Swiss cheese butcher block bench top workbench

[Marinus Loewensteijn]

I recently made a workbench that can go on a benchtop (e.g. the kitchen bench <wink>). It is made of laminated European beech, the top is glued together with epoxy (difficulty getting sufficient clamping) and the remainder of gluining is using polyurethane glue. A sheet of 2200x600x26mm was used and final size works out at 880x470x105mm.

Veritas parts were used to build it and these are later usefull for holding the work. Pictures should speak for themselves.

[Marinus Loewensteijn]

Picture upload continued

[Marinus Loewensteijn]

and the last few pictures but one regret: I never used a finish on my work bench before and this time I decided to use tung oil to help with minimizing the movement of the wood due to humidity. Everything got less grippy with a finish on it.

I hope this gives someone some ideas, no vise is required and both vertical and horizontal clamping can be achieved. I used 20mm as Festool accesories can then als be used. I'm considering getting a longer second plane stop.

Only have one JCB bolt tight fitting (the centre one) and use for the remainder oversized holes to allow for wood movement. Total weight is 29 kilogram.

[William Fretwell]

I doubt that working in the kitchen will last very long! Even if you claim a small bench makes a small mess!
I don’t know what kind of woodwork you plan on such a bench, perhaps you could elaborate?
It looks good, if you hadn’t drilled all those holes in it you really could use it in the kitchen.

[Frederick Skelly]

Looks good Marinus! What kind of work will you be doing?

Also, I wonder how deeply the tung oil penetrated? Perhaps you could take it off or reduce the effect by running a smoothing plane over it. Or just use some coarse sandpaper to rough the surface? Just ideas.
Fred

[Dave Anderson NH]

Nice job Marinus, but I seriously doubt that management will allow you to use the kitchen counter top after the first time you make a "small mess."

[Marinus Loewensteijn]

I was kidding with kitchen :). (Floor in whole house is tiled and only the bedrooms have carpet.) But at the moment our attached garage is full of boxes for an impending move to our new home. It is surprising how large a job can be done on this, it will be mainly (small?) furniture and if it is too long then I will built an outrigger. Next item on the list is the small Dutch toolchest.

[David Eisenhauer]

It is OK, good in fact, to dream Marinus, but you must not be too destroyed when your dream of working in the kitchen is not realized. Hopefully your new home will allow for a corner that you can claim as your own to put that nice looking swiss cheese butcher block in. Hopefully, the effects of the oil will diminish over time and perhaps either some planning or sanding. I will be standing by for photos of the toolchest on the swiss cheese!

[Marinus Loewensteijn]

It is OK, good in fact, to dream Marinus, but you must not be too destroyed when your dream of working in the kitchen is not realized. Hopefully your new home will allow for a corner that you can claim as your own to put that nice looking swiss cheese butcher block in. Hopefully, the effects of the oil will diminish over time and perhaps either some planning or sanding. I will be standing by for photos of the toolchest on the swiss cheese!


No worries on that front, I'll leave a corner of kitchen bench for her to use :D.

There will be some kind of bench in the new attached garage although usually all kinds of non-woodworking related stuff seems to migrate there. When stored this takes less space up than a Black and Decker WorkMate and it is miles better than one.

Tung oil was thinned 70% with white spirits so it has gone quite deep.

[Marinus Loewensteijn]

Finally the Swiss Cheese benchtop is getting put to good use. We were going to build and had purchased some land but then some heart issues intervened and the wife decided she wanted to live closer to the children and grandkids rather than 4 ~ 5 hours drive away.

Found a home that a builder used as his showhome and office, about 18 months old and we bought that when everyone was still jittery about house prices.

Since the garage had been used as an office it had garage carpet and no way is that suitable to do woodwork on. Found a solution for a portable workbench by re-purposing a Makita mitre saw bench.

If I want to do some planing then I extend an outrigger and place that firmly against a wall (with some cloth between it to protect the paint). Am pleased how well this is working out.

[Jim Matthews]

Die Schweizer Käseplatte ist clever.

If modularity (and portability) are considerations, I've been satisfied with my Vika folding worktable. Using two of them I can handle large spans (including plywood) without crawling around on a concrete floor.

They are neither so stable as a kitchen countertop nor so finely finished as the Swiss Cheese Benchtop. Vika supplies them with a replaceable fiberboard top, which will hold screws.

While they're considered portable, I wouldn't want to go far - I store and use mine in a garage that still serves as a car port.

https://www.tradetested.co.nz/tools-hardware/ladders-scaffolding/work-platforms/vika-portable-workbench-platform-2in1.html