I haven't posted much lately because I've had other tasks on the front burner. But one project that I've recently had time to work at is helping to run a clinic at the Kansas City Woodworkers' Guild to build three Roubo workbenches.

We received a big (and HEAVY) load of 19 foot reclaimed timber. Right around 5" x 5", douglas fir. We bucked them down with my Disston D-8 handsaw because they were way to big for the machines.

Then some processing to get them ready for glue up. By this time, the individual boards could be machined but final fitting had to be done with handplanes because you can't force joints in giant timbers closed with clamp pressure. They needed to be as close to perfect as possible!


We have three tops glued up and here are a few pictures of clinic participants learning the fine art of using foreplanes and jointer planes to flatten the top and then bring the top side parallel. Again, this is a hand tool job because the tops are too big for the 15" planer or 8" joiner to handle.


The legs are double through tenons, with the front tenon being cut as a dovetail. Not hard but time consuming. Here is a shot of one member learning to use a handsaw to cut the tenons.


While it is nice to know how, frankly a bandsaw with a 1" blade makes this much easier, at least for the straight cuts. Cutting the dovetail is easier by hand. I've got more legs to cut so at some point I'll get some photos of the process. The leg locations are marked out and then the fun begins cutting the matching mortises. While we had a few power drills with big bits, everybody liked playing with my brace and using an auger to waste out the material.


Today I worked mostly alone on the bench (oddly enough, things went faster that way... ) because this wasn't a scheduled clinic time. I just wanted to get things moving forward and have a bench standing on its own four feet for our guild meeting this Wednesday. However one of the clinic regulars wandered in (Carl) and helped fit the final leg.

Here is the first of three benches standing on its dry fitted legs. Over 4" thick, 6 feet long, about 20" wide and my rough estimate is 200 lbs of weight. Even with a dry fit joints, it is rock steady.


Once glued and the lower stretchers are in place it is going to be a monster. Next step is to outfit the leg vice and chop in for the tail vice (re-purposed Record 73).

Only two more of these to go. Plus I'm building one at home and we have at least three other members building their own.

Thats a pretty good club and good activities. Wish our local club was that good. Did try about a year ago to get something more going but we are demograhicly challenged.

RW, this looks like it was a fun and productive get together. These benches look great. I can't wait to see the finished product in your shop.

Great post.. Looks like a fun time.. I'll have to start keeping an eye out for some reclaimed old beams, I could use another bench in my garage..
Make sure to post more pictures as the other benches get completed.. It would be neat to see how they each approach the addition of vises, etc.

I'm seriously jealous of the guild shop... here in MA we have been struggling to grow our guild beyond 50 odd members.

400 members and most of them are odd...

I'm behind on my personal bench. Top is made up from SPF I've been selecting one or two boards at a time from the Home Despot. Even made from SPF, it will be plenty heavy and plenty rigid. My personal bench is a bit smaller because it is being build to fit a particular corner in the basement. 4" thick and about 20" wide but maybe 5.5 feet long instead of 6.

Mine has the top glued and flattened, legs glued up but I need to mark out for the end vice location before moving on with the leg construction.

I've also got a few people on a list that want to build sawbenches first before they start their own bench builds. They have been bitten by the sawbench bug after reading about them in Popular Woodworking and after our visit from Chris Schwarz last spring. Easy to build and very sturdy. Nice height with a wide top so you can sit on them like a bench and eat your lunch to.

Got a little bit more caught up on my bench at home. As mentioned, I'm building this one by gluing up SPF from the home center. Obviously more glue joints than the four board tops at the KCWG but still plenty heavy and tough.

I bought the Eclipse copy of the Record 73 vice to use as my end vice. Chopped an open mortise to recess the fixed jaw and got it bolted on today. Then started on making the chop. Keeping it simple, I'm just going to laminate three layers of SPF cut-offs. First two are in clamps on the floor. Third piece is flattened on one side, waiting for the glue to dry.



Looking closely you can see that I have the top resting on sawbenches (ala' C. Schwarz). This is a bit on the low side for me but I've found I can crouch on top of the bench and do the flattening for the chops. Worked pretty well but a bit tough on the knees!

Also, here is a picture of some 2x6 material I picked out the other day because there is another KCWG member that wanted to make sawbenches. I told him I'd pick up the lumber (this time) so he could understand what to look for in the future. Turns out, the bunker of 2x6's was filled with yellow pine this time (the 8' lengths, the 10' lengths were still SPF).



(p.s., yes that is a template for a coffin in the background of the first picture. I had a friend ask for a coffin for their dog a while back. Did a little experimenting and came up with a miniature toe-pincher design.)

RW.. Seeing those shavings on the floor leads me to believe you are getting a great work out with those hand planes. Just how thick is the top now?

B.

Just measured it at 4-1/6" thick. So after final flattening it should come out right at 4".

This is really the first time I've read the scale since ripping and gluing the stock for the top. Judging by eye, I would have said I was just under 4" by now but guess not!

The three tops of the benches we are making at the KCWG are greater than 4".

Plan, shman...

Seriously though, you can find a lot of information about various construction techniques, styles and tips by searching the forums and using Google. One forum I recommend is woodnet.net (sorry, Tommy). There is a handtool area there with lots of bench build-alongs.

There's enough visual info here to get the job done.

Watch all the videos
http://benchcrafted.com/Gallery.html

download the PDF's

http://benchcrafted.com/Downloads.html

If you want to pay for a plan

http://benchcrafted.com/Benchbuilding.html

the hardware is top notch.

More on my bench at home. Got the vice chop made, fitted and started in on the dog holes.



The chop is three layers of 2x6 glued up and trued by hand. Then I cut the ovolo on the corner with a tenon saw, a few chisels and my shoulder plane. I need to take some 80 grit paper to the end grain as it is still a bit rough but really, this wasn't a big deal to cut by hand. I've also got a large hollow (#12 I think) that needs a quick sharpening so it could be helpful for cleaning up the profile.

After that I started making dog holes. I know where the legs will be so I left a pretty good margin around them. Using a brace and bit. After about the 3rd hole I could "feel" plumb so having a pair of small squares to sight the hole became less important. Still used them but it was fun to see that I was just hitting plumb all by myself!.



Last little bit for the chop is to line it with leather. I was given several pieces by another KCWG member so plenty to choose from. I'll use hide glue to attach the leather so it can be removed later should it be necessary. Hide glue can be made to stick to metal if you first etch the metal just a little bit. Turns out that a fresh garlic clove is the way old timers got hide glue to bond to metal. I'll be testing that information soon.

RW,, regarding the last picture where you may wish to 'brace' yourself for a 'bit' of criticism that my 'auger' into your self-esteem....nah... it's really a compliment..

You bench is CLUTTERED up and a mess. Damn good proof that it's really a bench used by a real woodworker and not a show piece.. You are inspiring me to build one of my own some day.

Every tool on there was used in working on the bench and chop that day.

Just tidied up and now I can't find anything!

I need to clean up too..... That's always fun.... Keep us posted on your progress RW.

If I had to take a guess, I would say that someone purchased the plans from the website above, seeing they were done in sketch-up who ever bought them decided to share the file at Google Warehouse, which are all sketch-up files.

You can download sketch up for free . Once you do that you can download the two files found here and you should have all the needed dimensions. One bench below is the exact same as the plans being sold at Benchcrafted, only with two glide vises.

If you download sketch up just use the dimension tool and click on any part in the drawing and it should pull up the dimensions. If you are going to use the free version you can only down load the .collada format.

After closer examination this file actually mentions the Benchcrafted wagon vise and Chris Schwarz design style.

http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/ ... revstart=0


this one has the double glide vise

http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/ ... revstart=0

I'm not working from a strict set of plans. I've done my reading and sketching on my own. There are "hold your hand" plans available from many sources. Less detailed plans can be found in back issues of Fine Woodworking and Popular Woodworking, heck any magazine. I'm making modifications to the plan as I progress, based on availability of materials, tools at hand and hands to run the tools.

The upshot is you want a workbench that can hold your work without either the work moving or the bench moving.

The difficulty comes in identifying the type of work you expect to be doing and the methods you expect to be using. That is where you start refining the design as defined by your requirements.

You can probably find a sketchup drawing of this Roubo at Popular Woodworking, along with several other styles.

4x4 (finished) is OK for the legs. But you could also laminate some of that 2x6 material into heavier leg stock.

A 3" top if it is a hardwood will grip strike-tight style hold fasts. >3" for soft wood.

You can also get the screw-tight hold fasts from various sources including Lee Valley. Those will work with thinner tops.

Milling 2x6 to a 5" thickness would be fine. I started with 2x6 and shot for a 4" or greater finished bench thickness. The reason for 4" out of the possible 5-1/2" from the lumber was so I could avoid knots whenever possible. Worked but there are still going to be knots in the bench top. Meh, it's a bench top.

Heading into the shop tomorrow (Sunday) but I'll be working on a pre-cursor project to a bench instead of the benches themselves. Things have progressed to the point that I need some good sawbenches to support the tops as legs are fitted and stretchers marked out.

Plus, there are a couple other KCWG members wanting to build sawbenches (ala C. Schwarz). So, I've got a pile of lumber cross-cut to make 4 benches. We won't be working 100% by hand. Don't have the time tomorrow what with a late afternoon clinic on iron handplane restoration. So the bandsaw, power jointer and planer will be doing the heavy lifting. Still, they get to play with the dovetail and tenon saws, paring chisels and router plane. And if they are feeling very clever, cut nails.

Here's a quick picture of a pile of parts cross cut from 2x6 dimensional lumber. Knots, yes there are some knots. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

Seriously, the knots won't be a problem.


And cut nails on the cheap? Use masonry nails. They work (in some applications).

Thanks NYNY for the links - Love the shaker bench. I've often thought of making one. I think I'm going to have to.


PS batten down the hatches! Irene is on the way.