Workbench Chamfer Edge?

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DaveO

New User
DaveO
I can't think of any cons to a small chamfer. But there are a lot of pros. That sharp edge will jump out at you when you least expect it, and being hard Maple it will dent just about it meets.

Dave:)
 

JimmyC

New User
Jimmy
I thinkthat a 1/4" round over might be too much for me, I would probably do enough to just break the edge. Most of the commercial tops I've seen don't have much of a break on their edge.

Good Luck,
 

PeteM

Pete
Corporate Member
I thinkthat a 1/4" round over might be too much for me, I would probably do enough to just break the edge. Most of the commercial tops I've seen don't have much of a break on their edge.

Good Luck,

OK - Split the difference go with 1/8" :gar-La;

(Does it really matter? :no:
Any of the above would be fine) :icon_thum
 

froglips

New User
Jim Campbell
Well, fwiw, I think you need a ramp.... :p

I'd break the edge with a bit of hand sanding and be done with it.

As you come to live and love the bench, you will really find lots of stuff clamped to the edge. The more you chamfer or round over, the less edge you retain.

Jim
 

nelsone

New User
Ed
It is a WORK bench, so the dings will...or should:wink_smil...happen! I think you may want to just break the corner, wither with a swipe of the block plane or sandpaper. If you see the need to add more of a chamfer it can always be added later!

You can always remove more wood, but it can be difficult to add some back!
 

striker

New User
Stephen
+1 on just breaking the edge. The square edge will come in handy doing delicate handwork where you want the support right under the edge.
You can always radius it off later date if it doesn't work for you- Hard to put back though. Just my opinion.

Bench looks great - whenever you go to move it I'm pretty sure I'm unavailable!
Drogar-Laugh%28DBG%29.gif
 

timf67

New User
Tim
I started with a few very fine passes with a block plane that has a chamfer guide on it. I then took some sandpaper on a concave sanding pad and went over it to round it off. It is basically a slightly eased edge and is perfect. I would not put a big chamfer on the edge since I sometimes use my bench edge as a reference.
 

cpowell

Chuck
Senior User
I just softened the edge with hand sanding but you could make a coupla runs down the edge with a block plane - thin shavings, then hand sand with 120 grit.

You must be getting pretty close to finishing now. :eusa_thin

Chuck
 

Alan in Little Washington

Alan Schaffter
Corporate Member
I chamfered the edge on my back bench, assembly table, TS outfeed/extension tables, for the reasons mentioned in this thread, but haven't decided what I am going to do with the WW bench.
 

WoodWrangler

New User
Jeremy
Well, I landed in the middle somewhere. I used my palm router with a chamfer bit barely exposed to knock off the edge. It was quick (about 45 seconds of work) and consistent. Thanks for the feedback!
 

scsmith42

New User
Scott Smith
I thinkthat a 1/4" round over might be too much for me, I would probably do enough to just break the edge. Most of the commercial tops I've seen don't have much of a break on their edge.

Good Luck,

+1. I would not want to lose much of the space on top of the bench, and even 1/8" is too much - more like 1/32 of a roundover.
 

dkeller_nc

New User
David
Jeremy - If it takes a little of the "paralysis by analysis" out of the decision, you will need to chamfer the top the next time you flatten it (and the need for flattening will occur - somewhere between 6 months and 4 years, depending on your shop conditions and how much you use the bench). Without chamfering the edges, it will "spelch" when you run a hand plane across it. Obviously, that's not a consideration if you use the drum sander to flatten it again, but I'm thinking that would be way more work than a hand plane - dismounting and remounting an Emmert is a lot of work.
 

WoodWrangler

New User
Jeremy
Good point, David... the next flattening will be with a hand plane for sure. While the pattern makers vise could be removed, the twin screw back piece cannot (easily). Not to mention, I'm pretty sure a handplane will get it even flatter. This also gives me a good excuse to buy a jointer plane!

David - Aren't you the same David I purchased my LN smoother from off SMC? If so, GLAD you showed up here with the local crew!
 

dkeller_nc

New User
David
"David - Aren't you the same David I purchased my LN smoother from off SMC? If so, GLAD you showed up here with the local crew!"

Hmm - If your last name is "Williams", definitely. I joined a while back, but was splitting my time reading through SMC, Knots, the Pop Woodworking Blogs, and about 20 other web resources. I finally had to make some tough choices - Pop Woodworking, NC Woodworker, and SMC stays, everything else needs to be a "it's a rainy afternoon and I don't have anything to do" sort of thing".:mrgreen:
 
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