This is a bow-bench or submarine-bench, all the joints are loose and the whole item is stiffened by tightening the twist in the soft blue rope beneath. The oak comes from two very old slices. I planed the pieces to flatten and square the wood. The many small and large knots have been filled with transparent resin.

After cutting into its core parts, the external structure was then sanded in eight steps to a fine 800 grit to bring out the natural patterns in the oak, edges were rounded, then the whole surface was oiled then waxed before polishing which brought the patterns to a high focus.

Each joint is marked with small hidden pyrographic dots to ensure each joint can be re-assembled correctly. This is not a mass-produced item so it must be assembled following the dot patterns. It is easily assembled upside down, the legs are inserted, then the three part stretcher is slid in and finally the rope and its two end pieces added.

The rope is looped around each end piece two and a half times and is tied off with a reef knot, then twisted to a firm tightness using the twisting stick, which catches against the stretcher body (take care at this point as a spinning twisting stick can hurt). The parts should fit flush together but might need a gentle knock to bottom out. This tension holds the various parts together. Sitting on the bench should not make it creak but it might be possible to hear a small noise if you sway on it. The rope is artificial so will not rot.

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