DONE!
Today, 04/28/04, I drilled the last two dogholes and finished Das Bench. Got out some wood, marking gauge, chisels and a dovetail saw. Cutting some half blind dovetails would be a nice way to get to know this bench better.
Ssssss-Ah-Weeeet!
Shoulder vise works nicely, the UMHW seems to have taken care of the jaw sticking. Using the twin screw vise to hold a part at an angle for dovetail sawing worked ok but I think I'll add some holes for pegs on both jaws to help stabilize parts to be sawn.
I'm sure that this bench is going to evolve with use, benches are never "done". There will be holes drilled in the legs to hold bench pins, some tapped holes for the wooden screws, some pegs to support the "Wonder Dog" (I think that's what it's called) and in the future, a place for a shooting board, a miter board and who knows what else.
In the process of building this bench I learned to do plenty of traditional joints with hand tools. This bench will make the use of hand tools a lot easier and when doing something gets easier you do it more and get better at it. Some of the joinery that would be difficult or impossible on my old assembly bench, with its single face vise and three dog holes, now will be possible. This bench is a door to my next level in woodworking.