Workbench - FBMP

Somehow, strangely, it is already starting to get messy.

I will clean tomorrow.

 

I don't trust highly organized people...

 

I listened to this book on my library app and it was really good. Clean in the morning, tidy in the evening. Cleaning your way to enlightenment...

I am not enlightened but at least the hearth is finally cleaned from last winter. I'll take that.

 

Thank you for the suggestion. While I know I will never be super duper orderly, I do feel like I could improve my organization. Case in point I just re-ordered a OBDII scanner for my car because I can't find the one I have. I'm sure I will find it in 3 weeks when I'm looking for something else.

I ordered a "Used - like new" copy for $9.98. Free shipping.

Call me old school but I really do enjoy reading a book in hand.

Currently re-reading "Foundation" by Isaac Asimov. I had signed my name inside the cover - "Manhattan, 1990".

 

Glad that sounds valuable. I am fairly messy and cluttered myself and the mindset change is interesting. I think of cleaning as lost time but it doesn't have to be.

 

Yeah my wife doesn't like my "organized chaos" either. It's bad when I leave things out somewhere and can't find them. But I really really hate putting them up somewhere (kinda like cleaning) and then I can't find where i put them...ooh that makes me so mad. Cause if I'd left it laying somewhere I'd probably be able to find it!

 

I restored several machinist vises and a bench vise that I also got on FB. This particular vise I found attached to a broken bench in the dumpster area responding to a FB ad for free wood.

I didn't go crazy but just hit them with a wire wheel on a drill, wd-40, a wire brush, and a bit of elbow grease.

I didn't want to permanently mount the vise onto the workbench so I made a mount out of 2x6. Glued and screwed. First one I made cracked because I made it just a tad too tight. 2nd one was a lot faster to make.

Then for mounting I may change my mind as the vise is sitting a little low....but that's because I didn't want to weaken the structure of the bench base by cutting all the way through it. I did have to notch it so that the mounting base of the vise hit the bottom of the table. That combined with the fact that the table is one solid block that is several inches thick and I didn't want to notch into the table top either.

I have some oak that may serve well as the inside pieces to the bench vise.

I did drill down from the top of the bench and then used some forstener bits to recess the bolts. Used 1/4" x 4" bolts because that's what fit through the eye of the vise.

But for now, at least I can use the heavy duty vise instead of the piece of crap that I bought at HD.

The workbench while 8' long still shakes a little if I torque on the machinist vise. I may consider bolting the bench to the concrete.

Very excited to be able to use both pieces. Plus I got to use my new oiler and oil everything up like crazy hahahahahaha.

 

Cleared off the bench and went at it gently with the 30 grit sandpaper. There was a lot of paint on there. Also a ton to y pu cutrea, bedded nails, and holes that were drilled into the bench by accident. After cleaning it off it looks like a solid piece of oak and has been patched 9 times in the form of rectangular pieces and dowels.

I brushed, vacuumed, then scrubbed with mineral spirits. Now I'm at a crossroads trying to figure out the next move.

I could just leave as is and then coat with Tried and True varnish (that's their pure BLO), perhaps with a sand at a finer grit.

I decided to patch with Bondo. I've used that method successfully repairing water damage to the frame of the garage door opening as well as the front door when the storm door ripped the door closer out of the jamb. I've also used it to repair rust only the taillight of my mini saving me like $5000. I also used Bondo to repair the teak benches I restored and that worked out well too.

I used a 5/32 drill but and enlarged all the small holes. Used the same bit to clean out the holes with noticeable debris and also to enlarge the cracks in order to get rid of any dry rot.

This is part 1 of pics.

 

Here's where I enlarged the holes and then applied the first coat of Bondo. Will let dry and then sand and reapply Bondo as needed. This is the fine stuff. Since the holes are so small no need for the fiberglass strand version.

It's already looking better.

 

I used a chisel and the mallet I made out of a cherry limb to enlarge some of the cracks. Cherry mallet was awesome!!

 

Yes sir! There was loads of paint gunked up in the center of the bench and my primary goal was not to smash down on the sander and make an uneven surface....hence the word "gently" hahahahaha.

I don't care so much about looks and I had some old filler left over vs not having any epoxy so I went with the use-what-I-got-already method.

Plus I've done Bondo before but never epoxy for wood repair so I was a bit more comfortable with that approach as well.

Once I finish the coats I'll cover with the T&T varnish. The underside of the bench was not painted so before I do that I may just separate the bench and apply some finish to the underside.

 

Most of that bondo will get sanded off anyways as well. So the most visible part will be the cracks and the handful of larger holes. For a second I thought about turning some dowels but then I figured that would be way too much work.

And correct me if I'm wrong but the top looks like oak, no?

 

You gonna get rid of the lathe now that you don't have room for it?

 

There's room for it. I think it can work. The only thing is in that position a flying piece of wood would shatter the window almost instantly. Perhaps I'll relocate it it to the other side. Or, I can slide the bench and swap positions. That might work as well.

 

Sanded and then applied 2nd coat of Bondo where needed. Drying now. Added a bit more gardening cream this time but man it sets fast. Had to whip up 2 batches.

 

First coat of boiled linseed oil finish applied. This is wet. 2nd coat of Bondo sanded then cleaned with mineral spirits.

Applied the Blo by pouring and spreading by hand with gloves on. Dried with a clean cotton cloth.

First pic is wet before being wiped off. 2nd pic is wiped off but still wet.

 

Here's a short video of me applying the finish by hand.

 

And here's what it looks like after letting it soak for 10 minutes and wiping dry with a clean cloth.