I've Created a Monster... (Long w/Pics)

[Steve Wargo]

Yes, this is a monster. I needed a new bench. My old bench built 6 years ago and very crappy I might add needed to be replaced. It was lodged up against the wall and limited it's use. I have been teaching out of my small shop, and had no room for two benches so decided to make one monster bench to replace my old bench, assembly table, and scrap wood bin. In all I actually saved floor space. The top measures 74" x 50" and is a full 3" solid MDF. There is a hard board insert on top. The frame is some nice maple that I picked up from Lou Sansone (Thanks Lou) on my visit 3 weeks ago. The chest of drawers is acually from my old bench, but received a new veneer facelift (yes Alan, they were hammer veneered;)). There is a shelf that spans the entire length of one side for hand planes with a cabinet on one end to house a few ugly tools. The trim is all scrap mahogany, and the veneer is mottled makore. I've been considering veneering the top too, but I'm actually pretty pleased with the way this looks. The back side is my scrap wood bin, and the sides hold, hand screws, pinch sticks and winding sticks. The apron is ash, didn't have enough scrap mahogany, and stand proud of the MDF enough to hold the top replacable board in its place. The side panels, bottom, front of the scrap wood bin, and center divider are all 3/4" Birch Ply. Mortise and tenon construction, with some walnut dowel accents (just because). I have the board jack partially made and the bottom rail installed for it. Hope to wrap that up tomorrow night. The last picture is of the board jack uninstalled. The bench has been leveled in all planes and will not be moved for a long time. I imagine that without the tools or scrap wood it weighs somewhere around 550 pounds, loaded I'm guessing around 700. Class went well tonight, using it for the first time. To give an idea of the size, that is a Record 53 Face Vice. Any comments are welcome. Thanks.


http://madhunkyworkshop.com/images/TopShot.jpg


http://madhunkyworkshop.com/images/ToolSide.jpg


http://madhunkyworkshop.com/images/Coner2.jpg


http://madhunkyworkshop.com/images/Benchscrap.jpg


http://madhunkyworkshop.com/images/Corner.jpg


http://madhunkyworkshop.com/images/OpenCab.jpg


http://madhunkyworkshop.com/images/BoardJack.jpg

[Roy Wall]

Well, well...............a tad substantial indeed!!!!

Solid I believe........probably doubles as a conference table!!:cool:

Looks super and I love the cabinets - maybe you'll turn me into a veneer freak too!:D

Steve, you do great work - and I know this bench will only lead to more - well done!
Do the drawers house the planes??? Regardless, what are the dimensions.....??

[Dan Forman]

Steve---Nice work indeed!. It's big enough to throw a mattress on and let your apprentice sleep there. I see you already have a frying pan for him to prepare his evening meal. :D

Dan

[Pete Rowley]

Now that really is a beastie! Very nice. Are you planning to put another vise and set of dog holes on the other side? That bench is wide enough for two to work at comfortably for most things.

[Alan Turner]

Steve,
Nice work, as usual. I am assuming that for stability you went with the quartered MDF. :) What do you use your elec. skillet for? Heating sand for shading in lays? Enjoy.

[Steve Wargo]

Alan,
I laughed hard when I read that. Yes the skillet is for shading, and warming oil finishes.

[Dave Anderson NH]

There certainly won't be any shortage of workspace on that bench. I really hope you planned and replanned and re-replanned on where to put the bench. That would be a real hernia maker to have to move some day unless of course you have a forklift.;) The replaceable hardboard top is really useful for some types of work. My sharpening bench has one and I love it. When it gets really grungy I just flip it over and use the other side until it's dirty too and then I just replace it for all of about $5. I take it you didn't feel the need for multiple vises?

[Steve Wargo]

I take it you didn't feel the need for multiple vises?

Actually, if I work from the left end I can use the face vice as a tail vice, but only have 4' of clamping room. I purchased a Wonder Dog for the long side and figure if I'm not happy, I can purchase a Lee Valley twin screw for the end. But I'm affraid it might add too much weight too the bench :D.

[Erin Raasch]

Wow! That thing is huge! :eek: Looks like it could eat my bench for breakfast and have room left over. :p

Looks great, though - I bet you get lots of good use out of it. Can it be disassembled in case you ever decide to move?

Erin

[Steve Wargo]

If you mean taking the top off and moving two 250 pound pieces then I guess the answer is yes. But I'm not planning on moving anytime soon, unless I finally decide to break down and move into a new shop.

[Jeff Sudmeier]

Steve,

It looks great! We used to have huge benches like that in high school. They were great for learning and teaching.

[Doug Cowan]

Great looking bench! The mottled makore on the drawer fronts looks terrific!

[John Timberlake]

Steve,

You obviously have too much time on your hands. Don't think you can kid about a walnut bench with inlays any more. This bench looks great. You can always make a table for the drawers if you need a piece in a hurry. Can't wait to see it in person.

[John Miliunas]

That's WAY nice, Steve! Bet you can park a pickup on top of it and it wouldn't even creak! Nice job and the veneering is beautiful!:) :cool:

[Steve Wargo]

Finished the sliding board jack tonight, then decided to taker it for a test spin and thickness a piece of lumber. Man I'm happy. My old bench almost woke the kids up it creaked so much. This truely made planing theraputic. Thanks for all the comments, and John, you'll see it soon enough, see you this weekend.

[Bart Leetch]

My bench is made of a contribution of Poplar from my buddy Carey's shop the base frame is mortise & tenon with bolts & barrel nuts made of 3/4" brass bar. The legs & stretchers are rounded over with a 1/4" round over bit to just short of each end. The top is three layers the base layer is 1" plywood the middle layer is high density chipboard floor underlayment & the top layer is 1/4" Masonite banded with Poplar with a vice at each end. I grooved the legs where the front & back legs face each other & glued in 3/4" plywood so the ends are one piece There is a wood strip on the inside & outside screwed to the top & side where the top & this plywood come together by unscrewing it from the side I can remove the top. The pegboard is fastened over a strip spacer to allow hooks & pegs to be inserted. If I remember right the bench is 5'6" long & 3' wide & also serves as an off feed table for my Unisaw.

Further plans are for a 2 piece case work with drawers. A couple of deep ones in the left case for routers & biscuit joiner & some shallower drawers in the right case for hand tools. The ends of the cases will extend above the main part of the cases to facilitate full extension glides & a wide drawer going across the entire top of the 2 cases. This drawer is to be used for project plans & a place to empty the bench top for that forgotten piece that didn't get ripped or crosscut.

[Gary Herrmann]

Geez Steve that top must weigh about 300 lbs. Don't think you'll have any problem with racking. Nicely done. A new bench is on my long list of pending projects...

[Jim Becker]

Now that you have the lightweight assembly bench built, when are you going to get the hefty planing bench on the roll?? LOL! :D :D :D

Seriously, that's a great bench, Steve, and it sounds perfect for what you needed a bench to be.

[Chris Moore]

Wow! Nice work. And I thought my "benchzilla" was a monster (all pecan construction with a 4" thick top) at a hair over 400 lbs. I am most impressed!

[Alan DuBoff]

Wow! Nice work. And I thought my "benchzilla" was a monster (all pecan construction with a 4" thick top) at a hair over 400 lbs. I am most impressed!I'd like to see some pics if you have, pondering over using pecan and/or maple for top and/or base. I had originally bought a bunch of pecan, but recetenly have a lot of maple shorts, and might have enough longer pieces for a top.

I like the look of hickory/pecan more than maple, in regards to grain pattern, and it's hard. But I like to work with maple more, as a material. It planes much easier with a much cleaner result, requiring less force. As all things in life, wood can often be a tradeoff. I also have some walnut to throw into the equation should I choose, and both maple and pecan look wonderful with walnut. pecan heartwood and walnut is a killer combo, for my own tastes.

Steve, glad to see this old thread crop up, possibly more than you... :p but could you explain the veneer process, or have you discussed that in this or other thread? I didn't see anything besides you hammer veneered it. Killer looking veneer! :cool:

[Jerry Olexa]

Steve that is a REAL bench. Nicely done! Beautiful work!!

[Ed Harrison]

Very, very cool. Reminds me of some of the workbenches my Dad had in his high school shop classes when I was growing up - big, square benches with vises at each of the four corners so four kids could work at the bench at the same time. Sturdy? Yep, you could say that. Congrats.

[Steve Wargo]

Steve, glad to see this old thread crop up, possibly more than you... :p but could you explain the veneer process, or have you discussed that in this or other thread? I didn't see anything besides you hammer veneered it. Killer looking veneer! :cool:

Alan,
Sorry for the delay in replying to the veneer process. Basically I used the set of drawers from my old bench and gave them a little rehab. I planed the surface of the drawers again to remove the ugly stain on them. Then went through the process of hammer veneering. Hot hide glue and in about 20 minutes all of the drawers wer done. A light sanding, and then a coat of tung oil. Nothing fancy (except for the veneer). Hope this helps. Feel free to e-mail if you have any more questions. thanks.

[Alan DuBoff]

Steve,

They certainly came out nice. I was curious of the veneer process and how exactly it's done. Seems that you kinda squeegee it and/or tap it.

I've liked the drawers on your bench since seeing it, they really look nice. One day I'll get my bench done...<sigh>

I got side tracked with a piece of old iron...:eek:

I need to get back working on my bench...:o</sigh>

[Steve Wargo]

O.K. Here goes. But please understand, that it is actually easier to learn this when you see it done. But I'll try to explain it as best I can.

Get your hide glue a little thicker than normal. This will mean that you have to work quickly, and usually works best when working with smaller sized surfaces. Mix it normal when working with larger panels (about the consistancy of heavy cream).

Now these next steps are done a quickly as possible.

Lay a coating of hot hide glue onto the substraight. Then position the veneer. Then lay another coating of hide glue on the top of veneer. This will keep the veneer from curling on you, and also seals the veneer (kind of like pore filling).

Then take your veneer hammer and use it like a squeegee to remove the excess glue from the top of the veneer, and squeeze out the excess from under the veneer. Take the excess and put it back into the glue pot. Continue pushing the veneer hammer all around the piece, taking care not to push to far over the edges of the substraight (cracking the veneer). Most the time you can hear the glue start to harden. It will start to crackle under the veneer and then you know that you're about done. Don't worry too much about small bubbles. Sometimes as the hide glue shrinks it will pull them down. but if not a piece of wax paper and an iron will fix them no problem.

The biggest issues that you'll have to deal with are... Making sure that you've coated the entire substraight with glue, and working quickly. Once you've done a few samples with success you'll be amazed how easy it is to do. Seaming is a whole other animal with hammer veneering, but not any harder than the above process. Good luck, and I hope this helps.

[Roy Wall]

Steve,

I noticed on the lee valley site they had two types of hide glue - on setting slower than the other.........any comments on this?

I'm going to start using this stuff!

I have a small "poporri" crock pot and regular 2 qt crock pot......can you heat the stuff up in this??

thanks......

[Steve Clardy]

Very nice bench indeed!

[Ken Werner]

great job, Steve. Use it well.

Ken

[Gary Breckenridge]

:o Your new bench sure beats the old harvest table that I'm using.:o

[Steve Wargo]

I use 220g Liberon. The best hide glue I've ever found. Period. It doesn't smell badly like some of the other hide glues. I've also used the 192g strength and was more than please with it for veneer work. The 220g is a good all around glue. Can be used for joinery, or veneer work.

[Roy Wall]

I use 220g Liberon. The best hide glue I've ever found. Period. It doesn't smell badly like some of the other hide glues. I've also used the 192g strength and was more than please with it for veneer work. The 220g is a good all around glue. Can be used for joinery, or veneer work.

Thanks Steve,

Do you have a link or two of a supplier?? LV has (what looks to be) a good veneer hammer......

What about those "pre made hide glue bottles"???

[Steve Wargo]

Liquid Hide glue takes forever to dry. Not even the same animal (no pun intended). Do as search for Star Finishes out of California I think for the liberon glue. Actually I think that Joel sells it as well, but could be wrong.

[Alan DuBoff]

Steve,

Thanks for the explanation, that helps a lot. I've never put any veneer on anything, and was curious how it's done. I have seen people talk about various ways, the hammer being one of them, which is why I was curious. I also see folks talk about vacuum baggin it also, but was more curious in the way you described.

Do you ever use this approach to inlay veneer inside of another piece?

I love the look of your drawers, what type of veneer is that? Is that Bubinga, Paduk? Nice looking veneer.

[Steve Wargo]

I usually use yellow or white glue for inlay work. The veneer is mottled Makore. Just some scraps I had left over.

[John Kempkes]

:eek: You forgot to veneer the MDF on top!!! :D

Nice looking bench. There are a couple of ideas there for me to steal.

[Alan DuBoff]

I usually use yellow or white glue for inlay work. The veneer is mottled Makore. Just some scraps I had left over.That Makore looks swell!

[Andy Fox]

Nice looking bench Steve!