempted to take all the strips apart, and completely remove all nails out of the entire top - but since there really is no need for this - I'm going to hold off on this desire. I got better things to do, and really want to see this workbench finished ASAP.

Moral of this installment - to take apart a bowling alley, and remove the nail - pry the strips apart prior to taking the nail out… make a whole different experience. from "heck no way" to "gimme some more please". now I actually believe I can utilize the other 2 slabs of bowling alley I have for other projects. )

and on a side note -I just received today the hardware for the vises from Lee-Valley. always good products. always good prices, always good service:


----------



## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Tough battle hope it comes together for you


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Thanks. I actually expected this battle, and in retrospect, after my previous battle with it, this time was really easy, and in the long run will take me less time than I had dedicated for it.

Jim - it's GOING to come together, whether it likes to , or not … lol. (it's the principle now)


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## willmego (Mar 27, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


I've heard so many things about making anything from bowling alley materials…you're a brave man.


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## ellen35 (Jan 1, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


I'm tired just reading about this process!
Ellen


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Ellen, I know what you mean - after my last experience, I was tired and very unmotivated before I started working on it this time, but after the huge difference in reduced labor, time, and psych I'm actually very energized now, and am ready to take it all up… much more than I was before working on this part.


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Sweet! I am very glad you didn't have to kill yourself getting these nails out. Went from an oh my **** all weekend to an evening or two kinda work. As always looking forward to the next installment!


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## ryno101 (May 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Nice!

Keep it up… you're inspiring me to get working on my bench. Unfortunately, life seems to keep getting in the way of shop time. Strange how that happens…


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## Kindlingmaker (Sep 29, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Is there a way to sort veneer cut the bottom off?


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## Julian (Sep 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Why didn't you try to use a solvent to take the tar off first? That would take most of it off so you wouldn't have to ruin perfectly good tools…


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## gfixler (Feb 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


I think for the tarred bottom I would have gotten something like a car-polisher and chucked a wire bristle brush in it. That would shred up the tar and ball it all up, also packing it with dust shaved from the wood beneath. I did similar (with a drill and small wire bristle bit) to clean up a lot of the wax I spilled into my rough concrete floor. It sanded some of the concrete off and balled it up with the wax to create little hard balls I could vacuum right up.Then you could hit it with the plane if it needed it.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


*Ryan* - consider this blog for you, as you'll be able to just follow the good stuff and avoid the [email protected]…lol

*Julian* and *Gary* - um….. yeah… now why didn't I think of that?!? I'm going to take your advice and try to clean the tar with a wire brush, and solvent… whichever one will work better and faster. definitely one of those "DOPE" moments here… lol THANKS!!


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## gfixler (Feb 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Haha, it's not a dope moment. It's planelust. I'm seeing it more and more, and carefully guarding against it in my own life. When you love your planes, you see the world as planeable surfaces!


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Amen to that!

but at the same time - you don't really wanna gum up your precious planes that you invested time and elbow grease tuning up…

gonna stop at sears on my way home and pick up a 5/8" thread wire brush for my angle grinder… and go for a spin (pun intended) on this… thanks again. then maybe some solvent for some final cleanup.


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## toddc (Mar 6, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


As a remodeling contractor, I have worked with reclaimed sections of bowling alley and I would not recommend them to anybody for fabricating a workbench.

That "dream" slab is a nightmare to work with. It is full of nails and you have to plan on disposing of a blade every few cuts.

It also sags side-to-side, so there has to be a proper structure under it that way.

Then there is the tar - crap.

It does make a very heavy and durable top in the end, but so do many other materials that are easier and take less time to handle.


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## gfixler (Feb 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Cool! I want to see how that turns out. Good luck, with both methods.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Indeed *Todd*, it's somewhat of a nightmare to work with. I think once you figure out how to get those nails out - it makes things much easier - still a bit of work, but not as bad, and not as destructive on tools. we'll see how the tar will come off with the wheel brush once I get to it.

you mentioned that the material sags side-to-side. do you mean lengthwise over the long grain? or widthwise over the laminations? I have an under-top support that will help control the sagging widthwise. but nothing for the lengthwise possibility. I don't recall seeing GaryKs' and Karsons' benches having support lengthwise though either, and haven't heard from neither of them of any sagging issues. but something to consider in the long run.


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## Brad_Nailor (Jul 26, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


I have to agree with Todd….My buddy has a garage full of bowling alley sections he salvaged, over 15 years ago..and it still sits there…nobody wants it. It would seem to me that aside from the cost, it would be much easier to just laminate a bench top from some maple, or other suitable wood. I thought about doing the same thing you are Purp, and he would give me the alley sections for free…but after I looked them over and thought it through I said thanks but no thanks!


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


I also agree with Todd… lol. If I had to do this again knowing what I know today, I'd go to the lumberyard and buy new material.

But at this point - I already have the material salvaged, it's in very good condition, I already have the experience to handle it. And as Todd wrote - it's a "Dream" top, as I always wanted to utilize salvaged material such as this for such a good purpose. Also, agree to it or not - this adds one hell of a story to this bench.


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## toddc (Mar 6, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


You're in far enough to keep going for sure.

The length is fine, but all of the bowling alley sections I have dealt with are flexible side to side. As you look down the length of it, the slabs sag left to right because they are only nailed and not glued together.


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


My top sits on the apron on each end A 2 X 6 that is mortised into the legs and I've not had any cupping between the two sides. I also didn't take off the tar. I saw no reason to do that, it protects that side from moisture, so i didn't have to put any finish on it. The only saw blades that I destroyed were 2 nail cutting blades that I used to rip the butcher block into two long sections. I did it in the middle of one of the wood strips so it was a sacrificial strip. I peeled it off the rest of the bowling alley and had two straight sections. I made a kitchen counter top and two workbenches from the alleys that I got.

The sink cutout









The island with walnut edges.









I don't seem to have many pictures of the maple top.


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## reggiek (Jun 12, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Maple is one of my favorite woods….it is not as brittle as oak….and I love the grain….

Good job salvaging those strips….a lot of work for sure….I am hoping you got a deal for pulling them out….that will make the work seem less of a bother…

Thanks for sharing


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## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


PurpLev pay no attention to Todd he has got the 'remodeling contractor sickness', always wanting to start with clean materials and a tabula rasa… lol… when your not doing it to make a living it isn't about how long it takes (well sort of) its about how many scars (physically and emotionally) you have when you are finish


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## gfixler (Feb 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Lev, I got a stress-relieving idea for you. Take all the nails you pulled and drive them deep into a bowling ball. Pretend it's the head of the god of bowling alleys


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


LOL. indeed far into it I am. and as of late- loving every minute of it (yet still want to see this thing finished already).

I just picked up a wire brush wheel for my grinder, and this thing works magic - I got the crimped brush (not the twisted aggressive one) and it cleans the tar off nicely and leaves a smooth surface that can be planed without ruining the plane/router blade/bit - fantastic!!! thanks *Gary*! this is a life saver. never used this thing before, but a good accessory to have in the box (at $10).

*Karson* - I was thinking about leaving the tar in place and not having to worry about finishing the bottom, but there are already some strips that are tarless (where the cross bars were nailed+screwed), so I might just clean all the tar off, and finish the bottom all at once after all. Thanks again for the inspiration!

*Todd*. I noticed the flexing that is caused by the nails-only construction, and made notice of that in a previous installment of this blog series. this is also the reason why I modified the 'original' roubo design of the base, and added cross braces supports at the top of each leg end so that the top will sit evenly on a flat surface which should take care of that sagging potential.

as *jlsmith* said - I'm in it for the adventure and experience. I got these 3 huge slabs for $0. In fact - I was awarded a nice drive with a fellow LJ (Ryno101) and a new woodworker buddy neighbor for going to get these slabs - so it is well worth it.

aaah… things really start to look up… now if only I can get enough shop time to dedicate to the rest of this adventure )


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## blackcherry (Dec 7, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Oh my good man are you having a time of it….this is part of the journey to becoming a well rounded craftsman. I adore you relentless pursuit of accomplishment. This bench will be a friend for a lifetime. I won't be the one with 20/20 hide site I can see you will conquer this project. Thanks for sharing and writing your story it truly bring backs memories, your friend in woodworking Blkcherry.


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## GaryK (Jun 25, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


I think that I mentioned that I'm not sure if I would do it again, didn't I? Those are some tuff-ass nails, huh?

I didn't break any of my nails using the cats paw though.

For that black crap on the bottom I put on an old blade on my tablesaw and cut just enough to get rid of it.

If I remember correctly I glued up quarter of the table at a time. Then 2 pairs and finally the last glue-up for the 2 halves. Mine was 8 feet long and 36+" wide so I had to do it this way.

Don't depend on the tongue and grooves to line up the top surfaces. They vary quite a bit. I imagine they were there just to help keep thing in place while they clamped them up. They would surface the top after wards.

Don't sweat it too much since you will have to surface it when you're done anyway.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


*Blkcherry*- Thanks! it is indeed more of an adventure than a project - and will yield much more experiences and understanding as such once it is all over. I really just want something to work on already… seeing your bench makes me wanna be done with it and putting this thing to use.

*GaryK* - I thought I knew better… lol - just kidding. I was actually going to follow your advice and forget about it when Ryan contacted me and offered to team up to pick some up - how can you say no to a fellow lumberjock?
seriously though it was more of a challenge, and something you don't get to experience everyday. another story to tell around the campfire (hopefully NOT while you're burning the bowling alley out of frustration)  I most definitely learned more then a handful of new approaches and techniques for the future.

as you say - I'm not going to depend on anything to keep things aligned - just close enough to keep things together - I WILL surface this thing top and bottom (bottom only where it'll rest on the cross braces supports) for the black crappy tar - I've taken Gary Fixler's idea, and got a $10 wire brush at sears for my angle grinder - this thing works magic, and leaves the maple untouched and clear of the tar in a matter of minutes! I will do the same for the top (laquer/poly finish) and then either plane it flat, or use the router +sled technique Tage Frid used to flatten tables.

I mentioned it before - I'm very tempted to take it all apart completely and remove all nails like you did… something about those nails in there bother my mind.lol - we'll see how adventurous I feel, and how much time I have to spend on this.

Thanks again for the inspiration! even though you did suggest I shouldn't do it 

P.S. something with delivery this week is in my favor - I ordered the lee valley vises, and they arrived a day earlier than FedEx predicted. and I also ordered (out of previous frustration) the Nail-Hunter which was supposed to arrive end of next week, but instead- arrived today… looks hefty - my point is - I'll put it to use and see how it stands up to it's advertisement and post a review on this soon -stay tuned.


----------



## gfixler (Feb 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


I'm glad to hear the bristle brush did the trick!

Pulling embedded nails, bullets, signs, and spikes will be so much easier once we get Star Trek transporter technology.


----------



## dubya (Aug 2, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Glad I found this site. I thought i was the only idiot to try and build something out of a bowling alley lane. I bought about 1800 square feet of old pine bowling alley in 18' lengths. They only weighed about 900 pounds apiece. They had these "tee" beam brackets on the bottom and imagine my suprise when I removed a couple and th floor started to separate. I was convinced that the strips were glued and nailed. But no, just like described here they were nailed through 2 stips each. Believe me I can feel your pain as I experience the same issues from trying to separate the strips to gumming up planes. I made a wall in my master bedroom with the alleys, an island top in my kitchen and treads and stringers for my stairs. I will post pictures as soon as I figure out how. The question I would like to ask is how do you strip the finish off? I really don't want to have to scrape my whole wall (18' x 8'). I have tried the "best" chemical stripper from the box store but it doesn't have much effect. This finish kills sandpaper, it is hard. If it hadn't have dulled over time I wouldn't mess with it but the samll area I have been able to clean is beautiful so it will be worth it to do but If


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## dubya (Aug 2, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


Please be careful planing as the nails can be very close to the surface depending on how old the alley was. They were often planed in place to restore them so there is no way of knowing how much of the top was removed. I kept my slabs in as big of pieces as possible for the projects I am working on. If you disassembled all the strips and removed nails you won't have a problem but it was easier for me to screw straps on the back of my wall to keep it all together. For my stair treads I used 10" long screws driven in from both sides. I had to predrill but it came out fine in no time and they are solid.


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## dubya (Aug 2, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


If anyone else wants to experience this pain I have plenty of pieces left over from 2' x 3' to 42" X 18' with a bunch in between. Bring help , they are heavy.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


dubya - I know the pain you've been going through… it can be pretty frustrating.

the way I took off the finish was using a sanding disc in an angle grinder. yes- this finish is a sandpaper-killer, and doing the one piece 30"x80" completely finished 1 sanding disc. maybe not the most efficient way, but it did the job with minimal labor, and quite fast at ~10 min for the whole thing.


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


I would think that a coarse Randon Orbital Sander could take it off fairly fast. But remember that you will have to get rid of any deep scratches made by the sandpaper. I'd try 80 grit before going any coarser.


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## dubya (Aug 2, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


I used a DA sander with 60 grit and the finished laughed at me. I have used a belt sander with 50 grit paper and it does the job but as you said I ended up with some deep scratches. I am experimenting with a gang of wire wheels on a mandrel where I will try to use them like a planer.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


dubya - I used a wire wheel to take off the tar on the underside of the bowling alley - it does the job and does it well, and also will not clog (esp. with the tar). while at homedepot I noticed the sanding discs for the angle grinder, and thought I'd try them out - they are used to strip off paint and rust, and they did a great job on the finished side of the bowling alley with minimal abuse to the maple strips. also because the angle grinder is a beast at 8000-10,000rpm the work is done quickly as opposed to a random orbital sander, which is more for finishing applications.

heres the one I used:









both flap disc, and wire wheel would last about the same time, and the flap disc I think is cheaper - so might be more useful for to tackle the finish side of the bowling alley


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## dubya (Aug 2, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *There is more than 1 way to skin a cat - not so with bowling alley floors though - finally success*
> 
> Yes. Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, reverse thinking, and this project seems a bit more doable, and even not much trouble at all.
> 
> ...


I'll try the flap wheel. I have some laying around from my welding days. I have had some pretty good success with an old hand plane I have. It is a big sucker with a 3" wide knife. I used a sheet of paper to set the depth and was able to plane off just the finish. As long as I didn't go over the same area twice I wasn't removing any wood.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*Moving forward at 0mph*

It's interesting how it feels like you're standing still when you're working on already dry-fit parts for additional features. After all - at the end of the day when you look at all the parts - they seem to look just the way they did in the morning. bummer.

but even though things don't seem that way somethings. Progress IS progress, and is one step closer to the finish line.

Today I implemented the hardware for the leg vise in the right leg (I'm a lefty). this involved drilling the 1-1/8" hole for the vise screw, drilling the 1-3/4" hole in the back of the leg to take the vise nut, and recessing (chiseling) the nut rectangular body into that leg:









This would have been made much easier if I had a 1 3/4" drill to counter-bore for the nut… alas, I do not have that size bits, and also all my bits are only 2.5" long, making this quite challenging, as I had to drill from both sides while keeping the holes aligned, and also sanding the holes to enlarge them to their final size and fit - all in all, it came out pretty good, just took a long while.

Also I drilled he rectangular hole for the parallel guide above the leg rail (yes, I know some have it below the rail… personal choice here).

Since I'm all done with boring and working on each of the legs parts individually, I was able to glue them up, and also already have 1st coat of BLO on those: 









Once I'm finished with the legs, I'll be able to set them up permanently (well, they do come apart for future disassembly, but at least I'll be able to set them up for the final time before putting the entire bench together). and move on to focusing entirely on the top.

Since I felt I did not make any new parts, I spend a couple more hours in the shop (don't have too much shoptime lately, so I take every minute I can get), and laminated 2 nails-free strips of maple. total length was 70" which includes 62" for the benchdog strip, another 5" for the sliding vise dog block, and an extra piece that I can use as a spacer once I glue the entire bench together:


















This was my first time opening the cover on my drill press and changing speed! (to a slower speed) as drilling 3/4" holes in this 2.5" hard maple was quite a challenge for my DP (Delta 16.5" 3/4hp) - not that It couldn't handle it, but it just felt like slowing it down would be easier on the bit, on the wood, and on my DP. it seems to have been a wise choice, as the bit had an easier time getting through time time around.

you can also see the somewhat clean bottom of the large piece which will be the majority of the top ( still with nails inside) after I cleaned it (mostly) from the tar using a wire-brush wheel. I bought the wire-brush from sears, it was ~$12 (sears brand) and first time I used it ever. by the end of this top, there were no more wire strands left (at all) on the wheel, I ended up working with just the nut by the time I was finishing up- not ideal, and this was very messy (think tar dust) - but the bottom is pretty clean after 30 min of 'easy' work - clean enough that I can flatten the areas that will sit on the legs.

Another fruitful day. maybe another coat of BLO tonight, and off we go to work on the top (next time around).

Thanks for reading, and have a great week.


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *Moving forward at 0mph*
> 
> It's interesting how it feels like you're standing still when you're working on already dry-fit parts for additional features. After all - at the end of the day when you look at all the parts - they seem to look just the way they did in the morning. bummer.
> 
> ...


Glad to see some more progress is being made. Great blog.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Moving forward at 0mph*
> 
> It's interesting how it feels like you're standing still when you're working on already dry-fit parts for additional features. After all - at the end of the day when you look at all the parts - they seem to look just the way they did in the morning. bummer.
> 
> ...


keep on trucking


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## gfixler (Feb 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Moving forward at 0mph*
> 
> It's interesting how it feels like you're standing still when you're working on already dry-fit parts for additional features. After all - at the end of the day when you look at all the parts - they seem to look just the way they did in the morning. bummer.
> 
> ...


Nice work!

Changing the belts on their pulleys for proper speeds is probably the only thing I'm supposed to do with my tools that I actually do. Sometimes I'm lazy, but often enough, I'll flip the lid, read the setting for whatever bit I just put in, spend 30 seconds flipping the belts and locking it down, and then having at it again. Seems you take that initiative and use it on your planes. I can't be bothered to get one, let alone care for it!


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## Ottis (Apr 17, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Moving forward at 0mph*
> 
> It's interesting how it feels like you're standing still when you're working on already dry-fit parts for additional features. After all - at the end of the day when you look at all the parts - they seem to look just the way they did in the morning. bummer.
> 
> ...


Looking better each time. Can not wait to see the finished work bench.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Moving forward at 0mph*
> 
> It's interesting how it feels like you're standing still when you're working on already dry-fit parts for additional features. After all - at the end of the day when you look at all the parts - they seem to look just the way they did in the morning. bummer.
> 
> ...


Thanks everyone.

Don - believe me - I can not wait t o see the finished workbench either… lol


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## LeeJ (Jul 4, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Moving forward at 0mph*
> 
> It's interesting how it feels like you're standing still when you're working on already dry-fit parts for additional features. After all - at the end of the day when you look at all the parts - they seem to look just the way they did in the morning. bummer.
> 
> ...


Hi Purlev;

I still haven't checked out this blog, but I will. When I read blogs as the work is being done, I get tired, as though I was building it myself!

As one of my buddies says, onwards and sideways!

Progress can be a slow and painful process.

Lee


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## gregsmith (Jan 24, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *Moving forward at 0mph*
> 
> It's interesting how it feels like you're standing still when you're working on already dry-fit parts for additional features. After all - at the end of the day when you look at all the parts - they seem to look just the way they did in the morning. bummer.
> 
> ...


Working with timber is an absolute joy, particularly when you have all the amazing tools to assist with preparation for its final use.


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## rjyourwood (Jul 17, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *Moving forward at 0mph*
> 
> It's interesting how it feels like you're standing still when you're working on already dry-fit parts for additional features. After all - at the end of the day when you look at all the parts - they seem to look just the way they did in the morning. bummer.
> 
> ...


Wooden bench is coming together nicely. Keep it up!


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*

After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.

*Mistake #1: Drawboring to the wrong side (cringe) *
2 legs on each side of the base are connected together using 2 short rails. The top one is using a sliding dovetail, while the lower one uses M&T. I decided that I'll have my try at drawboring the M&T as I've never done it before, plus - it'll add a nice accent to the legs (2 visible pins for each tenon).

the idea is that you bore the holes in the leg where the mortise is, place the tenon in, mark the hole location, and then drill the hole in the tenon at a slight offset from the one in the mortise towards the shoulder of the tenon. once you put a pin through both sets of holes - it pulls the joint together tightly. so far so good.

I bored the pin holes in the mortise, placed the tenon in, marked hole location, but alas - my mind was in a different space - I marked the offset AWAY from the shoulder , which in effect would cause the pin to push the tenon out instead of pull it tightly in….

luckily I did a dry fit test, and noticed (really lukcily that I noticed it at that point) that the holes seem funny…something didn't make sense to me.

*Fix #1*: at first I thought about abandoning the drawbore idea, and just glue the M&T, clamp it, and then plug the holes in the mortise for a faux-drawbore look… at which point I figured - if I can plug the mortise side - I can probably plug the tenon side. so I did. I used a 1/4" dowel, glued it into the wrong hole, and cut it flush with the cheeks of the tenon when it dried.. then marked the holes again - and drill the offset holes in the right location. worked like a charm!

*Mistake #2 : Rail on the wrong side of the leg*
while reviewing my last published blog installment, one of the pictures drew my attention. something didn't seem right, but I couldn't make it at first. looking more closely I found that in the picture it seemed like the short rail seems like it's installed on the inside of the legs as opposed to the outside. when I built the legs, I ran out of Hemlock FIR material, and decided to keep the side rails at 2×4 as opposed to 4×4 (laminated), and in the future add the extra 2×4 from the outside to beef it up, and give it a more even look. I'm still not sure how it happened - but in fact I installed (Mortised) the short rails on the inside of the legs (facing the inside of the base) instead of the outside (which would make the "completed" rail flush with the outside of the base.

*Fix #2:* you guessed it - there is no real fix for this… I'll just have to live with this knowing that my rails are inside out. I think I'll be ok - maybe a session or 2 at the shrink, and I'll forget all about it.

Other than that - the base is all finished with 3 coats of BLO to protect if from moisture. I didn't really care to buff it up much as this is a workbench, and I am more concerned about it's stability and longevity than it's being a piece of fine woodworking (which it's NOT).

here is the finished base:









now , I can stop worrying about the base, and focus solely on the top, followed by the vises.

Thanks for reading,
Peace.


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## ryno101 (May 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


Don't kid yourself… that "inside out" rail is going to be the thing you think about every time you look at the base… but that's OK. It's the way we are, and that's part of why we're woodworkers, right?

Second point, it is most definitely a piece of fine woodworking, or at the least a fine piece of woodworking!

Third, man that thing is starting to shape up, I'm impressed with your progress on this, and that base looks fantastic!


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## pommy (Apr 17, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


Hi Mate

That base is looking mighty fine and yes we make mistakes but thats why we love woodwork because we make these little errors just to test us and think many years to come IF ONLY i did this or that LOL….

Andy


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## gfixler (Feb 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


I'm still not sure what you're talking about with the rails. I think it's looking great!


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## damianpenney (Jun 22, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


Looking great so far, I made the exact same mistake as you did regards the drawbores (and the same fix!)


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


Thanks everyone -

*Ryan* - you know I'll be thinking about it, but can't I fantasize about NOT having to? lol

*Damian* - I'll quote you "Great minds think alike…" for better for worse…

I am very happy with the way things turned out so far. a recent post by Jon3 made me want to show some mistakes, how they can happen, and how to deal with them - some can be fixed, some become design elements, and some just stay there- and unless pointed out - would never be seen as a mistake. I thought it was a good idea suggested by Jon to also show what we have to deal with, and not only the "easy -look ma no hands" parts in our progress.

*Gary* - the short lower rails, are offset from the center - they were supposed to be offset in the other direction. really - no biggy, but a mistake nonetheless.


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## HokieMojo (Mar 11, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


these sound like very typical mistakes that happen in my shop. I thought woodworking would teach me to slow down and avoid this type of mistake. Instead, it has taught me how to fix mistakes and how to apologize to my wife for being behind deadline.


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## Brad_Nailor (Jul 26, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


Hey Purp, don't sweat it the base looks really nice. Like it has been said on here many times the measure of a good wood worker is how well he can hide his mistakes! Alas though Ryno is right…evry time I look at anything I have ever made my eye instantly goes right to the spot where I have a flaw/mistake…it's the nature of us picky anal retentive perfectionists!

Hokie that is a good observation…I always seem to get into this mode where I'm in a hurry, and usually unnecessarily…and thats when I make mistakes!


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## blackcherry (Dec 7, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


All that work is starting to show a fine, strong and solid bench. I looking forward to see it completed as I know you are but enjoy the journey it a very special project. Your going to enjoy working on it I wish I would have made my years ago. Thank for the up date…Blkcherry


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


Man the bench is looking great. If you want it the flush look just cut yourself a couple of boards and glue them into the space. You said that though in you post.

WhooAhhh! Can't wait to see this puppy together!


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## patron (Apr 2, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


looks good from here ,
very solid ,
and a good addition to your shop.
you can use the rails to remember to check things out 
better in the future .
as far as i can tell,
it is a good project ,
thanks for the share .
enjoy !


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


Now thats a killer bench base great.


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## kiwi1969 (Dec 22, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Recap - some mistakes, some saves, and a finished base.*
> 
> After last week's ongoing progress, it felt a bit slow this week (which it is), but I did have some things I wanted to share, and also was able to finish the base with 3 coats of BLO which is what I'm going to keep on it for conditioning the wood, and protecting it from moisture.
> 
> ...


Really honest post there purp. It looks like it,s going to be a great workhorse for you when it,s done.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*

finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.

The top as can be seen in the sketchup model is made of 6 different components: Main Slab (nails and all), Dog holes strip, buffer strip, 2 skirts (front and back) and a breadboard End Cap.









In reality this will change slightly as I decided to drop the rear skirt, but might add another end cap.

Up to this point I had cleaned and had the main slab roughly ready, and the dog hole strip:









I then hand planed the bottom of the main slab flat. I only planed the areas that will rest on the leg cross braces, as the rest really has no need to be flat.

I mortised 2 rectangular mortises to fit the tenons on the back legs. these mortises are slightly (1/8") wider than the tenons to allow for seasonal movement.

The main slab now fit on the leg cross braces and is flush with the back legs. at this point I hand planed the bottom of the dog hole strip where it would rest on the legs, glued and clamped it to the main slab while keeping both pieces resting on the legs (they are not yet flush and flat on the top - that will be done later, right now the bottom is my reference):


















Next is the buffer which helps keep the dog holes from running above the legs, and also gives some support on the front side of the wagon vise (once installed). I cleaned up some more strips of the maple, and laminated them together for the buffer strip (none is long enough for the entire length, so they are staggered shorter pieces):









Once that dried, I motrised rectangular mortises in the buffer strip to fit the front leg tenons. my mortises are getting better and better which I really like:









and this fits (still dry) together like this to give the main work surface of the top:









Next would be the end caps which will also allow me to install the wagon vise. followed by the front skirt.

the nice thing is that I am now already working on this semi functional bench, and it seems very stout and steady…. and starts to really shape up now.

Thanks for reading,
Peace.


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


It's looking great. Nice job on the construction so far.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


Hey Sharon
This is really a great bench a lot of hard work to get her done. Almost done.


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


Thats one nice looking Roubo you have there Sharon. You have this coming your way now. It is very nice to be able to use the bench even before it is done! Excited to see the finfish product!


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## toddc (Mar 6, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


That mortise looked really clean, I am impressed.

This has been fun to follow.


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## Jon3 (Feb 28, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


Now that is starting to look pretty benchlike!


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## LeeJ (Jul 4, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


Hi Purplev;

I get tired just looking at this project!

Looks good though.

Lee


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


Thanks everyone, I can feel the end is near… time to use that 3rd wind and push through.

*Lee* - you keep saying that… so come on over and help me finish this thing already! lol - Thanks.

*Todd* - Thanks. this bench is rewarding as a bench, but more over it has been an excellent opportunity to finesse (and the road is still long) some techniques, in different scales. for that alone, I'm very pleased that I chose to build my own.


----------



## Cato (May 1, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


Hey PurpLev,
I've been following with interest. I am curious to see the leg vise and how that will be used. The mortise and tenons look great.


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


This is looking really good. It makes me want to get started on one myself.


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## blackcherry (Dec 7, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


Houston the tools have landed!!!!!!!! Starting to look and feel like a very stout bench. All your hard work is almost behind you now, the light at the end is near. Thanks for sharing and enjoy ….Blkcherry


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## ellen35 (Jan 1, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


This is one very nice bench. It will be worth every minute you spend on it.
If it doesn't work out for you, you can always resort to bowling as a hobby ;-)
Ellen


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## SCOTSMAN (Aug 1, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


I think this will be awsome when finished, it definitely will last a few hundred years give or take a number of coats of finish during that time.A great looking project well done again Alistair


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## kenn (Mar 19, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


Nothing like that feeling when a plan comes together and you can start using a new workbench, Looking good.


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## ryno101 (May 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


Looking great, Sharon!

I have been closely following this… and you've been inspiring me!

I've got all my base pieces cut to finsihed length, and have marked all for the mortise/tenon cuts, even got mortises (first-ever!) cut for one of the leg assemblies…

Unfortunately, I'm too busy to blog all this, so I've been blogging vicariously through you, hope you don't mind!

We should get together again soon, maybe sometime this month? I've got some 2×4 hard maple raw pieces with your name on them for turning into vise handles!


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #1: Tip, Tap, Top*
> 
> finally getting to work on the actual bowling alley part of the "bowling alley workbench", although I really found Damian's comment on a previous installment entertaining, and might refer to it from now as the "Alley Workbench"...lol.
> 
> ...


sweet! Thanks *Ryan*. be my guest to ride on the blog train… my pleasure. we def. need to get together. if you want, I have the router sled to flatten the top that you can take.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*The Top #2: Flat and Shine*

I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):









I also ground down one of the corner of the Lee-Valley Tailvise Nut so that I'll be able to install the vise higher up and the nut will have less interference with the table top:









I'm not a machinist, nor work with metal much (although it would have been nice to be able to make my own hardware), but I think this came out pretty nice.

Today I was able to work on flattening the top, which will help with the next few steps of adding the end-cap, skirt, and vises as I'll have a better surface to reference to, and also have a top that I can work on.

Since the top is made of different parts, some that could not go through the planer, and others that I chose not to take through the planer - it means there is absolutely no alignment on the top surface. in order to flatten this with my largest hand plane (#5) I'll need a lot of energy, patience, luck, and good fortune. since I didn't want to plan that much ahead for the day I might run into all of those at the same time. I chose to take the majority of material with the Tage Frid router sled technique. I attached 2 rails to the sides of my bench. Tage I believe screwed those to the table/bench top, I chose to clamp them to the legs, since the legs are parallel and of the same height - which made for good reference points: 









I hand jointed both rails to make them straight so that the sled can ride on them and keep the router at a fixed height above the workbench top.

The way the technique works, is you stretch a string between each 2 crossing ends of the rails, and the strings cross each other in the middle. you use risers to lift one of the strings the height of 1 string so that they should be touching in the middle but not affecting each others (not pushing down/up on each other), once you have your rails positioned like that - it means they are parallel to each other, I picked the idea to clamp the rails to the bench from Moai, I like it better than dealing with screws and holes (Thanks Francisco!):









The router itself is riding on a sled that rides on the long rails. the sled is 3/4" birch ply with 2 jointed 1 1/4" maple strips (pieces from the bowling alley) as stiffeners to keep it flat. I drilled a 1 1/2" slot in the middle using overlapping holes with a hole saw (probably not the best way, but it gave me the result I needed) and waxed the ply so that the router can slide easily on it:









you can see in the photo, right under the sled, that my router electric cable is spliced and taped… on one of the runs (back and forth) the cable decided to crawl under the sled… and the rest was sparks and history… luckily I was able to splice it back up, and the motor didn't get fried, otherwise that would have been a VERY unfortunate end of things, with only half the bench half routed (1st pass)...

I used a Freud 1 1/4" flat bottom mortise bit, set the router to a low spot on the top, and started sliding it back and forth over and over again from one side of the top to the other, this created ALOT of chips:









this is the amount of chips from 1 pass - I had to go through 3 passes, as I kept on finding a lower spot than I had used as reference in each pass. I probably took off ~1/4" off of the top. not too bad considering that it's nice and even:









OK, maybe not as even as one would like, but still - pretty close. since the router bit is supposed to be flat bottom - I'm not really sure why I got such a pronounced stripe effect… but a little work with my #4 smoother, and some scraping and this is the end result:









not too shabby for a first time on such a large surface. to that I must say - scraping is quite rewarding as you see the machine marks, and planing marks disappear right before your eyes, but to scrap such a large surface… well, as rewarding as it may be, I kept on telling myself that I'm never building another bench again… lol (self motivation). in order to reduce/eliminate the burning heat in the thumbs while scraping, I held a leather glove between my thumbs and the scraper- never felt a thing. and those shavings are just not from this world.

This is the top after scraping it. Yes - the maple actually shines, with nothing on it - this is bare wood:









I was hoping to get the endcap done today, but planing the top took the entire day, this was a long and labor intensive work. I did however was able to prepare the tenon for the endcap. using a straight edge guide, I routed a 3/4" deep, tenon on the edge of the benchtop:









and later using the same straight edge (positioned elsewhere though) I cut off the excess with a circular saw.

I then marked the mortise on the end cap to match the tenon, removed most material with the drill press and forstner bit (leaving enough extra material to give me support for chisel work later on), and chiseled the square mortise. so far I was only able to make the short mortise for lack of time, but at least things are set to be picked up next time around:









In the last picture, you can see that I'm actually utilizing the workbench already which is fantastic- it works great! I also got some holfasts from Gramecy Tools= (Thanks Chrys!), these are by far the best I've ever seen, and I'll review them shortly - definitely worth it. you can also see my "mallet" - definitely one of my next projects…

quite a day, I'm tired, and you should be too after reading all of this…

Next, the End Cap, and Wagon Vise. followed by the Skirt, and last will be the leg vise… and that should wrap it up… but first… lets get to the next step.

Thanks for reading,
Peace.


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## kenn (Mar 19, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


You are making some great progress. It looks to me like you've got the hardest part done and there is nothing like using it a little bit, you start to see what you'll have when it's finished. Keep going!


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## MedicKen (Dec 2, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Looking good. I wish I could find some old lanes like that. I have seen a few listing here on a local CL but I never got a response. Keep up the good work, cant wait to see the finished bench


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## Ottis (Apr 17, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Looking great so far…I have really enjoyed following along with you and look forward to seeing the finished product.


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## craftsman on the lake (Dec 27, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Wonderful accounting of the trials and tribulations of leveling a top with a router. It came out fine though didn't it.
Nice series to follow. Thnx.


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## Splinterman (Mar 13, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Hey PurpLev,
Now that will be a real good bench when completed….......great posting….....well done.


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## ellen35 (Jan 1, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Nice work, Sharon.
Looks like you're making real progress!
That will be one fine bench when you finish!
Ellen


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## 280305 (Sep 28, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


That is very impressive. I can imagine that it is a great feeling to actually start to be able to use what you have completed so far as a base for the remaining parts.
Thank you for taking the time to document your progress - I imagine that there are times that you are grateful for the chance to take a break and snap a few photos.


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


The bench is looking great Nice job on the top.

I did the sled thing on mine also. It makes it a lot more manageable and consistant across the whole surface.


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## Brad_Nailor (Jul 26, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Nice job, dude! That router method seems to work great and is pretty simple and straightforward. This bench is turning into an heirloom piece…it's going to be too nice to beat on! Getting psyched to see the finished piece!


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## charlton (Jan 24, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Looking good!


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Sharon,

You are making great progress, I have a feeling this bench is going to look very nice when it is all said and done. An eye hook the size of the cord at the appropriate end of the sled should keep the cord chewer at bay…


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Thanks for the comments everyone, I was busy all day lone trying to get the show on the road, and one day closer to the finish line.

Indeed the router sled method quickens things up - there was ALOT of material that was taken off the top to make it flat, and I seriously wouldn't like to hand plane the entire thing - and I didn't … lol.


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## LeeJ (Jul 4, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Sharon;

Oh man, it is looking good! You are getting there.

Fantastic job!

I have a couple cords like that too. Funny thing is nobody did it. Or at least will admit to it.

Even my shaper has a cord like that, which I can't figure out. How you cut a shaper cord, is beyond me.

Lee


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


LOL…. *Lee*, as I was reading how nobody admits doing it to your routers, I could see how that would work… but then when you say that it's also the shaper??? maybe it really did "just happen" ...lol

I was actually going to send you a PM once this is done, so you can just read through it without getting too tired


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## gregsmith (Jan 24, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Sanding timber is one of my favorite pastimes. I enjoy the smell, the sawdust and of course the visual of a smooth and prepared material ready for its final finish.


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## rjyourwood (Jul 17, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


Great progress on the wooden bench. Can't wait to see the finished product.


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## ChrisMc45 (Jul 28, 2010)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #2: Flat and Shine*
> 
> I had some good progress on the top today. it actually started a couple of days ago when I went ahead, cleaned up the buffer strip, and main top, and glued them up together, I also milled the end cap part (which is on top of the clamps in the photo):
> 
> ...


nice trick with the strings for the router sled, I would not have gotten that right.
GORGEOUS flat top wood


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*A Cap for the Gentlemen, a Skirt for the Dames*

I picked up today where I left off yesterday, and finished the longer mortise in the end cap. that was one hell of a mortise, I hope I don't have to make them at that magnitude too often (read - ever again). But it all fits perfectly and snug. The end cap currently protrudes (by design) 1/16" off the bench top, so that I can trim it flush later, otherwise you run into the (most likely) possibility that the end cap will be below the top of the bench. I also drilled and fit the Lee Valley Tail Vise Screw that I'm using for the wagon vise. I planned the top so that the screw end rests in an elongated hole in the left leg cross brace support, which keeps the screw parallel to the bench top, but allows it to shift left/right which will let me align it with the vice jaw for smooth action (hopefully):









I also milled and glued up the 1 1/2" (laminated from 2 3/4 strips) strip of 5" wide maple for the skirt: jointing this by hand really made me wish I already had the leg vise to hold the piece on edge:









while fiddling with the setup of the #5 Buck Bros hand plane, the part that moves the blade back/forth broke off, I guess it's some sort of poorly machined aluminum… RIP… time to get a better one.

All in all, a busy day, glueups slows things down, I took the down-time and sharpened some chisels with my new scheppach wet sharpener to get some more experience with it, I can see where a more powerful machine would be nice, or a high speed grinder to speed things up - but I'm very pleased with it's performance for it's price. definitely less messy, and faster than scary sharp (I used to end up with black hands). a Nice trick that I picked up from Grizzly website is, I dropped a magnet in the water bath, and it picks up all the fallen metal dust - pretty weird when emptying the water bath, its like metal mush…

Thanks for reading,
Peace


----------



## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *A Cap for the Gentlemen, a Skirt for the Dames*
> 
> I picked up today where I left off yesterday, and finished the longer mortise in the end cap. that was one hell of a mortise, I hope I don't have to make them at that magnitude too often (read - ever again). But it all fits perfectly and snug. The end cap currently protrudes (by design) 1/16" off the bench top, so that I can trim it flush later, otherwise you run into the (most likely) possibility that the end cap will be below the top of the bench. I also drilled and fit the Lee Valley Tail Vise Screw that I'm using for the wagon vise. I planned the top so that the screw end rests in an elongated hole in the left leg cross brace support, which keeps the screw parallel to the bench top, but allows it to shift left/right which will let me align it with the vice jaw for smooth action (hopefully):
> 
> ...


Thanks for keeping us informed of your progress.


----------



## toddc (Mar 6, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *A Cap for the Gentlemen, a Skirt for the Dames*
> 
> I picked up today where I left off yesterday, and finished the longer mortise in the end cap. that was one hell of a mortise, I hope I don't have to make them at that magnitude too often (read - ever again). But it all fits perfectly and snug. The end cap currently protrudes (by design) 1/16" off the bench top, so that I can trim it flush later, otherwise you run into the (most likely) possibility that the end cap will be below the top of the bench. I also drilled and fit the Lee Valley Tail Vise Screw that I'm using for the wagon vise. I planned the top so that the screw end rests in an elongated hole in the left leg cross brace support, which keeps the screw parallel to the bench top, but allows it to shift left/right which will let me align it with the vice jaw for smooth action (hopefully):
> 
> ...


I'm still watching…still interesting!


----------



## Ottis (Apr 17, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *A Cap for the Gentlemen, a Skirt for the Dames*
> 
> I picked up today where I left off yesterday, and finished the longer mortise in the end cap. that was one hell of a mortise, I hope I don't have to make them at that magnitude too often (read - ever again). But it all fits perfectly and snug. The end cap currently protrudes (by design) 1/16" off the bench top, so that I can trim it flush later, otherwise you run into the (most likely) possibility that the end cap will be below the top of the bench. I also drilled and fit the Lee Valley Tail Vise Screw that I'm using for the wagon vise. I planned the top so that the screw end rests in an elongated hole in the left leg cross brace support, which keeps the screw parallel to the bench top, but allows it to shift left/right which will let me align it with the vice jaw for smooth action (hopefully):
> 
> ...


Agree with Todd…still following with breath held !!!!!


----------



## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *A Cap for the Gentlemen, a Skirt for the Dames*
> 
> I picked up today where I left off yesterday, and finished the longer mortise in the end cap. that was one hell of a mortise, I hope I don't have to make them at that magnitude too often (read - ever again). But it all fits perfectly and snug. The end cap currently protrudes (by design) 1/16" off the bench top, so that I can trim it flush later, otherwise you run into the (most likely) possibility that the end cap will be below the top of the bench. I also drilled and fit the Lee Valley Tail Vise Screw that I'm using for the wagon vise. I planned the top so that the screw end rests in an elongated hole in the left leg cross brace support, which keeps the screw parallel to the bench top, but allows it to shift left/right which will let me align it with the vice jaw for smooth action (hopefully):
> 
> ...


good progress


----------



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *A Cap for the Gentlemen, a Skirt for the Dames*
> 
> I picked up today where I left off yesterday, and finished the longer mortise in the end cap. that was one hell of a mortise, I hope I don't have to make them at that magnitude too often (read - ever again). But it all fits perfectly and snug. The end cap currently protrudes (by design) 1/16" off the bench top, so that I can trim it flush later, otherwise you run into the (most likely) possibility that the end cap will be below the top of the bench. I also drilled and fit the Lee Valley Tail Vise Screw that I'm using for the wagon vise. I planned the top so that the screw end rests in an elongated hole in the left leg cross brace support, which keeps the screw parallel to the bench top, but allows it to shift left/right which will let me align it with the vice jaw for smooth action (hopefully):
> 
> ...


Thanks guys, it was small progress, but progress nonetheless.


----------



## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *A Cap for the Gentlemen, a Skirt for the Dames*
> 
> I picked up today where I left off yesterday, and finished the longer mortise in the end cap. that was one hell of a mortise, I hope I don't have to make them at that magnitude too often (read - ever again). But it all fits perfectly and snug. The end cap currently protrudes (by design) 1/16" off the bench top, so that I can trim it flush later, otherwise you run into the (most likely) possibility that the end cap will be below the top of the bench. I also drilled and fit the Lee Valley Tail Vise Screw that I'm using for the wagon vise. I planned the top so that the screw end rests in an elongated hole in the left leg cross brace support, which keeps the screw parallel to the bench top, but allows it to shift left/right which will let me align it with the vice jaw for smooth action (hopefully):
> 
> ...


Wow, I just love the pile of wood in front of the bench! The lines on your bench look magnificent! That holdfast looks very intimidating hanging out that front leg there! What is the final length (planned of course) of your bench.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *A Cap for the Gentlemen, a Skirt for the Dames*
> 
> I picked up today where I left off yesterday, and finished the longer mortise in the end cap. that was one hell of a mortise, I hope I don't have to make them at that magnitude too often (read - ever again). But it all fits perfectly and snug. The end cap currently protrudes (by design) 1/16" off the bench top, so that I can trim it flush later, otherwise you run into the (most likely) possibility that the end cap will be below the top of the bench. I also drilled and fit the Lee Valley Tail Vise Screw that I'm using for the wagon vise. I planned the top so that the screw end rests in an elongated hole in the left leg cross brace support, which keeps the screw parallel to the bench top, but allows it to shift left/right which will let me align it with the vice jaw for smooth action (hopefully):
> 
> ...


*sIKE*, I don't like that pile of wood much… I have to literally climb through this pile in order to get to the workbench… and then work on it… LOL. this pile used to be where the bench is now- so I just kinda relocated it the "easy way" for now, but hopefully when I'm done, I'll take it all outside, and start organizing it somehow. right now it's one big mess… but my focus is on finishing the bench, which is (according to plan - so far so good) 30"x80", at 34.5" high. it's already trimmed to length on both sides (with one side having the end-cap), and the width is based on the legs which are indeed 30" apart.


----------



## LeeJ (Jul 4, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *A Cap for the Gentlemen, a Skirt for the Dames*
> 
> I picked up today where I left off yesterday, and finished the longer mortise in the end cap. that was one hell of a mortise, I hope I don't have to make them at that magnitude too often (read - ever again). But it all fits perfectly and snug. The end cap currently protrudes (by design) 1/16" off the bench top, so that I can trim it flush later, otherwise you run into the (most likely) possibility that the end cap will be below the top of the bench. I also drilled and fit the Lee Valley Tail Vise Screw that I'm using for the wagon vise. I planned the top so that the screw end rests in an elongated hole in the left leg cross brace support, which keeps the screw parallel to the bench top, but allows it to shift left/right which will let me align it with the vice jaw for smooth action (hopefully):
> 
> ...


Hey Sharon;

This is really quite a project.

Almost there though.

Lee


----------



## gregsmith (Jan 24, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *A Cap for the Gentlemen, a Skirt for the Dames*
> 
> I picked up today where I left off yesterday, and finished the longer mortise in the end cap. that was one hell of a mortise, I hope I don't have to make them at that magnitude too often (read - ever again). But it all fits perfectly and snug. The end cap currently protrudes (by design) 1/16" off the bench top, so that I can trim it flush later, otherwise you run into the (most likely) possibility that the end cap will be below the top of the bench. I also drilled and fit the Lee Valley Tail Vise Screw that I'm using for the wagon vise. I planned the top so that the screw end rests in an elongated hole in the left leg cross brace support, which keeps the screw parallel to the bench top, but allows it to shift left/right which will let me align it with the vice jaw for smooth action (hopefully):
> 
> ...


Another great article that reinforces the beauty of using timber to create lasting products for your home and or business.


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## rjyourwood (Jul 17, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *A Cap for the Gentlemen, a Skirt for the Dames*
> 
> I picked up today where I left off yesterday, and finished the longer mortise in the end cap. that was one hell of a mortise, I hope I don't have to make them at that magnitude too often (read - ever again). But it all fits perfectly and snug. The end cap currently protrudes (by design) 1/16" off the bench top, so that I can trim it flush later, otherwise you run into the (most likely) possibility that the end cap will be below the top of the bench. I also drilled and fit the Lee Valley Tail Vise Screw that I'm using for the wagon vise. I planned the top so that the screw end rests in an elongated hole in the left leg cross brace support, which keeps the screw parallel to the bench top, but allows it to shift left/right which will let me align it with the vice jaw for smooth action (hopefully):
> 
> ...


Nice woodwork. Great tip on dropping the magnet in the water bath.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*

I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.

while fitting the skirt to the legs, I noticed that the gap on the left side of the bench is larger than the right side… a quick reach to the tape measure confirmed that indeed the main-slab I was using (with nails in it) wasn't square - to be honest, I didn't even think about checking for it in the first place which I should have.

so now I have a top that is based on a non square part, which makes the entire top not square:









as you can see in the picture, there is a smaller gap between the top and the skirt on the right size (~1/8") then on the left size (~5/16).

my original thought was to create a narrow strip to fill this gap, and make that strip tapered - problem is , this is a really narrow strip, and the taper is so fine, that it's a 99.9% likely that I won't be able to get that taper right - wasting time and energy for nothing.

second thought, and this is the method I'm going to be using here, is to place a straight edge across the length of the front of the top, square it with the end, and route the front of the top clean - this will take the taper off, and leave me with an even ~5/16" (I'll probably enlarge it a bit to maybe 3/8" gap which will be easier for me to fill in (thicker strip). then I just need a square strip to fill in the gap, and I'm done with it.

the thing that somewhat concerns me is the fact that the dog hole strip is aligned and parallel with the skewed main slab - making the dog hole strip not parallel to the front of the bench. the angle is minimal, but for holding longer pieces - the dogs will have an offset of ~3/16" (? about…) which might not hold parts properly for planing…. AAARRRRRRGGGGGG…...

I really hope this will not be a pronounced problem, or this top will need to be burned…

Any ideas/suggestions/confirmation is MOST welcome… this is really bugging me.


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## craftsman on the lake (Dec 27, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


I know this mightto sound like a bad idea besides just living with the small variation.

Let everything be determined by the dog hole strip. Think of it as the starting point. Plane/cut some off the dog hole strip side to make that side of the bench parallel with it. And, if you want to plane the other side to also make it parallel. The joint lines of your top won't be perfectly parallel with the edges but that might not show unless you were looking for it. Of course at that point your bench might not be perfectly square but the ends definitely wouldn't show it.


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## Jon3 (Feb 28, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


This to me is one of the downside of the schwarzian method. I prefer to build my entire top, entire base, then mate them cleanly. Less chance of this kind of error, imo.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


Thanks guys, the more I think about it the less I'm worried about it, measuring the angle offset gives me 0.1 degree , which when planing boards, I probably won't notice… lol. the dog hole strip although not parallel to the front of the bench IS inline with the vise jaw… so there is no problem there… more esthetics I guess, and once I fill this up, its not even something that will be visible. - hell , even now it's not visible, which is why I haven't noticed it to this point.

I guess I had to put it out in the open to clear my mind of it, and get a better chance to rethink this over.

*Danial* - thanks, but the top is already mortised to the legs, and end cap already installed - changing the angle on the dog hole is practically impossible unless I cut it completely off. but that option did cross my mind…. uuggghhh…

*bentlyj* - I thought about that too, but setting up the piece to hold the strip of 80" might be tricky unless I construct some sort of 80"+ sled for the planer for this, which I don't wish to do at the moment, I think I'm going to square out the front of the top, and use a square filler strip.

*Jon* - what is the shwarzian method? I thought Chris's method is to build the top from scratch, like you did yours?


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## craftsman on the lake (Dec 27, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


Jon3.. I couldn't help but wiki he schwarzian method.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schwarzian_derivative

Purplev…. you should read this page to help you avoid this problem again.

;-)


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## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


shwarzian method?... hmmm better google that one, oh yes here it is.

Rational solutions for Schwarzian integrable hierarchies

Rational solutions? In woodworking?... somehow I don't think we are in Kansas anymore…


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## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


damn beaten to the punch by 4 minutes…lol


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## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


although i do like my text link better (if i say so myself)...lol


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


gotcha - thanks for the links guys.

to be honest - and I think I mentioned it before. if I had the choice ($$$ as well) I would opt to build the top from scratch myself as well, but sometimes we do what we do with what we've got - thats what makes us different than a manufacturing machine - we're able to reshape, and reform things creatively. that… and Jon3 post a while back suggesting to post "errors" and "problems" and how we deal with them - is where this post comes from.


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## craftsman on the lake (Dec 27, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


You're right jlsmith. Your webpage has a better explanation. It's much clearer. But, it just may be that you're not following the math as well as I.

2+2=5 but only for very large values of 2.


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## craftsman on the lake (Dec 27, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


So true Purp….

The sign of a true craftsman: he has the skills to hide his mistakes.


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## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


Mistakes?? Mistakes?? There are NO mistakes in woodworking!!!!


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## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


putting on my monk's robe

To attempt perfection is an insult to God. (or something like that)


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


True - *jlsmith*, it is said that persians make mistakes on purpose when they make rugs, since people used to claim that they rugs are perfect, and the persians believe that only god can be perfect…


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


Sharon,

Since you are using round dogs I would not be too concerned, if you were using square dogs though you might have to make some minor changes to thier faces.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


*sIKE*, although not as severe as square dogs -but even round holes when misaligned with the jaw create shear force on the part being clamped - and might twist the part out of the dogs if enough force is applied (by planing, or pounding a chisel in). but as I stated in a comment, in an afterthought - the dog hole strip and the vise jaw Are inline - just not parallel to the back/front of the table… and the angle is small enough that even that shouldn't be a major issue.


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## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


seriously, is it just me, maybe we should be trying to count how many angels can fit on a head of a pin…
all together now, everyone, big breath in, unclench those cheek muscles and exhale (just a suggestion)


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## kiwi1969 (Dec 22, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


3/16 over that length shouldn't be an issue. Most important is the bench is flat. FYI the persian rug story was actualy just a sales pitch invented by turkish carpet dealers in the 19th century, made the rug sound more handmade and exotic, even tho it was made on a machine in a factory. A bit like Roycroft!


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


aww man, Kiwi… you ruined persian carpets for me now… LOL

Thanks for the confirmation though. as it is- I had already jointed the edge of the table top parallel to the front of the legs with a router - I'll take some picture and post it in the next blog installment. now I have a nice and square gap of 3/8" that I can fill with a simple and square strip of wood.


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## Cantputjamontoast (Jan 1, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


Thank you for this project may you enjoy many many years of good work with the bench


----------



## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


a kiwi debunking a Persian legend?... hmmm… Rug or no rug won't change the notion of attempting to be perfect now will it.


----------



## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *All is not lost... or is it? HELP!!!!!!!*
> 
> I was working on fitting the skirt to the front of the bench, and it looks fantastic. in order to get to the final dimensions of 30" width of the top, I'm missing 1/8" extra material between the benchtop and the skirt to fill in the gap, while keeping the skirt flush with the legs fronts. so far so good.
> 
> ...


Sharon,

I was working off of your 0.1 degree offset. I am preaty sure that ike most things in wood working, trying to get to machinest levels of perfection is often both fruitless and maddening. Looking forward to your next blog posting.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*

Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.

Last time I ran into the issue of having a not-square top part to work with. I fixed that by routing the edge at a 0.1 degree angle to straighten the front of the slab and make it parallel to the front 2 legs. I then jointed a strip of maple (2 short pieces) and glued it to the skirt, and took that through the planer to mill it to final size so that it'll match the main tabletop slab and sit flush with the front legs.

Next I drilled 2 holes in the endcap, counterbored them, and drilled maching holes in the benchtop to take bolts which will secure the endcap to the table and counteract the vise forces when in use. the front of the endcap is not bolted in but is dovetailed into the skirt.

I chose to use a 2 inverted dovetail mainly for design and look - although they have more angled faces that in effect can withstand better pressure - in this case- I don't think that extra strength is really needed, but I do like the look of it.

to make the tails, I used my bandsaw, and the dovetail jig I made for it based on *The Bandsaw Book:* 


















I used the jig because the skirt is 80" long and was hard for me to clamp in a way to allow me to cut those tails by hand square and cleanly.

I then transferred the lines to the endcap, and handcut the sockets. and started chopping off the waste. what I found was an easy way to do so, was to chop the top half of the socket off - staying true to the edge of the small embedded tail. then use the side walls as reference and chop off the extra material from the 2 smaller sockets: 









Here is where I started pressing for time, and ran into several issues, one was that I originally had left the endcap oversized in length by an extra 2" so that I can trim it to length, but forgot to do it - so I had to chop 4" deep dovetail socket to accommodate for that (noticed it too late - again). also the endcap grain was running against me, so I had some tearouts in the middle of the socket - no big deal, but when I trimmed the endcap to length (roughly) those tearouts are now visible. I also have an issue with oversized dovetails (only did 2 so far) and find it hard to stay to the lines when the sockets are bigger than the size of the chisel… overlapping those cuts seems to be something I need to work more closely on.

excuses excuses excuses - bottom line, the DT although doing it's job, leaves quite a bit to be desired when it comes to visual. there are gaps, and the bottom of the socket is being pushed out by the tails…. I was really stressed in time and glued it too soon before taking the time to finesse it some more. I will fill it with some endgrain to minimize the visual, and plane it all to final length, so it will look a bit better. the good thing is, it showed me my weak spots, and what I need to focus on in the future when attempting similar joinery.

EDIT: Here is the Screwup, and the Fix

so this is what the bench looks like: 









Another part is (somewhat) behind me (only some light trimming), and next would be the vises to finish this off.

Thanks for reading,
Peace.


----------



## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


It seems that you have bumped into problems with details! Isn't that always the case. I look these as opportunities to show your true wood worker skills!


----------



## kiwi1969 (Dec 22, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


Did you assemble your bench inside the mess or did you assemble the mess around your bench? HeHe


----------



## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


Hey Sharon
Cool joinery and Jig makes for and outstanding bench great work


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


*sIKE*- very true. generally speaking- this is not something I would have wanted to post, but would try and hide it… but in the spirit of LJ I figured, others might benefit from knowing they are not the only one to screw up.

*kiwi* - I just bring all the mess for each picture, then clean it again . it's actually part of my training: step 1. get to the workbench in 1 piece… step 2. woodworking. but seriously - this lumber used to be where the bench is now - so as soon as I'm done with the bench, it's cleanup time (finally).

*Jim* - Thanks, but although the tails came out great, the sockets are far from it… if I'm brave enough, I'll post it soon (hopefully I can also get an "after" shot of a cleaned up and fixed solution)


----------



## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


Looking great Sharon. Nice recovery.


----------



## Ottis (Apr 17, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


Still enjoying the update Sharon….the bench is turning out great !!!


----------



## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


Mess? What mess? I hate it when I can't understand what everyone is talking about in these blogs.


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## gfixler (Feb 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


Those are some pretty fancy dovetails. I like the multiple lengths.

I see you have puzzle mats. I had those, too. They're stacked up on a trash can outside (not trash, though). They were just too much hassle. So much work to sweep and vacuum around them, or to roll tools. Are you still enjoying them, or are they pulled up because you've had enough, too?


----------



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


*Gary* - like you've experienced - these interlocking mats are hard to vacuum, and roll tools/others on top. I do however place them strategically in front of the workbench, or other work areas where I'll be standing for a while. I keep them in small parts (1-3 interlocks) so that worst case, they can be picked up and put aside. I also use them to elevate things off of the concrete floors (lumber) - not sure if it really helps much, but for my piece of mind thats good enough.

they used to carry them in Costco Burbank. I picked 1 pack, and after that I never saw it again there… when we moved to Boston, I saw that Costco here still carries it, and was so excited I picked up 5 packs… a bit much, but I use it around for different things. also used it on the hardwood floors when our daughter was learning to walk to cushion the falls..


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## LeeJ (Jul 4, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


Hi Sharon;

Great band saw jig.

This bench will be a masterpiece.

Lee


----------



## DaveTool (Jan 21, 2010)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


I love the table and am looking forward to seeing the *finishing touches*. I realize the piece is intended for a work bench, however I really think it would be great as a piece of bohemian, rustic or even industrialist table for a warehouse home or trendy apartment. I also visualize this as an outdoor table with fashionable contemporary chairs. I adore the ability to fuse different themes and pieces together to make a unique look. Sorry to all you carpenters who build for practical uses. I adore what you do, though, I like to use everything as a decorating and or artistic use in and around the home.

Love the site too! It is a firm favorite.


----------



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


Thanks Dave, you can actually see the finished workbench here:
http://lumberjocks.com/projects/20247


----------



## joeblack (Jan 25, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


Looks like a solid piece of work. My grandfather had a garage full of homemade work tables and benches similar to this and they lasted him 50+ years! I wish you the same luck!


----------



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Top #3: Putting it Together with an Inverted Dovetail*
> 
> Didn't have much shoptime lately, which made me try to squeeze every moment I got to try and make the most of it, which lead to rushing, which lead to screw up - but I'll write more about that in a following installment and leave this one a bit more on the positive side.
> 
> ...


Thanks Joe. it feels like it will


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*

This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.

As it gets to the details, things take longer to think through, plan out, cut…mill…glue… and finesse. this time it's the leg vise Chop, and although not completely finished (still need to trim, round off, and apply BLO), it's construction is done.

I was originally planning to use one large 10/4 board for the chop, but I didn't have anything of that size that would work well. the only part I had was mahogany, and it's not as hard as the rock maple, and I didn't think it would work well for a vise jaw which gets abused, and needs to counteract pressure. I decided to use the bowling maple strip cutoffs, and laminate them to form the chop:









The lamination wasn't as thick as I wanted, and I also wanted to give it an accent and something 'different' so I resawed the cutoff piece from the endcap (of the top) into 1/16" strips for the next step.

I cut a curve in the chop, which keeps the top of the chop as wide as possible (for clamping purposes) but narrows the bottom so that it'll be easier for me to drill for the drawbore pins. Also the bottom of the chop doesn't really need to be wider then the bench leg anyways. I then used the cutout curved parts as cauls and glued the 1/16" mahogany strips to the maple lamination:









I did one side at a time but glued all laminations at the same time. for future reference, I should prepare the veneers better- they weren't uniformed and smooth enough, which caused some minor gaps. in this case, nothing to worry about -I just want to get this thing done, the errors can be easily fixed at a later time.

After glueing the veneers on the curve I repeated the process for the straight edges while making sure it's butted against the curved veneers. I also mortised the chop and drawbored the (milled) maple parallel guide:









this time I drilled the offset holes for the drawboring - in the RIGHT place… lol. (I actually had to make sure, so that I don't repeat the same error again).

After that, I placed the chop in the slot for the parallel guide, I took the hole-saw drill-bit I used to make the hole for the vise screw in the leg, and placed it in the hole in the leg so that the bit protrudes toward the chop, then I pushed the chop all the way flush with the leg, aligned it properly, and from the other side, tapped the drill bit so that it'll mark the chop where the hole should go. I took the chop out, drilled the hole for the vise screw where it was marked, and installed the hardware:









action is still not smooth (not the screw, but the parallel guide has friction against it's slot), I never used a leg vise before, so I'm not sure if that's just to be expected, or not. I'll try to plane the parallel guide in height so maybe it won't have as much resistance. other than that - when this thing closes it's like an Alligator jaws - it grips like there's no tomorrow.

next I'll round off the top and bottom, and plane the top flush with the table top, chamfer the front edges, and coat this with boiled linseed oil like the rest of this bench.

*Edit*: OK, I was able to round off the top and bottom of the chop, plane it flush with the top of the bench, chamfer (with a ) the edges, and put a couple of coats of BLO (1 more to go): 









I also planed the parallel guide in height slightly, and rounded off it's edges so that there's less material in contact with the top and bottom of it's slot - it now slides in and out much much smoother, with a coat of paste wax it would be even better.

On the same note - talk about timing - I just found a pair of rollerblades that someone threw away - I'll see if I can incorporate the wheels like Jameel at Benchcraft did (although these are bigger wheels then skateboard wheels… so maybe I'll have to look for something smaller)


----------



## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


Wow that is very nice looking leg vise!! I'll bet you will get a lot of use out of it.

Not owning one, but doing lots of reading and living vicariosly through others, my understanding is the parallel guide should glide very smoothly. My understanding is the leg vise have a habit of sagging slightly causing the guide to bind a bit. Here is a link on how Khalaf resolved the issue.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


Thanks sIKE, I read, re-read, read it again, memorized, and sang that blog when you first showed me that bench - I will probably end up doing something similar at a later date, but for the time being - I was hoping it would work smoother "out of the box" ... maybe some finessing…


----------



## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


Here is a good pic of the the roller.









Also a link to the Glide, I know you are not interested in a purchase, but the videos at the bottom show the leg vise and rollers in action…I now know how to make one for myself…


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## charlton (Jan 24, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


Nice job on the vise. Hopefully, you'll get all the quirks figured out but it's impressive so far.


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## toddc (Mar 6, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


This has been fun to follow.


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## ellen35 (Jan 1, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


I'm sure you'll bring this little thing to the LJ Picnic next month…all finished!
Did you order the flatbed truck yet???
Ellen


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


Thanks guys,

*Ellen*, no flatbed truck, but I did make reservations with a moving company - I might need some help unloading this though…


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## SPalm (Oct 9, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


That is really sweet. Good Job Sir.

Steve


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## blackcherry (Dec 7, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


Bravo my good man the journey was a blast to view, thanks for sharing your adventure. This one will always be a memorable one on the site….Blkcherry


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


Thanks guys, I actually added an updated photo of the Chop after being detailed and finished. it now works pretty great, and doesn't get stuck - the motion can definitely be improved, but no more complaints from me - it works well!

almost there…. almost finished.


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## BrianLuntz (Feb 4, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


I really like how you took the extra time and effort to make what might have been a bland piece of workbench into a really exquisite piece of woodwork. Kudos!


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


Thanks Brian!


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## JohnChristmas (Mar 4, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *Chop Chop Laddie. (the leg vise)*
> 
> This project is a fine example of the 80/20 concept. it takes 20% of the project time to complete 80% of it, and then, 80% of the project time to finish the last 20% of the project.
> 
> ...


Nice work - really like the neat clearance for the various vise components as well!


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*

Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.

Not only was it a loose end (literally, the vise screw was hanging loose in it's slot), but it was a missing integral part of the bench that I kept on wishing I had setup and functional. The Wagon Vise to hold down boards for planing flat and similar work. I know I can use a planing stop - which I have for most, but I personally find it lacking, sometimes I want to address the board across the grain, or diagonal, and with a planing stop - it was a pain. I am so happy to have this vise functional, and with a 1/8 - 1/4 of a turn I can lock down a board so well, that I can lift the bench by pulling on it (if I had the strength to actually lift the bench that is). I can now plane cross grain, diagonals, and with the grain with ease as the board is not going anywhere.

I was really taken by Jameel's benchcraft wagon vise. I still think that it's a masterpiece, and one of the best vises on the market. however, as much as I like it - it's way beyond my budget. so my plan was to build a wagon vise from scratch trying to take from the benchcraft vise what I liked - mainly? the fact that the vise screw stays stationary while the dog block rides forward/backwards on it as opposed to other vises that use a press screw that moves forward/backwards with the dog block.

At first I tried to stay true to the benchcraft vise, and the vise it was modeled from (in the Workbench book) by designing the dog block to ride on metal rails that will keep it parallel to it's slot, and aligned with the screw. while researching it, I quickly lost interest of the metal work involved, and decided to do all wood vise. so next was a design that used wood rails on the sides of the screw that the dog block will ride between using V grooves. for lack of time, and for just wanting to get something that will work - I dropped that idea as well, and just ended up with an enlarged block of wood that will ride on the vise screw. What holds the screw parallel to the vise slot is the hole in the end cap that the screw slides in through, and another elongated hole in the bench leg assembly - these 2 holes keep the screw parallel to the top, and to the bench dog line.

The block of wood is constructed from the top's material (bowling alley) glued together to give me enough support to attach to the screw nut. the top is a cut off from the doghole strip so it matches perfectly into the slot in the top, and the bottom creates 2 wings to the left and right to help keep it from twisting while the screw turns - although I see very little to no need for that as of now:










The block has been hollowed out with a chisel and some determination (don't have anything to bore that large holes) to house the screw nut to give me the most travel distance, and for better support:










I applied 2 coats of BLO on the block to seal it from humidity, and rubbed some paste wax on the surfaces that will come in contact with the bench top to reduce the wood-wood friction, and screwed in the screw nut (so much screwing…):










First time around, there was a great deal of friction and moving the vise was very hard. I took it out, and lightly planed down all the surfaces that came in contact with the bench as I do not need full contact, I just need it to be a close perfect fit to negate twisting. This time around, the fit was perfect, flush with the top, and movement is super smooth. once the benchdogs come in contact with the board, it only takes a 1/8 to 1/4 turn (light pressure) to secure the board to the top that it cannot be moved under any circumstances:










pure awesomeness!

heres a close up shot of the screw leading the dog block: the "gap" between the dog block and benchtop is actually a chamfer on the top of the dog block and not a real gap all the way through:










And bottom line, this is what it's all about:










I'm psyched! (2nd time this week) Another project off the list. Finally am able to secure boards for work, Finally have the bench fully functional.

P.S. the workbench has been posted here as a project:



Well, and I guess this means the end of this blog as well. 1 down, more to go.
Thanks for reading this,
Peace!


----------



## davidmicraig (Nov 21, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Very sweet vise Purplelev. This type of contraption is very new to me. I think this is one of the slickest things I have seen in a long while. Thanks for posting.

David


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## jack1 (May 17, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Congratulations for sticking it out and doing it right. Looks good and should be a heirloom your family will be proud of. Nice work.


----------



## blackcherry (Dec 7, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Glad to hear about one of my favorite blog…"The Bowling Alley Bench"...it was a LJ's classic blog. A story of great perseverance and completion..enjoy BC


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## kenn (Mar 19, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Way to go, it's always nice to clean up loose ends and now you'll get even more use out of your bench.


----------



## Kindlingmaker (Sep 29, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Cool vice! and your workbench looks great!


----------



## ryno101 (May 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


That's fantastic!


----------



## mafe (Dec 10, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Pooooopppp… It was the champagne opening - congratulations.
It looks really cool, and now you have a workbench to die for.
Best thoughts,
MaFe


----------



## ellen35 (Jan 1, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


We all have our vices… yours is just fancier and larger!
;-)


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## LeeJ (Jul 4, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Great job, Sharon.

Lee


----------



## SPalm (Oct 9, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Looks so fine.
I many times find myself with projects 99% complete. So I can relate with the feeling of Done.

Mighty fine bench sir,
Steve


----------



## helluvawreck (Jul 21, 2010)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


That's a great job on that vise. Nice work, puplelev. BTW, I love your bench.


----------



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Thanks everyone, this is one project I'm real glad with how it came out with all the mistakes and errors in it, and one project I'm real glad to mark of the list


----------



## woodspark (May 8, 2010)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


That is so pro! Man, can I do with something like this. Tired of struggling to clamp down boards with various bush mechanic contraptions. One day…
Well done to you.


----------



## bigike (May 25, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


very nice work, this bench gives me alot of ideas.


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## mochoa (Oct 9, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Hi Purplelev, Great bench! 
I am in the middle of my bench build and you have ovecome a lot of the isues I'm trying to solve for. Thanks for posting your process.

I also want to make a wagon vise. Now that you have used it for a while how do you feel about the distance of the dog holes from he edge of the bench? Could it have been closer if you wanted too or is there some mechanical issue that made you have to set it back that far? What about the distance that the wagon travels? do you ever use the fulll capacity or would a shorter screw have works just as well? Thanks!


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## Smitty_Cabinetshop (Mar 26, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Mauricio - If you pull off a wagon vise build, I will be very jealous indeed…


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


*Mauricio* Thank you. I find that I usually have the vice dog at the same area unless the part I am working on won't fit between that and the opposing dog and then I have to pull it further out - only less than the distance between each of the bench dogs on my bench obviously, so not much movement going on there. as for the max capacity of the vise I guess it would only be fulfilled if I was working on a part that extended across my entire bench and I needed a longer reach - probably will never happen (but never say never…). could I use a shorter screw ? yes! would I? no… since there is no cost effectiveness here, might as well get all the distance you can cause that 1 time you'll need it and you won't have it would drive you insane. there are no mechanical limitations here -just that I was using a vice screw of a given size thats all…

good luck on your build, looking forward to seeing it in action.


----------



## mochoa (Oct 9, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Smitty, I'm thinking of using a wooden screw… maybe… we'll see, I'm using a wood screw for the leg vise so it would seem funny to have a steel screw for the wagon vise. Maybe I'm being too ambitious. But mine would be simpler, where I would thread the end cap and the screw would move in and out with the wagon.

Puplev, thanks for the response, let me rephrase my question, you know how Schwarz says you should have the dog wholes within 2" of the front edge of the bench? Yours is a little farther back than that, has that worked out ok? I'm thinking it would only be an issue if you were using a plow plane or scratcher on a narrow piece where you would need the fence of the tool to overhang the edge of the bench. I'm not sure if you into that kind of thing so maybe it's not an issue.

Another advantage I see with the long travel distance is that you could insert a board in the whole vertically to work on the end grain or even use the space for dovetailing. Have you tried that?

Thanks again for your advice!


----------



## Smitty_Cabinetshop (Mar 26, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Maur - My dogholes (although you didn't ask me…) are set back further than 2", they're more like 3 1/2" back. Only time I had a #45 in use where the fence needed overhang, I was using stock that was easily wide enough to overhand. Other option is to add a 3/4" piece underneath of the stock being worked; that wouldn't be a problem. I say that because, more often than not, I'm working faces of wider boards and like the dogs more towards the center…


----------



## mochoa (Oct 9, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Smitty, your opinion is always appreciated! Thanks for chimming in. ;-) good point about easily being able to elevate the work piece. I'm thinking 3 1/2 back sounds pretty good. that would give me a 2" thick "apron" and a 2" thick wagon with the dog whole centered in it.


----------



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Ah yes. I have had no moments where having the dogholes deeper than 2" was an issue or made me think about this. then again, I do general work, and a mix use of hand and power tools so nothing conventional or set in stone. if I had done this again I might have had it closer to the edge though, it was hard to judge how much clearance I would need to for wagon vice without seeing it in person….

Smitty - thanks for the added content - more is better in this case - always


----------



## mochoa (Oct 9, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Hey Purp, where did you get your screw?


----------



## mochoa (Oct 9, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Nevermind I just saw them at Lee Valley. Thanks!


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## mochoa (Oct 9, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Purp, how did you secure the screw to the end cap? Did you use the scews that cam with it? I would think they would pull out eventually.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Mauricio, the screw is mounted to the end cap with 2 machine bolts that go through the entire end cap and are tightened with washers and nuts on the inside of the end cap to keep it from pulling apart.


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## mochoa (Oct 9, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Makes sense, Thanks! I'm in the process of making mine, I'll let you know how it goes.


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## mochoa (Oct 9, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


Hey PurpLev,

Thanks for the inspiration, here is my version of your wagon vise. 
http://lumberjocks.com/mochoa/blog/31544


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## MarkColan (Aug 11, 2010)

PurpLev said:


> *Falling Off the Wagon... (vise that is)*
> 
> Hard to believe, I know. It's been over a year since I announced the workbench complete, although there was always that missing part, that loose end that had to be tied off in order to officially declare it a complete project.
> 
> ...


What is the vise screw? Where did you buy it?


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

*The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*

I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).

I really liked benchcrafted wagon vise (even a free plug for them) But for what it is I think it's a bit overpriced (for a vise). Don't get me wrong, for their investments, materials, work done and considering this is not a mass produced and sold item, I don't think they are overcharging for it. But as a vise, I feel it is an overpriced item (confused yet? don't be!). If you have the $$$ and this expense won't affect you - go for it, I think it's of great quality and and you'll get a good product. I personally can't spend ~3 times what I spend on the entire workbench for just 1 vise and so I decided to build something of similar functionality (not on the same mechanical engineering quality - but something that will give me the same function at a doable cost).

The wagon vise was using a simple LV tail vise screw and a block of wood that travels across it and was completed a while ago (see previous post in this series) but what I really wanted to add was a wheel, as I find the long handles on vises to be less then user-friendly especially when you have to open and close them a considerable amount.

I ordered a 6" cast-iron wheel from Grizzly a while ago when I order a couple of other parts from them for ~$7 and using a pin punch I took off the LV vise T assembly:










As you can see, small hole in wheel not exactly matching the large hole on the vise head and will need to be enlarged:










I mounted the wheel on the lathe and enlarged the hole using a 3/8 drill bit to make enough clearance for a boring tool:










I should really get a 1/2" or larger drill bit to make a larger clearance hole, but since 3/8" is my largest metal drill bit, I had to use a smaller boring tool to start with which is also shorter. that means that with the wheel mounted as is, I wasn't able to reach with the shorter boring tool throughout the hole, and had to mount the wheel the other way. After enlarging the hole enough, I moved onto a larger and stiffer boring tool to complete the hole:










And validated the hole sizing by comparing to the original part:










Not it was time to drill the pin hole. I mounted the wheel in the mill, and since the hole is drilled in a round surface and the drill will have a tendency to slip sideways, I used a block of wood for the initial pilot hole to keep it straight:










I then stepped up the hole in size with different drill bits until I got the 1/4" at which point I slid the wheel out of the way and using a hand drill and a long (somewhat flexible) 1/4" drill bit followed the top hole and transferred it to the lower part of the wheel since the wheel itself made it impossible for me to drill this through with regular drill bits:



















Once I had the holes aligned I continued and brought the hole to it's final size of 5/16" (I stopped at 1/4" since this is the only long drill I have from my days as an electrical contractor) and finished it off with a reamer to make the hole round and even to accept the pin:










A quick check on the vise looks good:










Drove the pin through, and ran it through a little test drive:










works great! no more long handle to have to deal with, this truly makes a big difference and with the tail/wagon vise there is so little pressure required that is just makes so much sense to have it there.

Now just to turn a handle for the wheel… no hurry there as even without one it still works wonderfully.

Thanks for reading,
Peace!


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## mafe (Dec 10, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


That is a nice upgrade, and what a nice metal machinery you have.
Best thoughts,
Mads


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## ellen35 (Jan 1, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


ingenious!


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## MShort (Jan 15, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


Very nice. Thanks for the step by step instructions and photos.


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## b2rtch (Jan 20, 2010)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


Very nice!


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## SPalm (Oct 9, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


Sweet. That does really look like a nice mod.
Love the lathe.

Steve


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## Bob42 (Jan 9, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


Way Cool!! Very nice upgrade. I love that idea.


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## FatherHooligan (Mar 27, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


A very cool solution!


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


Great looking upgrade. Nice job on the revisions.


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## Lenny (Sep 28, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


From concept to conclusion, well done! Kudos!


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## Dennisgrosen (Nov 14, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


great end job 

Dennis


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## moonls (Mar 23, 2010)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


Your combination of engineering, metal working and woodworking skills are amazing!


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## charlton (Jan 24, 2009)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


Nice. This was exactly what I was planning on doing. When did you get into metal working, though?


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## LeeJ (Jul 4, 2007)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


Great job on this, Sharon.

Nice tools, too!!!

Lee


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## Bertha (Jan 10, 2011)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


That's a really nice wheel. Where did you find that thing? After looking at the prices of the benchcrafteds, I'm looking at alternatives. Nice save. A wagon is a must on my new bench.


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## sIKE (Feb 14, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


Sharon,

As always, you are able to find the best of the functional and combine with the inexpensive…..


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


Thanks for all the comments, this was a real nice addition to the bench that was long overdue.

*Bertha* - you can find wheels on grizzlys website and similar suppliers of replacement parts.


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## DonnBialik (Apr 10, 2010)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


What was the actual ID of the handwheel after you finished boring it out to final size?

I'm looking at this handwheel which I can get with a 1/2" hole in the middle.

http://www.carrlane.com/catalog/index.cfm/27825071F0B221118070C1C513E111D081B0006280B1713050245221E0107070F1A3C3B2853524455


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## dealmaster (Jun 17, 2015)

PurpLev said:


> *The Wheel on the Wagon goes round and round*
> 
> I wanted to do this for a long time and had the parts ordered and delivered a while ago, but one thing led to another and this was kept on the back burner and never saw the light of day. Ironically, it is now finished but still with no light of day as it is almost 11pm… All it gets is the light of the moon (which some may say is better).
> 
> ...


I'd also be interested to know what the final ID of the handwheel was!


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