Laminating construction grade lumber

[Prashun Patel]

I would take them somewhere and have the top and have the top and bottom edges ripped clean. An ungrooved surface on the top will make it easier to sweep and clean up. Also, little parts like brads or string may get annoyingly stuck in the corrugations.

I prefer a relatively flat bottom too (at least near the perimeter) in case you need to glue a backing block to the bottom for a wider vise or if you need to get an f-style clamp in there.

[Kala Raymond]

As much as I like to play with my hand planes, if I had this job to do I might use a router setup like this . . .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtkBZHLJyD0

[Allen (AJ) Breese]

Question for those who have made a bench top out of pine, how is it holding up? My fear is as soft as pine in dose it dent easily? Are pines form other parts of the county may be harder?

[Howard Thursby]

9.jpg1.jpgI have been using my Southern Yellow Pine work bench for a couple of years and It's holding up fine. It's not as hard as oak or maple, but it's cheap and readily available here in the deep south. Mine is made from salvaged or left over lumber from my construction business. Here are a couple of pix of the top and base under construction. I would hesitate to make a bench top out of Spuce or White Pine.

[Fitzhugh Freeman]

I hand planed a couple very wavy cut 13" by 66" pieces of Douglas fir by hand. It was a job, fit sure, but I'm so glad I did. You know what it takes to get good at something? Practice. I am much better at planing than I was, and in non trivial ways.
They were cut by hand by someone making a log cabin and he was still learning his bandsaw sawmill. I had to plane off at least a half inch off opposite corners to deal with the wind, plus there were big waves as the blade was deflected by knots. Lots of work, but it was woodworking and I loved it.

Soon after starting I watched Chris schwarz' "course medium fine" video and suddenly a lot just clicked. I stopped wasting a lot of effort that I had been previously. I strongly suggest it, and I'm not one to get many videos.
To overly simplify, use the coursest tool you can to do the job first, like a scrub plane (which a no5 with deeply radiused iron and open mouth counts as, or close enough so as to not really matter). Once that has done all the work it can do, And ONLY then, do you switch to something else. A try plane, or just the five with the iron ground with less camber and mouth closed up if that is what you have (longer is better here, if possible). Once that has done all it can do you switch to a smoothing plane. Others may have their preference for particulars but the basic premise is summed up nice and obviously in the video title. I had to watch it to get how to apply it

I should clarify that I'm no expert at all, just a somewhat new hobby woodworker, but you are on very familiar road just now.

Enjoy and share photos as you go !

[Mark AJ Allen]

It dents but the benchtop is still flat. That's what matters.

[DOUG ANGEL]

Laminate your top, and then use a router sled.