Work bench build - picture heavy.

Eric Rorabaugh said:
When I was going to make my wifes table from walnut and curly maple, I wanted to make legs like this but split again and add more walnut. Add another piece of walnut where the red line is. Sort of a cross of walnut.

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Where you have drawn the line a through tennon will go there.
 
First leg is out of the clamps and jointed on 2 sides. Will cut to length after the other sides are planed
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sprucegum said:
Looks like a good start, I like your idea of incorporating your air cleaner. I've often thought about making one with a dust collector to pick up sanding dust and shavings from various tools. I've got the same record quick release vise, love it.
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I built a cabinet for sanding stuff. DC hooks up to it
 
I've been working 10 and 12 hour days, but I've managed to at least get in the shop to take legs out of the clamps and put another in.
3 legs are done, been sealing imperfections with CA.
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This will be the outside face.
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Sealing a pretty good crack here.
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Last leg is in the clamps.
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I think the next step will be to deal with the scrap in the shop and clean up a little before moving on to the cross stretchers.
 
Well I cleaned up the shop a bit yesterday after work. Cut out some of the usable scrap pieces and cut the rest to fit into the scrap bin. Any shop time is good even if I'm not actually making anything. Next step will be jointing and planing for the leg cross stretchers.
 
Well I had to take a break from the bench for awhile, life, family, other projects had to also be taken care of. But I'm back on it.
This is all the stock for the leg end cross stretchers. I jointed them on 2 sides tonight after work.
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One had a pretty deep bark inclusion so I cleaned it out and filled it with epoxy. This piece will go in the center of a glue up. 3 pieces for each glue up.
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And of course this filled the dust collector drum again. So I emptied it.
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Next I'll choose the 4 worst looking pieces and run them through the planer for use in the centers of the 4 glue ups.
 
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I started gluing up the cross stretchers. I picked 4 ugly boards for the center sections.
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Most of the bark inclusion on this one will be planed away or cut off. It will be on the bottom and not seen and won't effect the strength of a 6" leg.
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Glue squeezing through a knot means enough clamping pressure.
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3 to go.
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Just curious how the ash trees are doing where you guys are. Ours are dead from the emeral ash borer. Tons of firewood now but such a shame. I’ve also been finding a lot of curly ash pieces in my firewoood. I save as much as I can when I find it.
 
Most ash around me in Illinois are in severe decline or already dead. Still see quite a few standing, but those usually have 50% or less foliage.
 
Yea once they get that far they are done they won’t be alive in a year or two unless treated. I’ve heard that they aren’t attacking the younger ash trees so hopefully they bounce back
 
Ash tree's here are all gone, wiped out. The emerald ash borer came through here back when I harvested this tree. The city streets used to be lined with ash tree's now they are all gone. I believe the borers started here in michigan, came in on an ocean going frieghter. When the borers came through here I grabbed as much as I could, this is the last of what I have. What a shame, it's a beautiful wood to work with, it dried well with little defects from the process. It's hard and heavy. Machines and sands well. Looks a lot like oak but without the smell, lol.
So now I'm making my bench out of the last I have of it. Most people here won't ever get the chance to work with this beautiful wood unless they pay a premium for it at a lumber supplier. It used to be everywhere here and very plentiful, now entire forest of it are gone.
 
I've been noticing less and less ash lumber for sale around me lately. I'd really like to go and buy at least 2-300BF to stash away. Ash really is a great wood to work with and looks real nice. I built my bench out of it and have a handful of boards left that I'll use in some furniture project. But I'd love to get my hands on some more of it while I still can.
 
@woodtickgreg we took down 13 in our 2 acre yard last year and the hedge rows that separate the pastures on my inlaws farm and the woods is death in the summer. My father in law was contemplating getting or renting a firewood processing machine because of how many dead trees there are. It’s really is a shame it has all the characteristics that most like with hardwoods I just hope that the younger trees bounce back but i fear it will never be the same.

and you aren’t kidding the local mill around here is getting the same or a tad less than they do for maple oak cherry Supply and demand I guess once those large slabs are gone they are gone for a long time.

It’s also one of the best firewoods. Pretty sure that’s where it gets it’s name from by the ammount of ash it creates but you can burn that stuff wet and don’t have to worry about chimney fires.

really nice build. I am very envious of tbis bench and the choice of woods. That is going to be one stout bench!!
 
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Yeah ash burns hot and slow.
 
I finally got back to working on the bench now that a couple other projects are out of the way.
All the stock for the leg ends are now laminated and jointed on 2 sides, ready for the planer to dimension them.
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I have 4 glue ups to do for the long cross stretchers. I started jointing them today, got one done and then I had to stop to finish up tonight's dinner. I'll get back on them tomorrow.
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