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Thread: Sjoberg or build my own work bench

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Mar 2015
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    Brooklyn, NY
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    Sjoberg or build my own work bench

    Does anyone have any experience with a sjoberg work bench? I was planning to build one but without any jointers/planers nor a current work bench it's a bit hard to build. I was gonna buy a couple work and decker workmates and use those to plane down wood with a hand plane and glue them up. It would be a lot of work especially since I am on somewhat limited time. Buying vises and all the supplies would probably run about 300-400 dollars.

    And a sjoberg work bench runs about 500-550. I was thinking this

    http://m.homedepot.com/p/Sjobergs-No...448/203856959/

    or

    http://m.homedepot.com/p/Sjobergs-Du...445/203880246/

    And I only can do this because I can get 1000 dollars in Home Depot gift cards from my Amex points. And if anyone can explain to me the difference between the two that would be great. Lol

    I probably wouldnt put those shelf things on below the table because my work bench would double as my dining table and Id build a couple benches and hide them under the table when I need to work and bring them out to eat. Oh the struggles of living in nyc... Would not adding those shelves or the wooden parts that go horizontal weaken the structural integrity of the table?

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by Peter Choi View Post
    Would not adding those shelves or the wooden parts that go horizontal weaken the structural integrity of the table?
    You need something there. Otherwise it'll rack on you something terrible.
    Never, under any circumstances, consume a laxative and sleeping pill, on the same night

  3. #3
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    In your situation I suggest you buy one of those benches, or something similar. Trying to make one with no machines and no work bench will be an exercise in frustration, and you probably wouldn't save any money in the process. One of those benches is 58" long, the other 62", one has a shelf underneath, the other doesn't. I would lean toward the 58" one because it will likely be sturdier, although neither is very robust, and looks to be made from higher quality wood. You definitely want/need those horizontal stretchers; they are what helps resist racking forces when planing a board on the bench.

    If you want the bench to double as a table you are going to need a pretty tall chair or short stool, because the bench is 34" high and a table is 29". Plus you would want to add a wider top for dining so you don't bang your feet into the lower stretcher, and that will add another inch or so. Maybe you should look into a draftsman's table that raises and lowers if you want a bench to do double duty as a table. I think someone offers a workbench that is height adjustable, too, just can't remember whom.

    You didn't say what you want to build, but keep in mind that that bench is not very robust. You wouldn't want to try heavy hand planing with it or it's going to be rocking and rolling and shimmying across the floor. For light work it should be fine.

    John

  4. #4
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    Mar 2015
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    Id mainly be building furniture. Nothing huge but maybe some live edge slabs for table tops or just stuff for the home. The heaviest would definitely be the live edge slabs. But mainly pine or whatever reclaimed wood I can get my hands on. But would these work benches be any less robust than a simple work bench made out of pine from home depot and then glued up and 4 legs using mortise and tenon joints? Or is the one step up for around 1000 worth that much more? The dimensions of this are fine and I guess I would have to keep horizontal structure.

  5. #5
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    It depends upon which $1K benches you are referring to but, most often, you get what you pay for. And what $1K benches have over what you are considering usually is a lot more mass. Mass is your friend whether it be machines or workbenches. A bench made with a heavy top and base, bolted together with stout cross members, and that weighs several hundred pounds, won't move when you push on it planing a big live edge slab. The benches you are considering probably don't weigh 100 lbs. If you flop a big live edge slab on one of them and then go at it with a hand plane, it's going to sway back and forth and probably slide across the floor. Or if you use a power hand plane instead to flatten a slab, and then a ROS, you can probably get by with one of the lighter work benches. A power hand plane costs less than a good hand plane and you'll get work done a lot quicker, too.

    John

  6. #6
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    Mar 2013
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    I would recommend you have a look at the homemade bench which Mike Siemsen discusses in his DVD "The Naked Woodworker", and in several associated blog posts: http://lostartpress.com/collections/...ked-woodworker
    Both he and Chris Schwarz have worked on simple, practical, solid bench designs which cost very little, and Mike S. talks about building a bench without having a bench to start with. I really appreciate his simple no-nonsense (and low-budget) approach. That isn't to say that making a bench in a NYC apartment wouldn't be an ordeal, but I've worked a little on one of those flimsy Sjobergs benches and I didn't like it one bit, so I would urge you to consider this as an alternative. There are better things to buy at Home Depot.

  7. #7
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    Peter,

    I used a Sjorberg very similar to the ones you listed. What you'll find is that the base is way too light for most hand tool work. What I did was build a much heavier base out of oak. It was a compromise but I put up with it until I built my Roubo. The thing is is that the price your paying for either of those benches would more than pay for the lumber for a great bench. I got my Sjorberg on a clearance from Amazon for under $200. At the prices you're looking at I'd think long and hard before dropping that much on a temporary bench.

    Cliff
    The problem with the world is that intelligent people are full of doubts, while the stupid ones are full of confidence.
    Charles Bukowski

  8. #8
    +1 for DVD "The Naked Woodworker" and there is also a video by Mike Siemsen on You Tube where he discusses work holding with this bench and you can see it in action. One can build that bench in a weekend with circular saw and carpenters square and cost would be less than $100.

  9. #9
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    I use a Sjoberg bench as a jobsite bench and enjoy it very much. That said, the less expensive models move a bit when doing handwork. The vises work great. The top is made of beech and offers quite a good working surface. You can purchase accessories that make it more useful as well.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    May 2013
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    BC, Canada
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    I would also vote for building your own over those you linked to. The Mike Siemsen one looks very good. I like benches with aprons.

    I built myself a version of Roy Underhill's fold-up portable workbench. I made mine almost totally in my living room with hand tools. I did use the thickness planer at work to clean up the rough sawn boards, but that would be no different than the state you'd be getting boards from a BORG store from.



    Mine is made from Douglas Fir and is probably around 70Kg. I've put a piece of 1x12 across the bottom stretchers to make a shelf which I store lumber on to add more weight. I've since added some drawer liner to the bottoms of the feet, and it's rock solid. I can take heavy plane strokes without it scooting at all.

    I designed mine to incorporate the changes that Steve Branam made on his blog, namely the differing leg heights so that it folds flat. I wrote up a short blog on my build as well.

    The other huge upside to making your own bench vs. buying one is that you can choose exactly what features you want to have and where things are placed. You get dogholes only where you want, and can have vises (or not) placed where you'll use them most.

  11. #11
    Peter, I'd find a store that carries this model and try it before buying one. That base looks relatively lightweight, which makes me suspect it will flex/rack under heavy use. You could buy a ready made top and build your own base out of 4x4"s and end up with a more sturdy/durable bench. And Im betting it wouldnt cost a whole lot more.

    Otherwise try the video folks are recommending above.

    Good luck!
    Fred
    Last edited by Frederick Skelly; 04-26-2015 at 7:35 AM. Reason: grumpy when wrote original. :)
    "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

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  12. #12
    Join Date
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    Also another don't buy one vote! those benches are notoriously under built. Build your own bench. You can customize it to exactly fit YOUR work. Christopher Schwartz's second (newer) book on workbenches is excellent. $1000 can get you nice raw materials and good vice hardware (or skip one or both of the vices). Read up to figure out what you need; then you know what to build and you wouldn't be building such a temporary bench. Using a well designed bench that fits your type of work is such an indescribable feeling-the bench and you are one!
    My woodworking theory: Measure with a micrometer, Mark with chalk, Cut with an ax.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
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    Altanta area, GA
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    Hi Peter,

    Both of these benches weigh 200 lbs ... I think that the comments about them not being sturdy or moving are not valid for these benches.

    I would go for the one that has the bench dogs in the end vice ... I use my tail vise a lot, and the side vise does not have bench dogs -- although it looks like they are in the top -- just not in the end vise ... you could add them, but I would get the bench that already has them in ...

    I have an Ulmia bench that I am sure does not weigh much different than the ones listed -- and it does not move -- but it does have a taller stretcher, but these benches should be fine. A good bench is for holding securely what you want to do -- saw, drill, plane, even glue.

    You definitely need the stretchers between the legs -- for stability of the bench.

    Regarding using as a table -- I would get a top that would lay on the top and extend out from the side -- like a breakfast bar -- and use the bench dogs to clamp it tight. You need to think about the height of top -- at 34" it is higher than normal, and the benches that you build will have to be higher that "normal" bench height.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Dec 2004
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    Boston, MA
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    I bought the version with the 3 in thick top about 15 years ago from woodcraft and its an excellent bench.

  15. #15
    I think the top would be most challenging in your situation..maybe buy one , then make the base yourself. I think that is what I would do if I had limited tools and lived in NYC..
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