The Luthiers Workbench - pics?

sharp21

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What kind of workbench do you all use?

I am planning the bench build for my new workshop & have been doing a lot of reading. I'll be building furniture as well as ukes so was planning on a traditional european style bench, but then I got The Workbench Book by Scott Landis which has a section on lutherie in it.

He says that generally the luthiers bench is quite a bit higher due to the nature of the work & often times is cobbled together with plywood & 2x4s, with old cabinet drawers shoehorned in. He figures this is due to the scale at which they work & "are often neophytes when it comes to furniture - & the workbench is essentially a piece of furniture, so they tend to be rough hewn."

The benches at CF Martin are cabinet makers benches with special jigs fitted to the vices.

The book had one excellent example of a purpose built bench. Richard Schneiders bench (scroll down one page to view) was relatively narrow & had a cut out on one end. He would build his guitars on building boards which he would attach to one of the "outriggers". This was he could access the work from 3 sides & actually keep it off the bench, which was used for holding tools, etc.

I'm thinking of a bench that splits the difference in work height, then makes it up with a box that lives underneath the shelf in order to get elevated for planing large pieces...

What kind of benches are you all using?
S.
 
I can't take a photo of my bench because its covered with junk. I think there's still a bench under there somewhere :D
 
Decide how you want to work first. I wanted to make things easy on my back and my eyes so I made all my benches 40" high. Sometimes I work standing, other times I'm sitting on a tall bar chair/stool. Seems ideal for me. An inch or two can make all the difference in the world if you plan of putting in long hours at the bench. You might even consider different heights for different tasks.
Pete's idea is a good one as it is infinitely adjustable. You could play around with different arrangements and heights.
 
I'll be building furniture as well & definitely have aspirations towards a "proper" bench.

As the bench height is preferred to be lower for planing, or at about wrist height, I thought I would build it +5" from there, then have a full length 5" box that slides under the shelf. That way I'll have the higher bench for uke building while still being able to adjust my planing height!

I was also thinking of adding 4 holes on one end to attach a go bar deck directly to the bench. Its a small space so I am looking at versatility.
S.
 
My bench is made from 2 stacked 4x8' sheets of Maple Plywood with a maple hardwood trim around the edge. The legs were from a pile of 2 X 4's I had on hand.
I wanted to be able to walk around the whole table and this gives me several work stations on one bench. It is a very sturdy and heavy bench.

IMG_4312.jpgIMG_4339.jpgIMG_4341.jpg
 
My advice is to take your time to plan your bench.Treat it like a new instrument and plan it all out .Don't scrimp on materials and build it strong and accurate.Remember that everything you build after it will be built on your new bench.So flatten and smooth the top to a high degree.Allow a system to lift your bench top height.It doesn't have to be high tech,simple as putting blocks under the legs but it will make your bench work better for you.
DSCF7920.jpgDSCF7922.jpgMicheal Connor13.jpgtailvice.jpgbenchtop.jpg

Micheal.
 
Whatever you start with will soon change...if there is a flat surface something will be placed on it..if the item has a flat top something will be placed on top of that if there is a space anywhere something will be put in it..and so on and so on.. untill you can't find place for anything..so you extend the workshop:)..and it all starts again.:(
 
I love my workbench! It's made from a length of salvaged bowling lane. It's maple, heavy as hell, and super thick. Next summer I'm going to build a proper base for it.
 
DSC_0001.jpg 80% of my time is spent at this craigslist freebee teachers style desk. In my area in a month or two I could get as many of these for free as I wanted. I have a couple in my office in the house and this one that I have added a vise to and binding set up to this one in my shop. These old desks have deep beautiful oak dovetailed drawers and when screwed to the wall are solid as a rock. If needed another free standing workbench I would put a couple of these back to back, raise the legs 6" and throw a top on. If you use a craigslist notification tool you will be the first to the scene when one comes online.
 
My benches are firedoors on top of kitchen cabinets. Makes everything the right height for me and allows me to replace, build a workshop quickly.

That is a perfect description of my Stained Glass workshop bench!

(Of course, I also bought a 24" square Tool Display Stand from a hardware store that was closing, and it is the perfect height (40") for the glass grinder... and has a tall back plane that I've got reflector lights mounted on.)

-Kurt​
 
Whatever you start with will soon change...if there is a flat surface something will be placed on it..if the item has a flat top something will be placed on top of that if there is a space anywhere something will be put in it..and so on and so on.. untill you can't find place for anything..so you extend the workshop:)..and it all starts again.:(
So True! :biglaugh:
 
I pulled out one workbench and am installing a pedestal stand with a parrot vise in it then I'm going to mount a bunch of tools to work boards that I can in turn mount in the vice. Things like a mini router table, bending forms, buffing wheel etc. I like to be able to walk around a project as I'm working on it. I am looking for one of those rolling carts that school cafeterias use to put trays in but to place the tool boards in.
 
My advice is to take your time to plan your bench.Treat it like a new instrument and plan it all out .Don't scrimp on materials and build it strong and accurate.Remember that everything you build after it will be built on your new bench.So flatten and smooth the top to a high degree.Allow a system to lift your bench top height.It doesn't have to be high tech,simple as putting blocks under the legs but it will make your bench work better for you.
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Micheal.

With benches that good, you can probably take the training wheels off.
 
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