Holtzapffel and Our Build PLan
I was introduced to the Holtzapffel in The Workbench Design Book, authored by Christopher Schwartz and the Popular Woodworking Staff.
When I first saw images of the bench in this particular publication I was immediately smitten and I skipped all preceding chapters to focus my bedtime reading on chapter 4, covering the build process of this, until then to me at least, unknown workbench.
I’m not sure why it was that this particular bench drew my attention out of all the amazing benches in the book but I think it might have been the simplicity of the design or maybe the big twin screw face vice or maybe even the novel idea of using a quick release metal vice on the tail. Maybe it was all three, but the Holtzapffel has remained a favourite after seeing it and I have considered designing a version and building it for some time.
Of course despite our best laid plans, or the discovery that I might have a thing for designing and building workbenches (2 Moravians and a small break down bench later) the Holtzapffel has remained on my bucket list.
This changed when a member of an association I belong to sent a message on our group requesting plans for a simple, traditional woodworking bench. Simple, in the sense that he had no experience cutting and chopping complicated joinery and having recently relocated to a different continent, he wanted to build the bench out of pre-dimensioned lumber.
I offered to design him a bench to his own specs, keeping in mind his experience, available materials and considering that he would only have access to quick release metal vices as cost effective options, the Holtzapffel became the obvious choice, I sent him some images of the bench in question and he was almost as exited as I was to see this bench in 3D.
I then sat down to about two weeks of quality screen time and the resulting plan-set with instructions came to a hefty 25 page PDF document in the end. It is the same plan available on our website.
Leg Assembly
Technical drawing showing the leg assembly and dimensions. BTW technical drawings and dimensions are included for all components in the plan set.
Why the Holtzapffel? Why NOT we dare ask…….
Let’s start at its design and as far as this goes it doesn’t get much simpler than this, at least not as long as a door on a couple of saw horses isn’t considered here.
With 4 legs, 2 long and 2 short stretchers and a laminated top, the structure lends itself to the joinery actually being “built” into the components during construction. This is achieved by using a lamination process where each major component is made up of different pieces cut to different lengths and then glued together in a way that leaves mortises and tenons.
The leg shown here is a prime example of this construction technique in action. The sketch shows the 4 pieces that make up the leg assembly with the outer pieces enclosing a mortise formed by leaving a space between the two smaller middle sections, this mortise accepts the stretcher tenon later. The top inner piece is cut longer and glued in place, leaving the the upper part higher than the outer sandwich and in turn forms the tenon that will go into the top when it’s installed.
I wish I could claim this idea for myself but I first saw this used on a Nicholson style bench built by Paul Sellers using plywood and I made good use of this technique myself later, building a coffee table for a client as well as a desk for myself, both out of Birch ply. I happen to be sitting at the desk in question as I type this and I even incorporated a “tool well” into the back of the table for loose items and no matter what anyone tells you about their advantages, tool wells act as magnets for unnecessary clutter!
My Moravian is exempt of this last statement though.
Anyway on to the laminations. As can be seen from the leg assembly and the image showing how the the stretchers go into the mortise formed during their construction it will become clear that this design allows persons with limited experience the option of building a heavy, versatile workbench with little experience in constructing traditional joinery.
Undercarriage assembled
Long stretcher tenons, also formed from laminations are inserted into the leg mortises and the short stretcher tenons are seated into the recesses cut later in the build process
Life isn’t without its complications though and anyone who chooses to build from our plans need to keep a few things in mind.
Accurate stock processing will ultimately ensure tight and square joints.
Squareness during assembly is important and will ensure that assemblies are out of twist after coming together, especially on the undercarriage.
Slippage! This one is pain, even for seasoned woodworkers and happens when the glue between the faces of planks cause them to slide around under clamping pressure. This can be resolved with techniques ranging from using cauls to employing the snipped off pin trick and even “salting” the joint.
Plan instructions
We show you what to pay attention to during the build process, your square will get a lot of use!
1 and 2 are addressed in the plans and we are working on a post to address #3, keep an eye out for it or sign on for our newsletter (bottom of page) to see updates and tips on this and other projects as they come to the site.
In a perfect world we would be able to include all the joinery in the lamination process but alas when it comes to attaching the left and right (short) stretchers the builder needs to cut the recess that accepts the stretcher tenons. This is not particularly hard and can be done with various techniques ranging from using a table saw to cutting them by hand. Think of it this way, you need to start practicing making joinery at some point anyway? Remember that newsletter? We may just have some advice coming on that one too!
At this point we need to add that the Holtzapffel isn’t the only candidate for the “lamination” treatment and we will shortly by looking at realising a plan-set for an English style bench similar to the one built by Mr. Sellers but with one or two extras that some may find useful. And for the third and “possibly” final time, a reminder to sign up for that newsletter to find out when that one drops and maybe, just maybe be in line for a release discount. Just saying………
3 plugs in 3 paragraphs, new record me thinks.
This plan and the construction technique comes with some unintentional and quite handy advantages. For one, the dimensions of the individual pieces results in final sub-assemblies that are quite beefy and results in a heavy and solid bench, something we want. Secondly, keeping to similar thicknesses and widths for the stock makes it simpler to process the raw stock, especially when doing this yourself and helps keep the guesswork to a minimum with the added advantage that the bench can be scaled relatively easily to suit the builders own needs. Thirdly, with the basic frame and top in place it is also quite easy to incorporate extras such as shelves into the undercarriage, and yes you know where to go to get updates when that post comes out.
It seems I need to take a break from this post to update my to-do list of all the blogs and newsletters I need to put together!
Now for what is to me at least, the most important reason to consider the Holtzapffel as a solid candidate as a workbench, and that is vice selection.
I am willing to bet that you could throw almost any vice at this bench and it will work, from the twinscrew face vice like the one on Chris’ version in his book to a leg vice as on a Roubo and anything in between, and that’s just face vices. The tail is just as accommodating!
This aspect is especially useful if you happen to live in an area where a lot of the vice hardware that some on our planet take for granted isn’t available at all or so expensive that you need to mortgage the house or worse, to be able to afford it. Around here, old quick release vices are readily available if you know where to look and will suffice on both the face and the tail. Our plans show a “suggested serving” example of two types of quick release versions that are readily available in our market if not necessarily cheap.
You could even go as far as rolling your own “Moxon” style vice like this one by Jay Bates.
Calling this bench a blank canvas as far as vice installations go, may not be too far fetched. Try going through the effort of cutting Hound’s Tooth dovetails and the beautiful joinery on a Roubo and slapping a quick release on that one when done! If you happen to go that route, don’t share the result online, the ridicule will be immense. Now put TWO of the same on our design, one on the face and the other on the tail and you will likely be complemented for your ingenuity. Not that we build benches to be complemented, nope.
Just be sure to install your vices the other way around if you happen to be left handed, I think we cover vice placement on the plans.
And that’s a wrap, BTW if you do happen to build the bench please share the results on our social media pages @kneedeepinshavings (Facebook) and @dylanplycreations (Instagram) we would love to see your build and the vice combinations you implement and how you find the resulting workflow and work holding.
Have a good one and be safe in the workshop.
Remember measure twice and cut once!
