The cutting list for the ‘The Return of Roubo’ workbench in the August 2010 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine has a small error in the cutting list. And I'd like to quickly clarify a couple things about the construction drawing.

First the error. I accidentally transposed the tenon lengths for the stretchers. The finished dimensions listed in the cutting list are correct – I just swapped the tenon lengths. So the tenons for the long stretchers should be listed as 4-1/4" (instead of 2-3/4"). And the tenons for the short stretchers should be 2-3/4" (instead of 4-1/4"). I apologize for that mistake.

And now a couple clarifications. I have the parallel guide listed as 1/2" thick. That will work just fine – I've made many parallel guides out of 1/2"-thick maple. But in reality, my parallel guide is closer to 5/8" thick (it was all dimensioned by hand so nothing is exactly anything). The bottom line with any parallel guide is that it fit snugly in the slot in the leg and yet move smoothly.

Also, a couple readers have pointed out that the drawing and cutting list indicate the legs are 4" x 5-1/2", yet in the photos they look almost square. Truth is, they probably are a little closer to square – I'm actually not sure. When I drew the workbench for publication I tried to use dimensions that I knew would work and that I knew would be easier for you to find or glue up.

With handwork you have to deal what you can find and balance it against what will work and what will look good. If you build this bench by hand, you're going to find out what I mean. Once you gather your stock for your bench, my drawings and cutting list will become irrelevant anyway.

— Christopher Schwarz

Other Workbench Resources Buried in my Browser

• Want to turn a face vise into a shoulder vise? Check this out.

• French benches are still alive, well and for sale in France. Check out the Francois web site at etablis-francois.com.

• The DVD for building this workbench "Build an 18th-century Workbench" should be in stock soon. You can order your copy from our store.

A couple readers have pointed out a problem with page 81 of "Workbenches: From Design & Theory to Construction & Use" (Popular Woodworking Books).

The two columns of text on that page were transposed during the layout process, and I didn't catch the mistake before we went to the printer. All the text is there, and the story will make sense if you read the right column of text first and then the left.

Of course, that's not a good solution in my book (pun intended).

So I've prepared a corrected page that you can download, print out and stick in the book if you like. The page is in pdf format. If anyone else has any errors they have spotted, please e-mail them to me and I'll see that they are corrected in future editions (assuming that there are future editions).

NewPage81rev2.pdf (906.22 KB)

Sorry for the mistake.

— Christopher Schwarz

You can now download free SolidWorks illustrations for the Stickley Magazine Stand from Issue No. 3 and the Sliding-lid Box from Issue No. 2. The printed versions of these back issues have been sold out for some time, however you can order them (plus three more issues) on one CD.

Also, the Stickley Magazine Stand has one error in the drawing on page 19 (which has been corrected on the CD, by the way). On the illustration labeled "Rear View" we call out the overall width as 10" – it should be 14", as shown below. Our apologies for the mistake.


You can open these SolidWorks files using a free little program from SolidWorks that you can download for both Mac and Windows machines. With the program, you can open up the drawing file and examine the project to your heart's content. These SolidWorks files were drawn by reader and draughtsman Louis Bois, who has prepared SolidWorks files of many of the other projects from the first five issues, which are now available on CD.

Magazine Stand Assembly.EASM.zip (550.04 KB)

Sliding-lid Box Assembly2.EASM.zip (381.36 KB)

— Christopher Schwarz

A couple quick corrections to the Enfield Shaker Cabinet (Spring 2006) that have come to light.

1. In the cutlist and illustration, the face frame's rail should be 3" wide, not 2-1/2".

2. On the detail of the front leg, the height of the arc is 5" as shown in the detail drawing on page 19. The 5-1/4" dimension shown on page 21 is incorrect. Also, we built the version of the cabinet shown on the cover with a slightly different arc on the front leg. The illustration shows it terminating at a 2-1/2"-wide foot. We built it with a 1"-wide foot as shown above. Both work.

My apologies for the errors.

— Christopher Schwarz