Bench Dogs -- How Many & How Long?

[Tom LaRussa]

I'm working on my first real woodworker's bench -- which will be entirely constructed of that fine, rare, and expensive hardwood known as Pinus Taeda -- and I need some opinions on bench dogs.

First, how many is enough?

Second, how long should they be? (My bench top is a bit over 3.25" thick.)

TIA,

Tom

[Tyler Howell]

Tom,

I went to my WW Bros to the north and got 2) round pups, 2) Dogs, and 1) Wonder dog.


http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.a...currency=2&SID=

[Tom LaRussa]

Tom,

I went to my WW Bros to the north and got 2) round pups, 2) Dogs, and 1) Wonder dog.


http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.a...urrency=2&SID=

Thanks Tyler,

But what about the muzzles? No muzzles? What if they bite somebody?

But seriously...

So, you've got two doggies that are 4-3/8" long and square, and two puppies that are 2-3/8" long and round, plus a (round) wonder dog which is 6 1/2" long, but which can be set as low as 5/8" above the work surface, right?

I'm wondering, why did you get both the dogs and the pups? I take it you have both round and square holes in your bench? How are the holes arranged, i.e., are some of them on the sides of the bench? (I see that's suggested on the LV web site.) BTW, how thick is your bench surface?

One more question: Now that you are a neander-in-training, do you worry about hitting those metal canines with a plane, chisel, or whatever? I'm going with wood for mine, partly because of fear of hitting one, and partly because I can make them for practically nothing. Those LV ones sure are pretty though...

Oops! Still one more question! (It's early, and the medication hasn't kicked in yet, folks.) Are you going to build a new bench now that you are brimming with all of your newly-acquired neander-knowledge?

[Dennis McDonaugh]

I am into the third year of using my prototype bench top (its pine, the final will be maple) and I've never used more than three bench dogs at one time. That was an odd situation, most of the time two will suffice. I don't think length is very important because the dogs fit pretty tightly into the dog holes. I can't envision anything that would cause them to pop out. I have the long ones which about 4" or so.

Originally, I bought round dogs, but liked the look of the square ones better so I eventually bought four square dogs and was going to make the dog holes square in the new bench. Now I've decided I like the flexability of the round dogs because you can orient the flat side anywhere in 360 degrees. This is especially important when you want to clamp something at an angle.

BTW, don't use holdfasts in the same hole you use dogs because the hold fast will eventually distort the hole enough to affect the dogs.

[Louis Bois]

Hi Tom,

I would guess that your bench dog requirements will be determined by the bench design you eventually settle on. Will you have one or two rows of dog holes? Do you do much in the way of curved work? etc...

I am in the final stages of building a bench in the old Frid/Klausz style with slight modifications and I really don't see any reason to have more than 2 square dogs. Any extras would just be spares, sitting in a drawer somewhere.

But since you are going to build your own, there's no limit. I decided on the square ones for my bench simply because the round ones seemed out of place for my design...and I think the square ones are more stable and less prone to distort the dog hole.

[Tyler Howell]

Sorry for the mislead there Tom. All are round and they are well trained. Sit! stay!
Going to boar more holes in the bench however .

I'm going to give a traditional bench a try when time permits. I see you can buy a top cheaper than purchasing the lumber. Decisions Decisions.
So far I've only used them with electron burners (sander, drill, and router) recessing them below the area of danger. Now if I would just use the Hi tech metal detector to check my work first I wouldn't be grinding and lapping that nick out of my Stanley #7 iron. %$##!@8 staples .


Here's a pix of the bench and pups.
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachme...chmentid=11231
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachme...achmentid=7044

[Pam Niedermayer]

My bench has 2 rows of 3/4" round dog holes spaced about 4" on center. I've found dowels make good dog stock; and I can glue on all sorts of shapes on top as needed. Plus, this is good practice for making those L shaped stops and the like that can span the 2 rows.

Pam

[Tom Sontag]

I have a traditional style bench with a tail vise. I made maybe 6 or 7 dogs and am down to my last 3 or 4. Turns out I treat them like consumables - they get beat up some. One or two had their 'faces' come unglued and await repair. So make a few - it is nice to have one already waiting for you in the hole you want to use rather than hiding underneath the board you are trying to plane. When I make another batch I may just make one for each hole.

As for length, I made two lengths. When I make another batch, I will probably make them all long enough to stick out the bottom just a bit, maybe 1" when flush on the top. The shorter ones take more effort to free up from below. Note I do not have a drawer just underneath the top which would reverse your decision, but then you still have the issue of freeing up hiding dogs.

I also made ones with the insert metal button in the back and ones with a thin piece of wood as a spring. I think I like the wooden spring better, but both work fine as long as you can pop them out from below.

[Alan Turner]

I have a tail vaise and 2 LV rect. dogs, plus two rows of 3/4" round hols, which align with the square holes, and 4 round dogs, and 2 pups, and I find that I use all of them, from time to time. Sometimes I use the dogs for gluing clamps, esp. when gluing up 1/4" maple drawer bottoms. Mine is a rather traditional bench.
Alan

[Steve Cox]

I have four Veritas round dogs and a Veritas holdfast. I also have four rows of dog holes. I like using them all at times simply to setup stops to wedge an odd shaped piece into on the bench. I also have made several stops that span two or more dog holes. I drill holes in the stops to fit over the dogs rather than attaching legs to the stops as they store easier that way. Over the course of four years with this bench I have found no wear when using the holdfast in hte same holes as the dogs. I have read where it will affect things but I haven't seen it yet. BTW my bench is three layers of particle board with a masonite top. Cheap, durable, stable and I don't have to treat it like a piece of furniture.