Workshop Projects. Jeff Jacobson

       When sanding panels, you’ll probably find that regular clamps often get in the way. To avoid this problem, make a set of cam dogs and a T-slot bar. Since the bar is adjustable, it can fill in between the dog holes for a midbench anchoring point.

      Before assembling the base, take care of two more small details that are easy to do now while other frame parts aren’t in the way. First, drill ½" counterbores with ³/₁₆" pilot holes in the bottom edge of the four aprons and two top supports (see the technical drawings on page 2). These holes will be used later for screwing down the bench top. The second detail is trimming the angles on the ends of the side aprons. The best tool for cutting the angles is a handheld circular saw, but a jigsaw with a stiff blade will work almost as well. After making the cuts, belt sand the edges smooth.

      Assemble the workbench base in two stages. First, glue and screw the side aprons and stretchers to the legs, and then join these structures with the end aprons, end stretchers, and top supports. Make sure that the two side stretcher rabbets face each other on the base assembly. Clean up any glue squeeze-out, and sand the base to remove the sharp edges.

      If your shop floor is anything but level, add a leveling glide (pieces 7) to the bottom of each leg. To install these optional glides, flip the base upside down, and drill a ½"-diameter x 2"-deep hole in the center of each leg bottom. Then, secure the threaded plates included in the package, and screw in the levelers.

       Moving Up to the Top

      The top is basically a three-layer sandwich that’s banded with thick maple rails. First, two panels of fir plywood (pieces 8 and 9) are laminated together to make the top stable and heavy, and then, above the plywood, a layer of removable hardboard (piece 10) is added to take the dings and dents suffered by any workbench. When the hardboard becomes too scarred from working at the bench, remove it and use it as a template for making a new one. To complete the top assembly, maple rails (pieces 11) are attached to the plywood, giving the top an attractive edge and a durable surface for anchoring the T-slot tracks (pieces 15).

Figure 2: Batten boards, which have a curve of about ⅛" on the bottom edge, are used to apply pressure at the middle of a wide panel assembly.

      Start building your top by cutting the two plywood panels to size and gluing them together. Use a brush or roller to spread yellow glue over both mating surfaces, and then center the smaller panel on top of the larger one. Next, to keep the panels from slipping out of position, drive a brad into the assembly at each corner of the smaller panel. Clamping the plywood requires consistent pressure throughout the lamination, so make sure you’ve precut a bunch of curved batten boards to apply pressure in the middle of the panels (see Figure 2).

      Rip and crosscut your maple to size for the rails, and then drill 1½"-deep holes in one edge of each piece, as shown in the dog hole locations drawing on page 2. After drilling the 1" holes, install a ¾" dado blade in your table saw to cut a 1"-deep x 2"-wide rabbet in the other edge of each rail (see the drawing at right). Make several passes to complete each rabbet, making sure to clamp your protective wood face to the saw fence.

      The maple rails should now be glued and screwed to the upper plywood panel. I recommend first clamping the rails without glue to the plywood and then drilling countersunk pilot holes through the plywood into the rail (drill seven evenly spaced holes along each rail). When you’ve finished drilling, release the clamps, spread glue in the rail rabbets, and reclamp the assembly. With everything in place, drive the screws, and then clean up any glue squeeze-out, especially along the inside edge of the rail.

      The final piece to fit into the top is the tempered hardboard. Cut the sheet to fit between the rails as snugly as possible, and then drill countersunk pilot holes along its edges for the screws that will secure it to the plywood. Fasten it down.

       Material List – Workbench