Beech slab 24x2x10ft.

[brian park]

hello,new here and have a question,i acquired a 24in.wide by 2in. thickx10ft. long piece aof beech I would like to use for a roubo bench top but would like to make it 4in. thick some how. does anyone see any problems laminating another species of wood to the bottom side to get my 4in. thick. I cant get anymore of the beech thanks

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Welcome to the creek.

I vaguely remember seeing a similar question in the past few months, but I could not find it :mad:

I assume that for your question you mean take two huge boards like this and then glue these two pieces together. My biggest concerns are:



It may be difficult to get the two pieces to mate properly, which leads into what is probably my main concern
How do you apply sufficient pressure to connect them and hold them until the glue sets? If you do give this a try, I would think you would need to have the boards on a flat surface and then use weights to apply pressure in the middle portion, which would then probably preclude clamps on the outer portion. I suppose that you could screw it together but use a pattern so that you know where you can drill dog holes.


Usually when I see this done, the wood is cut into strips and then glued with the edges facing up. In your case, that would mean ripping your boards 4 inches wide, placing them on edge, and then gluing those together (which would feel like a horrid shame for the large board that you have).

This is a really tough question :D

Can't wait to see what all those experts have to say.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Looks like Christopher Swartz has done it and he used screws down the center. Also notice that he does not have two full slabs.
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/workbenches/schwarz-workbenches/video-build-a-3-thick-benchtop-in-one-hour

This may be the post I had seen previously
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?231491-New-workbench-top-glue-up-advice

[Jim Koepke]

Brian,

Welcome to the Creek. Your location isn't in your profile. If you are in the Pacific Northwest, I would gladly trade some other hardwood for the beech. I would want to try and make some planes with it.

I can see more problems than benefits with your plan.

Are there other good varieties of wood for a bench in your location?

jtk

[brian park]

im in Pa. I would rally like to keep the single slab of beech in one piece. but im not sure what if any problems I might run into if I try to laminate say some ash to the bottom of it to get the thickness to 4in. or so. I was also wondering if just the 2in. piece would be thick enough. I do a lot of hand work and mortice by hand so it will take some pounding and I don't know if the 2in. is enough thickness

[Daniel Rode]

I might consider using it to make a bench with a 2" center and a 4" apron.

[Jim Koepke]

I was also wondering if just the 2in. piece would be thick enough.

Two inches would be good for most work. It is good practice to cut a mortice/mortise over a leg for better support and less flex.

It may be a good idea to laminate an inch or two of ash or other hard wood where you will have a row of dog holes.

The rest is a matter of what you prefer.

jtk

[John Kananis]

Nothing wrong with a 2" top. BTW, hek of a piece of beech there - you will have to plane the top a bit more often than a laminated top since the single piece will cup (one way or another) faster than a lamination. Would you consider ripping it in half for a split-top? Also, if you wanted to make the bench more substantial, there is nothing wrong with a skirt that is thicker than the rest of the top (actually a benefit in many ways).

[Phil Stone]

im in Pa. I would rally like to keep the single slab of beech in one piece. but im not sure what if any problems I might run into if I try to laminate say some ash to the bottom of it to get the thickness to 4in. or so. I was also wondering if just the 2in. piece would be thick enough. I do a lot of hand work and mortice by hand so it will take some pounding and I don't know if the 2in. is enough thickness

I don’t think you necessarily have to laminate (i.e. glue) the two species. I’m just finishing (literally, applying finish to) a hybrid-top Roubo. I have a maple Bally Block top, 1-3/4” thick, on top of a 3-1/4” douglas fir sub-top. In my case, the sub-top is more like a frame than a solid top, but it adds mass and stiffness to the maple top. I really like the way it’s come out. (I’ll post a thread about soon, when it’s completely done).

323419

The leg mortises keep the tops aligned and fixed sufficiently, I find, so that they don’t have to be glued. This also has the benefit of allowing them to move independently as the seasons change. Otherwise, I’d be concerned about laminating two species that have very different amounts of seasonal movement. In fact, this design has some lateral room-to-move in the back leg mortises.

There are many plus and minuses to this top/sub-top arrangement, and again, I’ll post more fully about it soon. But I think if you’re determined to use this beech slab and want a thicker top, it’s a good solution.

Edit: I also think 2" is plenty thick for a top, especially with a sturdy wood like beech. But I understand the desire for more beef.

[Brian Holcombe]

I'd probably hang onto this for another project, and buy some inexpensive white hardwood lumber in 8/4 x 4.5"~

[Reinis Kanders]

Pretty neat idea for the top, a bit complicated maybe, but I like it.


I don’t think you necessarily have to laminate (i.e. glue) the two species. I’m just finishing (literally, applying finish to) a hybrid-top Roubo. I have a maple Bally Block top, 1-3/4” thick, on top of a 3-1/4” douglas fir sub-top. In my case, the sub-top is more like a frame than a solid top, but it adds mass and stiffness to the maple top. I really like the way it’s come out. (I’ll post a thread about soon, when it’s completely done).

323419

The leg mortises keep the tops aligned and fixed sufficiently, I find, so that they don’t have to be glued. This also has the benefit of allowing them to move independently as the seasons change. Otherwise, I’d be concerned about laminating two species that have very different amounts of seasonal movement. In fact, this design has some lateral room-to-move in the back leg mortises.

There are many plus and minuses to this top/sub-top arrangement, and again, I’ll post more fully about it soon. But I think if you’re determined to use this beech slab and want a thicker top, it’s a good solution.

Edit: I also think 2" is plenty thick for a top, especially with a sturdy wood like beech. But I understand the desire for more beef.

[ken hatch]

im in Pa. I would rally like to keep the single slab of beech in one piece. but im not sure what if any problems I might run into if I try to laminate say some ash to the bottom of it to get the thickness to 4in. or so. I was also wondering if just the 2in. piece would be thick enough. I do a lot of hand work and mortice by hand so it will take some pounding and I don't know if the 2in. is enough thickness

Brian,

A couple of thoughts. Beech is notorious for doing stupid wood tricks, it would not be the first on my list for face gluing to another type of wood. While 2" is a little thin for a Roubo type bench it is perfect for an English style bench. As with all things wood....YMMV, but I find an English bench better for my work flow than a French bench. I know that is heresy in today's WWW, it is all Roubos, leg vises, and wagon vices but there are other ways that work as well or maybe better.

My bench is a hybrid, I call it a Cross Chanel bench, it has French bones with an English skin. It may not be for everyone but it is the best work bench I've worked on.

Here it is with a Roubo style bench with leg vise and wagon vise in the back ground. BTW, it is made of Beech and in spite of Beech doing wood tricks if I build another (I expect I will, building benches is kinda like doing IBA motorcycle rides...makes no sense once you have done one but it becomes a compulsion) it will be made of Beech:

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh222/VTXAZ/legViceIIOtherSide20150926_zpsfho9wycc.jpg

ken

[Steve Voigt]

I'm with Ken and/or Brian. If your heart is set on using this piece of wood, make a Nicholson (English) bench--it's the perfect size for a really long Nicholson, and the bench will be easier and cheaper to make. On the other hand, if your heart is set on a Roubo, use something else and save the beech for another day.

[george wilson]

Do you know that most of the imported Ulmia and other German and Swiss style benches are TWO inches thick with only a 4" front edge where the dog holes and tail vise go?

They use English style benches like Ken's above in the Anthony Hay cabinet shop in Williamsburg. Everything on the tops and front apron is 2" maple.