Frank Klausz Workbench

[Roy Lindberry]

Does anybody know where I can find actual plans for the Scandanavian bench made popular by Frank Klausz? It seems that Landis' book may have them, but I read one review that said it didn't contain plans. I'm trying to track them down, but with no luck. I figured some of my fellow cavemen might know where I can get them.

Thanks in advance.

[Mark Salomon]

Yes, the Landis book has plans for the Klausz bench in the back and an article with exploded diagrams in the body of the book. You can get a nice used copy at Alibris:

http://www.alibris.com/search/books/qwork/7291222/used/The%20Workbench%20Book

[tico vogt]

It's a wonderful bench. I built one using Landis' book. Here is a short blog post about the shoulder vice http://www.ticovogt.com/?p=374.
I learned a few important lessons in the building process, the most important of which is: draw in full scale on story boards or cardboard the full-sized layout. I messed up getting one dog hole too close to a leg. Another lesson is to avoid the Ulmia steel bench dogs that Frank uses. The steel springs along the sides trap dust and shavings and end up getting packed out hard. One more thing to consider is that, with the long cantilever of the tail vice, the end of the bench top will slightly droop down over time. An extra support under that far end cap would be a good idea.

A couple years ago I re-trued the top and went over the bench to tighten everything up. On the meeting faces of the vices I screwed 1/4" thick masonite with the rough face out. That really improved the gripping (thanks, Ron Brese). For the finish I used this great formula from Steve Mickley:

"Shave a hen's-egg-size chunk of beeswax (about 2-ounces) into thin strips using a knife or food grater. Put the beeswax shavings into a pint (16-ounces) of pure gum turpentine and cover until the wax is dissolved into a butter-like blend. Next, add an equal volume of BLO and stir until the mixture is combined into a thick liquid. Brush or wipe the blend over your workbench and allow the "finish" to be absorbed into the wood for an hour or two before you squeegee off the excess. (Put the excess in a tightly sealed container—it is still good and can be used to renew the finish in the future.) Allow the finish to "cure" for a few days and then buff to a soft shine. The original version of this very old recipe called for raw linseed oil. This finish, or something very close to this finish, was most probably used on most of the surviving 18th and 19th century work benches."

[Roy Lindberry]

Thank you Mark.

I have the book on its way to my house! This is why I ask questions here - there's always somebody who has an answer.

[Roy Lindberry]

It's a wonderful bench. I built one using Landis' book. Here is a short blog post about the shoulder vice http://www.ticovogt.com/?p=374.
I learned a few important lessons in the building process, the most important of which is: draw in full scale on story boards or cardboard the full-sized layout. I messed up getting one dog hole too close to a leg. Another lesson is to avoid the Ulmia steel bench dogs that Frank uses. The steel springs along the sides trap dust and shavings and end up getting packed out hard. One more thing to consider is that, with the long cantilever of the tail vice, the end of the bench top will slightly droop down over time. An extra support under that far end cap would be a good idea.

A couple years ago I re-trued the top and went over the bench to tighten everything up. On the meeting faces of the vices I screwed 1/4" thick masonite with the rough face out. That really improved the gripping (thanks, Ron Brese). For the finish I used this great formula from Steve Mickley:

"Shave a hen's-egg-size chunk of beeswax (about 2-ounces) into thin strips using a knife or food grater. Put the beeswax shavings into a pint (16-ounces) of pure gum turpentine and cover until the wax is dissolved into a butter-like blend. Next, add an equal volume of BLO and stir until the mixture is combined into a thick liquid. Brush or wipe the blend over your workbench and allow the "finish" to be absorbed into the wood for an hour or two before you squeegee off the excess. (Put the excess in a tightly sealed container—it is still good and can be used to renew the finish in the future.) Allow the finish to "cure" for a few days and then buff to a soft shine. The original version of this very old recipe called for raw linseed oil. This finish, or something very close to this finish, was most probably used on most of the surviving 18th and 19th century work benches."

Thanks for the tips, Tico. My build will probably be over an extended period of time, so I will try to digest as many tips and as much information as I can. But I've decided that a bench is the next thing I need - far more than more hand tools.

[Roy Lindberry]

Oh, and anybody else who has already built this bench.....please let me know of any tips, tricks or pitfalls to avoid. I'm looking forward doing this project, and hopefully documenting the build to share it with you guys (and gals).

[Frank Drew]

I built my bench from plans FineWoodworking published years ago of Tage Frid's bench; the Klaus bench is basically the same design, a European standard woodworking bench. I omitted the tool trough, though; having previously worked on a bench with one, I think they're unnecessary in the kinds of shops most of us work in (lots of storage space) and are mostly dust and shavings catching p.i.a.

If you don't want to go to the trouble to mix up your own finish, a good quality oil finish right out of the can would be hard to beat, IMO.

And I've never tried masonite, but leather makes excellent vise facings; I like rough side out, which makes it a bit grippier.

[Peter Cobb]

Roy if you want it straight from the horses mouth, there is an article in FWW 53? with Klausz' bench (http://www.finewoodworking.com/Workshop/WorkshopPDF.aspx?id=2129). If you want to see the pdf file I think you can sign up for free.
Cheers,
Peter