Guess What I'm Building?

It's an ingenious solution that once again we must thank the Romans for

After building an awesome but not woodworking-friendly workbench, and then having to sell the same bench and say goodbye to all the tools with it, I’ve been bereft.

No workbench. I built some Japanese-style sawhorses which I posted about here, but I need more and this place isn’t getting any bigger.

After a lot of deliberation I’ve decided to go with Chris Swartz’s/Rex Kreuger’s $30 Roman bench, which has been officially forked, and what I’m building will be designed around the space I have. I see no need for a 7 or 8-foot bench, for example. Where I am now, at least. It would be a spectacle to get a piece of full plywood in there. And I’ve got to get some dust reduction system.

The $30 workbench

I also landed a Jorgensen hand plane which I need to dial in for this project and otherwise, which means I need sharpening stones(It never ends) and this plane is almost an exact copy of the eponymous Stanley #4.

Rex bashed this plane, but out of the box, it’s really not bad. Expectations should be high, but realistic.

I was worried about the handle size, but it fits my hand(s) very comfortably, and I have average/larger hands. I’m not sure I agree with his analysis of the angle of the Jorgensen handle being at a poor angle. It all depends on how you’re postured and the strokes you’re taking, I believe.

This #4 hand plane is WAY sharper, heavier, and better made than the ones at lower price points. That’s what I had for years and knew NOTHING about, which I don’t even want to think about, so vintage planes are my baseline. I had TONS of vintage tools, which I never even considered. They’re good quality, but like everything, it all changes.

The quality’s unmistakable of the Jorgensen. The price is what got me. No, it’s not a vintage Stanley, it’s brand-new. It was $70. It’s precision-milled. And it has some premium features - the adjustment knob and lever for example, where else are you going to get them at this point? Answer: nowhere!

So I’m going to cut the 2x4’s to length tomorrow with my circular saw - I finally get to use it with its fancy new blade - so I don’t wake up the world, Then glue up 2 parts, and when those are dry, glue those together, making a slab. I’m also going to cut on board for accessories, which I’m stoked about.

I now have a DeWalt 20ox camp hatchet, which is dull as a stump, and I need to sharpen it somehow, to make the legs. Always something. Everything else is ready to go, including me. I’m excited to finally have a bench! This is going to be perfect. I’ll need to plane it down flat, and wax it, and if I can put a wood vise on it I’ll be in business. My little girl’s going to like it as a bench, too! She can draw and cut and drill and hammer on it with me.