TO give greater firmness to the bench there must be some brace made
this way: Take the ten-foot inch board; square one end; measure
twenty-three inches with try-square; cut off nicely with cross-cut saw.
Now you have a board twenty-three inches long and twelve inches wide.
Divide in middle at each end; connect the points with chalk line, then
cut down this line with splitting saw.
You will have two pieces twenty-three inches long and six inches wide;
these are the two end braces. Lay one of these pieces across the legs
you have just joined, at the closed end. All the edges must be flush;
if not, plane them and make them true. You will see that if you have
measured and cut carefully they will come right, for the legs are each
two inches thick, making four inches, and the cross-piece is nineteen
inches, making twenty-three in all; just the length of your brace. Nail
the brace firmly into both legs and cross-piece with six-penny nails.
Do the same with the other set of legs.
Now in the space you have chosen for your bench, stand up both pairs
of legs endwise to the wall, and six feet apart, leaving full two feet
clear beyond, as your bench will be ten feet long when done.
Take the two big planks (the ten foot ones, two inches thick), measure
two feet from each end of each plank: draw a line in direction _a a_.
(_See fig. 6._) Then parallel to _a a_, draw another, _b b_, one inch
farther toward the middle of the board; then another, _c c_, an inch
beyond that, always measuring away from the ends. On these lines _a a_
and _b b_ mark the places for your screws in alternate spaces, thus—
[Illustration:
*---------*---------*-----------*
----*---------*---------*------ ]
Remember always that screws or nails put in diagonally like that hold
more firmly than the same number in a straight line.
Before putting in the screws, see that the legs stand parallel and
close to the wall; put the first board on the legs so that the back
edge of board is even with the back edge of the legs. Screw firmly
into place, taking care to have the outer edge of the legs directly
under the first or dotted line; this brings the screws evenly along the
cross-piece.
Lay the second board close to the first, securing in same way; the
front edge of this second board ought to project one inch beyond the
legs. The heads of the screws on the top of the bench must be sunk. You
have left a board eight feet long, one foot wide, and one inch thick.
This board is to be put on in front directly under the top board and
against the legs. It should come flush at the _right end_ only, leaving
space of two feet at the left. Nail this board on to the legs with
six-penny nails. You have now a capital bench, which only needs a vise
to complete it.
Cut from the board _B_ (left from sawhorse) a length of eighteen
inches. Square both ends nicely; lay this against the left hand front
leg, flush with the outer edge and coming close under the front board,
and nail firmly on to leg.
For seventy-five cents at a hardware store, you can buy a wooden screw
about two feet long for vise, with shank one and three fourths inches
diameter.
[Illustration: Fig 7]
On the front board, ten inches from top of bench, and about five inches
from left edge, draw a circle one and three fourths inches in diameter;
this circle when cut out should come as close to the leg as possible
without cutting it.
To cut this hole take a five eighths bit and bore a series of holes
round the inside of the one and three fourths inch circle. (_See fig.
7._)
The piece in the middle will fall out and leave a rather rough hole;
but the edges can easily be trimmed.
Then take the board _A_ (the three and one half foot piece), cut it
thirty-one inches long. Square one end and then round it as at _D_.
(_See fig. 8._) On the back side draw a pencil line through the middle;
place the board against the left leg, with the sharp edge flush with
_top_ of bench, so that the pencil line will bisect the circular hole.
Draw a similar circle on the board, and cut out as before.
[Illustration: Fig 6]
Be careful in the doing of this, as the two holes must be exactly
opposite for the screw to pass through. You ought to have two bits of
wood left after cutting the legs and cross-pieces. Take one of these
bits and put behind the front board on its two inch side and about
three inches to the right of the left leg and parallel with the leg. It
should just clear the hole. Fasten securely, so that it will cross the
joint _A_. It will serve as a brace, and also give a level bearing for
the wooden nut which comes with the screw and is wound on the end of
screw after it passes through the two holes.
Your vise as it is will work all right for small pieces, but if you
have a large article to hold, the loose board _b_ will not keep its
parallel position, for the thickness of the object you have in above
will throw out the top end, and the lower end will of course swing in.
To remedy this and make your vise adjustable to work of any size, you
must do one more thing:
A little to the right of leg, and one inch from the lower edge of the
fixed upright, cut a slot two inches high and one inch wide; make a
corresponding hole in the loose upright.
[Illustration: Fig 8]
Take a strip of board two feet long, two inches wide, and one inch
thick. On a line drawn lengthwise through the middle measure one inch
from end and mark; then two inches from that point on same line make a
second mark; at both those points bore holes with half-inch bit and fit
in a peg at each hole. The pegs will be one and one half inches apart.
Then at intervals of one inch bore two alternate rows of holes with
half-inch bit, as far as the length of the strip allows. Run this
strip through the slot in loose board as in _fig 8_, and through the
corresponding slot in upright put a peg in _a_ in _front_ of loose
board and a peg in _b_ _behind_ loose board; these pegs will hold the
strip firm in the slot in the loose board.
According to the size of the object to be held in use, draw the loose
board toward you and put third peg into hole at proper distance to
keep the loose board parallel with the fixed upright.
You see by having holes enough in the strip you can adjust the vise to
any size. Of course you understand that this is not needed in small
work.
If you look closely at _fig 6_ you will find that there is still one
thing unexplained: the rows of holes in the front board.
When you have some long piece of work in your vise you will find it
troublesome to keep it level; if you have a number of holes bored
in the front of bench, with a good peg to fit, by changing the peg
according to the height desired, you can raise the right end of your
piece of work to the right level.
A plain hook is a desirable addition to the work-bench: its use is
to hold a board when you wish to plane the surface. It is adjustable
according to the thickness of the board, and should be set in and
screwed on to the bench at point Y. It will cost at hardware store
about seventy-five cents.
Note.—In _fig. 1_ (the sawhorse) one leg is drawn in dotted
lines to show the way the leg is fitted into the hole, and the
right slant. In _fig. 6_ the broken space in front board is to
show the position of brace on right leg.