Basic Bench plan by Scott Landis – help
I am new to woodworking and maybe I am too new but I do not understand the dimensions needed for the basic bench plan, beginning on page 80. The book says that the legs and stretchers are made out of 4 by 4 douglas fir but the diagrams in the back of the book show that the legs are 3 by 3 and the stretchers 2 by 3?
Without taking a drive to the lumber supply to confirm – the wood is not sold in such dimensions – am I supposed to rip the 4 by 4’s down to 2 by 3 and 3 by 3 members for the legs and stretchers? It just seems from the photos and diagrams that the stretchers are not as wide as the legs because you can see that when they are joined that the widths of the two pieces are not the same.
Any insight into this problem I seem to have would be appreciated. Thanks, Tom.
Replies
Hello, I don't know if I can answer all of your questions, but I'll try to be helpful. Now. as to the dimensions of lumber, I may be covering stuff you already know. Wood in the lumber yard is usually labeled by it's nominal dimension, which is larger than it's actual dimension. A 2x4, for example, was 2" by 4" when it was rough cut at the saw mill. In order to give us a nice working surface and fewer splinters the 2x4 gets surfaced (planed) on four sides. The new size is 1 1/2" by 3 1/2".
A typical 4x4 is actually 3 1/2" by 3 1/2". Why a 3x3 should be 2x3 I don't know unless the plans call for you to resize the lumber to a smaller dimension. i hope this is helpful.
Datachanel
Doing things the hard way
Edited 12/14/2005 8:31 am ET by datachanel
Thanks for the reply - I figure that the actual dimensions of the 4 by 4's show as only 3 inches in width in the diagrams but then what about the stretchers?
My real problem with the book is that I was looking for project plans - the book is very exhaustive in covering all aspects of benches but it does not address how to build a workbench from a step by step approach. It assumes a very high level of familiarity with woodworking and with knowing what dimensions of lumber to use.
The text of the chapter says the stretchers an legs are from 4 by 4's but I still do not know why, then, the dimensions of the stretchers are 2 by 3.
Thanks for your comments.
The only way to get wood with 3x3 or 2x3 actual dimensions from framing lumber is to start with nominal 4x4s. The 3x3 legs would probably by jointed and planed from the framing lumber, and the 2x3 would have to be ripped.
By the way, for these sorts of projects I would advise buying framing lumber from the best actual lumberyard in the county. The stuff at the Borgs--blue or orange, is censorable. (My local orange borg as nothing but green framing lumber. That means moisture content greater than 19%, practically dripping in some cases.) Wood for interior furniture should be dried to 8% or less. The shrinkage and possibility of warping are really great starting with green lumber. (Higher energy costs increases the cost of kiln dried lumber, hence the borgs are using less of it.) I would still sticker this in your shop, well weighted, for as long as you can manage. The goal is to get the lumber closer to its equilibrium moisture content before you start to mill it.
Thanks Steve for the reply - I guess I do have to resize, plane the wood - I was about to buy some Douglas fir from HD but after reading your post maybe I'll buy some better quality wood that is much drier - thanks - Tom
If I was beginning the "build a bench" issue I would seriously look at the article in FWW in the last issue or so about laminating 3/4 plywood. I built a similar designed bench using 2x4's but this one was really neat. I think the author said it cost about $200-250 and it looked like a fun project resulting in a very useable bench.(I know this doesn't address your real question but I thought I would share an alternative that I intend to use the next time a bench is in the works. Good luck!)
I think you are taking the dimensions too objectively. Yes, a 4x4 is only 3 1/2 inches square. But after you joint 2 faces, and plane the other faces, you will end up around 3 inches... or a bit more. So what? What if the legs were 3 13/32 square.. does it really matter? No. And that is the way the base is made.... whatever dimensions come through is OK. As long as you are consistent and think of how things fit together. YOu want the legs and the stretchers to be the same dimsneions so that things are flush. So you joint and plane all the parts first, at the same time.
You are using a jointer and a planer? ( Hand or machine, makes no difference.. just be sure you use one. Everything must be square and planar.)
Does this help? I hope it does because in woodworking, there are rarly dimensions that are precise. There are dimensions that must be the same, but rarely does a particular dimsneion in its own require 7 figure accuracy.
BTW, I did build a workbench similar to those in the Landis book ( Mine was a Nyquist version.... see the book....). My base is made of 5x7 lumber.... because that is what I had available. My top is an odd size ( I forget what right now, but around 64 inches long by 32 uinches wide). I have had it in operation for around 5 years, and love it.
If you have problems, please ask.. I am sure that there are several of us that will be glad to explain.
Frank
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