# My first bench assembled



## ben arnott (Nov 15, 2008)

Hello Everyone - Last week I finally assembled my work bench. The material is nothing special. I'm pretty happy with how it came out. I learned a whole lot! This has been a great project so far. I'm now building the chop for a leg vise from a chunk of 8/4 hard maple I picked up last night. Here are some pictures of the bench so far. 

Regard, 

Ben


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## woodman42 (Aug 6, 2007)

Nice bench Ben.
Looks like you have a lot of work to do to break in those tools. Lol.


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## ben arnott (Nov 15, 2008)

Yes, the miter saw is brand new. I'm a carpenter in my day job. This shop is becoming my "second job" LOL


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Nice work!*

You said the material is nothing special...what is it? Dour fir? or a Pine?
Nice joinery also.:thumbsup: bill


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## ben arnott (Nov 15, 2008)

Thanks! There are 12 giant mortise and tenon joints. I draw bored all of them with walnut pegs I widdled out of some scrap. The material is pine. When I started putting together a material list, I quickly realized that this bench would not be built out of hard maple. LOL I may have to surface the top a little more often since the wood is so soft, but the bench is heavy, it doesn't move and it will hold my work in place.


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## phinds (Mar 25, 2009)

Really nice. Just one problem ... it's too pretty. You need to get busy USING it so it takes on that patina of scratches and spilled stuff.:smile:

Seriously though, that's a really cool job.

Paul


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## joesdad (Nov 1, 2007)

Very nice bench. I need a few of those for my basement shop the wife doesn't know I'm going to build soon.


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## jdixon (Nov 21, 2007)

Ben, that is a great looking bench. Looks solid and should work for you for a very long time. Nice job!

John


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## jlhaslip (Jan 16, 2010)

shiny... I like it.

Cover the top with hardboard and replace as required. Saves having to redo the top.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*"draw bored"?*



ben arnott said:


> Thanks! There are 12 giant mortise and tenon joints. I draw bored all of them with walnut pegs I widdled out of some scrap. The material is pine. When I started putting together a material list, I quickly realized that this bench would not be built out of hard maple. LOL I may have to surface the top a little more often since the wood is so soft, but the bench is heavy, it doesn't move and it will hold my work in place.


Can I assume that's when you bore the holes a little out of alignment and driving the pegs in tightens or "draws" the pieces together...just a wild guess! :blink: bill


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## jlhaslip (Jan 16, 2010)

correct


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## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

Very nice bench. I really like the little chamfer detail. I looks like a stout mofo. Nice shop too!


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

2 words
SA WEET
:laughing:


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## sankofa (May 2, 2009)

Did you use construction grade material for the bench ?

The legs and stretchers are so massive....Im wondering if you took dimensional lumber and laminated the pieces together to form legs and stretchers.

Great looking bench....sturdy looking...crisp and clean...


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## ClarkMcGill (Aug 20, 2009)

I dont know if I would want to work on top of it! Way to nice to destroy!!! Great job!


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## ben arnott (Nov 15, 2008)

Thanks for the nice comments. This bench was based off of the French bench in Christopher Schwartz book on work benches. The chamfered edges were more utilitarian than for aesthetics but they give it a nice look. The reason I chamfered the edges is so that the grain didn't blow out (tear out) while hand planing it. 

The legs are four 1 3/4 thick by 4 laminated together. The middle two boards are cut longer by 2 inches to make the tenons. The stretchers are two 1 3/4 by 4 laminated together. Th inside board is cut 2 1/2 inches longer to make up the stretcher tenons.

The material was originally 16 ft 2x10 KD lumber. I bought 2x10's because they were clearer and straighter than 2x6's. I ripped them down to 4 1/4 for the and sent them through the thickness planer to get them ready for lamination. The bench top (as Sankofa points out) is just laminated dimensional lumber. 

I finished the leg vise Sunday. I haven't taken a picture of it yet. I made the vise chop out of hard maple. I drilled a 1 1/4 in hole through the leg 9 in down from the top of the bench to accommodate the leg vise screw. The leg vise screw is nothing more than a tail vise screw with the hardware flipped backwards. I'll post some pictures tomorrow. 

Christopher Schwartz' book was a huge help in building my bench.


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## Marcus (Jan 25, 2010)

I have a question here.....

I'm planning on making some type of work bench soon and it has been mentioned on here to place a piece of hardwood on the top of the bench to protect the surface.

Would it be possible to coat with one of those epoxy finishes? That way it would be protected and at the same time keep the look of the original wood.


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## Marcus (Jan 25, 2010)

AND BTW - Love the bench. Looks great for pine!! You're giving me some ideas here


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## wletson (Jan 11, 2010)

Marcus said:


> Would it be possible to coat with one of those epoxy finishes? That way it would be protected and at the same time keep the look of the original wood.


Once you start using the bench, you are bound to gouge, drill, scrape, cut, route, hack, etc. the top. The idea of using a sacraficial work surface will keep the top of the workbench solid and looking good. Much easier to swap out the sacraficial piece than to replace the bench top.


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## sankofa (May 2, 2009)

wletson said:


> Once you start using the bench, you are bound to gouge, drill, scrape, cut, route, hack, etc. the top. The idea of using a sacraficial work surface will keep the top of the workbench solid and looking good. Much easier to swap out the sacraficial piece than to replace the bench top.


gouges, scrapes, cuts..... = character.......lol


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*To "acclimate" the bench top do the following*

Get a 5' long chain 5/16" with a hook on the ends and beat the top silly for about 4 minutes. You won't be that concerned with a gouge or drill hole in it after that.
It's like a new car/truck you wash it almost every day for the first months, then less and less and now it's 4 yerars old and you wash it once a month.
Now do I take my own advice? NO! I have 1/2" MDF cover on the tops of my birch solid core doors that I use for work benches. They get drilled, stained, glued and gouged. At $20.00 per 4x8 I get 2 sides of use and they never get completely trashed. 
I also have a slip on plywood cover for when I use my table saw for its primary purpose, a table.....:laughing: bill


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## ben arnott (Nov 15, 2008)

*Finished the Vise*

I finished the leg vise on Sunday here are some more pictures. The chop is made of 8/4 hard maple 8 in wide at the bench top. The vise screw is just a tail vise screw that I re-purposed. I drilled the hole 9 in down from the top of the bench to give me a 9 in deep jaw. 

The parallel guide is where the magic happens. I mortised out a 4 in long 1/2 in wide groove through the leg to accommodate the guide. The guide is just a 3/8 in thick piece of hard maple I drilled offset holes in. I then bolted the guide through a blind mortise in the chop. I place a dowel or a screw driver the hole closes to the thickness of my work piece. (This doesn't need to be adjusted all that much. Most boards are going to use the same parallel guide hole.) This dowel creates leverage to keep the chop's pressure where it belongs. Its a very strong grip. 

I like the discussion about putting a sacrificial piece on top of the bench to protect the table top. I think a beat up bench has charm and character! LOL Nevertheless, I can resurface the top with a jointer plane in about 30 mins. I really only care that its level and flat. I would be concerned that a sacrifice would get in the way of my holdfasts and dogs. You'd have to come up with a way to keep it secure. Interesting idea though!

I also posted a picture of a mortise for one of the stretchers. Those where fun after I got the hang of it. A corner chisel made it SO much easier.


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## ben arnott (Nov 15, 2008)

woodnthings said:


> Get a 5' long chain 5/16" with a hook on the ends and beat the top silly for about 4 minutes. You won't be that concerned with a gouge or drill hole in it after that.
> It's like a new car/truck you wash it almost every day for the first months, then less and less and now it's 4 yerars old and you wash it once a month.
> Now do I take my own advice? NO! I have 1/2" MDF cover on the tops of my birch solid core doors that I use for work benches. They get drilled, stained, glued and gouged. At $20.00 per 4x8 I get 2 sides of use and they never get completely trashed.
> I also have a slip on plywood cover for when I use my table saw for its primary purpose, a table.....:laughing: bill


LOL! Outstanding!


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## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

That leg vise looks great. That mortise looks awesome. A corner chisel you say....I might have to get me one of those.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Ben*

If this is an example of your "workbench" I can't wait to see your furniture! :thumbsup: Great job! You have set a high standard I believe. bill


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## ben arnott (Nov 15, 2008)

woodnthings said:


> If this is an example of your "workbench" I can't wait to see your furniture! :thumbsup: Great job! You have set a high standard I believe. bill


Thanks Bill!:icon_smile:


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