Replies

1. 
   BG | Apr 20, 2004 12:47am | #1

   Boris,

   Look at comment #12 by Ubeam under "benchtop hardwood" thread.  Seems he knows of a source that might be of some interest to you....

   
   

   ---

   Edited 4/19/2004 5:49 pm ET by BG

2. 
   Alan | Apr 20, 2004 01:12am | #2

   Boris,

   I have a Sljbzxkcw...er..Pat, I'd like to buy a vowel..bench, which is about 60"x20" or so, and I'm very happy with it.  But my criteria for a bench are probably not the same as yours.  I wanted a bench that I could knock down easily for storage and could drag around with my bad back.  My bench fulfills all those requirements.

   If you're looking for a bench that will not need to be moved around, and will be subjected to heavy use, then I'd say to look elsewhere.  Mine is too light; the vises aren't robust enough for heavy-duty use; the top is rather thin; the base is very light-weight stuff; and the whole thing is comparatively too light in weight.

   WC did not say that in "It's a Gift" or anywhere else that I can find.  After all, WC would NEVER say he would be sober tomorrow!

   Alan

   At a dinner party one evening, there was an exchange between Churchill and a female MP.  At the end of the exchange the lady scornfully remarked, "Mr. Churchill, you are drunk."

   "And you, madam," replied Churchill, "are ugly.  But I shall be sober tomorrow."

   Source:  The Little, Brown, Book of Anecdotes; pg. 125

3. 
   RANGERP75R | Apr 20, 2004 05:41am | #3

   Boris

      The Diefenbach' are nice, but you nailed it with they are expensive. Ulmia has gone out of business and they are up there in that range.

      I have seen the Sjoberg's at Highland Wardware and my opinion is they are quite skimpy, especially at that price. The LV is a decent option at a fairly reasonable price. If I were going to buy a bench, it's probably where I would go. I am not going to buy one after building 15 total over 30 years, but there are not a lot of reasonably priced one's with good quality.

     There may be other options as mentioned. I think that most companies that were building them discovered by de-fault that most people in the market do build them as they get more bang for the buck.

     Good luck with your search...

   sarge..jt

   Proud member of the :  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

1. 
   scooter1 | Apr 20, 2004 07:07pm | #5

   Actually, Ulimia is back in business:

   http://www.garrettwade.com/jump.jsp?lGen=detail&itemID=105222&itemType=PRODUCT&iMainCat=0&iSubCat=0&iProductID=105222

   Regards,

   Boris

   "Sir, I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow" -- WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934

1. 
   RANGERP75R | Apr 20, 2004 07:18pm | #6

   Boris

      Thanks.... was not aware of the buy-out and subsequent "business as usual"..

      Now that should excite those that are in the position and willing to pay big bucks for a bench. Starting at only $1600 could be the sales pitch given.

      They are excellent benches, but I would hestitate to drop the bucks when I have the time to build equal quality at about 1/4 the cost. I have a friend that flys for Delta AL's that would just write the check without hesitating. I suppose there's a market for everything when all is said and done.

   Regards...

   sarge..jtProud member of the :  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

1. 
   scooter1 | Apr 20, 2004 07:54pm | #7

   One of my problems is a source of good cheap wood. The supply is of two types: Pine and Doug Fir from a local lumberyard; or Expensive Clear Hardwoods at a Hardwood Supplier. While many plans mention "utility grade" maple, I have yet to find it.

   I am leaning toward the Veritas Tops, and their End Vise, heavily customized to fit my needs.

   Regards,

   Boris

   "Sir, I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow" -- WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934

1. 
   IronDog | Apr 21, 2004 01:31am | #8

   Greetings President Yeltsin,

   I trust your retirement is going well.

   Are you hanging with Gorby these days??

   I myself, ( a mere commoner ) favor building your own workbench.

   I mean, hey, you're a woodworker, why not build your own

   workbench??

   I guess buying is ok for weekend woodworkers, who make lot's of dough

   during the week.

   But I think making your own is a great way to show your woodworking chops.

   It doesn't have to be fancy with all sorts of dovetailed vises n' stuf.

   I made mine with thick old pine from a house I worked on.

   I bolted on some vises and it works fine.

   The base structure is maple with wedged through tenons and bridle joints

   and it's great. I'd never done those joints before I built this bench. Good time

   to try some new things.

   If you look at the book from Taunton on workbenches you'll see that not all

   woodworkers have shoulder vises and end vises all over the place.

   Ian Kirby, I think, prefers just a simple slab top.

   As far as lumber supply in your area goes I'll bet there is more available than you suggest.

   One note- Western benches seem to be made of a hardwood top.

   Japanese benches tend to be made of softwoods that are unvarnished.

   Different philosophies.

   Good luck!

   Tom

2. 
   SgianDubh | Apr 21, 2004 02:10am | #9

   Tom, you might be surprised how many professional woodworkers prefer to buy their main workbench-- the one with the tail vise, dogs, thick top, tool tray (if desired) and so on. For many years my main bench has been an Ulmia which I bought, one with a tool tray, which may not now be available in Ulmias latest incarnation. The only modification I made was to remove the front vise and replace it with a Record 52-1/2, which I prefer to Ulmias standard offering.

   I've made a few lighter secondary benches and assembly tables and the like over the years, but I've never made my main bench. For me the cost of all the materials (including vises, dogs, and so on) plus labour at $35 or so an hour at that time just didn't make sense. At the time I bought my Ulmia bench I think I paid about  US$1100. Making a high quality bench means working many unbillable hours on the project instead of making furniture for paying customers.

   Still, each to their own, but it's not just amateurs with more money than sense that are willing to buy a solid good quality bench rather than making one. Similarly, many furniture companies know they need to spend thousands on industrial 18"+ wide 3 phase thickness planers and other heavy duty machinery to be competitive in their field rather than using a well tuned handplane to square timber or hand saws to cut wood. Slainte.RJFurniture

3. 
   RANGERP75R | Apr 21, 2004 05:35am | #12

   Slainte

      Well said and too the point. Down-time building a bench for a professional means loss of income. Down-time for us amateurs is just "shop-time". We got plenty of time to build a wooden "battle-ship" if we want with absolutely nobody breathing down our throat or dead-line clock ticking.

      Wishing all is well in "merry ole England" where drinking time is anytime with no deal-lines to meet... ha.. ha...

   sarge..jtProud member of the :  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

4. 
   RANGERP75R | Apr 21, 2004 05:23am | #10

   Boris

      Even though I prefer to build my own as I stated (I have the time), I think the Veritas is a sturdy, reasonably priced bench. I have their twin screw vise and couldn't be happier with it. It gives me a lot of versatility as it acts a tail vise with dog holes corresponding and as a large clamp area for wide panels with all that space between the screws.

      If you do buy, I think it would be a good choice of the over the counter benches I've seen.

   Regards...

   sarge.jtProud member of the :  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

4. 
   Miami | Apr 20, 2004 09:20am | #4

   I did all the research I could manage in this area, and I ended up getting two of the Veritas benches.  If you want to buy only the top and build the rest, you could look at the slab source referenced above, or some others that have been mentioned elsewhere.  The Sjobergs (at least the sub-$1800 ones) seemed flimsy, and I couldn't justify the cost of a Diefenbach.  (For that money, there's very soon gonna be a Lie-Nielsen branded bench ... right?)

   I do like the Veritas benches (I got the wood bases, despite several votes for the iron ones, so I can put in drawers later, and/or maybe a tilt-out bin just under the apron).  Weight is fine, and they're very stiff. 

   On one of them I put a second twin-screw vise in as a face vise, and that's awfully handy.  The other got the QR Record 52 1/2 as a face - also nice to have.  If I weren't getting two at the time, I'd want to have at least one quick-release vise.

   Clay

5. 
   billballeza | Apr 21, 2004 05:30am | #11

   Boris.. I bought a Sjoberg bench from Woodcraft. Very basic.. no tool tray.. plastic dogs.. end and tail vices that only allow for shallow material holding..

   but, it gets the job done. I use it only for planing and sanding and dovetailing.. because it's not large enough to serve as an assembly/finishing/clamp up table. (I use a solid core door on horses for those applications.)

   It's okay for the money and considering the use it gets in my shop. And the price was certainly right.. somewhere in the neighborhood of $400.

   Bill