In a previous thread I mentioned that I was rebuilding my model bench, which started life originally as my grandfather's watchmakers bench. I'm not certain of the age of the bench, but the main portion is at least 70 years old. It is built mostly from pine and plywood and not particularly well made. As I recall it was built in situe to fit a specific location in the back of his store. The bench came to me 30 years ago after having been in storage for the better part of my childhood. The original plywood top was badly worn and I replaced it at the time with a melamine top and back. That top served me well for the past 25-30 years but was in need of replacement. During our recent move the legs were badly damaged, so using that as the catalyst, I decided it was time to rebuild the bench, a task I'd been putting off for the past several years.
I replaced one set of legs with a more durable version made from some scrap maple stock. The other legs weren't as badly damaged so I just repaired and reinforced them. Because the floor in the shop is uneven concrete, I added leveling feet to the four main legs. I removed the melamine top and back and discarded the old top. I built a new top from some scrap birch ply (photo below). The melamine back will be refitted to the bench.
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Unfortunately the piece of birch ply I had wasn't long enough, but it was wide enough to rip down the middle and join the two pieces together to form the new top. The bench surface is just under 80" long. Some scrap square maple stock was used for the central joint and both ends. Some leftover walnut stock was used to trim the front edge. The top was assembled using biscuit joints to attach all the trim pieces to the plywood. The end mitre joints and center joint (photos below) were all cut on the Preac saw. After scraping the top with cabinet scrapers and sanding, it was finished with three coats of penetrating oil, followed by a coat of bowling alley wax. This is the same finish I used on my main work bench and it stands up well to use and liquid spills. It can easily be rejuvenated by rubbing out the surface with some 4x0 steel wool followed by another coat of paste wax. The original compartmented drawers contain tools and fittings for the lathes and mill which mount to the top, plus a large selection of hand tools. The two seat locations each have a slide out drop tray to catch any errant parts that fall off the top before they hit the floor. The tray on the right has deep grooves worn by years of filing clock parts by my grandfather. I've consciously retained all the elements that show wear by his hand as it provides me with a tangible reminder and link to him.
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Originally, the bench had a facing of thin beadboard plywood which I always disliked. I opted to replace it with some aluminum panels salvaged from one of my old trade-show displays. The panels are mounted to the front using 8-32 low-profile button-head allen screws fitted into threaded inserts. The switches and pushbuttons (photo below) control a throttle and 1:48n3 test track built into the back of the bench (yet to be reinstalled. It mounts into the rebate along the back edge of the top.) The power supply and throttle are built into the bench.
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While working on the new top, I have also been rebuilding both lathes. They should both be finished by next weekend, then the machines will be mounted to the new top. I'll post another shot once everything is back in place.
Paul
Holy Shit Batman...........you been busy........... and that's cool that you have your grandpa's bench and using it ;)Craig
Almost to nice to use as a work bench!
can't wait to see the lathes
Philip
Sweet!
You are feeling at home, it looks like......
Jacq
I feel I have accomplished something when I dust a piece of furniture. You are restoring and improving one. What's wrong with this picture? -- Russ
Cool, its like a broken Model T rebuilt into a hot rod. I've got a 8' kitchen counter from Home Depot. :-[
Cant wait to see it with the machines on it and 15 projects scattered in various stages!
Neat bench!
-Marty
Way to go Paul. Better to fix up granpa's old stuff than throw good money at the junk you see in stores today. You won't see anyone fixing that stuff up in 70 years.
Thanks guys. Yes Craig, it has been a busy time. All the pita tasks associated with the move, the repairs and rebuilding projects are cutting into my drinking on the deck time, but all the efforts are paying off as we're getting more and more settled in. We are definitely feeling at home here Jacq... I'll just be glad when all this work is done and I can back to the modelling and bike projects at hand. I agree Marty, I want to see it again as a working bench the way it's supposed to be. I like the analogy Dave of turning a Model T into a hot rod... hadn't thought of it like that. I suppose this is what you would call "pimping my bench." ;) And Russ, I am surprised by your comment. I was lead to believe that you had thong-clad cuties to do all your dusting for you... ;) ;D
I'm undecided about the back at the moment. There's nothing particularly wrong with it and it's a functional asset to the bench providing more tool storage plus the test track, but being white melamine, I'm not sure I'm going to like the way it looks. It's going to take some more thought and rummaging through my stock pile. At this point I'm working to finish refurbishing the lathes. My grandfather's Boley jeweler's lathe is complete and ready to mount to the bench. There's still some work to do on the Unimat. Unfortunately the coming weekend is shot finishing up the old house before turning it over to the new owners at the end of the month so it will be another week or so before I can make any more significant progress.
Paul
Paul -
I love the way the bench is going, but what is that metal (aluminium?) panel along the front?
The one with switches in it. Did you just add that? What is it's purpose?
Carlo
Thanks Carlo... The use of the aluminum panels and the purpose of the switches is explained in the second-to-last paragraph of the original post, between the final two photos.
Paul
Well I've finally finished rebuilding the back of the workbench. After making the new top, I wasn't happy anymore with the previous melamine back so I scratched around through my wood pile and came up with some oak L-girders (salvaged from an old layout project). I ripped the L-girders apart with the exception of one, jointed them and glued them up into a panel using biscuit joints. The one remaining L-girder became the shelf midway up the back which will shortly be drilled to accommodate various hand tools. I then planed, scraped, sanded and finished the back with the same process I used on the top. Old stringer screw holes in the shelf portion were filled with copper plugs. To attach the back to the top I machined five aluminum brackets from angle stock which were set into corresponding rebates routed into both the top and back. This was by far the most time consuming part of the whole process. I first machined an aluminum template for the router guide in order to repeatedly cut rebates exactly the same size and square to the edges of the top and back. The rebates were cut first in the top, then the locations carefully transferred to the back. As it turned out, the alignment was perfect, not an easy task over a 6 1/2' long joint. Photo below shows the back in place on the bench. (And yes Marc and Russ, if you look closely you can just see a bit of my Colnago hanging in the background, rotted tires and all.)
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Second photo more clearly shows the brackets in place.
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Photo below is a detail shot of one of the brackets, which are all held in place with button head cap screws let into the brackets. In the upper left you can just see one of the copper plus used to fill the old stringer screw holes.
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Electrical cords laying across the bench drive me nuts, so I recessed a couple of brass cable hatches into the top to accommodate the power cords to the machines, soldering irons and so on.
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Today I mounted the machines onto the left half of the bench. The rebuilt Unimat is on the left, the Boley jeweler's lathe in the middle and the Sherline mill on the right. The remaining space on the right half of the bench is the hand-work and assembly area.
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This is a closeup of my grandfather's Boley lathe, which I believe is now about 70 years old. When it was in my grandfather's shop it was powered by a foot treadle, much like the old Singer sewing machines. There was an idle shaft and flywheel apparatus between the treadle and the lathe to smooth out the rotation.
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Last is the Sherline with granite surface plate in the background.
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The only piece left to install on the back is the 1:48n3 test track shelf that attaches along the top edge of the back. The track was somewhat damaged during the move, so I may wait for a time to install it, at least until I'm inspired to do some trackwork. The bench has never looked this clean and I don't expect it will ever look this clean again. Now it's finally time to clutter it up with the tools and projects that have been packed since before our move three months ago.
Paul
So, like, you're really gonna use that piece of fine furniture for..machine work!? :-\
No, I'm not jealous.
John
Hey Paul, The Work Bench Looks Great.....what can i say I'm jealous ::) Craig
Your workplace is as elegant as your modeling. And, of course, your Colnago. -- Russ
Paul,
great to see you getting set up in your new shop- and with such virtuosity too. Looking forward to seeing progress on the Heywood van. Would be interested in the Unimat rebuild as I just inherited my Dads Unimat 3 (which I love as it is) but would be keen to find out if I can improve it further... if you get chance...
James
Looks great!
That Boley lathe is just exquisite!
Have to keep my eye out!
Looks like we have the same granite slab!
Now time to fill the bench with shavings and swarf!
-Marty
Looks great Paul. Wow, a unimat, a jewelers lathe and a millingmachine. Still saving some money to get my first milling machine. But I am not jealous ::)
Leon
Thanks guys... yes Marty the Boley is a real treasure, not least because of its heritage. I have a slew of collets for it and the back of the main driving spindle doubles as an indexing head. The lathe works great for free-hand turning, fine file work and polishing. The granite slab is very useful. Besides, I told my wife, she can use it as my headstone. :P
Yes John I'm really going to use it for machine work and hopefully before long it will be cluttered with shavings and swarf as Marty suggests. A friend of mine says it's too nice for the shop and should be in the living room, but since the living room is half the size of the shop and up a winding staircase, it will stay right where it is. I've always found a comfortable, clean and convenient working environment is much more productive than one where you constantly have to move or shift stuff in order to get to what you need. Had to do too much of that in the past working in very tiny spaces... can be done but you waste a lot of time.
James, depending on the condition of your inherited Unimat you may or may not need to do much work to it. If it's been well maintained it may just need a thorough cleaning and some adjustments, perhaps on the cross-slide. They are fairly robust little machines and will last indefinitely if properly maintained. They're not as precise as a Cowells (the lathe of my dreams), but then they're also not anywhere near the price. I bought mine 31 years ago and it has seen regular and often heavy use. I made an adaptor for mine to use the jeweler's lathe collets which provide greater accuracy than the chucks for really tiny work. I've also used it to make small components for 1:1 motorcycles, so, set up properly, it does a half-decent job.
Paul
Paul,
keep coming back to this thread just to admire your workmanship - if I was in your part of the world think I know where I would be going for any custom work
I really love the jewelers pull out shelves that are curved to fit your body! I am going to have to incorporate that detail when I make my next ultimate bench! It's great that you inherited an heirloom, I got my dad's tools and his roll-a-way and I look forward to giving it to my son or grandson someday ( don't actually have any grandchildren right now, but in due time)
I like how you incorporated the metal and the wood, sort of like east meets west or 20th century meets 21st!
Great job
Gil
No doubt you'll be spending more time in the workshop than the living room so you might as well enjoy the terrific work you did on the bench. And a wonderful set of tools you have. Many years of happy modeling to you there.
Have you ever taken the Boley's headstock apart? I'm designing and building a jeweller's lathe as a final project for my machine trades AAS. Most of it is self explanatory or easy enough to figure out with a bit of work, but I'm having trouble designing the headstock and spindle, as I don't have one handy to take apart and examine.
Thanks again guys. Gil, those pull out trays are a real bonus. They're curved to fit round your stomach while sitting at the bench and help to catch little bits that may fall off the bench while you're working. However, I did line mine with some non-skid shelfliner that's sold out here to keep things from falling off shelves during earthquakes (assuming that is the shelves don't all come crashing down anyway). Without the lining I found that small parts like screws tend to fly farther after bouncing off the tray... :P My grandfather evidently used the tray on the right as a filing platform as there is a deep groove worn into one of the front corners from filing. That's cool that you inherited your dad's tools... there's nothing quite as satisfying as using tools that have passed down through the family. I too like the combination of materials, the aluminum and the wood. If I had the option I would have preferred to use copper instead of the aluminum, but don't have access to any copper stock, at least not at anything approaching a reasonable cost. For this project I used all scrap and salvaged materials I had kicking around the shop. Only things I had to buy were the cap screws.
Chester I always spend more time in the shop than in the living room, find it's the only place I can really relax. Besides, way too much to do to waste time watching TV.
Bexley... building a jeweler's lathe sounds like an interesting project. I'd love to see some pics of your progress. I have never had the need to take the headstock apart. Even at its age, the headstock spindle still runs free and true with no slop, sign of a well-made machine. I just don't want to mess with it.
Thanks Gordon, that's a very nice compliment.
Paul
I figured you'd probably have never taken it apart, but it was worth a shot. I won't be starting on it fully until January- the last two classes I need aren't offered until then. I've just started tinkering with designs in SolidWorks to cut down on the workload a bit when the semester starts.
joinery/lathes
Wow! That is tight!
Philip
I had a metal shop teacher in high school that was the most respectable teacher, and maybe person, I could have ever met. In the 70's, shop was the dumping ground for the stoners and troublemakers. Old Mr. Dennis was the only one to get respect from them and teach them something useful. The South Bend 8" lathes in his shop were well used but immaculate, oiled and adjusted daily. Heaven help you if you horsed one too much. The next young knucklehead teacher ended up with broken lathes and piles of welded together tools in one year. Shameful.
Paul, you seem like a guy who should have taught shop. Folks now have no clue how things used to- and are still- made. Plus, you seem to understand the basics so you can work with wood, metal, motors, model materials and so on. How many of us are there left? What the heck does the new generation know?
Plus swarf is a cool word. 'Specially if it was coming off my own Bridgeport. An old one. With the handles worn shiny. And the ways free of play and oiled. And...
John
Quote from: JohnP on August 11, 2010, 07:31:53 PM
What the heck does the new generation know?
John
Not too much, resourcefulness and respect are becoming lost traits. They do know how to whine though until their parents give in and buy them whatever it is they want.
Thanks John... I don't know about being a shop teacher though, I don't have much patience for the younger spoiled generations. Closest I've come is doing a few convention clinics and lectures and being a founding staff member and artist-in-residence for the now defunct Genoa Furniture Design school which evolved out of the Wendell Castle School after Wendell merged it into the RIT School of American Craftsmen in 1989. The school was grossly mismanaged though, all the good people left or were fired, the idiots remained and it closed after only a couple of years.
I too remember having a good and influential machine shop teacher in high school as well. He was absolutely intolerant of any sloppy work, attitudes or lack of respect for his machines, tools and skills. He was also totally politically incorrect by any measure... the first day in class he held up an adjustable wrench, told us it was nothing more than a "farmer's micrometer," that it had no place in a machine shop, then threw it into the trash... ;D the sort of person we could use more of it seems to me...
Bridgeports are wonderful. I haven't had access to one since the Genoa days. Have tried on a couple of occasions to purchase one, but never found one that was truly affordable at a time when I had both the necessary funds and the space to put it. :-[ Sure would open up a lot of opportunities for the bike work...
Paul
On the other hand, you are good with 3D CAD and that might be a valuable asset for developing things for the other kind of bike, like your Colnago. There's still a pretty decent market for racing bicycle frames and components and some guys make a good living producing them. -- Russ
Gee thanks Russ... as if I haven't got enough to do already and now you want me to design & make bicycle parts... ;D ;D ;D
Actually I did give that some thought a couple of years ago, but I've been out of that game for so long that I'm completely out of touch with technology developments over the past 25 years or so.
Paul
Russ is correct. There is a large movement in the bicycle world to hand-built incredible craftsmanship and finishes. I guess enough of us are getting older and richer(?) to have a nostalgic desire for steel bikes. Plastic frames made in Chine might be technological masterpieces that ride better than anything ever, but a machine you throw a leg over and sweat on needs to have some humanness to it.
John