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Workbench top design

sprucegum

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I got the long stretchers in today and a couple coats of polly on. For the long stretchers I used a 1" deep mortis and tendon with draw bolts, I've built a couple of beds this way and it makes a good tight joint. Tomorrow I'm hoping to remove the casters from my old bench and install them on the new one. I may have to leave this project for a while, we are supposed to get a break in this heat wave and I have some neglected outdoor projects.
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Don Wood

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2x3 laminated white oak glued up face to face. After pictures were taken I added 3/4” bench dog holes and a 6” wood vise. I use the bench vise and dogs a lot more than I thought and the whole unit is quite heavy For stability.

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Nature Man

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sprucegum

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2x3 laminated white oak glued up face to face. After pictures were taken I added 3/4” bench dog holes and a 6” wood vise. I use the bench vise and dogs a lot more than I thought and the whole unit is quite heavy For stability.

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That's a beast, what did you use for a finish on the top. I used some spar polyurethane on my frame, mostly because I had a part can. I was thinking a oil finish would be better for the top. It's going to be rock maple so whatever I use will not penitraet much.
 

DLJeffs

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Those are really impressive work benches you guys are making. But are you sure you don't want to attach a piece of 5/8" plywood on top so that when it gets all beat up and scarred and stained you can just unscrew it, flip it over, reattach it and start all over again?
 

sprucegum

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Those are really impressive work benches you guys are making. But are you sure you don't want to attach a piece of 5/8" plywood on top so that when it gets all beat up and scarred and stained you can just unscrew it, flip it over, reattach it and start all over again?
Building mine to use, I will probably be a little more careful with glue and paint than I was with the old particle board top model. I try to keep a couple big pieces of cardboard around for messy jobs.
 

Mike1950

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Those are really impressive work benches you guys are making. But are you sure you don't want to attach a piece of 5/8" plywood on top so that when it gets all beat up and scarred and stained you can just unscrew it, flip it over, reattach it and start all over again?
Why, it is a bench? The joy is in building and using it. Why hide it? I think I built mine in 2013. I could spend an hour or 2 with ROS and it would look new again... I won't but!
 

Don Wood

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That's a beast, what did you use for a finish on the top. I used some spar polyurethane on my frame, mostly because I had a part can. I was thinking an oil finish would be better for the top. It's going to be rock maple so whatever I use will not penitraet much.
Min Wax Satin Polyurethane. I’ve built a couple other benches and wood glue from glue ups pops right off. The picture I took is with finish wet yet. Did you hand chop your mortises or use a machine? Yours is looking pretty nice I must say👍
 

sprucegum

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Min Wax Satin Polyurethane. I’ve built a couple other benches and wood glue from glue ups pops right off. The picture I took is with finish wet yet. Did you hand chop your mortises or use a machine? Yours is looking pretty nice I must say👍
The legs are laminated from boards so I left voids where I could. The others I drilled out the made a template so I could clean them up with my router and guide bushing. I'm hesitant to polyurethane the top but it would look nice.
 

Don Wood

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Those are really impressive work benches you guys are making. But are you sure you don't want to attach a piece of 5/8" plywood on top so that when it gets all beat up and scarred and stained you can just unscrew it, flip it over, reattach it and start all over again?
you could for sure……..
 

DLJeffs

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Why, it is a bench? The joy is in building and using it. Why hide it? I think I built mine in 2013. I could spend an hour or 2 with ROS and it would look new again... I won't but!
I'm not casting dispersions, just saying those benches you guys built are as nice as my dining room table and it would make me reluctant to pound on it, get finish or glue on it, etc. My cheapo bench on the other hand I don't much care what happens to it as you can see.
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Mike1950

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I'm not casting dispersions, just saying those benches you guys built are as nice as my dining room table and it would make me reluctant to pound on it, get finish or glue on it, etc. My cheapo bench on the other hand I don't much care what happens to it as you can see.
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I get it, but I am by no means reluctant to beat on it. Anything else defeats purpose. It is a tool. And if I screw it up I will just fix it... your bench is fabulous. I have 5 benches in my smaller work area. A plywood one, 12'x30" a live edge elm with drawers. A 1930s roll top and a brutally heavy steel desk that a renter left. Old slick formica? Top, nothing sticks to it. I use it for glue ups.
To me having a nice bench is handy. Building/designing bench was a challenge and a joy..
 

sprucegum

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DLJeffs

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I get it, but I am by no means reluctant to beat on it. Anything else defeats purpose. It is a tool. And if I screw it up I will just fix it... your bench is fabulous. I have 5 benches in my smaller work area. A plywood one, 12'x30" a live edge elm with drawers. A 1930s roll top and a brutally heavy steel desk that a renter left. Old slick formica? Top, nothing sticks to it. I use it for glue ups.
To me having a nice bench is handy. Building/designing bench was a challenge and a joy..
Agree on the Formica top (or whatever it is). We took out a built in desk from the downstairs here when we moved in and my wife needed the space for a long arm quilting bed. I laminated a section of that desk onto a piece of 3/4" plywood and used it for the top of one of the mobile work stations i wheel out into the driveway. That top is great. I even got some drops of epoxy on it and they scraped off with little effort.
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