Grain orientation for a workbench top.

[Dave Shepard]

I have several cherry planks in my basement that I want to make into the top for a wood workers work bench. They are dressed to a full 2" by 10" and 12" wide and about 10' long. They are absolutely clear, no sap, drying since I think '52. Maybe they are not really planks, but billets of cherry perfection. :D No Danny, you cannot have my address.

These were put there by my grandfather, so I want to make them into something that I can use forever. Should I just make a two plank top, or should I rip them into strips so I can orient the grain on edge? I think they are flat sawn, but will have to blow some dust off to say for sure. I'm not sure how a top should be made. I would like to build something like a Frank Klausz bench. The base will be timber framed from pine 6"x6", sort of like this:

[WDH]

DanG!~  Now I will have to hire a Private Investigator to find you :D.

Dave,

Stripping the top is how I did it in red oak, but even so, the top was not perfectly flat and I had to work on it a good bit with a hand plane.  To be honest, it is still not flat, but it functions nicely even so  .

A two or three plank top would sure look cool.  You could give it a try and if it does not suit you, you could remove the top and then cut it into 2"x2"strips and re-glue.  Either way, I know that you will end up with a beautiful work bench. 

[Dodgy Loner]

Sounds awesome, Dave. No way I would cut those planks into strips. Do a 2-plank top. It will be magnificent. You know how to use a hand plane if the top ever needs flattening

[Dave Shepard]

I'm wondering if the cherry will be thick enough. It's 1 7/8" right now. I might use this instead:



I have three 3"x13"x14' planks for this.

[Axe Handle Hound]

Sounds awesome, Dave. No way I would cut those planks into strips. Do a 2-plank top. It will be magnificent. You know how to use a hand plane if the top ever needs flattening

+1.  Cutting those planks would be a shame and unnecessary if you support the top.  Are you willing to modify your bench design to make use of more cross pieces under the cherry planks?  I'm thinking of something more like a Nicholson bench that makes use of the torsion box theory to add rigidity to thinner materials.   

[scsmith42]

Sounds awesome, Dave. No way I would cut those planks into strips. Do a 2-plank top. It will be magnificent. You know how to use a hand plane if the top ever needs flattening

Me too - two plank top all the way!

[Holmes]

  I thought spalted wood was kind of soft compared to the rest of the board.  If you will be seeing the bench top most of the time the 2 /3 plank top will be beautiful.

[Dave Shepard]

This maple is still pretty hard. Even if it has lost some hardness, it's probably still harder than the cherry. :D I'm not going to rush into this project, I've got to have something to procrastinate about. I've been studying my workbench books. Following what Christopher Schwarz has been up to lately, although I know this bench won't be a Roubo. I'll probably make the top out of some of the cherry, and maybe use a strip of the maple for the dog holes and some of the other trim boards on the end.

There will be no bolts used in the bench. It will either be mortise and tenon, or to replace the long bolt that holds the shoulder vise in place, I'll make a long hand forged pin with a cap on one end, and a slot with an iron wedge on the back side. I've also been researching holdfasts and iron planing stops. I'm going to try and get those made this fall after I finish up the job I'm on now.

[mesquite buckeye]

You could also make a fabulous dining room table from such boards. More of the family would get to see it there.

[Left Coast Chris]

That's what I was thinking also.  I'm looking for dining table base design for the big redwood slab brought back from the coast this year.  That base is very nice.

[DaleK]

Just about anything you do will be fine for wood-working. This is mine I made more for farm repairs

[Lud]

Consider what type of abuse you've given your workbenches over the last few decades.   Slap a replaceable  masonite skin on some 2 x 10's and make some stuff  or  do the table as  fine furniture and dust it often and use it rarely.

Just sayin'...........do whatever you want. ;) ;)

[Dave Shepard]

This bench will be specifically for wood working, so I need all of the assorted workholding options, like end and shoulder vises, rows of dog holes, and other contrivances. I believe in using a wood working bench for just that, wood working. All of the beating, abuse and power tool shenanigans can happen somewhere else. :D I know people spend a lot of time worrying about the hardness of the bench top, as I have, but in reality, if you are damaging your benchtop, then you are not using it correctly.

[T Welsh]

Dave, I would stay with the Cherry,1 7/8 is thick enough,+ its stock that your grandfather put up years ago. I also built a work bench out of Cherry out of my own design added casters,it too was mortise

  

   and tenon construction and then after it was built I saw a lot of wasted space inside the bench so I boxed it in and use it for storage of all my sanders and routers ect.Tim

[Brad_bb]

Just a suggestion on casters -I recently tried the Work bench caster set from Rockler. I installed them on my assembly table.  I even made a video about the installation on youtube. They allow you to raise each leg on the caster or lower it with your foot to allow the bench to rest on its leg/feet.  It's good when you want stability in the work bench so it won't move.  It's real easy to transition between caster mode and feet mode.  I initially tried to use fixed casters on hinges to flip under the bench, but it didn't work very well.  The workbench caster set worked great though.

[hardtailjohn]

I'd like to try those, Brad_bb!  Sounds like what I've been looking for!
John