Woodsmith Magazine - Plans Now - Maple Workbench.pdf

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oodsmith
MAGAZINE
Maple W
orkbench
This classic European-style workbench is massive and stable, yet still affordable.
The traditional dog system lets you clamp the largest workpieces with ease.
T
he main challenge I was faced
with when I began designing this
maple workbench was to start
out with the classic European-style
design, and end up with a project that
was functional and buildable — but
still affordable.
I wanted to keep all the features that
contribute to a great heavy-duty work-
bench. A flat, stable, hardwood working
surface. A convenient tool tray along
the back edge. A front vise with a large
wooden face. And finally, an end vise
and a “dog” system.
NOW
DOG SYSTEM.
That last feature is
what I think makes this bench unique.
Traditionally, benches like this have
had a large L-shaped shoulder vise on
one end of the bench. But this vise uses
dogs (metal or wood blocks that fit into
holes in the bench top) to hold the
workpiece steady.
Shoulder vises tend to be expensive,
and also have a tendency to get out of
adjustment when changes in humidity
occur. So for this workbench, I came up
with a simpler end vise-and-dog block
system. This system can actually be
“adjusted” to better cope with those
changes in humidity.
MATERIAL.
Since I wanted my bench
to be both heavy in weight and able to
stand up to hard use over the years, I
built it completely from hard maple and
finished it with tung oil. Getting a maple
benchtop flat was a challenge, but you’ll
find out how I did it on pages 3 to 5.
plans
page 1
©
August Home Publishing Co.
EXPLODED VIEW
OVERALL DIMENSIONS:
34H x 65L x 29
1
/
2
D
TOOL HOLDER
K
END CAP
G
SAWDUST
CLEAT
T
BACK APRON
D
TOOL TRAY
BOTTOM
J
TABLE TOP SLAB
A
KEY RAIL
C
#/8"
DOWEL
TRAY END
BLOCK
L
TOOL TRAY
RAIL
F
FRONT
APRON
D
B
DOG BLOCK
PIECES
U
SPLINE
FRONT VISE
FACE BLOCK
N
VISE ARM
P
VISE SPACER
BLOCK
M
E
FIXED KEY
SLIDING
KEY
I
BOLT/NUT
BLOCK
H
BOLT/NUT
BLOCKS
H
#/8"
x 5"
MACHINE
BOLT
MOUNTING
BLOCK
S
ARM
O
LEG
Q
#/8"
FLAT
WASHER
STRETCHER
R
#/8"
x 4
!/2"
MACHINE
BOLT
FOOT
O
HARDWARE SUPPLIES
(4) No. 4 x
1
/
2
" Fh woodscrews (for dogs)
(4) No. 8 x
3
/
4
" Fh woodscrews
(12) No. 8 x 1" Fh woodscrews
(12) No. 8 x 1
1
/
2
" Fh woodscrews
(4) No. 8 x 1
3
/
4
" Fh woodscrews
(8) No. 8 x 1" Rh woodscrews and washers
(2)
3
/
8
" x 3" Lag screws
(1)
5
/
16
" x 1
1
/
2
" Machine bolt
(1)
5
/
16
" x 4
1
/
2
" Machine bolt
(2)
5
/
16
" Washers
(2)
5
/
16
" Threaded inserts
(4)
(2)
(8)
(6)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(2)
(4)
(4)
(4)
3
/ " x 4
1
/ " Machine bolts
8
2
3
/ " x 5" Machine bolts
8
3
/ " Washers
8
3
/ " Nuts
8
3
/ "-dia. x 30" Dowel
8
End vise w/mounting screws
Front vise w/mounting screws
1"-dia. x 12" Dowels (for vise handles)
No. 8 x 1
1
/
2
" Fh brass woodscrews
1
3
/
4
"-dia. Toy wood wheels
1" inside diameter O-rings
plans
NOW
page 2
©
August Home Publishing Co.
MATERIALS LIST
WOOD
A
Table Top Slab (1)
B
Dog Blk. Pieces (3)
C
Key Rail (1)
D
Fr./Bk. Aprons (2)
E
Fixed Keys (2)
F
Tool Tray Rail (1)
G
End Caps (2)
H
Bolt/Nut Blocks (6)
I
Sliding Keys (2)
J
Tool Tray Btm. (1)
K
Tool Holder (1)
L
Tray End Blocks (2)
M
Vise Spcr. Block (1)
N
Vise Face Block (1)
O
Feet/Right Arm (3)
P
Vise Arm (1)
Q
Legs (4)
R
Stretchers (2)
S
Mount. Block (1)
T
Sawdust Dr. Cl. (2)
U
Splines*
1
5
/
8
x 12
1
/
4
- 60
3
/ x 3
5
/ - 60 rough
4
8
3
/ x 3
1
/ - 60
4
2
3
/ x 3
1
/ - 65
1
/
4
2
8
3
/ x
3
/ - 46
4
4
1
3
/
4
x 3
1
/
2
- 60
2
1
/
2
x 3
1
/
2
- 26
3
/ x 1 - 4
1
/
4
2
3
/ x
3
/ - 7
4
4
1
/ x 8
1
/ - 62 rough
2
4
3
/ x 2
1
/ - 60
4
2
1
1
/
4
x 1
1
/
4
- 7
1
/
4
rough
1 x 3
11
/
16
- 18
3
1
/
2
x 5 - 18
2
1
/
4
x 2
1
/
2
- 22
1
/
2
2
1
/
4
x 2
1
/
2
- 25
1
/
2
2
1
/
4
x 2
1
/
2
- 28
1
/
2
1
5
/
8
x 4
1
/
2
- 48
1
/
2
1
3
/
4
x 1
7
/
8
- 2
7
/
16
1
/ x 1
1
/ - 9
1
/
2
2
8
1
/ " hdb. x
7
/
4
8
CUTTING DIAGRAM
1
#/4
x 7
!/4
- 72 (8 Bd. Ft.)
A
A
1
#/4
x 7
!/4
- 72 (8 Bd. Ft.)
A
F
1
#/4
x 5
!/2
- 72 (6 Bd. Ft.)
G
1
#/4
x 5
!/2
- 72 (6 Bd. Ft.)
N
N
L
M
#/4
x 7
!/4
- 72 (4 Bd. Ft.)
C
B
#/4
x 7
!/4
- 72 (4 Bd. Ft.)
D
B
#/4
x 7
!/4
- 72 (4 Bd. Ft.)
D
B
#/4
x 7
!/4
- 72 (4 Bd. Ft.)
P
G
P
G
G
S
A
#/4
x 5
!/2
- 72 (3 Bd. Ft.)
K
P
#/4
x 5
!/2
- 72 (3 Bd. Ft.)
R
#/4
x 5
!/2
- 72 (3 Bd. Ft.)
R
#/4
x 5
!/2
- 72 (3 Bd. Ft.)
R
#/4
x 5
!/2
- 72 (3 Bd. Ft.)
R
#/4
x 5
!/2
- 72 (3 Bd. Ft.)
Q
#/4
x 5
!/2
- 72 (3 Bd. Ft.)
Q
#/4
x 5
!/2
- 72 (3 Bd. Ft.)
Q
!/2
x 3
!/2
- 72 (2 Sq. Ft.)
J
!/2
x 5
!/2
- 72 (3 Sq. Ft.)
I
J
T
Q
Q
Q
O
E
E
O
O
O
O
H
NOTE:
ALSO NEED
!/4"
HARDBOARD (
&/8"
WIDE x 12 FEET) FOR SPLINES (U)
*Need approximately 12 feet.
TABLE TOP SLAB
The most important feature of any
bench is the top. (I’m calling it the slab.)
It needs to be stable and strong, but
most of all perfectly flat. In a factory this
is easy — it’s glued up in a gluing jig and
then sanded flat on a wide-belt produc-
tion surface sander.
In a home shop, it’s another story —
but it can be done. You need a little
patience, a number of clamps, and a
hand-held belt sander. (I didn’t use a
hand plane, more on this later.) By
taking your time, the bench top can be
made as flat and smooth as though it
came from a factory in the Black Forest.
RIPPING THE STRIPS
To build the slab, I started by ripping
1
5
/
8
"-wide strips from 1
3
/
4
"-thick stock
to a length that was about a foot longer
(6 feet) than what was needed. (Note:
Cut the pieces long to allow for any end
checks, imperfections, or planer snipes
in the stock.) Since the main part of the
workbench is 12
1
/
4
" wide, I ripped seven
boards
(Fig. 1).
POSITIONING THE BOARDS.
Before
gluing up the boards to form a solid
butcher block-type slab, there’s a
number of things to consider — espe-
cially when positioning the boards.
After ripping, two surfaces of each
board remain smooth and two will have
sawblade marks. To create the best
glue joint, flip the boards so the planed
surfaces face each other
(Fig. 1).
There’s another reason for flipping
the boards. If the edge grain faces up,
there’s less movement across the width
of the slab with changes in humidity.
WHICH SIDE UP?
Now, take a close
look at each board and decide which of
the sawn surfaces should face
up.
For
the best appearance, choose the sur-
face that has the straightest grain and
the least chipout and defects.
CHECK FOR BOW.
After ripping, the
pieces will usually have a slight bow
over their length. First, set the two
straightest boards aside for the outside
edges of the benchtop.
Next, line up the remaining pieces so
the bow in one board opposes the bow
in another when viewed from the top
(Fig. 2).
Once they’re glued up, the
forces will neutralize one another and
help keep the entire top straight.
Now, look at each piece from the
end
for any warp up and down. Once again,
place the pieces so the warp (crown) on
one faces up and the one next to it
(sags) down.
A PROBLEM.
Okay, I know, there’s a
problem. You can’t get ever y piece
where it’s supposed to be. When you
put all the opposing bows together, the
crowns won’t oppose each other. Or
there’s some chipout or a knot right in
the middle of the top.
It turns into a puzzle — usually
without a perfect solution. You have to
find a solution that has the
most
desir-
able features. Once you find the solu-
tion that seems the best, mark the
pieces so the whole assembly can be
put back into order later.
1
1
#/4"
STOCK
1%/8
RIP
FENCE
2
TABLE
SAW
SAWN
SURFACES
UP AND
DOWN
GLUE TOGETHER
PLANED SURFACES
LAY OUT SO
BOWS IN BOARDS
OPPOSE ONE ANOTHER
STRAIGHTEST
BOARDS
ON OUTSIDE
plans
NOW
page 3
©
August Home Publishing Co.
CLAMPING THE SLAB
Once the positions of all the
pieces in the slab are deter-
mined, the clamps can be
laid out. (Note: Now is the
time to go out and beg for,
borrow, or rent enough
clamps to do the job. I used
nine pipe clamps.)
SIGHTING.
To produce a
flat slab, the most important
step is “sighting” the
clamps. Start by finding the
flattest surface available to
clamp on. This might be a
large table, a flat section of floor in the
shop, or a couple sawhorses
(Fig. 3).
Now lay down two
flat
8'-long 2x4s
side by side about a foot apart. Then lay
down two pipe (or bar) clamps across
these base boards.
Before placing the pieces to be glued
onto the clamps, stand back about five
feet, get down until your eyes are even
with the top of the clamps, and look for
any twist from one clamp to the other
(Fig. 3).
Both clamps should be aligned
with each other. If they’re not, shim
under the base board at the low corner
until the clamps are aligned.
GLUING
It’s a good idea to go through this
clamping procedure in a dr y test
assembly before actually applying the
glue. It helps you see where problems
might arise and make sure all the
boards can be pulled together tight.
GLUE.
To glue up the slab, I used
yellow woodworker’s glue in a glue
roller bottle. You could also use a small
paint roller. Either lets you get a uni-
form film of glue.
Now, tip up all the pieces on their
sides so the gluing surfaces are
exposed. Because of the time involved
in spreading the glue and clamping up
the assembly, it’s easy to get a dry joint.
For that reason, be generous with the
glue and don’t worr y so much about
squeeze-out. I usually apply a thick uni-
form coat to one side only. (It’s always a
good idea to have a friend around at this
stage to help prevent panic.)
TIGHTEN THE CLAMPS.
After the
pieces are tipped into position, start
tightening the clamps. Don’t over-
tighten. The clamps should be tight
enough so there’s a uniform “squeeze-
out” along the joints, but you should be
able to loosen the clamp with one hand.
There’s one last step. Check to be
sure that all the pieces are seated down
against the bottom row of clamps. To
get all the pieces down flat, place a wood
block on top of any high points and
pound them with a hammer.
REMOVE EXCESS GLUE.
Once the slab
dries overnight, you can remove all the
clamps. I usually scrape off the beads of
dried glue with a paint scraper. But on
this workbench slab, I used a slightly
different procedure.
Since the workbench slab was made
of hard maple, and maple usually has a
page 4
tendency to chip, I was
afraid that if I hooked the
scraper on a bead of glue, it
might pull out a small fiber
or chip along with it.
Instead, I started by paring
off all of the larger beads of
glue with a sharp chisel.
Then I attacked the rest
with a belt sander.
Luckily, I keep old 80-
grit belts around the shop
just for this purpose. To
remove the glue, sand
across
the grain, working
just down to the wood on
the joints. (Don’t sand all the way to the
edges of the slab.)
SANDING THE SURFACE FLAT
Now the real work begins — making
the surface flat and true. Traditionally,
this would be a job for a plane. And if the
slab were oak, I’d consider it. But with
hard maple, the grain can switch direc-
tions a couple times over the length of
each board. Somewhere along the way,
a plane is likely to start lifting chips.
BELT SANDER.
Instead, I reached for
my belt sander. Something should be
said here about belt sanders. I don’t
think there’s a tool in the shop that can
destroy a project quicker. Out of con-
trol, a belt sander can bite and gouge
wood like a shark in a feeding frenzy.
Most of the time when I work with a
belt sander I’m consciously thinking
about holding it back as it’s cutting. I
use my hands and arms only to hold it
back and guide it — not to press down.
SAND ACROSS THE GRAIN.
Most
books warn to
never
sand across the
grain. But that’s exactly what I do when
I start leveling off a slab since a belt
sander will generally cut faster across
the grain than with the grain. Since the
slab requires a great deal of sanding to
get it flat, sanding in both directions
(first across, then with the grain)
lessens the chance of deep gouges.
Also, by first sanding across the
grain, and then finishing up with the
grain, you end up with a flatter surface.
To start sanding, load a fresh 80-grit
belt on the sander. When rough
sanding, work in an elliptical pattern
and never make a total sideways move-
ment
(Fig. 4).
Always move the sander
for ward (or backward) and slightly
sideways at the same time.
©
August Home Publishing Co.
3
PIPE OR BAR
CLAMPS
BASE
BOARDS
SHIM UNDER
LOW CORNER
SIGHT TO
CHECK IF CLAMPS
ARE ALIGNED
After
aligning the end clamps, place clamps
across the base boards every 16". Then
set the workpieces in position on top of
the clamps. Now place more clamps on
top of the workpieces, so they’re
between the ones on the bottom.
CLAMPING BLOCK.
To keep even pres-
sure on the assembly and avoid denting
the edges, place
3
/
4
"-wide clamping
blocks centered on the outside edges of
the assembly (see photo above).
Note:
To help keep the clamping
blocks in position when clamping up, I
stick them to the edge boards with
double-sided carpet tape.
POSITION
THE
CLAMPS.
plans
NOW
4
GRAIN DIRECTION
5
6
GRAIN DIRECTION
FIRST,
ROUGH
SAND
ACROSS
GRAIN IN
ELLIPTICAL
PATTERN
!/2
!/2
STOP SANDING
!/2"
FROM
EACH EDGE OF THE SLAB
FINISH
SAND WITH
GRAIN IN
W-SHAPED
PATTERN
Concentrate on an area of about one
square foot and tr y to remove all the
ridges in that area. Don’t oversand. As
soon as the ridges are gone, move on to
the next square foot.
The biggest problem is sanding the
outside edges. If you allow the pad of
the belt sander to work all the way out to
the edges, the edges are likely to taper
off or even round over. To prevent this I
tr y to stop my sanding strokes about
1
/ " from each edge
(Fig. 5).
2
SAND WITH THE GRAIN.
Once all the
sharp ridges are removed, switch and
sand
with
the grain using a new 80-grit
belt. When sanding with the grain, work
slightly larger areas, but only as far as
your arms will move.
The basic movement of the sander
with the grain is a little different than
the elliptical pattern followed when
sanding across the grain. It’s more of an
angled up and back movement — like a
long, tall “W” shape
(Fig. 6).
(Note: Still
keep
1
/
2
" away from the edges.)
The goal now is to eliminate all of the
cross grain scratches. Watch carefully
what you’ve just completed and once all
the scratches are gone, stop sanding.
Once the top is flat, switch to a 120-
grit sanding belt and continue working
with
the grain. Follow the same basic
tall “W” pattern as
before. Your goal is to
7
remove all of the
scratches left by the 80-
grit belt, and just leave
fine scratches that can
be removed with a pad
sander (with 150-grit
12!/4
paper) or a hand block
sander.
SAND THE BOTTOM.
I didn’t finish
sand the bottom face. Just remove the
glue and sand across the grain until it’s
fairly flat.
Note:
It’s a good idea, though, to
apply finish later to the bottom face to
slow down any moisture imbalances in
the slab.
CUT TO LENGTH.
Once the slab is
smooth and flat, it can be cut to length
(Fig. 7
and the box below).
60
A
TABLE TOP SLAB
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cutting a Slab to Length
After the workbench slab
was flat, the next step was
to cut it to length. At this
point, it was so long and
heavy that it was awkward
to work with.
There was no way I
would ever be able to cut
it on the table saw, even
with a panel cutting jig.
That left the portable
circular saw. To be honest
my circular saw and I have
never gotten along very
well on finish work. It can
leave a rough cut, saw
marks, and burns.
But if you want to try,
concentrate on pushing
the saw all the way
through. Don’t slow
down. Just feed the saw
as fast as it will cut.
Using the router is a
little more time consum-
ing, but will give a much
smoother end.
Since the slab is so thick,
you will probably have
to cut from both faces. I
made a series of four
passes from each face.
SAW MUST CLEAR
FENCE WHEN BLADE
IS AT FULL DEPTH
CUT-OFF
JIG
TOP
FACE
DOWN
CLAMP SCRAP TO EDGE
TO PREVENT CHIPOUT
SCORE CUT
LINE TO
PREVENT
CHIPOUT
MARK LINES
AROUND SLAB
CIRCULAR SAW.
To minimize chipout on
ROUTER.
Lay out cut and fence lines
the face side, cut with the good surface
down. Use a fence or cut-off jig and
clamp a piece of scrap at end of the cut.
around workpiece. Make a series of cuts
on one face, then flip slab and clamp
fence on the opposite face to finish cut.
plans
NOW
page 5
©
August Home Publishing Co.

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