fredag 30 september 2016

Introducing the paddle workbench



I've been looking around for ideas on workbenches especially made for paddles, but have not been able to find any. After a lot of thinking I came up with this idea. I'm sure there are a lot of ways to improve it, but so far it has worked wonderfully. I made this in spring, and wrote this post in spring. But I forgot to publish it.
If someone decides to make one I'm very curious to hear how it works and if you have thought of any improvements!

The criteria were:
- Easy to attach/detach the paddle.
- Possibility to work with any (realistic) length paddle and blade.
- No obstructions for the spokeshave/plane, even when using it in near vertical position.
- Easy to move the whole workbench.
- Both a blank and a shaved blade should get support underneath.

Construction

The basic idea is a permanent support for the shaft and grip and a blade support which can be moved to adjust the paddle's overall length and also moved up a bit to support a blade which is thinner than the shaft. For holding things in place I use wooden holdfasts. Mine are made from branches of ash (or any hard wood) but there are also iron-versions you can either buy or forge yourself. Normal clamps works too, but they take too much effort and time to adjust imo.

The base is a thick wide plank, with part of it narrowed down (see picture at end of post). On the narrowed down part a slightly blade-shaped plank with 2 support pieces can be attached to support the blade.
The base plank is supported by legs in the ends in a 20 degree angle at comfortable working height. To be able to work on the profile of the paddle, 20 mm (0.8 inches) holes for the holdfasts are drilled through the plank. To work on the flat side of the paddle one 3.5 x 3.5 cm (1.4 x 1.4 inch) piece is screwed on to the side, close to the bottom of the wide part of the plank, and another one on one of the support pieces for the blade support. These have vertical holes for holdfasts.
On the grip end of the workbench is a small piece of  wood which can be switched up to prevent the paddle from sliding back. Similarly on the blade support there are 2 stops at the paddle's tip which prevents it from sliding that way.
For the case where the blade support is very far from the shaft support I have drilled holes from the top in the narrowed down part and made extension pieces for the shaft that can be inserted using plugs.

Use

It can be used for working on the paddle in both profile and flat view. Starting with a blank you remove the blade support and attach the blank to the side of the workbench using holdfasts. Here you can fine-tune the edges, then turn it and do the other side.
Now attach the blade support, put the paddle on top and adjust the distance of the blade support so it stops the paddle form sliding. Use holdfasts here too to keep the support in place.
Work down the blade however you prefer, I do most of the work using axe then flatten it with a plane and finally fine tuning using spokeshave. Do the grip while you're at it.
Now when you've done the thickness on one side you can flip the paddle, loosen the blade support and use 2 small wedges to get it to the right height before fastening it again.
Finally, to work on the shaft you can use holdfasts on the blade and grip then work it down using spokeshave, you will have access to two on the corners of the shaft unlike on an ordinary workbench where you only have access to one.








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