Big Ash Roubo Build Thread

[Tom Trees]

That looks to be the makings of a solid bench Jason, nice and bright too
May it give you joy every time you enter the labyrinth

Who else has used hot hide glue on their bench build?
I am curious as I'm contemplating the same, for the same reasons as the OP.
I would like my bench to last as long as my Baileys have without delaminating ...
How long has aliphatic resin glues been used for? .... don't think its around long enough to prove itself worthy yet. ???
Mine will be made up of lots of selected iroko door stiles laminated together, and I'm aiming for it to stay very flat, like my surface plate like composite top I am using now.
I hear that hide is more resistant to creep also, so those are my reasons.

Hoping I can get this done without heating the shop as it might cause things to move.
If it needs to be done, so be it.
Best of luck with your bench build
Tomas

[David Eisenhauer]

For those who have not had any hands-on exposure to hot hide glue, be aware of the fact that it can be a very sticky, messy operation if you do not watch how you handle the glue application. The glue works great, but you need to take more care in not making everything around your project (including yourself and your clothing) a sticky mess as compared to when using yellow glue.

[Hasin Haroon]

Should be an awesome bench Jason! I'll be following along as I plan on building a similar one (albeit in maple) soon.

[Jason Dean]

Progress Update- The slab planed out to just under 6 inches thick and 20 inches wide. It will be 96-ish inches long when I get the other end cut down.

One End Cut:
Squaring the Ends.jpg

Slight mishap (D-8 bit me, narrowly avoiding sutures):
D8 Bit Me.jpg

Grammercy Holdfasts grabbing well in the 6 inch top with no backside counterbore after abrading with 220 grit.

Holdfast Testing.jpg

[Brian Holcombe]

Nice, that is going to be sweeeet!

[David Eisenhauer]

it is hard to imagine a great big lump of wood that size. Heckuva benchtop.

[george wilson]

I bought a log and had it cut into 4 x6's,4x4's to make a future bench. I took the planks into the toolmaker's shop. Must have let it dry for at least 10 years. Beech is the WORST wood I have EVER seen for maintaining stability while drying!!

[Pat Barry]

How much does this bench top weigh?

[Matthew Hutchinson477]

Are you sure you meant to type "Big Ash" and not "Big-ass"?

Nice build. Thanks for sharing.

[Robert Engel]

Jason,

I think the knot caused that section of the glue line to open up because there are stresses around knots that cause it to move disproportionately to the surrounding fibers.

When timbers this size start moving, there is really nothing you can do to stop it. Even threaded rods will bend. I hope this doesn't continue as it will transmit through the entire project and cause you much aggravation.

To avoid this issue, many benchtops a glued up in laminations rather than using beams or slabs.

Also, 4" is plenty thick for a benchtop.

[Jason Dean]

Pat,

I'm not sure how much it weighs. If I assume it is "dry" @40lbs/cu ft it calculates to 266 lbs.

[Mike Baker 2]

Slight mishap (D-8 bit me, narrowly avoiding sutures):
D8 Bit Me.jpg

Ouch. This and my chisel incident reminds me I need a tetanus booster. Hope it heals fast.
The bench is looking fabulous!

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Grammercy Holdfasts grabbing well in the 6 inch top with no backside counterbore after abrading with 220 grit.

Holdfast Testing.jpg

That's good to know. Mine came out 5.25" and I bought one custom made Roubo holdfast, two Grammercy, and two Veritas ones with the brass knob to cinch them down. (The Roubo took OVER A YEAR for the guy to get around to, so I bought the Grammercy, and then of course a week later the Roubo came) I haven't yet drilled my holes, so we will see how they work. I had planned to back them up with a 1" forstner bit from underneath and drill up about an inch or so to shorten the hole.

Mine is a split top and each half is just over 12". I put one of them on the bathroom scale to weigh it; I am now buying a new bathroom scale. It crushed it. They are well over 100 pounds each. The entire bench should tip the scales at around 500 pounds. I'm already loving it. IT. DOES. NOT. MOVE. Solid!!! I have been using it for the past few months to catch up on projects and now am finally going to make the chops for it. I just clamp stuff down for the time being.

Good looking bench so far. Keep us posted.