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I am an idiot, it is hemlock.
Is this near SYP on the hardness scale?
Is this near SYP on the hardness scale?
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That's a pretty darn good deal on the wood. $0.33 a board foot. I think that would deserve a 'You Suck'
Hickory should be fine. I did mine out of Southern Yellow Pine. Sarge has used several materials and the latest ones are SYP. Hickory is about twice as hard on the Janka hardness scale.
Schwarz's did a couple benches out of SYP in his book too. I found his book really useful. I later picked up The Workbench Book. It has a lot of good info too.Erik -
Thanks , maybe I should have posted a gloat.
I am considering buying enough to make the whole bench out of it, instead of using poor quality Borg lumber for the base.
He's a friends dad, so he takes care of me pretty well.
I am thinking approx a 2.75" thick top, which i know may not be as thick as some people like, but I still don't want to spend too much on the bench, LOML is still giving me stern looks for my planer purchase
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Here is the rub. Schwartz's book recommends, SYP, due to cost and availability. What he recommends in it, is getting larger boards, and cutting them down, verses getting things like 2x4's.
I would be tempted to get the hickory, and let it age in the shop, then build the permanent bench out of it, not the temporary one.She couldn't tell the difference between the escape pod, and the bathroom. We had to go back for her.........................Twice.Comment
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Yeah, SYP is not as easy to come by here, more fir and the like. Pine has also been at a premium here because of softwood pellets. I wont be building it for at least 2 weeks, but I might think about skipping the 2 bench idea, and do it all at once, the right way. I am going to be building my own leg vice similar to the benchcrafted one at about 1/8 of the price, so I might was well do it right the 1st time.Comment
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I got some decent results from Borg 2x12s. It's not like some of the showpiece benches I've seen, but it functions well. I don't think it looks all that bad either. The left legs are 5x5 and the right ones are 5x7. The whole thing was done with several 2x12s ripped and glued up. I really should have dried the wood longer than I did, but I was getting impatient.
Doing your top at 2 3/4" would be fine too, especially out of hickory.Attached FilesErikComment
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Why not hickory? That sounds like a dynamite deal. It would make a great workbench.
If you want a temporary bench get some plywood and a couple of saw horses. The hickory will make a keeper.
JRJRComment
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I have heard that hickory is splintery and hard to work with. May make for a less than optimal work surface. Tell ya what, I'll swap you some MDF for the hickory and that way you would have a nice flat top and I think I could think of something to use the hickory for.
Bill, always willing to help a fellow wood worker,Comment
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Sure, do you have enough MDF to swap for this 360 BD feet of OAK I got for $100.00 or this 1/2 pickup truck of some silly maple that has little bug holes that I got for 50.00? I have all this wood but not workbench to do anything with it withI have heard that hickory is splintery and hard to work with. May make for a less than optimal work surface. Tell ya what, I'll swap you some MDF for the hickory and that way you would have a nice flat top and I think I could think of something to use the hickory for.
Bill, always willing to help a fellow wood worker,
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Hickory is a hardwood. In fact very hard.
http://www.woodcentral.com/shots/shot616.shtml
I join in the suggestion that you make your "keeper" bench out of the Hickory.
I made my little bench top out of a huge box of kindergarten blocks made out of SYP. These blocks were salvaged by my MIL at the school where she taught. I used my little 6" jointer to clean and square up the filthy blocks. The glue up was tough.
SteveI would never die for my beliefs because I might be wrong. Bertrand RussellComment
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It would be tough to find but I think with some diligence I could come up with enough MDF for you.
Actually, I would make a temporary bench out of MDF and 2x4s and use it to make the real bench. When done you could just salvage the materials or turn it into a plant bench or something. If your like me it could be a place to collect stuff to keep the real bench clean.
Bill, over here in evergreen land....
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I thought it was a Hard Softwood.
I am new to this, I have been getting pine slabs from the guy for a while, but this is my first foray into actually working with hardwood. I have those other piles of hardwood sitting in the garage, but i wanted to wait until i got a little better at woodworking before I started making anything out of the Oak/Maple. That and I bought it all rough cut 8 inches wide or so, and I did not have a planer, nor did I want to cut it all down to 6 inches and run it through my little jointer.
Now that I got a planer, the LOML is waiting for some new cabinets
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I originally went to him to find a substitute for mdf. I can buy enough hickory to make a top for cheaper than a sheet of mdf. If I get 4 planks at 4.00, I can make a 4x6x2 top, and thats about the cost of a sheet of mdf here.It would be tough to find but I think with some diligence I could come up with enough MDF for you.
Actually, I would make a temporary bench out of MDF and 2x4s and use it to make the real bench. When done you could just salvage the materials or turn it into a plant bench or something. If your like me it could be a place to collect stuff to keep the real bench clean.
Bill, over here in evergreen land....
We have our share of evergreens here in the Pine Tree State.
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Well you do have a point there. I think in that case I would buy enough for both. You really do need a place to make the real bench and the first bench might be a training ground for you. I might just place the planks on sawhorses and use that as a bench at first.
Here on the coast its the pits, 5 hour drive to get to a lumber mill with decent hardwoods and affordable prices.
Bill,Comment
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Yes, well, my supplier is about 10 minutes down a country road from me.
I think my wife is going to stop me from turning in that direction if I keep it up
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