Workbench...First woodworking project

K

KM

Member
Joined
Mar 2, 2008
Messages
41
Hello All!
I've finally completed my first woodworking project...a bench! I don't have many pics of the build but, I've decided to post the ones I do have.

I want to say THANK YOU to everyone here since I couldn't have done it without you. I especially want to thank Mr. Frank Pellow for the awesome documentation of his bench.

As a newbie woodworker I can't comment on the efficiency of Festool since I don't have a reference point. What I can comment on is how Festool excels in the safety arena...wow! I first started this bench using a table saw and after several miscuts and a big hole in the siding of my garage from an offshoot piece of maple, I decided to break down and invest in the TS55. Nuttin like being able to rip 10ft long pieces of 8/4 hard maple and still have all 10 digits when ur done!!!

Once again, A Great Big THANK YOU ALL!!!

Ken
 
Ken -

Beautiful job.  Just curious as to the dimensions and how much time you invested in this.  Hard to believe that this is your first project.  Can't wait to see more.

THANK YOU for sharing it with us!!!

Neill
 
Thanks guys,
Specs are approx. 96"Lx30"Wx36"H Hard Maple base and top with a Zebra apron, long enough to fit my 9ft. surfboard on when the vise is open (see pic). I first started working on it oct.2007, not much done over winter due to glue failure in the cold, resumed in spring. Finished late may 2008. Hours? too many to count.

Yes, this is my first woodworking project other than refinishing old table tops, shelves and moldings. Did lots and lots of reading "how to" articles. 
 
That's your 1st woodworking project?  I would have considered it a great job if I had done it and it would have been at least my 1,000th woodworking project. 

You have set the bar very high for your future projects.  And, with a bench as good as that to work on plus a supply of Festools, I expect to see more great work from you Ken.
 
Thank you Frank,

I spent many hours and made many mistakes along the way. When I first decided to do this as a hobby, I contemplated buying a bench. Nah! I'll make my own, how hard can it be?? In hindsight...quite hard! You guys make it look too simple!!

At times it was frustrating, but at the start I viewed it as a learning experience. Boy did I learn a lot!!! Everything from ripping and squaring rough lumber, structural design, wood characteristics and movement, glue-up's, M&T joinery,  planing flat, sanding and finishing...you name it, It's All In There!!!

I couldn't have done it without the member's invaluable contributions on this forum.

Hopefully I will be able to contribute more in the future as I gain more experience. I am currently building an 8ft. wide cherry VC Ply built-in computer desk for a friend which is a whole new challenge for me. Cabinet making is teaching me that square is square, it is or it's not. If all goes well I'll post some pic's...just don't expect anything extravagant. It really is just a simple desk. Ok, gotta go. Time to get some ply and start cuttin!

Once Again, Thank You All

Ken
 
Ken,
Let me ad my THANK YOU to the mix!  Thank you for posting, and also for bringing such a burst of positive energy to the forum -- it's just what we all like and need to see.  Projects like yours, and members like you, make more people want to join this forum and be part of the community we have here.

Your project is great, and it does seem like you are way more advanced than most of us were on our first one!  I, for one, would be afraid to share photos of the first project I ever did!

Please post more about this workbench -- how you use it, and other construction notes.

Also, please show us future projects.  I think you are going to be one of the stars of the forum.

Again, THANK YOU for posting.

Stay in touch,
Matthew
 
Thank you everyone, I think I'm starting to blush...

I'll try to put something together detailing as much as I can and post it soon. I don't know about being advanced, I believe it was more about determination and willingness to correct mistakes even if it meant hours of more work. The learning curve was long yet prosperous. It's not perfect by any means, yet even with the imperfections I can look at it with the satisfaction of knowing "I made this". I guess that's how most of everyone here feels.

Justin, I used minwax satin wipe on poly for the base and many applications of Watco danish oil for the top followed by carnauba wax.

Ken
 
Ken said:
Thanks guys,
Specs are approx. 96"Lx30"Wx36"H Hard Maple base and top with a Zebra apron, long enough to fit my 9ft. surfboard on when the vise is open (see pic).
Click to expand...

Nothing like sizing your project to be purpose-built.  My surfin' buddies would be proud.  When I finally get around to building  my own bench, it will be purpose built too!  I'll size the vise to be big enough to crush my computer - so that when I retire I never have to touch another computer again :)

Beautiful bench!  Give the man a prize!

Keep up the good work.

 
Beautiful work, I would have never guessed that is your first project.
 
Ken,

That is remarkable for a first project, very, very nice.
I really like the zebra with the maple.

Thanks for sharing.

-pete
 
I finally managed to get some time to add a few of the construction notes for my bench.

First let me begin by saying it started by researching "traditional Woodworker's" benches on the net and decided on a hard maple top. Shopping for the 2" maple was very hard since it really can't be found at my local HD or Lowe's. I finally wound up in the South Bronx where I found what I was looking for at an exotic wood supplier. While I was there I saw so many types of wood I've never heard of. Wenge, Sapelle, Anigre, Ipe, Morado...jeez. Beautiful stuff! However there was one species that really caught my eye, that was the Zebra. I decided very quickly that this would be the perfect compliment as an apron for my maple bench. $15 a board foot..who cares?? I had to have it!

Specs:
Top: 96.5"L x 30"W x 35.75H 8/4 Hard Maple d2s
Tool Tray: 3.5"W x 2" D
The top was all hand planed then sanded with RO125 from 60-180 grit and finishing with about 5 applications of danish oil and then "wet sanding" with platin s2000. The underside of the top was coated with 3 heavy coats of minwax water based poly to seal the wood against moisture.

Base: Hard Maple all 8/4 laminated using Titebond 3. 3.5"x3.5" with handcut 2" M&T joinery.
Bottom Slat Shelf: 4/4 Hard Maple with 1/4 roundover on top.
Stretcher's 66"L x 4"W x 1.75" (single pc. of 8/4)
Finished with 3 coats of satin"wipe on Poly"

Apron: 4"x 96.5  4/4 Zebrawood
Same as top.

The bench was designed to be a knockdown version in case it needed to be moved. I used the Veritas Bench bolts to attach the stretchers to the base, screws to attach the apron and a single 4" lag bolt screwed into both sides of the base from the bottom to the top to allow for wood movement. Made a few mistakes here, one of which was not paying attention and drilling the opening for the barrel nut on the wrong side of the stretcher! The fix was to drill 3 more matching holes and cover with 1.5" maple buttons which I stained to match the zebra. The other major mistake was using only 4" wide stretchers, I cut 3" blocks which cut with my psb 300 and attached them underneath to provide a 7" joint to the main base. I wanted to be 100% confident there would be no rocking or racking of the bench. It worked! SOLID LIKE A ROCK!!! Can do the Jig on top of the bench if ya feel like it!!

The Vise is Rockler's 12'' Quick Release End Vise which was attached to a 2" spacer underneath the top. Forstner bit for holes. I shaped the jaws by plotting dots 2" from the outside of the vise every 1" and connected the dots by hand, then I used the jigsaw to cut the shape.

Round dog holes were chosen for convenience and are 3/4" with 7.5" O.C. spacing.

In conclusion, this was a very challenging, time consuming and rewarding project and I owe a big thanks to everyone here. Thanks!!

Ken
Here are some pics...
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Here are the last of the build pics

Squaring up
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Before and after sanding zebra
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Ken
 
Last of pics continued....

Marking and routing dog holes
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Using bench to cut 4x8 cherry VC ply
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One last thought... I can not attest to the efficiency of Festool since I am just starting this as a hobby. However, what I can vouch for is the Safety Factor of these tools. Using this system makes me feel so much more safe, which in turn has giving me more confidence. That confidence combined with the knowledge base in this forum are the 2 main reasons I've been taking on projects that would have been way beyond my capabilites one year ago.
Thank you all.

Ken
 
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