After cutting the mortises in the legs I cut the tenons on the ends of the rails and fit them all. I like to use a tenoning jig on the table saw for milling large tenons. But I always cut them a tad thick then fit them by hand with a shoulder plane. This gives me the exact fit I want without having to fuss with precise settings on power equipment. It takes about the same amount of time, but I'd much rather spend that time working at the bench than feeding workpieces through a machine. This bench is 24" shorter than my Roubo. The final length will be 72". The base is also trimmed down a bit to save on weight. The legs are 3" x 5-1/8". The legs on my Roubo are 5-3/8" square.
Why did you decide to add rails to the top of the legs? Are you concerned about the thinner legs not offering enough support or is this a step in your plan to make this bench "knock down" and transportable?
ReplyDeleteExactly, Shannon. The upper rails are there so I can bolt the top to the base easily.
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