I’m going to install a few pieces of light plywood which will allow me to get some use out the

small gaps at the

bottom of the bench. After cutting all their parts, I screw them on. I can use these gaps to store protection boards
for the top, or the vacuum tube, which I will later attach to the bench
Now I make sure the central part of the cabinets, which will later support the benchtop, is at the same height as
the bench frames. It seems I have to trim it a little. It probably won’t be necessary, but I’m going to cut and glue
on a few plywood parts to strengthen the central support and make it thicker.

Now I can finally attach the benchtop. It weighs around 60 kg, which means it’s not going to be easy. I set it down
on two pegs on the floor and against the back of the bench, just like I will do whenever I need to put big boards on
the bench in order to cut them. Of course, we could also use a hard plywood board of similar thickness, or even
join several boards to get about 40mm thick.
It’s a high quality beech finger joint board sent to me by the company Basicmadera. It will be perfect for this
woodworking bench/workbench hybrid, keeping it sturdy and stable when we are working. It’s made with strips of
wood that are glued together and connected by finger joints.

With this kind of joint and since it’s hardwood, I think my benchtop will stay in perfect condition for many
years. First, we have to precut it to size with a circular saw and a guide. I flip it over and apply a coat of matte
water based varnish.

Now that it’s upside down, I’ll attach the vise as well I flip it over one more time, measure its exact position and
drill holes to fasten it to the bench frames. I’ll use hex lag screws with washers, meaning the top half of the holes
should have the same diameter as the washers and the bottom half should have the diameter as the screws. I
won’t put screws in the central part of the top. I don’t think they’ll be necessary.
Now with the router with its plunge base I’ll leave the edges of the tops completely flush. I’ll use a flush trim router
bit and an aluminum fence. I should make sure the back edge is straight in order to achieve straight cuts with my
rip cut guide.

Now I measure the positions of all the holes in the benchtop where I can put holdfast clamps and dogs. I stop a
few millimeters short of drilling through to avoid damaging the bottom of the benchtop. I drill the first hole and
make sure the steel rod is plumb.

Now, with a router bit I can remove that little amount of wood left in the holes. It’s time to sand the entire surface
of the benchtop and apply some linseed oil. I’ll use oil because it will make maintenance easier.
Then, using the leftover scraps of wood from the benchtop, I’ll make the pieces that make up the rip cut guide. I
make them straight with the planer and cut them to size. I have to make groover to slide in the t-track guides.

We could also use a U-shaped aluminum profile here, like the one I installed on my table saw. With that same
table saw, I’ll make the grooves in several runs.

After configuring my 3D router I’ll machine the adjustment grooves. They could also be made with a plunge router
and a guide. With the router table I’ll make a rebate for the self-adhesive measuring tape. Finally, I apply some
linseed oil on both pieces.

I already made grip knobs with hard plywood and a square neck bolt. You can see how to make them in
other articles in my web. With them, I can attach the pieces to the bench.
I mark and fasten the t-track guide screws and make sure the slider works okay. This model can be adjusted, by
tightening a screw, the slider expands, reducing play. Next, I’ll make the rip cut guide. I mark the hole where the
circular saw will go and cut it on the table saw.

I have to make some rebates for the circular saw’s knobs and a bezel for its body. I do the same operation on both
sides so that I can use the circular saw in both directions. With the table saw I make another groove to achieve a
more precise cutting size, and with the table router I cut a groove to lock the guide at the appropriate
measurement for cutting.
I make the other part of the guide, making recesses for the slider and the aluminum piece that will allow for a
more precise adjustment of the cutting size with the table saw, too.

Now I’ll prepare a piece of HPL to fit the guide rail that comes with the plunge circular saw in the bench and make
cross cuts. I cut it on the table saw and finish it with the disc sander. I mark the position of the screws, drill holes
on the rail and the HPL piece with the bit with less diameter to make a thread.

I also prepare this other piece to attach to the front of the workbench and fasten the rail on the other side. This
way I can ensure the cuts are always square. I make a groove for the disc on the benchtop, about 2 mm deep.

I cut the piece of the T-track guide through which the disc will run when making cross cuts. I also cut some board
strips that I can set down on the benchtop to avoid damaging it.
Now I’ll make another jig to cut angles, and try out the cutting station while I’m at it.

With the rest of the beech board I build the other part of the miter jig like before; and I also prepare a steel pipe to
work as rotation axis. I put the pieces together with screws, glue the tube on and fasten the t-track.

Now all that’s left is to make the miter track stops. In order to make the process easier, I’ll milling a long piece of
plywood with the router, which I will later cut down to size.
I make the rest of the rebates with the band saw, as well as holes for the screws that will acts as rotation axis with
the column drill. I cut and drill holes in the aluminum pieces that go on the t-track guide, and that wraps it up for
today.

www.paoson.com

Where to get materials used in this project:

Multi-Function Workbench thread in Forum: