Results 1 to 7 of 7

Thread: How to build a laminated top bench/anything 2

  1. #1

    How to build a laminated top bench/anything 2

    1.This is to the less experienced woodworking hobbyist who only has a few hours of personal time for himself. This is to the person who shares his time between wood working and putting you wife in first place, work, family time, taking kids to band practice, friends houses. I other words to the person who may only have a Saturday afternoon to enjoy himself.

    2. If you build things for the wife, she will find the money for the jointer or whatever you want. My wife has pictures of our grandchildren and 2 pictures of my workbench in here billfold. It gives her pleasure showing them. See item 4.

    3.. Because of time restraints this build may take over a year, but so what if it does.

    3. I have a dedicated shop, until this one it has always been in my basement. If you are in a garage and have space reentrance you will have to deal with that. Everyone has problems with space and everyone must deal with it in there own way.

    4. I tend to work very accurately. If you feel that it doesn't have to be that accurate because it is only wood please do not comment, just go to some other post and inform them about how much you know. Shody work in the beginning bleeds through in the finish.<br>

    5. Attitude. There is never enough time to do it right the first time but there is always time to do it right the second time. and like the first, If you do not have time to do it right the first time, how do you figure you have time to do it right the second time? Disclaimer. There will always be mistakes, it is not the end of the world, learn from them. If it doesn't work the first time or second time why do it a third time and expect different results?

    6. Safety, protect what you can not replace. And like it, only you will feel the pain, it also hurts the pocket book. If you see something that looks dangerous, please remember cameras do not take 3D pictures and do not show depth. If you feel you have discovered a safety rule violation and just have to expound on it please do it in a different or your own post. As you will see in some pictures, pictures of my old General cabinate saw and a new Saw stop. I put my money
    where my mouth is.

    Note: If you like my philosophy, Lets get started if not don't waste your time here.
    Last edited by Tom Bussey; 09-09-2021 at 10:30 AM.
    Tom

  2. #2
    Join Date
    May 2015
    Location
    Ingleside, IL
    Posts
    1,417
    Git er started Tom. A new bench is in my future after we move.
    Stand for something, or you'll fall for anything.

  3. #3
    The dimension that is the hardest to control it the thickness of the top. Corners get bumps or dings or a sliver comes off a corner all help to make a top thinner than first planned on. And planning also adds it. The top thickness actually determines the height of the bench. For example, if the bench height is 34 1/2 and the top is 4 inches thick then the leg height is 30 1/2. But if the top thickness finishes at an unplanned 3 3/4 then the leg height changes.


    My bench height is 34/1/2. Later I will tell you how I came to that height. That height is prefect for me, I do not know what is perfect for you, judge accordingly for your self. Most people think a 4 inch thick top is just what is needed, so it will be 4 inches. What you make yours is personal preference and can be anything you want it to be. If you wish to weigh in on what you have personally found to be true about a bench's height, width, length, material top thickness or anything so far, please do so we may all learn something from what you contribute.


    Roughing out a piece and finishing to a final size, have nothing in common. If you are going to rough, rough. If you are going to finish finish. I am going to rough cut all the boards for the top at 4 1/4 wide. It may not be enough but it is a place to start


    It is said you must acclimate the wood when you bring it home for 3 or more weeks for humidity, moisture content control. Some will say it should be stickered others will say it doesn't have to be because it is kiln dried. Some will place it on a cement floor and some will put it off the floor. Cement draws moisture so it is a bad idea. If you pile it up someplace and turn on the garden hose and wet down the top surfaces come back latter and see how much it has effected the boards under it. I drive 15 miles to the saw mill which is not climate controlled and then bring it into my shop which is not climate controlled, Why should I wait to get started. Is the moisture content going to very that much in 5 miles? You go to Menards or Home Depot and buy wood from a climate controlled building and bring it into a climate controlled building, why do you have to acclimate? More about that later.




    I start cutting. I establish one straight edge. I tend to do this in 8 foot lengths, but sometimes I cut to shorter sections and then straight line rip. There is no right or wrong with this and it is your board and you spent the money. In other wards it is your call.


    A sled is what I use. I like an outfeed table on my saw and I like it long enough so that the combined length is about 55 inches from the back of the saw blade. I like that length because the sled and board will not will not lift up and fall off the end. Anything that can lift up can also pull body parts into the spinning saw blade. I like a solid surface, not rollers. The board can have a bow in it and drop down and catch on the roller and stop me from feeding the board through. It is not a fun place to be when you can not finish the cut and you cant let go of the board because it can get kicked back at you and you can't reach the switch to shut it off. The flat surface eliminates that possibility in my estimation and I stay in my comfort zone.


    I also like a feed end table. It is set for the saw's height so there is no messing around. You will se two different feed tables When I changed saws the height changed so I learned what I liked and didn't like about the first and remade it. I also have a new sled with different clamps

    DSC03642.jpg
    DSC03642.jpgDSC03643.jpg DSC01073.JPG DSC01074.JPG

    Had some trouble loading pictures sorry about that.

    I tend to move the board out so I can cut off a 4 1/4 wide piece. I know how wide my sled is . I subtract 4 3/8ths from it and cut a couple of scrap pieces that long and lower the blade turn the piece over and use the blocks to position the board for the next cut. The 4 3/8ths is for the saw blade.

    Being on the sled clamps and held against the fence with 3 feather boards I feel fairly safe about ripping the board without it closing down or opening up and creating a kick back. To me the second cut is probably the most dangerous cut on the table saw. Some even go to the band saw. And doing that creates it's own set of problems on a long board.

    Anyway since you are set up might as well cut as many pieces as you can. Save the narrower pieces because they can be glued together to make a wider one , saves money.
    Last edited by Tom Bussey; 09-09-2021 at 11:03 AM.
    Tom

  4. #4
    Can a person do these cuts with a track saw? Yes. Safely, Yes. But I have a table saw and I do not have a track saw and do not wish to spend $500 to a $1000 to get a good one. I will have a lot of other things to build out of the remaining sheet of plywood. The new clamps I show will have a lot more uses for them, so although kind of expensive worth the expenditure. My point is a lot of you probably feel very fortune just to have a table saw. and want to build a bench now and not wait for a couple of years for a track saw.
    Tom

  5. #5
    If you have gotten this far or as far as you can on a Saturday afternoon great. If your bench is going to be 4 foot long then by working with a 8 foot piece , when you cut it to length you will also have material glued up for 4 legs. If six foot and you will have 4 rails for the legs. If you cut before you glue factor in the snip distances for when it goes through the planner. But the most important factor is now the wood, which may have stresses and things, can now go to the free state along with acclimating the wood. I like to semi -work the wood on all four surfaces., and using a hook , hang the pieces on a clothes line, and just hang. if not on edge on saw horses.
    Tom

  6. #6
    I have a lot of pictures to post but something happened to my camera and the resolution went to the highest setting and I they take for ever to down load here , if they even will. I will have to retake some so I can continue my posts. I am leaving on vacation tomorrow morning and it will be about 2 weeks before I can post again. Sorry for the delay. the rest is the important stuff. I will say that the first glue up take 3 pieces to do it. And after that 2 pieces are needed when gluing the top together. So it is nice to have 5 ready to glue and If one is doing a split top 10 pieces need to be on hand. There is a gluing fixture that needs to be built so please don't just start gluing

    Here is a picture of what the top will look like before any flattening take place

    DSC01026.JPG
    Tom

  7. #7
    Well by now have gotten farther than you think. And it doesn't matter what you are building, work bench. kitchen cabinets with face frames, old fashion dry sink or what ever.

    Without even thinking one needs a straight edge to work from. One can cut it in shorter sections and then get a straight edge or establish a long edge and then cut. Each has its own advantages and it is a decision only you can make.

    Rough the material into sizes of the parts ( details) needed. They need to be larger all the way around. and then let them move to where the wood wants to go on its own. ( go to their free state.) if they are going to bow let them do it before sizing, not dealing with it latter. I like to hang but. I also write on the detail what it is is for future reference.

    And by now you should have cut away and disposed of a lot of useless small odds and end pieces.

    At this time you should still be in the rough in stage. The first place to start is to do the largest surface first. Flatten and go to the planner. Leave some material on both surfaces to do a finish pass on each. Leave material so that all pieces in a group can be finished to size at the same time. Some say joint one surface and then edge one side but O flatten and then plane and then edge. I always end up with the grain running in the wrong direction if I do a surface and an edge.

    By now a person has gotten a lot of the hard work done and shop kind of cleaned up and not committed him ( her ) self to any thing.

    If one starts a 7 in the morning the best time to tackle a difficult part of the build is 10 -11 in the morning that is when you are at your peak. 9 o'clock at night is not a good time to try and cut dovetails by hand.

    Some people have trouble looking at assemblies on plans. so by now the details can be placed in somewhat where they go and it will help visualation and thing will become more clear.

    I will be back after vacation.
    Tom

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •