This bench certainly looked different from all the rest. Instead of being made from large chunks of beech or maple, Grizzly’s bench is made from thousands of strips of birch, most no larger than 3/4 in. sq., laminated together. The top was relatively flat, and this method of construction should, in theory, make it the most stable of all the benches.

That’s where the good news ends: Despite being the heaviest bench, when given a jolt it wobbled several times from end to end, probably due to the small stretchers and the undersize nuts and bolts that attach them to the legs. The front vise racked alarmingly, while the tail vise climbed 1/8 in. when tightened. When combined with the fact that the dogs leaned backward under pressure in their oversize holes, the effect was to raise the workpiece into the air.

The other trouble spot is the massive drawer in the base. Heavy even when empty, it is difficult to open when storing anything but bulky, light objects.

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