Split Top Roubo

[Zuye Zheng]

Started 4 months ago and finally done (for now)!
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Went with traditional joints for the leg and draw bored caps (since I didn't bother flattening/thicknessing the bottom of the slabs).
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Reclaimed Philippine mahogany back and hard maple front slabs. Finished with equal parts danish oil, wipe on poly, and mineral spirits.
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Laminated 2x4 Douglas Fir legs and stretchers with draw bored mortise and tenon.
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Benchcrafted leg vise and criss cross, looking at the photo now seems screw alignment is slightly off but able to fully open and close with a good spin. Lined with cork.
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Veritas quick release sliding tail vise with a 3.5" thick jaw.
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Black Bear forge 3/4" hold fasts. Top is 3" and change thick, but tried on the 4" thick leg and held well in both cases. I messed up one of the dog holes and ended up drilling at an angle. No fault of the hold fast but with a skewed dog hole, the barbed veritas hold down performed much better.
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Need to get some other projects done first but plan on adding an insert for the split and a sliding deadman. Pretty excited to pound some stuff on the new bench.

[Andy Nichols]

Double post...


mos maiorum,
Andy

[Andy Nichols]

Great looking bench, you should be very proud, and only 4 months, that's amazing ( to me )

Have built and helped build a couple of benchs with wagon style end vises, but decided to go with a LN tail vise on my new bench, and absolutely love it....

Also have a BC Crisscross, it requires some "toe in" to work properly, believe that's what you're seeing.

mos maiorum,
Andy

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Excellent build. I love the mahogany and dovetailed through tenon.

[Malcolm McLeod]

Looks great.

SMC inspired me to stop procrastinating, so I started mine just after Christmas.

[Owen Stefaniak]

Beautiful bench! I look forward to seeing the sliding deadman when complete

[Christopher Charles]

Zuye,

4 months is a speed record! Looks great and I hope you enjoy yours as much I have enjoyed mine. Thanks for posting and will look forward to seeing your next project.

Best,
Chris

[David Eisenhauer]

Great stuff ZZ. Outstanding! The first photo with the tool cabinets nearby says you are ready to go.

[Patrick Walsh]

I will say it again. In general i really really like this bench.

But man i love that end vise. Im kimda bummed i am just using the regular old benchdrafted version..

[Tony Shea]

I have been really considering buying the new LV quick release tail vise. How do you like the performance of this vise? I know it is still early to tell buy what are your first impressions? I have to build a new bench top out of maple some day but am waiting to move into our new house to tackle this task. But I would like to have a better tail vise than the regular face vise I placed there. I took the easy way out and followed Schwarz's recommendation of using a face vise there and have regretted that decision from day 1. I have considered the BC wagon vise but I really like the ability of the traditional tail vise to clamp objects without having to thread the work piece through the small hole of a wagon vise. About the only traditional tail vise I would consider is the LN but this LV quick release looks very intriguing. The install looks super simple and the function almost seems nicer than a tradition tail vise.

Your bench really turned out incredible and you should be really proud of it. The joinery is very clean and the choice of wood really makes it stand out. I understand that bench isn't necessarily supposed to look good but it certainly doesn't hurt. It gives you that inspirational feeling to do the best work you possibly can every time you walk into the shop. Great work!!

[Zuye Zheng]

Thanks for looking guys!


I will say it again. In general i really really like this bench.

But man i love that end vise. Im kimda bummed i am just using the regular old benchdrafted version..

I think the open front of the Veritas will come in handy but since the guides are only on one side vs the benchcrafted, there's some play/lift when tightening. Also after using the leg vise, I try to spin everything out of habit now, the tail vise bar doesn't do quite as well.

[Kevin Hampshire]

Zuye, I'm also interested in how the Veritas is working for you and if you'd continue to update us on its performance.

Do you think the 3" chop is a factor?

[William Fretwell]

I like the extra top depth next to the right leg on one side. The dog holes don't extend past the front leg vise for some reason?
Your build time is impressive!

I must admit however I don't really 'get' the Roubo bench compared to the traditional Scandinavian bench.

[Zuye Zheng]

Zuye, I'm also interested in how the Veritas is working for you and if you'd continue to update us on its performance.

Do you think the 3" chop is a factor?

The chop is around 3.5" wide and 6.75" thick (with 3+" thick top), the recommended is 2" and around 6" (with 2" thick top). It's working pretty well now although there is some lift up and out when significant pressure is applied. This was much worse before I added the block to the bench so it closes with the jaw for the full width and thickness which I think is key. Adding cork also helped to prevent it from sliding. I originally also undercut it slightly so the top of the jaw would close first, however needed to flatten it out to prevent lift. I think going with the smaller 2" dimensions would also help, but pretty happy with it now after some tweaking.


I like the extra top depth next to the right leg on one side. The dog holes don't extend past the front leg vise for some reason?
Your build time is impressive!

I must admit however I don't really 'get' the Roubo bench compared to the traditional Scandinavian bench.

I have a planeing stop from Lee Valley I was going to add there, however after using the tail vise, not sure if it is necessary and will just clutter up the bench. Will be drilling the rest of the holes as I go.

[Chris Hachet]

Very nice, glad it is done!

[Andy Nichols]

Ref tail vises: Have the new style Lie-Nielsen tail vise on my bench, about 8 months of use so far, and there is no slop, or sag to it, performance is outstanding. Turned out to be one of my favorite features. BTW also built a spilt top Roubo.

Here's a shot of the LN tail vise

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[Chris Hachet]

Wonderful!

[Zuye Zheng]

The LN looks pretty interesting especially the set screws to control slop. I think one of the biggest benefits being mounted in the top itself vs below the top (Veritas) is that the force is more directly applied inline. I guess the trade off is ease of install and quick release.

[Andy Nichols]

The installation is more difficult, in fact had installed and helped install a couple of BC wagon vises and that was planned for this current bench.

Wrestled with the fact that this bench was what I considered "my legacy bench" so at the last minute, dug deep down and mustered up the courage to get the LN?

Ref the quick release, you may notice in the picture that the vise handle has spin handles, may change the design but they greatly improved the speed of the vise.

Regards,
Andy

[David Eisenhauer]

Very nice Andy. Do you have any leather or cork added in to the vise jaws?

[Andy Nichols]

David:

Not on the tail vise, there is on my leg vise chop. Have not noticed a need for it on the tail, but may add if I ever do very delicate items.

mos maiorum

[Eric Schubert]

Love the bench! Looks like you put a lot of thought into it. I hope you enjoy using it!

I'm still making some progress on my own bench, but it's been slow going. Trying to stay motivated to do all of the smoothing by hand has been tough. I can only hope mine comes out in a good, practical shape. It certainly won't look as nice as yours does. :)

[Zuye Zheng]

Love the bench! Looks like you put a lot of thought into it. I hope you enjoy using it!

I'm still making some progress on my own bench, but it's been slow going. Trying to stay motivated to do all of the smoothing by hand has been tough. I can only hope mine comes out in a good, practical shape. It certainly won't look as nice as yours does. :)

Looks like you're making great progress on yours and got your hands on some great beams for the top! Look forward to seeing it done.