My bench holdfasts arrived today.
I am happy to say they work well. I could have purchased the solid metal kind but, I opted for the Sjoberg. I slightly favour the screw operation over blunt force trauma. The board in the photo supports my body weight and I was comfortably able to plane a much thicker board without movement. The profile of the handles is much greater than a traditional holdfast but I am able to plane around without issue. I was also able to hold a piece of wood which was only 150mm long for edge planing. The holes on each apron are well spaced to provide utility and of course there will be a leg vise once finished.
The holdfasts are crucial to the function of the bench as they have allowed me to dispense with a tail or wagon vise. I was unsure about my decision to forgo a second vise but, I am very happy with my choice now. I just don’t need a second vise in order to hold boards securely. I have wonder pups and the does foot, job done.
I was intending to drill the holes in the bench top but I can’t find the toothed benchdog I purchased some time ago. I need it to work out the spacing from the front edge of the bench. I was thinking of putting the first row of dogs 50mm from the front edge. I have checked on a couple of forums and people generally say that they either should have, or did, put them as close to the edge as reasonably possible. I was surprised when I actually looked at the planing posts at the space. They are quite near the edge. I am interested in any ideas on this point but I will require evidence to support any theories!
I have included pictures of some of the tools I made specifically with this project in mind. I new four years ago that I was going to make this bench. I gradually made and purchased various items over that four years.
Panel gauge, saw horses, large square, fence attachment for my shooting plane. I never used the router fences, the intended cut was not possible.
The dovetail marker was very useful but not specific to this project. I much prefer saddle markers personally; both aspects can be marked without a square.
The saw horses did come in handy for sawing, routing, some planing and most importantly, assembly. Definitely worth the effort.
