Workbench Joint?

[phil p]

Hi lads,

Back again!

One more question and I'll leave you all in peace!

Got 2 of my questions answered, many thanks, going for the flat top with possibly a 1.5 or 2 inch overhang for the top.

Any ideas which would be the best joint to use for the long stretcher on the frame?

I'm going to use mortice and tenon for the 2 ends, however in abit of a dilema for the long lenths for the width of the bench?

I'm looking around the 6 feet mark for the width?

Looked at loads in the internet, some are M & T, some use those lagging bolts, some use halving joints, and some don't have a stretcher for the top, just a bottom one to carry a shelf?

Oh, for the one's with no stretcher at the top, how would you connect the bench top?

Again could I ask again for your opinions please?

Thanks again
Phil

 

[marcros]

I did mortise and tenons on mine.

 

[MARK.B.]

M&T joints and possibly run em through with a couple of dowels for that extra piece of mind.

 

[undergroundhunter]

For the long M&T what about a through tenon with a wedge, that way you can tighten/dismantle the joint if needed. If you don't have a top stretcher then the legs would be M&T into the top, depending on the set back you could drawbore these. This is what I plan to do when I eventually get round to building a new bench.

Matt

 

[Jelly]

taking a very non-traditional approach, nail-plates (as used for truss rafters) work really really well.

 

[matthewwh]

Through M&T with vertical wedges on mine.

The joints hold well, and if you ever want to dismantle the bench you just tap the wedges out and away you go.

 

[custard]

The main problem you're trying to overcome is lateral racking. If you're using a fairly hard wood (something reasonably high up the Janka Scale like Beech) then you can use "Bed Bolt" style bolts. But if you're using a softer wood like Southern Yellow Pine, White Pine, or Douglas Fir, then tightening the bolts will crush the end grain into the long grain and the joint won't resist racking, so in that case you've no real choice but beefy M&T joints.

Someone mentioned nail plates, actually I think that's a great solution for reinforcing M&T joints in softer woods and also securing the top, especially as you can get 3mm thick steel angle joints which if used sensibly will massively add to racking resistance while being reasonably discreet.

The other options for racking resistance is a plywood back between the rear legs...or a Nicholson style bench which is pretty much the gold standard for anti-racking!