Which wood for a workbench (in Europe)?
Hello everyone!
My first post here, so a short introduction. I’m Gene, originally from Russia, now living in Luxembourg. I work as a software developer, but always liked to make something with my hands. About a year ago I got into woodworking. As I live in an apartment, my workshop is (starting to appear) in our 3×3 m (that’s 10×10 ft) cellar. Therefore I’m planning to use mostly hand tools (I have a cordless drill, a drill press and a bench grinder).
The time has come to build a proper workbench as a B&D WorkMate is just too limiting.
I’m reading Christopher Schwarz’s book on Workbenches, and there he mentions building a bench out of 2×12 Southern Yellow Pine commonly available in construction shops for timber framing. But the message he is sending is to use whatever is available and affordable locally. So I’d like to ask advice from people who know about what kinds and sizes of wood are sold in Europe, what would be a good and affordable material?
It seems that timber framing here uses wood labeled KVH (German for construction solid timber), which is dried to 15+/-3% moisture content, and is available in several standard dimensions. I’ve searched the actual dimensions of a 2×12, and it’s 38×286 mm. If I look at this German supplier, for example: https://www.gelo.de/en/products/kvh-konstruktionsvollholz/
The closest sizes of spruce KVH available: 40×240 or 60×280. Douglas fir: 60×240.
Is KVH what I’m looking for? Should I go for spruce or Douglas fir? Which size would be most useful to work with (there are other sizes available, too)? Finally, is the project doable using hand tools only, or should I find someone with a table saw / ask the store to cut the wood for me? I can’t imagine rip cutting so much wood with a hand saw.
Thanks!
Gene
Replies
Hello Gene,
I made a kind of hybrid Christopher Schwarz bench myself.
Mainly built up out of 18mm multiplex.
It is a lot of glue-work to make it, but after sawing the boards the handling of the parts is easy.
I used a MDF-board on top and till now no need to replace it.
I made a legvise from layers of multiplex, a sliding deadman and a wagon vise.
If you let me now your mailadress I could send you same photos, I have no drawing of the beast (I think it weighs about 100-120 kilo's).
theo
[email protected]
I don't know anything about KVH. Here in the US, construction lumber varies by region. Down south, southern yelliiw pine us common, and makes fine workbenches. In the northeast, spruce is the most common, but I consider it too soft for a benchtop. It would be good for legs, though.
Do you have access to beech? European beech is an excellent bench wood. Since your shop is so small, your bench might be too. Extra mass from beech would be better in a smaller bench.
The advantage of multiplex is that it is perfectly possible to make a level bench, mine has a maximum of 2 mm difference measured diagonal on the benc 1800 mm long.
Further: multiplex doesn't work when the humidity changes.
My MDF topplate is not glued or screwed and is kept in place by the edges on the four sides formed by pieces of beechwood multiplex.
I made one of the workbenches from the 2" X 12" pine, with some modifications. I shortened the bench to 5 ft. and hung a paper roll on one end of it for glue-ups. What I still have to do is add a 3" runner along one side for clamping as the sides in the model I built are flat skirting 2" X 12". SO, think ahead! Will you be using the bench more in the old style of having lots of hand work done on your source material or will you be using it more for assembling, painting, finishing your source material? You can always move the bench around if it is a shorter version so you have a bench clamp on one side and the other side with an overlap at the top for clamps to grab onto, other than the bench dog holes. HEY, your shop sounds like my original only a little larger. I have converted my garage over to a shop - 24 ft X 30 ft MINUS a small room inside that is about 7 ft X 10 ft for emergency supplies and storage.
Good Luck in your projects!
I do agree with the "use whatever is available and affordable locally." It could be made by hand tools. Paul Sellers has at least 3 different video series (all I think are on YouTube) about building a bench by hand. It's definitely possible to do it by hand. That is all I have myself so if I were building my own, it would be by hand. It would just take a bit longer.
You might consider a ready made up wooden counter top commonly made of Beech. Beech works very well and can be found pretty flat. They can be bought in various thicknesses and will save you a lot of hard work if you only have hand tools. You can use the made up counter top as your foundation for the top and add glued on boards to the sides to accommodate vises and other devices that you may want. The base should be fairly simple to do with just hand tools if you can get some stock dimensioned to your design. Use a good sturdy hardwood like maple. I would not use pine or spruce which are too soft. That said, a good solid base for your workbench is very important. You want a base that will not rack or move under heavy use such as when you take a plane to a board. If the base moves around when you are working you will not like it. Put some good planning and thought into making a good stable base. The book you mention I am sure has some good ideas.
Use of solid wood kitchen worktop is a good idea - although hardwood items of decent thickness (40mm) can be expensive. An old Schwartz recommendation is to use two bonded together with glue, initially using screws from the underside as the "clamps" but then removing the screws once the glue has dried, to form an 80mm thick top. Heavy!
Beech, maple and even oak worktops are fairly light in hue (good for a workbench top) although iroko is available and very, very tough - just very dark in hue. Oak is open grain and perhaps best avoided as even when finished it'll tend to soak up dust and dirt in the open pores.
Such ready-made kitchen worktops are fairly flat (and can be planed flatter). Much quicker and easier than sawing, planing, thicknessing, gluing up then flattening big chunks of hardwood. (Ask me how I know). :-)
Lataxe
Thank you everyone for you replies. I am not a big fan of plywood, and the ones that are free from urea formaldehyde are pretty expensive here. And I really try to avoid MDF and similar materials. I'm talking about off-gassing. Especially considering that my workshop is in a cellar, there is no window that I can open. So, solid wood it should be.
I'm planning a ~ 150x60 cm = 60x24" bench, (depth per Schwarz's recommendations, width per my available space), many countertops I've found are 80 cm - too wide. I found a shop which has some that are suitable size. They have many choices of wood available, some of them come in sizes that would just have to be cut in half to make the two layers as suggested by Lataxe.
E.g. one of the previously mentioned Iroko: https://www.arbeitsplatten-shop.de/epages/61566463.sf/de_DE/?ObjectPath=/Shops/61566463/Products/1074
This is about the max amount of money I'm willing to pay for the benchtop. Ideally less, of course.
Other options (in German, use Google Translate):
https://www.arbeitsplatten-shop.de/epages/61566463.sf/de_DE/?ObjectPath=/Shops/61566463/Categories/Arbeitsplatten40
https://www.arbeitsplatten-shop.de/epages/61566463.sf/de_DE/?ObjectPath=/Shops/61566463/Categories/Kuechenarbeitsplatten_Ueberseehoelzer_kgz
https://www.arbeitsplatten-shop.de/epages/61566463.sf/de_DE/?ObjectPath=/Shops/61566463/Categories/Tischplatten_40mm
https://www.arbeitsplatten-shop.de/epages/61566463.sf/de_DE/?ObjectPath=/Shops/61566463/Categories/Podestplatten
Construction stores are also selling laminated wood panels (not many choices of wood), a 40 mm thick beech panel can be bought there, cut to order. 2 layers of 150x60 cm (60x24") should cost me under 200 EUR, if I buy from Bauhaus: https://www.bauhaus.info/zuschnittplatten/leimholzplatte-nach-mass/p/14455888
Advices from the options above?
Thanks!
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