# My new Workbench WIP



## Mikey R (7 Jan 2010)

Hi,

Ive recently moved into my new house, so Ive finally got my dedicated workshop space in the spare bedroom. So, Ive been working on a new workbench to replace the old workmate. I thought I'd share some progress shots.

I wanted to base the design around the Roubo / Holtzapffel designs published by Chris Schwarz. I like the idea of the twin screw vice for gripping tapered pieces, it will be very useful for holding a guitar neck whilst supporting it from below using dogs in the vice and bench top. I will also add a simple end vice for holding boards whilst I plane the faces.

Heres what the room looked like when I first moved in, before any work had been done:







You can even see the floor.

To make up the legs and stretchers, I based the design around the knock-down Holtzapffel Workbench from the woodworking magazin blog. I used cheap rough sawn B&Q 2x3s and 2x4s as I would be doing the surfacing by hand using my Stanley no 7.

As this is the first bit of joinery Ive done, and becuase those mortices are huge, I was worried that I would cut them out of square. As I was laminating the legs, I decided to be creative and cut the mortices before laminating the pieces together. I started by routing out a rebate accross the grain, using a simple jig:






Then, when they were glued up, the mortice was ready and perfectly square:











I then cut the stretchers, and was really pleased when my first mortice and tennon joint was perfectly square, if a little rough looking:






The joinery for the short stretchers is permanent, glued and pinned using 10mm ash pegs. The pegs are probably overkill but its good to overbuild a bench. Rather then offsetting the holes like you do when drawboring, I simply clamped the assembilies together then drilled right through the mortice wall and the tennon in one go.

To allow the bench to be knocked down, the long stretchers are bolted in using 200mm long 10M allthread (please ignore the glue squeeze out on this pic - I said the joinery was rough!):






Rather than expect the end grain of the pine to hold the nut in place, Ive used small blocks of rock maple which should last much longer.






And a very dull shot of the outside of the leg, showing the nut for the allthread holding the long stretcher, and the pegs holding the short stretcher:






So heres where we are this evening:






Now Ive got to decide how Im going to approach the top. I was going to use more softwood 2x4s laminated into a600mm wide top, but that would make a very soft bench. The vice jaws will certainly need to be hardwood.

I rather like how Boz did his bench top, so might look into that.


----------



## OPJ (7 Jan 2010)

You've made a very good start, there, Mike. I like the tip where you placed a scrap of maple in the rail to protect the ends as you tighten up the bolts.

I also like the worktop idea. You'll save a small fortune over buying sawn, waney-edged boards. :wink:


----------



## Richard Findley (7 Jan 2010)

Pine should be fine for the top. Sure it will bruise easily but it's a bench not a piece of fine furniture. Used to use one at work that was over 80 years old and it had a pine top. Go for it!!! 

Vice jaws can be made from anything. Mine are Beech but I've seen MDF and Ply ones too so don't get too hung up on these little details, they can always be changed later if you need to.

Nice looking bench by the way =D> =D> =D> =D> 

Richard


----------



## Chems (8 Jan 2010)

That looks great, I like the approach to the mortise, taking the pre production mortice one step further. 

About using the bedroom, what sort of power tools are you hoping to squeeze in or not?


----------



## Boz62 (8 Jan 2010)

Really nice. I like the maple blocks as "helpers" for the stringer bolts. It all looks nice and solid. 

I also like your indoor workshop as well - no "it's too cold" excuses for you 

Boz


----------



## devonwoody (8 Jan 2010)

I like that tip routing a slot for the threaded rod. 

I used 6x2 pine for my top, two pieces front then a 6x1 for the well, finally another 6x2 at the rear.
Hardwood top might be noisy in the house compared with a soft wood.


----------



## DeanN (8 Jan 2010)

Hope the house is detached, or you'll soon have your neighbours knocking on the walls :wink: 

Good start on the bench - looking forward to seeing this progress.


----------



## Mikey R (8 Jan 2010)

OPJ":qt0hik5b said:


> I also like the worktop idea. You'll save a small fortune over buying sawn, waney-edged boards. :wink:





Richard Findley":qt0hik5b said:


> Pine should be fine for the top. Sure it will bruise easily but it's a bench not a piece of fine furniture. Used to use one at work that was over 80 years old and it had a pine top. Go for it!!!



Cheers, Im going to go for the softwood top. Its going to be a little tough jointing that lot by hand but its all good exercise 



Richard Findley":qt0hik5b said:


> Vice jaws can be made from anything. Mine are Beech but I've seen MDF and Ply ones too so don't get too hung up on these little details, they can always be changed later if you need to.



Yep, because Ive got some 2x4 offcuts, Im going to use those as jaws and line them with 18mm ply.



Chems":qt0hik5b said:


> About using the bedroom, what sort of power tools are you hoping to squeeze in or not?



Not many - Ive got plans to get a bandsaw, but thats becuase it will be quieter than my jigsaw. I also want to do the occasional resawing. Also, maybe a small second bench with drill press and router table and that should be it.



Boz62":qt0hik5b said:


> I also like your indoor workshop as well - no "it's too cold" excuses for you



Yep, theres more chance that I'll spend more time in there than when I had to work out in the yard. Dust could be an issue though.



devonwoody":qt0hik5b said:


> I used 6x2 pine for my top, two pieces front then a 6x1 for the well, finally another 6x2 at the rear.
> Hardwood top might be noisy in the house compared with a soft wood.



Im using 2x4s but oriented so that the top is 4" / 100mm thick. The thicker the top, the more sound it should soak up. Im glad to hear of other benches successfully made from softwoods!



DeanN":qt0hik5b said:


> Hope the house is detached, or you'll soon have your neighbours knocking on the walls :wink:



Nope, its a mid terrace! :shock: But its a fairly DIY friendly place to live, on any Saturday morning you can hear power tools from at least 3 houses in the street. I was careful to pick a house with no children either side. I'll also restrict the power tool use to a couple of hours on a weekend.

Though Im having fun with the new router (I got the T10), I do prefer to do as much work using hand tools as I can. Whilst working in the yard I found its a better way to keep the neighbours friendly.


----------



## devonwoody (8 Jan 2010)

Hopefully the floor joists are 10x2's.  

Only kidding.


----------



## Mikey R (12 Jan 2010)

This week Im on holiday - at home  - so Im taking the opportunity to get some work done on the bench. 

I started gluing up with top before christmas, and made a bit of a mess of it, which is why I was thinking of using a kitchen worktop instead. Following the encouragement I got from the forum, Ive deceided to get on with the softwood top. It doesnt need to be pretty, after all. The top will be in two halfs, the front half will be around 95mm thick, the back half around 30mm thick, to save on material.

on with the front half. The staves are glued up with alternating heart / sap:






Ive still got one more stave to glue on to make the front of the bench top, but before I do that I need to route out the square dog holes.

I then spent a few hours tidying up with handplanes. These 2x4s were pretty gnarley, I picked out the least bowed boards but none were perfect. I left the undeside a little rough as no-ones ever really going to see that, but made a slightly better job of the top side.

The top is located on tennons on the top of each leg. I routed out the mortices, then fine tuned with chisels to match the tennons:
















I wanted a tight fit as I believe this joint will be subject to alot of sideways force from using hand tools on the bench.

Heres how Ive left it for the evening:






Its actually starting to look like a bench now! 

It does rack a little if I shove against it, but it will certainly do for a few years. If it gets bad, I can easily add some cross bracing.


----------



## Evergreen (12 Jan 2010)

Mike

I'm amazed that you can make your bench rack a bit - it looks as solid as the pyramids! I bet it won't rack when you've completed the top and fixed it all together. It's looking really good.


----------



## MikeG. (12 Jan 2010)

Just one diagonal brace, or a sheet of ply, will prevent it ever racking. Do it now, do it once......otherwise you will never get around to it!

Mike


----------



## Mikey R (31 Jan 2010)

Ive been getting a little bit of work done on the bench over the weekend. Sorry for the low quality phone pics!

The face vice jaws have been laminated up out of 4 sheets of 12mm hardwood ply. The rear jaw will be located over the front leg, so I needed to recess both by 25mm:






As it is, it fits very snugly:






This week I spent a bit of my bonus and took delivery of my drill press, as always I got carried away and ordered the size larger than I really needed. However, it should last me and I shouldnt need to upgrade it:






Now Im going to need some help: 

For the vice screws, I need to drill two 44mm holes in the rear jaw and two 30mm holes in the front jaw. The 30mm holes in the front jaw can be drilled with a flat bit, no problem, drill half way from either side to prevent tear out.

Ive already pilot drilled the rear jaw with a 6mm bit - had to test the new drill - so what kind of bit would be good to dril these 44mm holes? Would a flat bit work? Bearing in mind Ive got a 650W drill press. 

Cheers!


----------



## Mikey R (31 Jan 2010)

Ok, the best bit to use would seem to be a 44mm hole saw as this removes the minumum of material.

Im struggling to find any information on drill speeds with these - can anyone suggest a drill speed? I would guess I would need to bring the speed down as the diameter is large, like you do with a router, but I might be wrong?

p.s. Just noticed Ive been promoted to "Furniture Maker" - excelent!


----------



## johnjin (31 Jan 2010)

Hi Mike
I would suggest something slow like 300-400 rpm or maybe even slower. A hole saw has a lot of teeth so a slow spindle speed will be better. Let the saw cut its way through as opposed to forcing it.

Just my opinion

John


----------



## Mikey R (31 Jan 2010)

johnjin":1phbzkli said:


> Hi Mike
> I would suggest something slow like 300-400 rpm or maybe even slower. A hole saw has a lot of teeth so a slow spindle speed will be better. Let the saw cut its way through as opposed to forcing it.
> 
> Just my opinion
> ...



Thanks John, I'll try the 320 rmp setting.


----------



## Mikey R (2 Feb 2010)

I got hold of a 44mm hole saw, I found that I had to reduce the speed to 270 rpm to stop it burning. That ply has a few layers that are way harder than others, is that normal?

The rear jaw of the face vice is attached with 100mm long screws into the bench top. I drilled the jaw (Im really enjoying the new new drill press!) and pilot drilled the bench top, then started with a screwdriver. I then realised that I could put a philips screwdriver attachment into my brace, and the job went a whole lot faster!






The nasty glue squeeze out will be planed off when I do the final flattening of the bench.

I still need to take off a little material around the holes for the vice screw nut, it flares out a little where it joins the flange. Im planning on countersinking it with a router tomorrow evening.

Its really handy being able to do an hours work on an evening on a project. Without a dedicated work space, Id spend half an hour getting all the kit out, then half an hour putting it away again.


----------



## Joints (2 Feb 2010)

I think I am more impressed you managed to blag an entire room of the house for a workshop!

Does she have a sister?!


----------



## devonwoody (3 Feb 2010)

Joints":uj1s62vh said:


> I think I am more impressed you managed to blag an entire room of the house for a workshop!
> 
> Does she have a sister?!



Join the queue which starts at Plymouth.


----------



## Mikey R (3 Feb 2010)

That made me laugh!

I actually separated from my wife last summer, which is why Ive now got a new house with space for a workshop. And no, thats not the reason, and no, I wouldnt recommend it.


----------



## Mikey R (7 Feb 2010)

Another miniture update: Vice jaws are on.







This project is dragging on a little, but Im getting there slowly.


----------



## devonwoody (8 Feb 2010)

quote from post above.

_This project is dragging on a little, but Im getting there slowly.
_

But you are having fun and not doing something that is run of the mill, I'm interested and I am sure others are as well.


----------



## Mikey R (8 Feb 2010)

devonwoody":1txmni7b said:


> But you are having fun and not doing something that is run of the mill, I'm interested and I am sure others are as well.



Thanks Devon, youre right this project is total overengineered indulgence! Its totally for me, as noone else will benefit from it, and its given me the opportunity to work on something that I wouldnt normally do. Thanks for the encouragement, its difficult keeping the faith on these longer projects.

It would be nice to build something that _will_ eventually make it out of the workshop though! 

I was playing around with the vice yesterday evening. I did find that the vice jaw pivots outwards when gripping something at the top of the jaws. It is however fine if the piece extends down below the level of the screws, as then the force balances. I might look at modifying the jaw in future to make it a twin screw leg vice hybrid. Something to think about anyway.


----------



## Jake (8 Feb 2010)

I really can recommend starting with a pair of Record vices to make a twin screw vice. I say that quite often, but have to yet to see anyone else try it, but it's very simple to do and makes for a fantastically capable vice.


----------



## Dibs-h (8 Feb 2010)

Jake":3i94wsvj said:


> I really can recommend starting with a pair of Record vices to make a twin screw vice. I say that quite often, but have to yet to see anyone else try it, but it's very simple to do and makes for a fantastically capable vice.



Do tell more Jake - as I do have at least 2 spare and may well be wanting a new and perhaps proper bench at some point in the future.


----------



## Jake (8 Feb 2010)

Apologies to Mikey for momentary diversion of thread.

Dibs, it's documented over the other side, here http://www.woodworkuk.co.uk/forum/viewt ... ?f=5&t=808 - happy to expand it if you have any questions but would rather keep it all in one place just in case anyone ever actually takes the plunge.


----------



## Mikey R (8 Feb 2010)

Hi Jake, I read up on your chain linked uber-vice when I was designing my bench, unfortunately it wouldnt work for me as I need my vice to be able to skew to hold a tapered guitar neck. 

Though now Im starting to think Im over-engineering the problem and a single record vice would have been far simpler!


----------



## MikeG. (8 Feb 2010)

Brilliantly simple Jake! Great idea.

Mike


----------



## Dibs-h (8 Feb 2010)

Jake":2xwn948w said:


> Apologies to Mikey for momentary diversion of thread.
> 
> Dibs, it's documented over the other side, here http://www.woodworkuk.co.uk/forum/viewt ... ?f=5&t=808 - happy to expand it if you have any questions but would rather keep it all in one place just in case anyone ever actually takes the plunge.



Cheers Jake!


----------



## big soft moose (8 Feb 2010)

Jake":17sanj7o said:


> I really can recommend starting with a pair of Record vices to make a twin screw vice. I say that quite often, but have to yet to see anyone else try it, but it's very simple to do and makes for a fantastically capable vice.



does it have to be the record vice - at work we have a number of axminster wood vices arround - might be an interesting project to try and adapt two when we fit the new workbench - is there a particular reason for using record or is it just that thats what you had ?


----------



## Mikey R (14 Feb 2010)

Im not quite finished with the bench but I wanted to use it a little to get a feel for how well it works.

First job was preparing the scarf joint for a guitar neck. Half way through preparing the joint:






The face vice worked quite well at holding the work whilst I pressed down on the neck with the plane, but the vice jaws racked quite alot:






Ive been drawing up plans to modify the left hand screw to incorporate a leg vice arrangement, we'll see how well that goes.


----------



## woodsworth (16 Feb 2010)

I thought it might do that. But a simple fix would be to take the plywood down to an engineer firm and have them cut a piece of steel to match with holes drilled for the threaded bar. Then drill and tap it to secure it to the castings of the head pieces. It's to bad you can't weld it to them. 

Worth a try and would still be a lot cheaper then the real one.


----------



## Mikey R (16 Feb 2010)

Its not the ply that is flexing, its actually the joint between the steel screw and the cast iron nut.


----------



## devonwoody (16 Feb 2010)

Mikey R":2cyj1cm9 said:


> Its not the ply that is flexing, its actually the joint between the steel screw and the cast iron nut.



That could mean a steel plate is necessary?


----------



## Mikey R (16 Feb 2010)

Hi woodsworth, devonwoody,

Im not sure I follow - what is the steel plate being fixed to?


----------



## woodsworth (16 Feb 2010)

It could be as simple as a steel sleeve in the hole drilled then. If that makes sense. The hole could be to big for the threaded bar or the soft plywood may not be strong enough to take the resulting pressure of the vice.


----------



## Mikey R (16 Feb 2010)

Disclaimer - Excuse the bad physics, its been a while since I studdied this stuff!

The problem is that, as the vice is tightened, all of the torque from the piece clamped at the top of the vice is borne by the joint between the steel screw and the iron head. This joint must be free to rotate, so it needs a little give to allow this. To bear the whole torque without significantly racking, this joint would need a LOT of reinforcing over a large length of the screw.

I cant see any simple way to spread the torque over a larger area of the components without a major bit of reengineering.


----------



## devonwoody (16 Feb 2010)

That is why I think vices have steel jaws, some jaws have an angle built in otherwise wooden inserts are put on to provide angle.


----------



## Mikey R (16 Feb 2010)

There is a problem there - no matter what the angle of the jaws, the torque that the joint will be bearing (is that the correct term?) will still be the same, and that joint will eventually fail.

The leg vice gets away with this by using a lever to transform the torque into a force and split this between the screw and the guide rod. Sorry, I dont have the language to describe what Im trying to saw here, maybe I can draw up a diagram tonight.


----------



## woodsworth (16 Feb 2010)

You could go with fangled workbench idea for your needs. Drill two 1 inch holes in the front skirting of the top and a couple of pin holes in the top and put the 3/4 inch pipe (which actually is 1 inch) in and dill through the pipe for pins. 

You could even orientate them for the 15 degrees for the scarf cuts you plane. I don't see a simple answer to your vice dilemma.


----------



## Mikey R (28 Feb 2010)

I finally got the back half of the top done, and Ive moved it to its final place against the wall.







Now I just need to build some tool storage...






Still to do - fit the end vice, drill the dog holes. Im going to 19mm round dogs, so that I can also use the wonder dogs and holdfasts if I need to.

Leg vice also on stand by.


----------

