Shop Tours

Purpleheart work bench and Mahagony tool cabinet

comments (6) July 12th, 2010 in Shop Tours        
Dean2 Dean2, member
thumbs up 12 users recommend
In this photo I had not yet mounted the 24 double screw face vise from Lee Valley.
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Shop Specs

  • Location: St. David's Parish, Grenada
  • Size: 1500sq. ft.
  • Type: Basement
  • Focus: Furniture
  • Heating/Cooling: none required

Here are some additional phots as requested. The bench is solid purple heart and weighs about 600 pounds. The tool cabinet is mahagony> I started with the base unit with the drawers and then added the top later. I love having everything in one spot so all I have to do is turn around at the bench and reach into the tool cabinet.

posted in: Shop Tours, WorkBench, dovetails, tenons, shaker, mahogany, frame and panel, tool chest
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Comments (6)

Adam757 Adam757 writes: Awesome workbench! I have always like to incorperate purpleheart in my pieces when I think it will look good. Too bad it costs so much here in the states.
Posted: 3:22 pm on March 26th

PeteDeSimas PeteDeSimas writes: Absolutely a beautiful work bench you have there. I wish Purple Heart was available here in the USA at a price that I could make one like it.
Posted: 12:21 pm on February 4th

Dean2 Dean2 writes: My pruple heart workbench. I chose the purple heart because of its weight, availability in large sizes and the fact that here in Grenada it is inexpensive and we don't have ash or maple or the other more common woods for benches. The brown color wood is Kabukali, also from South America and another heavy hardwood. It is hard on the cutting edges. You just never set the sharpening gear aside with this stuff. The high silica in the wood is murder on the edges. Oh, for GEide, sorry about the sandles in the workshop but here in the islands we do most everything either barefoot or in sandles. I do put on closed top shoes when I'm handling the full rough planks and logs.
Presently I have about 1500 bd ft of local cuban mahagony sticked and air drying. We don't have any kilns here so I have to have enough lumber on hand to be able to let it dry for a year at least before I work with it.
Posted: 9:18 pm on July 21st

kerfwerks kerfwerks writes: Dean2 , absolutely beautiful bench. How often did you have to resharpen during it's construction? Incidently,I have a glass-blowing chum who works yearound in Birkenstocks!
Posted: 10:24 am on July 21st

SouthernILWoodworker SouthernILWoodworker writes: Why would you choose purple heart for a work bench?
Posted: 10:24 pm on July 20th

GEide GEide writes: Wow, you obviously put a lot of effort into those projects. But woah... open toes in the woodshop! :)
Posted: 2:59 pm on July 14th

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