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Benchtop Curing
After Being Joined
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The finished size of the benchtop is 93"
in width X 34" in depth X 1.25" in thickness. The top
is constructed of Bazilian Cherry and Chichipota that was milled
from larger lumber into selected sizes. |
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Cabinet and Benchtop
Come Together for First Time
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After installation of the casters (two solid
+ 2 swivel with locks), the 3/4" maple plywood with solid
3/4" maple face frame - double sided could be moved with
some ease to various workstations on the main floor of the shop.
In this photo, the drawers, doors and faceframe panels have yet
to be built or installed. |
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3" Spacer
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This 3" spacer is used to connect the benchtop
to the lower case. The inclusion of this spacer allows for mounting
of two vices without hinderance of the main box that supports
the entire unit. |
Back
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Biscuit
Joinery
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The alignment of the three sub-parts into one
major slab of hardwood would have been a very difficult job if
not for the biscuit joinery tool and #20 biscuits that both added
strength to the joint and kept the three small slabs in-line
with each other while the clamps were applied and the glue cured. |
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Critical
Accuracy of Benchtop
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Cutting with saws either by hand or powered did
not do the precise job that a large router with a .5" shank
three carbide cutter head would do with a 'trailing board' to
follow on the bottom side. The measurement of this large slab
was within 1/16" of being square. |
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A Little Sun and
Warm Air Helps the Curing Process
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The entire project was rolled outdoors into the
fresh air to help with the drying process. Three days were allowed
for curing before moving of the final slab was done. |
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A Little Extra Help
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To avoid bothering other shop personnel and saving
my back in moving this slab of hardwood that was estimated to
weigh near 150 pounds, a 10K lift truck was used to move the
final project around and up into the air to provide for an easy
working height. |
Back
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Faceframe
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This view of the workbench provides an idea of
the final design. Drawers of 5", 7" and 8.5" depth
on both sides of a large storage area should give plenty of storage
for hand and power tools. A Jorgensen 10" face vice will
be mounted on the left overhang and a Veritas Twin-Screw vice
will be mounted on the far right of the front of the bench. At
this time, the entire project is estimated to weigh near 400
pounds. |
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A Solid Line of
Yellow Glue
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A double coat of 'TiteBond' on both sides of
the joint was applied plus #20 biscuits were added every 8"
the length of the two major joints. The shop's entire collection
of pipe clamps over 4' length were used in the final glue-up. |
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Jorgensen
Bench Vice Connection
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The 10" wide Jorgensen was chosen both for
its capacity and the quick disconnect for easy sizing of the
jaws on the project. The attachment of the vice was quite easy
once the large block of solid material was created and attached
to the underside of the benchtop. A Skilsaw made the initial
cuts that outlined the boundaries of the connection area. Then
a 16" electric chainsaw was used to shape the cut into the
large block of glued-up plywood. |
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More on the Jorgensen!
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This view of the connection between the Jorgensen
bench vise and the left overhang of the workbench top shows more
of the layout. A great deal of use of the forklift truck was
made to hold such heavy objects in place while measurements were
made or drilling was needed. |
Back
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Still More on
the Jorgensen
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This view of the front bench vise shows the jaws
to be modified with a slab of Brazilian Cherry with a lamination
of Maple all of which is then screwed to the jaw face for a stable
gripping action. |
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The Veritas
Twin-Screw Vice
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A dream workbench should have two basic complimentary
vices - a face vice and and end vice. The Veritas Twin Screw
Vice was chosen because of its capacity and durability. |
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The Veritas
Twin-Screw Vice Bench Connections
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The Veritas Vice attaches to the bench top via
two large (1.5") steel screw plates attached with eight
#16 X 2" screws. More stability is provided with a quadrupled
end caps between the case and the top. A great deal of work went
into getting a close alignment of all four layers of material
in order for the threaded steel rods to correctly work. |
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The Skirt of Brazilian Cherry + Jaw
Faces
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A skirt of Brazilian Cherry wraps the entire
perimeter of the workbench. A cabinet screws were counter sunk
in preparation for the insertion of matching wooden plugs and
then carefully sanding each plug to the correct height. |
Back
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The Veritas
Jaw Faces
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The workbench has been in use almost from the
day that the top, center and bottom sections were connected.
Here we see a Porter-Cable OmniJig mounted in the Jorgensen face
vice. The top of the workbench has been covered with a heavy
layer of fiberboard to protect the finish from damage while the
rest of the bottom of the workbench is completed. |
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The First Bath |
"The Bench" just received its first bath of a mixture
of 50% mineral spirits and the balance in Tung Oil. Such a mixture
was applied so that the maximum penetration could be achieved.
The rich color of the Chichipota (light to dark chocolate
browns) as compared to the Brazilian Cherry is both striking
and complimentary.
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Matching Plugs |
All screws are countersunk at least .25"
providing for the placement of a tapered plug cut from the same
material. The plugs were glued in place and cut with a plug saw
(a saw with teeth-set only on one side for flush cutting of plugs). |
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Top Is Soaking |
The bench top has been wiped first with clean
cloth soaked in mineral spirits to remove all dust. Then the
same white towel was used with the 50-50 mixture of thinner and
oil. The top was continually wiped with a wet towel for nearly
thirty minutes. |
Back
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View of Veritas Vice End |
The bottom of the bench top has been sheathed
in .25" maple plywood to protect the mechanisms for the
two vices. This sheithing also allows for easy application of
small pressure clamps around the entire perimeter of the benchtop. |
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Jorgensen Vice Underlayment |
The .25" maple plywood was cut from a cardboard
templet with some degree of difficulty. The .25" plywood
is secured with several screws for easy removal for cleaning
and ease of replacement if broken due to excessive pressure applied
with bar clamps. The view is now clean. |
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New Casters |
I was disappointed with the 'new' old 4"
hard-rubber casters that were originally purchased for the workbench
from Orchard Supply Hardware. The new 5" polypropolene casters
were recently purchased from the WoodCraft Store in San Carlos,
CA. The lockable two units have an unique locking mechanism far
superior to anything found on the open market. |
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Bench Dogs |
Two sets of 3/4" bench-dog holes were bored
through the 2" benchtop. Two sets of Veritas brass 'dogs'
were purchased to allow for a variety of holding positions. |
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 Drawer Slides |
Accuride Universal 20" slides were used
on all six drawers. Accuride units allow for full extension and
will hold up to 150 pounds. The installation time took near six
hours or one hour per drawer. |
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Dovetail Joinery |
All workbench drawers were constructed of solid
maple hardwood planed down to 5/8" thickness. All joinery
was construction of dovetails using our new Porter-Cable 16"
Omni-Jig and Bosch router. The drawer bottoms of 1/4" maple
plywood was routed flush with the bottom edge. |
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Drawer Slides |
Accuride Universal 20" slides were used
on all six drawers. Accuride units allow for full extension and
will hold up to 150 pounds. The installation time took near six
hours or one hour per drawer. |
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Bulkheads |
Three 3/4 maple plywood 'bulkheads' were constructed
approximately 7" inside the side opposite the drawers. The
drawers were downsized to 20" depth to provide this storage
area that will be devoted to small power tools stored on individual
racks. This side of the workbench is covered with full maple
raised panels. |
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Polisher/Buffer |
The blue Makita 7" polisher/buffer was used
to apply the final finish to this workbench top. A diluted Tung
oil was first applied, then wiped - a second coat of straight
tung oil was then used, the excess was wiped off. Several rub-downs
with OOOO steelwood were completed. When the surface felt dry,
a liberal coat of dark finishing wax was applied and buffed to
a low luster. Two major applications of wax was applied, allowed
to dry and then buffed. |
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The Jorgensen Side Vice |
The Jorgensen side vice in its original configuration
could hold a project some 10" in length. With the maple
and Brazilian cherry inserts now used, the jaw opening has been
reduced to 8" inches - still plenty big enough for most
objects that may need repair or work done. |
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Tung Oil Vs. Lacquer |
At the first visit of the WoodCraft store in
San Carlos for workbench top finishes, lacquer was my only choice.
After many hours of debate with myself a far reaching decision
was forthcoming - tung oil, followed by a liberal dose of rubdown
and circular sheepskins rugs. |
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The Final Bench Color and
Finish |
Chichipota and Brazilian cherry are now living
a full and distinguished career in the workshop of Almaden Custom
Woodworking. Many full wax rubdowns are planned for this workbench.
Plus, the workbench has already been spoken for by a family member
and several friends. |
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The Finished Project is Within
Sight!!! |
It has been almost a year since this project
was first designed. Twelve months and several hundred dollars
later, it is near completion. The full maple drawer fronts, doors
and panels still need to be installed. Special trim cut from
the Brazilian cherry will be used to accent the maple case. Special
blocks of BC will be made into finger pulls or drawer pulls for
the lower case. |
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Back to Index
| The Final Bench Color and
Finish |
Chichipota and Brazilian cherry are now living
a full and distinguished career in the workshop of Almaden Custom
Woodworking. Many full wax rubdowns are planned for this workbench.
Plus, the workbench has already been spoken for by a family member
and several friends. |
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| The
Budget |
An Excel spreadsheet was used to keep track of
the purchases over the past twelve months. No major surprises
were experienced in the project. |
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| Hold It! Plans Change |
In the final analysis, chichipota and Bazilian cherry did
not like a wax finish over tung oil. Every thing was removed
with steel wool and light orbital sanding with 220 grit discs.
The tung oil would not soak in or stop bleeding out. Constant
wiping with towels, application of extreme heat to dry out the
tung oil was applied. Nothing worked. The chichipota would become
dull after thirty minutes. It looked great right after an application
of wax but then it would become dull.
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Top Refinished & Cabinet Topped Off
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The workbench top was cleaned of the tung oil
and finished with wipeable polyurthene. The top is now finished
to my specifications. The cabinet case was conditioned with Minwax
Conditioner, covered with Minwax combination stain and polyurethene.
I did not like the color so a Minwax dark walnut stain was added. |
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Cabinet Case Finished |
The cabinet case was sealed with a 'conditioner'
to avoid full absorbtion of new material. A polyurethene finish
that also contained a stain. The finished project was to pinkish
in color. A dark walnut stain was added, sealed with two coats
of lacquer sealer, sanded and finally topped with two coats of
special lacquer. The cabinet was lightly sanded between each
coat. |
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Drawers Are Finished |
The six drawers of 5/8" solid cherry have
a conditioner, dark walnut stain and four coats of lacquer for
their final appearance. All hardware had to be removed before
the finish process came to a conclusion. All parts were 'dry-fitted'
and then dismantled. |
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Cabinet Doors Hide Storage
Area |
Opposite the drawers on the other side of the
workbench is three distinct areas that are seven inches deep
by the same dimensions as the opposite side of the bench. The
purpose of these shallow storage areas are for shelving to support
small power tools and parts bins for nails, screws and assorted
workshop parts. |
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Cabinet and Workbench Top Compliment Each
Other
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It had been a design goal to have the supporting
cabinet base and workbench top to compliment each other in terms
of colors. The final color of the supporting cabinet is finished
with a near glaze type appearance maybe duplicating years of
application of a heavy wax to all the wood surfaces of the bench
as might have been done in the distant past. |
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Sales File - Left Photo |
This front right side photo shows the Veritas
twin screw vice, the benchtop, matching panels covering sides
and ends.The darkened pecan finish was done to duplicate years
of waxing near a glaze finish. |
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Sales File - Center Photo |
Opposite the drawers on the other side of the
workbench are the three shallow storage areas are for power/handtools
and part bins for nails, screws and assorted workshop clutter.. |
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Sales File - Right Photo |
This photo shows the detail given to the door
and drawer handle devices. The backing plates are constructed
of 3/16" Brazilian cherry - then finely sanded and coated
with the same finish as the benchtop. All drawers and doors are
given the same treatment.. |
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Duane, Ryan |
& Ramon 
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I credit these three gentlemen with giving me the knowledge
and interest in continuing the project through many of the tedious
moments.
There are only the drawers to mount and align. The project
should be done by noon, Wednesday, November 27 - some thirteen
months after the original drawing was done of the project.
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Great Support
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Duane, Ryan and Ramon have been great help in the construction
of this 'dream' project. Duane is the owner of Acanthus Cabinetry,
Ryan is Duane's son and works for the shop. Ramon is a part-time
employee as a cabinetmaker for Mr. Kegley.
A great amount of advice and physical help has been
given by the owner of Acanthus Custom Cabinetry - Duane Kegley
- and his employee - Ramon Franseca and Duane's son - Ryan. My
gratitude for their help and guidance.
Lou Williams - "One Proud Dream Workbench Owner"
Last Update -Sunday, December 3, 2006 @ 7:30 PM
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