attaching bench legs to top - CS Roubo

[Bob Cooper]

Making good progress on my first bench...been a power tool guy my entire life...so bear w/me. This modeled after Chris S' design in his book but i'm going to use a twin screw in place of the leg vice and this bench will be against a wall.

Question...glue to use for M&T at the top of legs? Just regular yellow glue work ok? i'm planning on draw boring each of these w/2 3/8" dowels. Here's a picture of the legs (5x5x~32" oak) and the sketchup. NOTE: the legs won't be flush w/the left side of the bench...just haven't update the drawing yet.

[Joe A Faulkner]

Given the mass of your top, you don't need any glue on those joints. Gravity will work in your favor. Since you aren't using a leg vise you won't be pushing the face of your bench top against the mortise of the bench leg.
This means when it's time to move the bench in your shop, you will slide it more than lift it, but if you ever move shops, it will be a breeze to pull the bench top of the frame.

Here are some pics from my bench build several years back. My bench top just sits on the legs. Some guys attach with 3/4 or 1" bullet dowels instead of a mortise and tenon. Not a great design with a leg vise, but using a twin screw vise that is mounted to the underside of your bench top, you really don't need to glue these joints.

[lowell holmes]

My bench is not as massive as Joe's, but it has similar attachments. I have a front apron on my bench. I mimicked a Paul Sellers design.

[Phil Stone]

I worried about this as well when I was building my Roubo. The top turned out to be so heavy that fastening was not at all necessary. I might pin it with dowels if I was concerned about "tying" it down (I'm not -- it doesn't budge), but I don't think I'd ever consider gluing the legs to the top.

[Bob Cooper]

well it woudl be great it i didn't even need to pin just in case i ever decided to reuse the top in the future. So good to know. The top is 2.25 hard maple and not 4" as i've seen some but still going to be pretty heavy.

[Brian Holcombe]

Bob,

Just my opinion, that second bench..make that a separate table entirely and bolt the two together when needed, I don’t know your plan for that but I can see that getting in the way a lot.

Edit, I see your note about the joints.

[Bob Cooper]

Brian...if that second bench gets in the way it will be easy to decouple the two.

[Brian Holcombe]

Excellent!

[Phil Stone]

well it woudl be great it i didn't even need to pin just in case i ever decided to reuse the top in the future. So good to know. The top is 2.25 hard maple and not 4" as i've seen some but still going to be pretty heavy.

If you pin it without drawboring it (i.e, without offsetting the holes in the leg), you should be able to drive the dowels out fairly easily and remove the top.