Official Luthiers Forum!

hey everyone so im to the point where im thinking about exactly how to build the workbench i need to build on. i will be adding onto an existing one and im basically thinking an L shaped bench one side against the wall one side would be an island that i can work on either side from. now i want to be able to do fretwork on this bench too so i know it needs to be pretty dang solid. anyway just wondering if anyone would post pics of their workbenches or give some tips on what i need to make it sturdy and last long.

Paul;
The part of the bench going against the wall should be secured to the wall.
With nails or screws.
I made my benches with 2" X 6" timbers for rigidity and strength.
You can jump on it with no problem !!
I use screws driven with a 3/8" drill -Just in case I want to dismantle the bench.

The top is a solid door(yes a door)-available from most home depots or such type suppliers.
They may be hard to find now but you can use any flat ,stiff material.
Like a Grizzly bench top.

Mike

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Mike Collins

I am sure folks will weigh in on how to make it sturdy etc, however as long as you are gathering advice, 2 things:

1. if you can, make it so you can access it from all sides. As cool as it sounds to have a bench mounted up against a wall, it is MUCH more productive to be able to walk to the other side rather than having to unclamp or otherwise reposition your work. the L-shaped one as you suggest, will have a large area that is inaccessible (the point of the "L" to the opposite side) unless you can walk around it. Just my opinion.

2. Make it lower than you initially think you need it. You DON'T want to be planing or chiseling something with your shoulders cranked up over your ears or standing on your toes.

3. Make sure its on level ground, shimming if necessary. Leg bracing is important - put 2x4's or something in notched lap joints connecting the legs. I use a lap joint (M&T would work, but more labor) because it spreads the weight and pressure across the joints, rather than a constant shearing force (from the weight) on the screws (and their holes).

Good luck!!

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"Everyone wants to BE something, but nobody wants to BECOME something" - William Cumpiano

I really like this type of bench
Made from old dentists chairs with the chair part removed, they go up and down and spin around. We have four of these set up, and use them 99% of the time, except for heavy planing. The bases are really heavy.
I spot old dentists chairs fairly often on my local craigslist, four of them we got for free when a dentist was upgrading to newer chairs and didn't want to deal with hauling them away(did i mention that they are heavy?).

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Jordan Aceto
Ithaca, NY

those look very heavy. but i guess well worth the effort since the price was right.

and yeah i agree the one side up against the wall is useless other than extra desk space. but thats the part that already exists. its actually my dads workbench i need to add onto it for the space i need. so most of my work will be done on the side accessible on both sides.

This island type work bench is quite solid. Its frame, which is made from construction lumber, is lap jointed throughout, and a recycled office desk that is screwed to the frame insures its stiffness in all directions. The top is 40 mm solid beech counter top from Ikea, which cost about as much as nice plywood of equivalent thickness over here. That means I'm not afraid to pound, saw etc on it if I need to, I fill holes and gouges with epoxy whenever I have some left... A quick wipe with Danish oil will keep make it easier to keep clean, and easier to remove glue drips and the like.

I like being able to work on it from all directions, and it is so large that I sometimes have different things going on on its opposite sides.

Instead of making this bench low to accommodate planing, I have a dedicated woodworking bench with traditional vises for that. This bench is 1.05 m, which is about right for general guitar work and detail work for me ( I'm 1.84 m).



I recently installed a front vise on one corner, I have no picture of that, but here is the guitar vise on the other side. I use my long pipe clamps for this, and they go into holes in the bench skirt and corresponding holes in a cross piece under the table top, and can be extended out from the table for better access if needed.

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

I have a special bench that I use for setup so this may not apply.
Though it may not be apparent in the picture, it is built like a saw horse but the beam is two 1x6's separated by the width of another 1x. A rectangular table attach on the top of one end and the neck support is adjusted up, down and sideways as needed. There is a tool tray underneath so I don't have any tools that could com in contact with the guitar when not in my hand. It is free standing so I can move out from the wall and get all around it and it easily lifts back out of the way when not needed.
Sorry that I don't have a better picture and am away from the shop.

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Tickle your guitar daily, and it'll tickle you back.

it may not apply to my workbench but it is a valuable idea for when i start taking on repairs and building. oh and i like that massive square island workbench. wont work for me in the space ive got. i think i figured a new way to set up almost a U shaped work area as suggested. im going to be moving the old workbench to another wall and have my workspace coming out from there. and can line up along the other wall to form the U shape my bandsaw, table saw and router table/go deck. dang i also have to find a place to build shelves in this workshop.

This is a very timely thread.

The concrete slab under my shop area had some voids under it from 40 years of settling. I have/had 30' of benches along two walls. The benches were fixed to the walls, the concrete foundation, and walls.

When the original estimate for the work was given I was told that no work needed to be done in the area where the benches were, and that they were safe. Unfortunately the slab jack crew had a different opinion, and started pumping slurry throughout the slab, including the area around the benches. I had no time to remove the bolts fixing them to the walls, and the slab was raised about 3". It basically completely ripped the entire system from the walls, and racked the benches so that they are completely distorted, and unusable for my purposes. These benches were originally built by my father and were not idea for guitar building, but I managed to make due. Now I'm faced with either trying to repair them, or just rip them out and completely rebuild them. Unfortunately, I don't have a lot of time to devote to building guitars, let alone completely rebuilding my benches. This will likely set me back in the guitar building a couple of months. Needless to say, I'm very discouraged.

I'll be watching this thread closely for ideas to incorporate into the new benches I'll eventually be building.

J

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Jim Hansen

You guys are giving me ideas for a new layout for my workshop! Thanks!!
I desparately need to declutter, move out some of the stationary tools I hardly ever use (like my huge lathe!), and make it more luth-friendly.

I was expecting someone to say "I'd build a bench myself, but I need a bench to build it on....."
(kind of like "I ordered a bullworker to build up my biceps, but I can't get the darned box open...."



Hey Arnt, I love that old stool of yours - very well worn!!

Cheers,
Dave F.

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Cambrian Guitars

"There goes Mister Tic-Tac out the back with some bric-brac from the knick-knack rack"

This isn't an L-shaped table, but you get the idea...

I created this model since I'm at work and can't take a picture of my table.

Basically it uses 2 pieces of MDF 2' x 8' and .75 thick.

4x4's are used for the legs and 2x4's are used as a frame around the legs at the top and down lower at the shelf.

This thing is very sturdy.

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Thanks,
Blain

http://www.ullrichguitar.com

"89.67% of all statistics are made up on the spot."

I bought the stuff for a regular woodworking bench before I decided to do luthiery pretty much exclusively and built this bench a little over 5 years ago. It works pretty well. Twin screw vice is outstanding, especially for bandura making but I used it on the guit I built as well. I also use it to hold a lot of table top type devices such as my downdraft table and motorized sanding dish. If you do a bench with dogs, definitely use round as they work way better for holding irregular shapes like guitars etc.

The shoulder vice is only o.k. although it can be used as a troji or whatever the heck that thing is called but honestly, the same could be done with the twin screw. The shoulder portion kind of eliminates work space as you can't really get in front of it. I find that junk tends to accumulate there. I'd do a removable front vice if I had it to do over again. I also made the front edge thing too wide (it's based on the Klaus plan) which makes it difficult to clamp things using a quick clamp type of thing to the top of the table. It is nice for clamping things to the face though like for jointing tops (although now I shoot them).

One thing that would be nice would be to add a tool box with drawers under the bench. The rub would be that you couldn't access the bottom of the bench as easily to push dogs up etc.

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http://www.birkonium.com CNC Products for Luthiers
http://banduramaker.blogspot.com

nice thats another thing i needed to know was the legs and bracing setup. i am only adding on a 2'X4' bench so the L will be 6 X 6. and i have 3/4" ply good finished on one side so i will most likely use that for the top. and cut it oversized so i can clamp on the the edges of the top of the workbench when i need to

well i think im just gonna change this thread to "show your workbench"
s

Wow...those are some fantastic ideas and setps! I have a VERY small shop, and with no garage that is also where my automotive and motorcycle stuff goes so space is a premium. I agree with the idea of drawers under the bench/work surface. It would save a lot on reaching for tools and often used items.

When looking at layout ideas once, I came across information for planning out kitchens based on usage patterns and such. Had some good info that might help also.

Wonderful stuff, guys.
But my word, Filippo, was Hesh coming over to your shop that day?
You do remember the adage that a clean shop is the sign of a sick mind, right?

John How---what a lovely guitar...hope you're bringing that to H'burg?

Steve

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From Nacogdoches...the oldest town in Texas.

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

Darn it Filippo, if you lived closer I’d give you one, but you’d have to come and pick it up...

Over here, it used to be that almost everyone who did anything related to woodworking, on any level, had one. Then prosperity and electricity came, people moved into the suburbs, left their heavy benches back at the farm and later bought new B&D “Workmate” knock-offs at the local home improvement center… On the up side, those old benches are now quite common on the used market, you see them all the time on estate sales and in the classifieds and so on. More often than not they will show signs of heavy use followed by years, if not decades, of neglect, but it’s not unusual that a nice bench will be hiding under the grime. I have never seen a “trophy” bench with figured woods and what not among these; our benches are quite functional, but their appearance is always rather utilitarian compared to the “Scandinavian workbenches” I see in the glossy woodworking literature. Go figure. I retired my big bench when I remodeled my shop last year, and put in a smaller, unloved oldie that was given to me. I still have to get around to fixing it up as you can see, but this is the type and condition of bench you’ll usually find.



We call this type of bench a "høvelbenk", or planing bench. IMO, that’s what they work best for; the vises allow you to secure and reposition the work piece quickly, the height and to use your body efficiently for extended periods of hand planing, the mass gives you a very secure base that won't move under normal use. I like to use hand planes for guitar making as much as the next guy, but its not like there is a lot of real estate that needs planing on a guitar, and I would not make a planing bench just for that. I did make vises etc for one years ago though, and boy was it a lot of work! Here’s the ash tail vise.



In guitar making, I use my planing bench mostly to hold jigs and fixtures. My Fox bender, neck carving fixture, binding jig etc. are all made so they can all be held in firmly the bench. Works great for that...

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

Wow Arnt, the way I'm drawn to things old, large, heavy and difficult to move, maybe it's a good thing I don't live near you. I'd never be able to pass those beauties up, and then where would I be? About where I am now, drowning under the unwanted castoffs of yesteryear, ah but I sure would like to run across at least one of those great old benches, practical or not!

Joe

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I have 2 4'x6' 1950's Post Office work tables. They don't move. I paid $8 apiece for them 16 years ago.

Band saw, router, chisels... Those suckers are deep, but they are also stopped in the cross piece, so they had to be routed IIRC. I made the plans for the vise myself, after looking at different antiques, including the Shaker vise in "The Workbench Book" by Landis. The geometry had to be adjusted to fit my existing bench, of course. It took a while to get everything to fit just right.

I'm not crazy about tool trays either, but these old benches usually have one. I like your tray though, Tony, I may have to steal that idea too...

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin