Circular Saw for cutting Oak Sleepers - recommendations needed

[menatarms]

Have you worked out a cutting list, as randomly cutting things up so they fit in a car could well be very wasteful.


I would look to the future if buying a saw now, if the Dewalt will serve all your needs then no reason not to buy it, you'll probably need one to carry on with
making the bench anyway.


Will they not let you, then arrange for them to deliver your selection, my timber yard does.


Are you prepared to wait that long? they will probably be saturated, so inevitably no use for making any thing now that you want to stay in shape.

In all my years, only ever made mine of out of cheap redwood, rather spend my money on decent wood for making things.

No cutting list yet, still very early stages. First want to know what materials are realistically available.

At the moment I just know I want 2 workbenches, each with around 900x600 tops (could be upto 1000x700), ideally with a face/leg vise and a tail/wagon vise (overall, not each), with plenty of drawer storage underneath.

Yes could possibly go pick them out then arrange delivery, but I more and more am thinking I just don't want to wait so long to get cracking with it.

I would love the table to look great, I'm considering at the moment making a core of thick structural glulam (hardwood veneers), then covering the top with maybe 25mm of maple/oak, then framing it with a face of walnut/bubinga. I know it's a bit disingenuous, but it would enormously reduce the cost whilst still being very strong and looking great. Is there a reason people don't do this more?

 

[HOJ]

Is there a reason people don't do this more?

I always look at things from a practical point of view, not vanity, my benches get absolutely hammered and abused so cheap to replace is my mantra.

 

[Inspector]

I always look at things from a practical point of view, not vanity, my benches get absolutely hammered and abused so cheap to replace is my mantra.

I agree. You can spend a lot of time making showpiece benches, out feed tables, tool chests and wall hung cabinets but never actually make any nice furniture for the house you live in. My bench was of maple because it was cheap at the time and I had my father (Danish trained) along with all his factory machines to help with it. Everything since has been what was at hand including sheet goods that were functional and not pretty. My father feed us working for decades at a bench made of a solid core door and construction lumber. I keep it for sentimental reasons. Ultimately the choice is yours but I would rather spend some extra money on dry wood that I could get to right away because if you have to wait for it to dry, stuff will happen and you may never get to it.

Pete

 

[simonridout]

A member of my ‘men’s shed’ (actually a community shed, as all are welcome) has been making a bench, using softwood 100x 200 x 2.4 m treated sleepers, initially quite wet but drying out, during 2 four hour sessions a week. Legs were 100 x 100. Cross pieces similar, mortised and tenoned together. 200 x 50 for aprons, 50 x 50 for bottom rails, all very heavy and solid. As others have suggested, unless you plan to do fine cabinet making only, the top will get hammered in use, so design it to be sacrificial and replaceable.