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WOODWORKING GUIDE:<BR>BENCH MARK
An easy-to-build seat that's a storage bin, as well.
TEXT AND PHOTOS BY NEAL BARRETT

Every home has an area set aside for boots, hats, scarves, gloves and coats.

And, regardless of whether it's the back porch or the front hall, there's a need for both storage and a place to sit down to lace up those boots. Our bench provides for both these needs, with style. It's constructed of solid poplar and birch plywood and is simple enough to build in a weekend or two. And you don't need a lot of fancy equipment. We built the entire piece with basic hand tools and portable power tools.

Poplar lumber is generally available at home centers and lumberyards, and it's usually surfaced to a thickness of 13/16 in. You'll probably find poplar sold, like other hardwoods, in random widths and lengths, so you'll need to do a bit of calculation to determine exactly how much material to buy.

Prepare The Panels

The bench ends and seat are made of edge-glued poplar boards. Based on the width of your stock, determine the number of pieces that you'll need for each panel. Crosscut the wood for the sides 3 or 4 in. longer than the finished dimension. Cut the seat stock 12 in. longer than the finished seat. You'll use the extra length for support cleats and for the ends of the seat frame.

If you're hesitant to use a hand plane to true the mating edges of the boards in preparation for gluing, you can use a router with a straight bit and a straightedge guide. Clamp the edge guide to the work so the bit removes about 1/16 in. from the edge. Then, run the router base along the guide to trim the edge straight and square (Photo 1). Be sure to move the router from left to right to maintain proper control of the tool.

While a good glue joint is strong enough without any reinforcement, adding dowels makes it easier to align the board surfaces. You might also use splines or a plate joiner to do the job.

Prepare for joining the boards by placing the stock for one panel on your bench so that the annual rings of adjacent boards are oriented in opposite directions. This technique will help keep the panel flat through humidity changes. Mark dowel locations along the joints 6 to 8 in. apart, starting about 3 in. from each end of the panel.

Using a doweling jig to guide the drill bit, bore 13/16-in.-deep dowel holes (Photo 2). Cut 1/4-in. dowel into 1 1/2 in.-long pieces and chamfer the ends of each piece with sandpaper. Note that the dowel pin length leaves room for excess glue that might otherwise keep the joint from closing tightly. Spread a bit of glue in each hole and tap the dowels into place (Photo 3).

Spread glue on the mating edges of the panel boards and join them. Use four or five clamps across the panel to pull the joints tight. Be sure to place the clamps and panel on a flat surface so the panel doesn't twist while the glue sets. After about 20 minutes, scrape off any squeeze-out from the joints, and then leave the pieces overnight so the glue cures fully.

You can use a hand plane to clean off glue from an assembled panel and smooth any slight misalignment in the joint, but a belt sander is often faster and easier.

Clamp the panel to the workbench and use a 100-grit belt on the sander to smooth the surface (Photo 4). With a belt sander, it's easy to remove too much stock. Keep the sander moving along the panel surface and let the weight of the tool do the work.

After all panels have been assembled, make a template of the end-panel profile out of 1/4-in. plywood, hardboard or stiff cardboard. After cutting it to shape, use a rasp, sandpaper or knife to smooth and refine the curves. Then clamp the template to one of the end blanks and trace the outline (Photo 5).

Secure the panel to your workbench and use a sabre saw to follow the cutline (Photo 6). Keep the saw kerf on the waste side of the line. Then, use a spokeshave, rasp or coarse sandpaper to remove the saw marks and refine the curved profile. Repeat the process for the opposite bench end.

Use a circular saw, guided by a straightedge, to cut the plywood panels to finished dimension (Photo 7). Since a circular saw tends to chip out the top side of the cut, it's a good idea to cut the panel with the best side facing down.

This traditional seating solution for entryways and halls has ample storage space for winter garb.
1--Use a router equipped with a straight bit to trim board edges for joining. Guide router against straight strip clamped to work.
2--After marking dowel locations, use a doweling jig to guide drill. Place dowel holes every 6 to 8 in. along mating edges.
3--Apply a small amount of glue to dowel holes. Tap 1 1/2-in. dowels into holes. Clamp glued-up panel until glue sets.
4--Use a belt sander to smooth panel faces. Keep sander moving evenly across panel and let weight of sander do the work.
5--After making a template of the bench end out of plywood or cardboard, clamp it to the end-panel blank. Trace the outline.
6--Clamp each end panel to your bench for cutting. Use a sabre saw and keep the kerf to the waste side of the cutline.
7--Use a circular saw and edge guide to cut the plywood panels to exact size. Cut the panel with the good side facing down.

Use the rip guide on your circular saw to cut two strips of 3/8-in.-thick poplar edge banding for the top edges of the front and back panels. Cut each strip several inches longer than the finished panel length. Spread glue on one of these strips and clamp it to the top edge of the bench front panel. Center the strip over the plywood edge so that you have an equal overhang on both faces and both ends. Clamp the strip every 3 in. to provide a good, tight joint. Scrape off any glue squeeze-out after 20 minutes and let the glue set. Repeat for the back panel.

Use a block plane to trim the edge banding flush to the panel faces (Photo 8). If you notice that the wood is tearing out, reverse your planing direction. Proceed carefully so that you don't cut through the thin veneer on the panel.

Use a small backsaw to cut the edge band flush with the panel ends (Photo 9). Be sure to keep the saw square and support the waste piece at the end of the cut so it does not break off.

Assembly

Mark the outlines of the front, back, bottom and seat on both sides of each bench end panel. Mark the outlines of the bottom on the front panel and both the bottom and seat frame on the back panel. You'll use the outside outlines for accurately locating screwholes, and the inside outlines for positioning the parts during assembly.

Bore screw clearance holes for No. 8 screws where required in the bench ends, and front and back panels. Counterbore these holes for 3/8-in.-dia. wood plugs. If you use a combination drill and countersink (Photo 10), you can accomplish this task in one step.

Begin assembly of the bench by clamping the bottom panel to the front so the bottom is aligned with the inside layout marks on the front. Bore pilot holes into the edge of the bottom (Photo 11), then fasten the two parts with 2-in. No. 8 screws. Next, clamp the back panel to the bottom, bore pilot holes and fasten it in place.

Place 3/4-in. scrap blocks underneath the front and back panels to provide the proper spacing, then clamp the bench ends in place. Carefully align the parts on the layout lines, bore pilot holes (Photo 12) and attach the ends.

Rip a strip of poplar to 1 3/4 in. wide for the back seat support, cut it to length, bore screwholes and fasten it to the back panel. The side support strips must have their grain running parallel to that of the bench ends. If the grain of these strips ran perpendicular to that of the ends, seasonal movement might cause the ends to split. Cut these strips off the end of the bench seat blank and screw them in place (Photo 13).

Cut the seat frame pieces to size. As with the side support strips, the grain of each end frame piece must run across its length. Cut these two pieces from the seat blank. Lay out the dowel locations for each frame joint, then use the doweling jig to bore the holes. Apply glue to the dowel holes and mating edges, tap the dowels into position and join the parts (Photo 14). Use clamps to pull the joints tight and check that the assembly is square. Slide the seat frame into position, bore pilot holes into the edges of the frame and fasten it in place. Cut the seat panel to finished size so there is a uniform 1/8-in. gap at each end of the seat when it is fit into the frame.

We used a commonly available 48-in.-long piano hinge to mount the seat. Clamp the hinge to your bench and cut it to 36 in. long.

Hold the hinge in place on the back edge of the seat and mark the locations of all screwholes. Bore 1/16-in.-dia. pilot holes for the screws, and then fasten the hinge to the seat. Lay the bench on its back and place the seat in the open position so that you can mark the hinge-screw locations on the back of the seat frame. Bore pilot holes and fasten the seat to the bench.

Use a small brush to apply glue to each counterbored screwhole, and tap a 3/8-in.-dia. plug in each hole. After the glue has set, use a sharp chisel to pare the plugs flush to the panel(Photo 15). Then sand the entire bench, finishing with 120-grit paper. Slightly soften all edges.

We finished our bench by applying a latex primer, then sanding lightly and finally brushing on a semigloss latex topcoat.

8--After ripping poplar edge banding and gluing it to front and back panels, trim banding flush with block plane.
9--Use a small backsaw to cut the edge bands flush with the panel ends. Support waste side of cut so it doesn't break off.
10--Mark outlines on both sides of panels and bore screwholes. Combination bit bores hole and plug counterbore in one step.
11-Clamp front panel to bench bottom. Position the parts accurately and then bore screw pilot holes into edge of bottom.
12--Support the bench subassembly on 3/4-in. blocks. Clamp a bench end in place, bore pilot holes and attach with screws.
13--Cut seat supports to size and screw them in place. Note that the grain of the side runs vertically to match end panels.
14--Use dowel joints to attach side seat frame pieces to back piece. When the glue has dried, screw seat frame to bench.
15--After gluing plugs into screwhole counterbores, use a chisel to remove excess. Sand entire bench and ease all edges.

MATERIALS LIST––FOYER BENCH

Key
No.
Size and description (use)
A
2
 1 3/16 x 17 x 38" poplar (end)
B
1
 1 3/16 x 13 7/8 x 36 1/8" poplar (seat)
C
1
 3/4 x 14 1/16 x 40 3/8" birch plywood (front)
D
1
 3/4 x 36 3/8 x 40 3/8" birch plywood (back)
E
2
 3/8 x 3/4 x 40 3/8" poplar (edge band)
F
1
 3/4 x 14 3/4 x 40 3/8" birch plywood (bottom)
G
1
 1 3/16 x 1 3/4 x 40 3/8" poplar (cleat)
H
2
 1 3/16 x 1 3/4 x 13 1 5/16" poplar (cleat)
I
1
 1 3/16 x 2 x 40 3/8" poplar (frame)
J
2
 1 3/16 x 2 x 14" poplar (frame)
K
45
 2" No. 8 fh screw
L
11
 1 1/4" No. 8 fh screw
M
45
 3/8"-dia. birch plug
N
1
 36"-long 1 1/2" piano hinge*
O
1/4"-dia. x 1 1/2"-long dowel**
Misc: sandpaper, latex primer and paint.
*Stanley No. 47-1640, cut to length.
**as required.


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