Читать книгу Workshop Projects - Jeff Jacobson - Страница 10

The base of the workbench is made with standard 2" x 4" stock, and most of the joints are made with lap joints and screws. All the cutting was done with a table saw, and for this phase of the project, the only other tool you’ll need quite a bit is a drill.

Begin by gluing up 2" x 4" stock for the legs (pieces 1), after cutting the pieces a couple inches longer than the lengths given in the Material List on page 4. Use two pieces of lumber for each leg, spreading yellow glue on both mating surfaces to get a perfect bond, and then clamp the pieces together. Clean off the excess glue from each lamination before it hardens.

Once the legs are removed from the clamps, go ahead and cut all the base pieces to length. The side aprons (pieces 2) and top supports (pieces 3) give the top much of its rigidity and help keep the base from racking. The side stretchers (pieces 4), end aprons (pieces 5), and end stretchers (pieces 6) complete the base, creating great stability and adding substantial weight to the bench.

Lay out the lap joint locations on the legs, as shown above and in the lap joint detail on page 5. Keep in mind that all the leg joint positions are essentially the same, but as with all table legs, each one has to mirror the leg across from it. To cut the laps, install a ¾" dado blade in your table saw, raise the blade 1½", and then, with the aid of your miter gauge, take several passes to remove the wood in each joint area.

Now, lower the dado blade to ¾", and lay out the dadoes on the side aprons for joining with the top supports. Cut each dado with a couple of passes over the blade. Next, cut a ¾"-wide x ½"-deep rabbet along the top inside edge of each side stretcher. Stop the rabbets 1" from each end of the pieces. To protect your fence during these rabbeting cuts, be sure to clamp on a wood face.

T-Slot Jigs

The clamp-holding jig steadies bar clamps on the bench top while you adjust boards in a panel assembly. That way, you can work at a comfortable height without tipping clamps over during an assembly.

This T-square jig is a sweet invention. When routing multiple dadoes across a panel, it is unsurpassed for speed, and since everything references off the edge of the bench, it’s super-accurate.

A pair of toggle clamps makes a nice combination for clamping: One set clamps in line with the T-slots, and the other set is at right angles to the slots. Between them, you can hold projects across or parallel to the bench length.

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.