Popular Woodworking Magazine » Roubo

Workbench Assembly. With Glue.

Christopher Schwarz — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 16:32:42 +0000

Assembling workbenches in the old-school manner is a nail-biter. If the drawbores are too close together, then you drive the peg in and nothing happens. The tenon isn’t pulled into the mortise. You start looking around for your framing nailer. If the drawbores are too far apart, you drive the peg in and it explodes … Read more »

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My Favorite Japanese Pullsaw

Christopher Schwarz — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 22:24:09 +0000

It’s funny how my chainsaw skills have gone through the roof since I started to build lots of workbenches in 1999. Today I cut down a buttload of 6 x 6 x 16’ Douglas Fir beams for a bench-building class at the Marc Adams School of Woodworking that I’m teaching next week. And when you … Read more »

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That’s Not a Holdfast

Christopher Schwarz — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 03:29:36 +0000

Christopher Schwarz and Lucy May are pleased to announce the newest addition to their family. Length: 18”. Weight: 9 lbs., 4 oz. Birth date: Feb. 15, 2012. Delivered by: Peter Ross, blacksmith and white smith. After more than seven years of searching, I have finally found a bench holdfast that works effortlessly with a French-style … Read more »

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The André Roubo Dinner at WIA

Christopher Schwarz — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 19:41:09 +0000

For me, the highlight of 2010’s Woodworking in America conference was The Feast of André Roubo, a dinner held high above the city of Cincinnati. And I was not alone. One attendee stopped me as I was leaving the feast to tell me this: “I’m not interested in history, old stuff, André Roubo or old … Read more »

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Flatten a Workbench’s Top in 5 Minutes

Christopher Schwarz — Mon, 23 May 2011 14:41:20 +0000

Woodworkers are always looking for a better way to flatten the top of their workbench after they finish building it, or when the top has gone out of truth for some reason. I like using a handplane to flatten benchtops, which takes about 45 minutes on average. Other people build a special router jig that … Read more »

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French Workbench Class – Day 6

Christopher Schwarz — Sun, 22 May 2011 19:03:27 +0000

It is unwise to rush when installing vises on a workbench. So I stopped whipping the maggots students during the last two days of the class and encouraged them to work at their own pace. Some slowed down, but some stayed at the fevered pitch established in the first four days of the class. In … Read more »

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Building a French-style Workbench: Day 2

Christopher Schwarz — Wed, 18 May 2011 03:19:37 +0000

I usually keep a log that records all the time I work on a project in the shop. But few people believe me when I say that I spend about 40 hours building an ancient workbench. Their disbelief is understandable. I hear stories about people spending a year constructing a traditional European-style bench and sinking … Read more »

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Meet ‘The Son of Roubo’ Next Weekend

Christopher Schwarz — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 17:59:19 +0000

Normally I don’t like to begin a story with a question (or an adverb), but: What Was I Drinking?When the Northeastern Woodworkers Association came calling I agreed to bring my handmade Roubo workbench (the one featured on the cover of the August 2010 issue) to its annual Showcase in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.This year the Showcase is March 26-27, and it is one of my favorite woodworking shows, both as an attendee and as a presenter.The show is one-third education, one-third furniture gallery and one-third selling floor, with high-quality vendors. If you live anywhere in the Northeast, it is definitely worth a long drive. (Bring your spouse, the town is charming and scenic.)This year I’ll be demonstrating hand-tool techniques (surprise) plus discussing the workbench, where it will be on display in a special exhibit of benches at the show.So somehow I have to muscle this 300-pound bench into an as-yet-undetermined vehicle and trek 700 miles. I am thinking about installing some heavy-duty casters on the bench plus a trailer hitch. Perhaps not.But it will be worth the effort. I always have a blast at this show. I spend too much money. I learn a lot from the other presenters (this year Peter Follansbee will be there) and the food in the town is quite good.Check out all the details of the show on the organization’s web site. And if you can’t attend, you can hear me discuss the workbench on the DVD “Build an 18th-century Workbench,” available now in our store.— Christopher SchwarzVideo: See a video demonstrating how to make 4°wedges. Article: read a detailed article on how to flatten a workbench's top. Blog: Read all of Christopher's blog entries about workbenches. To buy: Purchase a wood visescrew from lake Erie Toolworks. In our store: Purchase "Workbenches: From Design & Theory to Construction & Use." Read more »

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Roubo Bookstand: Another Way to Do It

Christopher Schwarz — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 16:27:12 +0000

Yes, I thought the saga of the Roubo Bookstand article from the February 2011 issue was over (“It’s awesome!” “It’s crap!” “I like mushy peas!”). But no. Here we are weeks later, and there is still more to write. Reader William Smith has built a version of the bookstand using a novel method. Instead of … Read more »

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