GG’s

The bench was previously in a modern 6,000 sq. ft. custom cabinetmaking shop
whose owner was retiring.  The bench had belonged to his maternal grandfather.

The long narrow dovetails in the tail vise are what “did it” for me.  That, and
the two original dogs and the beautiful wooden vise screws.

It seems to have a history of respectful modifications. The bottom shelf is T&G
bead board with white paint on one side, but not on the cut ends.  The sides
also look like they were added after the base was built.

The top surface needs almost no attention, as it was always kept covered.

( The previous owner suggested that the water-base contact cement would come off
easily with Lacquer Thinner. Has anyone got any experience with this technique?
)

The very bottoms of the legs look like the bench once spent quite a bit of time
on a dirt floor; they have that “slightly decayed and then shortened” look.
Later, the legs were extended with a sandwich of particle board squares held to
the end grain by long drywall-style screws. ( And, it’s still too low for me! )

Upon examining the bench, a friend remarked that the right front leg is slightly
tapered, being 1/4 wider in both dimensions at the bottom.

There are the broken remnants of wood-on-wood slides for a full-width drawer,
the drawer being MIA.  ( Note to Galoots everywhere: drawers which might get
inadvertently filled with heavy tools are best made narrow, and in any width
they must be strong! )

Just a couple of months ago, i removed a 12” oak tree from my yard with the help
of friends.  Had I cut the pieces longer, I might have been able to get 4” stock
out of them that could have become trestle feet.

John Ruth