Woodwork Bench Essentials

Woodwork Bench

• A good workbench is essential for anyone who wishes to do woodwork properly.
• The benches provided for school woodwork are good solid benches, made of end bench.
• Each side of the bench is fitted with a vice for holding wood, often of the quick release type.
• The jaws of the vice are lined with wood and should not be damaged by gripping metal objects.
• A bench hook is held in the vice for sawing with the tenon saw.
• An adjustable bench stop is provided for holding wood that is being planed on top of the bench.
• The bench stop should always be lower than the wood being planed or it will be damaged.
• A little linseed oil helps the bench stop to move freely for adjustment.
• The central part of the bench top is lower, called the well, where tools that are in use should be laid out.
• Tools not in use should be kept in the tool rack.
• The good surface of the bench should be the concern of everyone who uses it.
• When sawing in the vice, a piece of waste wood should be placed on the bench under the saw to protect the bench.
• Chiselling should not be done directly on to the bench top, and a piece of waste wood should be underneath the work to protect the bench.
• When using paint, stain, or polish, the surface of the bench must be covered with a bound of paper.
• When drilling or using nails, care must be taken that holes are not made in the bench.
• At the end of each work period, the bench should be swept down and the next person to use the bench should find it clean and with the tools in the correct place.

The Rule

• The rule is used for measuring, and it is important that all measurements are very accurately performed.
• Measurements on the rule are taken from the end.
• The rule used by woodworkers is not the same as the ruler in general use in the classroom.
• The majority of rules provided for school workshops are of the 300 mm rustless steel type.
• Many carpenters prefer a wooden rule.
• There are different types of rules, including tape rule and folding rule.
• The tape rule consists of a metal ruler attached to a tape wound around a metal reel.
• The folding rule is a 6-inch wooden ruler that can be folded in half.
• Rules are used to measure in millimeters and centimeters.
• 1 centimeter is equal to 10 millimeters, and 1 meter is equal to 1,000 millimeters.
• The abbreviations for centimeter and meter are cm and m, respectively.