# Hard Maple Bench Build



## denniswoody (Dec 11, 2011)

I posted a thread showing my new bench and there was some interest in the build so here are some pics and narrative.

First step was milling the lumber. The top and leg pieces were dowelled to make gluing up easier. The top pieces were glued up into three sections. I don't recommend dowels for the final three pieces because they are very heavy and the dowels make joining them more difficult. 

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62621&stc=1&d=1372101328

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62622&stc=1&d=1372101430

The mortises and tenons were done before glue-up.

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62623&stc=1&d=1372101528

The stretchers were fitted into shallow mortises made using a quick jig. Here is the first cut.

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62624&stc=1&d=1372101651

The tenons were easy with this jig.

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62625&stc=1&d=1372101780

Centering the hole for the 6 inch lag bolts that hold the stretchers in place was tricky. First a hole was drilled on the drill press.

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62626&stc=1&d=1372101941

Then the stretcher was fitted into its mortise and the bolt hole was carefully drilled by hand. (A good trick to keep a drill level is to put a washer on the bit and as long as the washer stays in one place the bit is level.) This photo also shows the slot to access the bolt in the stretcher.

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62627&stc=1&d=1372102020

Before assembling the legs I wanted to test fit the jaw vise. The jaw is made over size. It was cut exact size after the bench was assembled.
The slot for the slider had to be precisely cut. First the jaw was done then the leg. Then the slots for the leg and jaw were aligned and clamped together and the hole for the screw drilled.

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62628&stc=1&d=1372102125

Then the hole for the screw was drilled through both the jaw and leg.

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62629&stc=1&d=1372102271

The jaw and leg were test fitted before the legs were finally assembled. Here they are in my vise.

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62630&stc=1&d=1372102382

Here are the legs after glue-up. I've added a piece to lag bolt the top to the legs. The holes are half inch and the lags are one quarter to allow for movement.

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62631&stc=1&d=1372102477

The top was glued into three sections that I could run through my planer for final leveling. Then the three sections were glued together.

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62632&stc=1&d=1372102619

The top was cut to final length after a test fit. 

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62633&stc=1&d=1372102883

Final assembly and done. Thanks for looking. Any and all comments welcome.

http://www.routerforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=62634&stc=1&d=1372102952


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## Willway (Aug 16, 2012)

Beautiful and thoughtfully built Dennis. That much hard maple would cost a small fortune here in west Texas. That is something even your great grandchildren can be proud of!!!!!!!


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## Daikusan (Apr 12, 2013)

Thanks for sharing the details, the project turned out beautiful. Not to mention the usability or functionality.


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## OPG3 (Jan 9, 2011)

Dennis, That is a well-documented and beautiful workbench build! You should enjoy using that for many years to come! Good planning certainly pays off!

Otis Guillebeau from Auburn, Georgia


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## skyrat (May 26, 2013)

Nice looking bench! You should enjoy using it.


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## greenacres2 (Dec 23, 2011)

Amen--beautiful bench. My planer is 13", and for a few projects i've considered using the method of gluing/planing the tops as you used. Your result was good--other than the doweling for the final glue-up did that method cause you any other issues?? 

Thanks.
earl


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## denniswoody (Dec 11, 2011)

greenacres2 said:


> Amen--beautiful bench. My planer is 13", and for a few projects i've considered using the method of gluing/planing the tops as you used. Your result was good--other than the doweling for the final glue-up did that method cause you any other issues??
> 
> Thanks.
> earl



Thanks very much Earl. I thought the dowels were a big help gluing the individual pieces together. I had no worries about clamping cauls doing them that way as they registered perfectly. I did two, then added one until I had enough for one panel. My planer is a DW735 and it handled them just fine. I set up an extended infeed and outfeed support and was able to do them on my own. I left the random lengths and the longest boards took any snipe and were eventually cut off. The final glue up was pretty simple other than the dowels on one side binding. With the weight of the panels it was a real problem forcing them closed. I used Bessy clamps for support on the bottom and my glue up table is very flat. Once I got the panels closed up I put as many clamps on as I could and left it for about 16 hours. I used Titebond III.


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## denniswoody (Dec 11, 2011)

Willway said:


> Beautiful and thoughtfully built Dennis. That much hard maple would cost a small fortune here in west Texas. That is something even your great grandchildren can be proud of!!!!!!!


Thanks. I bought what the mill called "shorts". Those were 7 footers so I had to choose very carefully as there wasn't much left on each end after milling. Total cost for the wood was $625.00 so it was a significant investment in my woodworking hobby.


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## MEBCWD (Jan 14, 2012)

Dennis,

Great set of photos.

I like the cantilevered right end of the bench. I know you will find it very useful. I was thinking of rebuilding one of my benches and wanted to put a short cantilever on one end, this just makes me want to do it more. 

For all the new woodworkers please note Dennis' first step in building his bench, he milled all of his lumber before he started his build. This is very important if you want everything to go together like you had planed. Remember not all lumber is square and sized accurately so if you don't mill your lumber before you start your build it will be very frustrating and you won't get good results. 
Not all projects require you to mill your lumber before you start but if the project has very many parts you need to make sure you don't skip this important step.

Thanks for sharing your build,


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

now that is a work of art...


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## denniswoody (Dec 11, 2011)

MEBCWD said:


> Dennis,
> 
> Great set of photos.
> 
> ...


Mike, excellent point. Particularly since a work bench that isn't perfectly flat is not much use for gluing up, etc. All the top pieces have to be perfect before starting assembly.


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## GryphonWood (Aug 9, 2013)

Very nice job and hope you enjoy.


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## fredde10 (Aug 27, 2013)

Hi Guys, (and Ladies?) I'm Fred from Springfield, VA. I'm a new comer to your forum. I don't know if a work bench is called beautiful, But I think it is. It's just great. I've recently made my own, and those holes for the bench dogs, (and other clamping devices) really make a work bench more like an extra set of hands than just some place to nail.
You can be proud of this one Dennis. Really a nice job.
Fred


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