My Version of Christian Becksvoort's Dovetail Bench

[Phil Gaudio]

Ever since I saw Christian Becksvoort’s auxiliary bench (2018 FWW Tools and Shops) I thought it might be a nice edition for my shop. This past month, I found the time to take this project on.

https://i.postimg.cc/k4xHxWjT/011265068.jpg (https://postimages.org/)


The bench is built around a Lie Nielsen 18” Dovetailing Vise (which I have had in my shop for a few years). It involved creating a platform behind the rear jaw of the LN vise. First time I tried condor tails: they do make a statement. I made these following the excellent directions of William Ng. Here is a link to this technique:


http://benchcrafted.blogspot.com/2016/02/watch-william-ng-make-condor-tails.html




I ended up making the height 9-3/4”. I figured this out by creating.a platform out of construction lumber and dialing in the height. I would suggest that a mock-up such as this should be your first step in this project.


Made from hard maple scraps I had laying around from previous projects. I suppose just about any species would do: its a shop appliance after all. Cull through your scrap pile: I am sure you can come up with the necessary stock.


I did have some trepidation “modifying” that beautiful LN vise, but now that the project is completed, I am glad that I took the plunge. You can save some $$ by buying the LN vise hardware instead of purchasing the vise with the jaws. I have this vise on my joiners bench and although it is doable, it will add a significant degree of complexity to the project.

https://i.postimg.cc/15DQvZbC/IMG-3377.jpg (https://postimg.cc/JG7vhSrZ)
https://i.postimg.cc/cHKqwqQc/IMG-3378.jpg (https://postimg.cc/fthgQrq3)
https://i.postimg.cc/wMJS4h4y/IMG-3379.jpg (https://postimg.cc/kRJ1Btmq)
https://i.postimg.cc/qvLddxJ2/IMG-3382.jpg (https://postimg.cc/VJdhqMbN)

[Jim Ritter]

That is quite the bench on your bench, Phil. Do you have a crane to move that off the bench? Curious how much it weighs.
Nice work on building it, those big tails do look nice.
Jim

[Derek Cohen]

Phil, you have done a beautiful job of the build. Superb joinery!

My concern is with the table design, itself - which was initiated by Benchcrafted - is what occurs when transferring tails to pins? Sawing should be a breeze, as the work piece looks like it will be held securely. But transferring to the pin board lowers the work to chop level, and if you use it there, you will cut up the chop in no time at all. This is why I built a spacer into my Moxon. Do you have a plan here (to lift up the work piece) for your vise?

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Charles Guest]

So the choice appears to be either get a bit of a stiff back (if that) by dovetailing in your vice, or a hernia moving the auxiliary bench around the shop.

That thing looks ridiculously overbuilt - the Becksvoort dovetailing bench.

[Jim Koepke]

Nice looking top bench.

jtk

[Christopher Charles]

Beautifully done. I bet it would make a great portable bench as well.

...And how long did it take you to clean the shop before you took pictures ;)

Best,
Chris

[Rob Luter]

That's almost too nice! What a great job.

[Phil Gaudio]

It may look heavy, but it is no more heavy than the 30 pack of Pabst I just carried into the house (when I can't carry a 30 pack of beer into the house I have much bigger concerns than the weight of this bench):)


That is quite the bench on your bench, Phil. Do you have a crane to move that off the bench? Curious how much it weighs.
Nice work on building it, those big tails do look nice.
Jim

[Phil Gaudio]

Thanks! I just grab a scrap to elevate the piece to a comfortable work height.


Phil, you have done a beautiful job of the build. Superb joinery!

My concern is with the table design, itself - which was initiated by Benchcrafted - is what occurs when transferring tails to pins? Sawing should be a breeze, as the work piece looks like it will be held securely. But transferring to the pin board lowers the work to chop level, and if you use it there, you will cut up the chop in no time at all. This is why I built a spacer into my Moxon. Do you have a plan here (to lift up the work piece) for your vise?

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Phil Gaudio]

Again, not as heavy as you might think. It is indeed stout. You would not want to drop it on your foot.


So the choice appears to be either get a bit of a stiff back (if that) by dovetailing in your vice, or a hernia moving the auxiliary bench around the shop.

That thing looks ridiculously overbuilt - the Becksvoort dovetailing bench.

[Phil Gaudio]

Thank-you Sir!


Nice looking top bench.

jtk

[Phil Gaudio]

Thanks much! Yes indeed it would make a great portable bench, but my purpose in building it was strictly to make dovetailing easier.
Ha! You noticed the clean shop. About 15 minutes to do a full sweep and vacuum. It has to be done.


Beautifully done. I bet it would make a great portable bench as well.

...And how long did it take you to clean the shop before you took pictures ;)

Best,
Chris

[Phil Gaudio]

Thank-you sir, you are too kind.



That's almost too nice! What a great job.

[Kevin Adams]

Looks like I need to stop by to check it out! What’s that new buffer or grinder next to the tormek? Hope all is well, great seeing about beautiful project by you!

Kevin

[Phil Gaudio]

Addendum: in response to those who were wondering what this beast weighs: 45 lbs. For those of us that are familiar with carrying 50 lb. bags of salt/fertilizer/sand/cement/etc. around the yard on occasion, this puts the weight into perspective. Not really all that bad to lift up to and off of the bench on occasion. We shall see.

[Phil Gaudio]

Kevin: by all means stop by for the tour! That buffer behind the bench is an old Craftsman bench grinder that I recently rebuilt. Doesn't look too bad for a machine made in the early 60's . Phil


Looks like I need to stop by to check it out! What’s that new buffer or grinder next to the tormek? Hope all is well, great seeing about beautiful project by you!

Kevin

[Mike Brady]

Certainly, that is the best-looking bench-on-bench I have seen. Beautiful execution of the design. I have a couple of comments, if you don't mind: I think that vise (which I also own as my main bench vise) is overkill for purpose. BenchCrafted hardware is plenty robust enough for the purpose and has the ability for skewed clamping by virtue of its twin screws and wheels. It also makes the assembly very heavy (despite your claim) and a bother to store when not in use (also a problem with my BenchCrafted unit). It may be that the work you do the most is enhanced by your new setup, and if so, you definitely have a hot setup!

I missed how you mount the new vise to the existing bench.

Finally, did you make everything or was the chop from Lie-Nielsen? I recall mine being a chore to make myself. Enjoy!

[Stephen Rosenthal]

That buffer behind the bench is an old Craftsman bench grinder that I recently rebuilt. Doesn't look too bad for a machine made in the early 60's . Phil

Phil,
That is a beautiful bench top bench. I’m envious and now inspired!

Your grinder rehab is also a thing of beauty. I have 2 Craftsman bench “block” grinders - 115.7566 (1956) 1/3hp (technically the precursor of the block grinder) and 397.19440 (60s) 1/2hp Commercial grade with original Craftsman grinding jig mounted on the left side. They are fantastic grinders, every bit the equal of Baldor, imo. I scour garage and estate sales for them and currently have 2 more in my shop awaiting a bit of TLC. One will be a buffer, the other will house wire wheels.

[Phil Gaudio]

Certainly, that is the best-looking bench-on-bench I have seen. Beautiful execution of the design. I have a couple of comments, if you don't mind: I think that vise (which I also own as my main bench vise) is overkill for purpose. BenchCrafted hardware is plenty robust enough for the purpose and has the ability for skewed clamping by virtue of its twin screws and wheels. It also makes the assembly very heavy (despite your claim) and a bother to store when not in use (also a problem with my BenchCrafted unit). It may be that the work you do the most is enhanced by your new setup, and if so, you definitely have a hot setup!

I missed how you mount the new vise to the existing bench.

Finally, did you make everything or was the chop from Lie-Nielsen? I recall mine being a chore to make myself. Enjoy!

Well, the mission was to reproduce the bench that CB built. He used the LN vise and I already had the LN vise in my shop for a few years, so it was simply a matter of doing the conversion. I guess overkill is in the eye of the beholder: a Rolex and a Casio will both tell you the correct time, yet lots of folks see the value in the Rolex. The prototype I built to dial in the correct height was made of 2 x 12's. from Home Depot and a scrap piece of plywood. This also 'worked", albeit not very conveniently.I could have settled for this arrangement but it was not much to look at and having seen the CB bench I gladly accepted the challenge. Net weight: 45 lbs: if weight is important to you than by all means use a lighter setup. No doubt the LN vise is one of the heaviest options I could have chosen, but as I said, I already owned it so that is what I used. As it turns out, I will be storing this bench on top of the prototype I mentioned above: a bit of serendipity there. As far as securing the bench to the bench, I will be using the same setup that CB is using; Veritas hold downs. The LN vise came with the maple jaws. I had to remove the outboard "wings" on the original which were there for mounting it to ones bench. I had used the smaller LN vise hardware on the full sized joinery bench a number of years ago: those jaws were made by me and it was not a trivial task. Certainly doable, but as I mentioned above, it will add a degree of complexity to the project.

[Phil Gaudio]

Thanks! This was (mostly) a fun project: I highly recommend it!

The buffer: from time to time I fall off the woodworking wagon and am drawn to machine rehab. This Craftsman unit was something my Dad purchased in the 1960's and as steward of this machine I felt it was time to restore it so that I and my sons might enjoy it for another half century or so. Originally I had intended to just replace the bearings and clean it up a bit. However, once I got the whole thing apart on my bench, I thought I'd try to kick it up a notch with some new paint. You can definitely get carried away with this stuff. Here is a pic of the finished unit: makes a great buffer.
https://i.postimg.cc/fbLjjyrS/IMG-3278.jpg (https://postimg.cc/nXyDnFZn)


Phil,
That is a beautiful bench top bench. I’m envious and now inspired!

Your grinder rehab is also a thing of beauty. I have 2 Craftsman bench “block” grinders - 115.7566 (1956) 1/3hp (technically the precursor of the block grinder) and 397.19440 (60s) 1/2hp Commercial grade with original Craftsman grinding jig mounted on the left side. They are fantastic grinders, every bit the equal of Baldor, imo. I scour garage and estate sales for them and currently have 2 more in my shop awaiting a bit of TLC. One will be a buffer, the other will house wire wheels.

[Robert LaPlaca]

Phil, I love it, I will take one please. The bench on bench has been on one of my to do lists forever, would make dovetailing and carving much easier.

[Phil Gaudio]

Phil, I love it, I will take one please. The bench on bench has been on one of my to do lists forever, would make dovetailing and carving much easier.

Thanks! Lets see, what would it take for me to part with this. I know:

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