Show us your Bench

[Matt Lau]

Don, that's not a bench.
That's fine furniture!

[dan sherman]

I don't have a dedicated shop yet, so I can't set up a true bench. I made 2 of these this summer, and they are acting as sudo work benches. The top is SYP 3" thick by 30" wide, by 72" long. The base is made from 2-1/2" square steel tubing.

[Bob Easton]

12 feet ... for boat building work, where I often shape very long boards. It's simple borg Doug fir because it's a working workbench, not a piece of fancy boardroom furniture. Basic design is Schwartz's "English Bench." A year of use gives it some dents, dings, and stains, and that's OK. It's a great joy to have and use.

more at: http://www.bob-easton.com/blog/?cat=11

[Jeff Dege]

I posted a picture of mine, when I completed it. It's not fancy, nor is the workmanship up to the quality of the others I've seen. It was, in many ways, my first real woodworking project. But it's working well, for me.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=111059



I'm currently in the process of building a bench-mounted router table top for it (and using it). Something similar to this: http://www.finewoodworking.com/Works...F.aspx?id=2570

Again, I've made plenty of mistakes, but that's essential to learning. If the result isn't pretty enough for fine furniture, so what? It's for the shop, not the dining room. A less-than-perfect miter won't effect the function. And I'll never get good enough to make furniture-quality joints if I don't practice on something.

[Jeff Skory]

My my Roubo bench ala Chris Scwartz's book. Bench is made from 2x12's from the big store (got my workout that day sorting through a couple of hundred boards to find decent ones), and the leg vise is hard maple. Bench is only 6' long because that is all the space I had.

I have never had a real bench before and I'm loving it! I do need to drill more holes for my holdfasts which have become a favorite tool of mine. And I'll eventually add a shelf at the bottom. Not too sure about the sliding deadman though.

[Jeff Dege]

Not too sure about the sliding deadman though

I've been getting by with dog holes in the legs. If I'm working on something that's too short to span the legs, I span them with a 1x4, and rest the work on that.

[Don Inghram]

Don, that's not a bench.
That's fine furniture!

Thanks for the compliment. I used the Jatoba because I probably got it cheaper than Borg Fir. It's very hard and very heavy. Also sits in the middle of the shop so it doesn't have a wall to support it. Doesn't need one it's very sturdy also.

[Dave Lehnert]

Not having the space for a full size workbench. My bench is kinda a modified sawhorse. It has dog holes in the top. The sides and back are flush so you can clamp your work. The front has a birds mouth so you can use a coping saw. Very handy in the shop or take with you.

[Roger Benton]

in case anyone is as curious as i,
average dimensions of the bench tops posted so far are
88.5" x 28" x 3.5" thick.

great benches here guys, just finished mine friday, i'll post pics this week.

[Derek Cohen]

I know it is there .. somewhere ...



Oh well, it is better than these guys (remarkable what they can do with so little) ..





About 10 weeks ago ..



Regards from Perth

Derek

[Jeff Skory]

Derek, interesting and quite simple saw 'till?". I've not seen any pictures of anyone hanging them like this. I like it.

[Derek Cohen]

Hi Jeff

I came up with that quite a while back (called it the "saw tree"). It was replaced when I began rebuilding the workshop about 12 months ago. It did work well, however, and was quite kind to the blades. Not to mention convenient (I like to have important tools close at hand - hence the hanging tools). The current saw till is quite different, more traditional (which I am about to revamp internally - making room!) ..



To bring this back to topic, here is an additional bench system I have ...







Regards from Perth

Derek

[Derek Cohen]

End of bench with replaced raised panel ..



Regards from Perth

Derek

[Sam Takeuchi]

I wouldn't even dare to show mine. By the way Derek, you got too many tools. Do you keep track of your tools? I don't have that many, but I'm sure I have some items that have fallen behind my bench and buried in a pile of junk.

[Roger Benton]

first off, this is a great thread for those trying to figure out what they're first/next bench should be. thanks to the OP.
second, in that vein, i am including as much info on what and why my bench is as i can think of. apologies in advance if this is a little long winded.
third, i have to say, some amazing benches in here so far! great work.

SO-

just finished this one last week.

measurements are: 34" tall, 80" long, 27" wide, top is 3-1/8" thick.

legs are 4"x 5", stretchers are 2-1/2" x 3-1/2".

she's heavy!

top is laminated from two plys baltic birch, one ply flake board, one ply chinese birch, from top to bottom- all left over material i had on hand.

the front and rear edging and stretchers are cherry, salvaged pallet wood.

side edging and vise face are maple, left over from a project.

legs are reclaimed doug fir made from a single board, 3" x 15" x 16'. i found 3 boards this size in a large trash pile outside a renovation on the sidewalk somewhere in brooklyn. was pulling nails and screws from that board for roughly 3 hours.

vise hardware is the large cheap stuff from woodcraft, given to me by a friend. it says "made in china" upside down on the front.
works just fine though...

vise handle is white oak, shaped with a block plane- also pallet wood.

finish on everything is 3 coats of a of BLO/varnish/MS mix in equal parts, wiped on and off with a rag.

legs and stretchers are flush to front and back edges.
the vise face is 21" wide and situated so the right side of the vise face clamps against the leg for holding pieces vertically. racking is dealt with by a simple stack of 1/4" thick mdf pieces, 1-1/2" x 4", bolted together to act as adjustable width shims. it is big, heavy, stable, works amazingly well and cost me zilch.


This is my second bench with a top laminated from sheet goods and i am pretty much sold on this method. it is heavy, flat, and has the psychological advantage of being 'cheap' and 'replaceable', so i'm not afraid to actually put it to work. i have found that my gramercy holdfasts work very well in these tops; my last one was 2-1/4" thick, this one just over 3". i find it takes a little more pounding to loosen them in the thicker top, but no biggie.

thinking of springing for the new veritas surface vise, just wish it wasn't 3/4" tall off the top. with a couple vise-held planing stops and a few different shooting/planing boards and hooks, I haven't yet been hampered by the lack of a tail vise. that being said, my next bench will have one for sure!