My first woodworking bench is nearly complete

Forum for people who are new to woodworking. Feel free to ask questions or contribute.

Moderators: HopefulSSer, admin

User avatar
dusty
Platinum Member
Posts: 21359
Joined: Wed Nov 22, 2006 6:52 am
Location: Tucson (Wildcat Country), Arizona

Re: My first woodworking bench is nearly complete

Post by dusty »

If I had this bench in my shop, I would be tickled pink with it. The only thing that I would do is turn it upside down and chamfer all of the edges of the table legs "to reduce splintering". Reference last image.
"Making Sawdust Safely"
Dusty
Sent from my Dell XPS using Firefox.
Majones1
Gold Member
Posts: 418
Joined: Sun Jun 06, 2021 1:11 am
Location: San Diego, CA

Re: My first woodworking bench is nearly complete

Post by Majones1 »

Thank you Dusty. Even without the top attached it's a huge improvement over the rickety sawhorses and plywood I was using before.

How much of a chamfer should I put on the legs, and what would you use to do that? It would have been quick and easy to do with my router if I had done it when they were loose and I could clamp them all together. I'm thinking of either using my orbital sander with a 60 grit disk or a rasp. I assume we're not talking taking off much.
Marc Jones

Model 10ER (1952), s/n: 72883 (MickyD restored in 2009/10) / Variable Speed Changer / A-34 Jigsaw / Jointer-Shaper Fence
Mark 5 Model 500 (1955), s/n: 309828 (MickyD restored in 2008/09) / Magna Jigsaw Model 610, s/n 65001 / Yuba 11” Bandsaw Model 630, s/n 39807 / Magna Jointer Model 620, s/n 17792 (restored in 2021) / Magna 6” Belt Sander Model 640, s/n 13742 (to be restored)
Professional Planer Model M5082, s/n 003918
DC3300 Dust Collector (circa 1998)
User avatar
dusty
Platinum Member
Posts: 21359
Joined: Wed Nov 22, 2006 6:52 am
Location: Tucson (Wildcat Country), Arizona

Re: My first woodworking bench is nearly complete

Post by dusty »

Majones1 wrote: Wed Jun 16, 2021 3:38 pm Thank you Dusty. Even without the top attached it's a huge improvement over the rickety sawhorses and plywood I was using before.

How much of a chamfer should I put on the legs, and what would you use to do that? It would have been quick and easy to do with my router if I had done it when they were loose and I could clamp them all together. I'm thinking of either using my orbital sander with a 60 grit disk or a rasp. I assume we're not talking taking off much.
I would do it with a rasp and followup with some sanding. To be effective it really does not need to be big. The only objective is to move those edges above floor level. I would think a 1/4" would work.

Yes, it would have easier as part of the assembly process.
"Making Sawdust Safely"
Dusty
Sent from my Dell XPS using Firefox.
User avatar
rjent
Platinum Member
Posts: 2121
Joined: Fri Mar 14, 2014 3:00 pm
Location: Hot Springs, New Mexico

Re: My first woodworking bench is nearly complete

Post by rjent »

Absolutely outstanding! You are a bonafide woodworker with a first class machine to do it with.

Well done Mr. Jones :)
Dick
1965 Mark VII S/N 407684
1951 10 ER S/N ER 44570 -- Reborn 9/16/14
1950 10 ER S/N ER 33479 Reborn July 2016
1950 10 ER S/N ER 39671
1951 jigsaw X 2
1951 !0 ER #3 in rebuild
500, Jointer, Bsaw, Bsander, Planer
2014 Mark 7 W/Lift assist - 14 4" Jointer - DC3300
And a plethora of small stuff .....

"The trouble with quotes on the Internet is that you can never know if they are genuine." - Benjamin Franklin
Majones1
Gold Member
Posts: 418
Joined: Sun Jun 06, 2021 1:11 am
Location: San Diego, CA

Re: My first woodworking bench is nearly complete

Post by Majones1 »

Thank you Dick. I have so much to learn, but I certainly look forward to building the projects to help me do that. I continue to make too many silly mistakes. For instance, tonight while the base was upside down, I secured the bench top to the base and installed the vice on the front left. But I was so excited to see the results of my work I forgot I still wanted to chamfer the leg ends, and to attach the lower shelf. So now I have to turn that heavy beast back over again to finish those tasks. It’s part of my new exercise routine. I did get to use my SS again tonight, though; to cut a 1” shim for the rear lag bolts holding the vice to the bench top. Boy that really saves a lot of time, and it’s much more accurate.

I may get a little more done tomorrow, but my day job gets in the way, so I may not get any significant work done on it until Saturday. Four tasks left on this: chamfer legs, install the shelf, cut and screw on the hardwood protection pieces to the vice, drill the dog holes, sand some of the surfaces a bit, and wipe on a light finish. Almost there.
Marc Jones

Model 10ER (1952), s/n: 72883 (MickyD restored in 2009/10) / Variable Speed Changer / A-34 Jigsaw / Jointer-Shaper Fence
Mark 5 Model 500 (1955), s/n: 309828 (MickyD restored in 2008/09) / Magna Jigsaw Model 610, s/n 65001 / Yuba 11” Bandsaw Model 630, s/n 39807 / Magna Jointer Model 620, s/n 17792 (restored in 2021) / Magna 6” Belt Sander Model 640, s/n 13742 (to be restored)
Professional Planer Model M5082, s/n 003918
DC3300 Dust Collector (circa 1998)
Majones1
Gold Member
Posts: 418
Joined: Sun Jun 06, 2021 1:11 am
Location: San Diego, CA

Re: My first woodworking bench is nearly complete

Post by Majones1 »

I continue to misjudge how long tasks are going to take me. Today I drilled 15 dog holes in my bench top, after doing trial runs on a scrap 2x4 to figure out how best to do it. If only I could have put my bench on my drill press. After googling methods for drilling those holes, I decided to follow one procedure that first built a jig using 2x4 with a 3/4” steel drill guide and a 3/4” auger bit. It said you could use a ~2” section of 3/4” steel pipe instead of the drill guide, and since I didn’t want to wait a couple weeks for the drill guide, and I could use more pipe for my pipe clamps, I decided to go that route.

Two problems: First, I.D. of 3/4” pipe is NOT 3/4”, it’s quite a bit bigger than that. Second, the Fiablo 7” long 3/4” auger bit is smaller than 3/4”. Add these two size differences up and you have a lot of slop!!! So much that it negates the reason for building a jig. I did not check this until after I had built a nice square jig that accurately placed all three holes for each row the correct distance from the left edge of my bench. This means I had cut three sections of black pipe and filed the sharp edges. What a waste of time. At least it was a good arms workout.

I then had to figure out how to provide a decent amount of accuracy and whether to use the auger, Forster, or spade bit for these holes. I picked up a crappy drill guide from Rockler, which helped me do much better than I could do freehand, and tested the three bit types on a scrap of 2x4. The auger was too long and the Forster required too much force and still took a long time for a single hole. The spade bit was fairly quick, and did a decent hole, so spade it was. It would require more attention and control effort, but I felt I could at least do a decent job, and get it done today. I had more than a little fear that I could destroy my bench top after having spent so much time building this bench over the past two months. I think it came out pretty good. Not perfect, but I’m not expecting that.

Today I also chamfered the leg ends, which had already begun chipping, so this was an excellent call, Dusty! Thank you.

I’ll post photos of the completed (except for the finish) bench tomorrow, after I install the bottom shelf. I just need to notch the shelf corners for the legs and attach it with s-clips.

One of the challenges for this bench has been my redesign of the top and figuring out how to attach that top to the base. The original top was simply two pieces of plywood or MDF that were glued and screwed together and the resulting 1-1/2” top was supposed to have been attached the same way as the shelf; using s-clips. Since I decided to use 3/4” sanded maple plywood, which was prone to chipping, I decided to make a 2x4 frame around the top. After rabbeting and mitering the 2x4s, I was able to drop the 1-1/2” thick top into the frame. But then I had to connect that newly designed top to the base. Since I’m very much an untrained novice at woodworking, it is likely my design is both overkill, and includes design problems that will shorten the life of my bench. But it certainly feels very solid right now. I ended up adding another layer of the 3/4” plywood to the ends and four sections of 1x4 cross-supports screwed to the top and used pocket screws to connect to the frame. These support pieces were then screwed to glue blocks that attach the top to the base, both along the sides and the ends of the top. The glue blocks are glued and screwed to the top but just screwed to the base so I can remove the top in the future if I need to repair or replace the top. I also had to rabbet the sides of the top’s frame to fit down over the front and back stretchers. This is part of what I think will give it more racking strength.

If I had went with their design I would have been done with it three weeks ago. But I think I learned more doing it this way. Anyway, the underside is not pretty, but here it is.
The good, the bad, and the ugly; bench top install.
The good, the bad, and the ugly; bench top install.
BC205FA5-F3AA-409A-857A-A45AA05F52E0.jpeg (605.67 KiB) Viewed 1592 times
Here’s an image of the original plan I used, and deviated from:
Fine Woodworking plan image excerpt.
Fine Woodworking plan image excerpt.
0ED9F6C2-BDD8-4C01-BAEA-81CF255F03A0.png (251.53 KiB) Viewed 1592 times
Marc Jones

Model 10ER (1952), s/n: 72883 (MickyD restored in 2009/10) / Variable Speed Changer / A-34 Jigsaw / Jointer-Shaper Fence
Mark 5 Model 500 (1955), s/n: 309828 (MickyD restored in 2008/09) / Magna Jigsaw Model 610, s/n 65001 / Yuba 11” Bandsaw Model 630, s/n 39807 / Magna Jointer Model 620, s/n 17792 (restored in 2021) / Magna 6” Belt Sander Model 640, s/n 13742 (to be restored)
Professional Planer Model M5082, s/n 003918
DC3300 Dust Collector (circa 1998)
Post Reply