Just a few questions.

[Jeff]

Hey fellas,
I have a Couple questions for you guys. Iam 16 and have been building a workshop in my garage for about 2 years(i quit messing with it for bout 6 months last year when my father passed away) and i want to get this sucker finished. I just finished making thewall storage cabinates and now I'm looking to make me a work bench. My old work bench (my first) was made of pine framing lumber and was about 2.5' to 3'. And I had problems such as work surfuace and durability. Planned on making it out of maple hickory or oak, (Anyone suggest wich is best)? And Iwandered what you guys suggested for size. I know that bench tops are normally rectangularly shaped and i thought it would be easier to assemble projects if it were square but i still want bench dogg and all that. And I also wandered if u guys preferred square or round bench dogs or if u guys have ways of making your own. Well, I'd apprieciate any information or suggestion you guys have . Thanx ....Jeffrey T. Dolph Jr.

[Lou_williams]

I am not really sure how much help I can be because my bench is not like most peoples. It is more of an assembly table. It is 6 ft by 3 ft. That is too wide for a real work bench but about right for the assembly table part. My whole set up is built with 1 1/8 Sub Floor plywood. The top has a hardboard top. I just got a vice and will be using round bench dogs for my use. that is because it is a lot easier to add them to an existing work bench than the swuare dogs.

I have always wanted to build a Europien style work bench. They are made from Beach and the best sub here is maple. The normal sixw is about 5 to 6 ft long and about 2 ft wide. The short debth is so it is easy to reach things on the bench.


There are good plans for work benches from almost all the online suppliers. The hard part is makeing the real vises needed and getting the hardware to build them. Good luck with your efforts. Remember to work safely.

[Flatlander]

I agree with everything that Lou said....as for the material, all the woods you mentioned would be good (Maple or hickory probably the best)but likely very expensive. Grizzly has just started selling work bench tops for a fairly reasonable cost. They are 1 1/2 inches thick (I think) and in a variety of sizes. Made out of maple. Might be easier/faster/cheaper to get one of these. Good luck, and work safely.

[MadMark]

I have two "benches" in an L configuration in my shop. One is a 8'x3' folding table and the other is a 2' door on some sawhorses.

Depending on the type of work you do an expensive bench may be overkill.

I use a routing pad to hold work in place for sanding and it works well for all but the smallest pieces.

I don't do carving or hand planing so there is little need for a vice or bench dogs.

A soft top on your bench is (IMHO) better than a hard one. You want the bench to 'give' instead of dinging your projects! I'm not going to make a bench out of something I'm going to worry about. A benchtop is a *work* surface. Mine has glue spots, nicks, drill holes, stains, etc. all over it. Doesn't bother me a bit and doesn't impact it's usefulness either.

Some folx like a nice "formal" bench. They want the top to be beautiful. However if you can *SEE* the top of your bench then you're not doing much work! I run a continuous stream of projects thru the shop (typically several at different stages) and most days you can't see enough of the top to tell what color it is much less admire the finish. And I *DO* clean!

Here's a pic:

http://www.netexperts.cc/~lambertm/Wood/incra06.jpg

M

[rrich]

But Mark, where's the cupholder? ;)

[karl in pa]

It looks like the cupholder is next to the chop saw. Or is that the glue cup?

[MadMark]

Cupholder is next to mini drill press that doubles as Martini stirrer! ;)

M