Work on the garden bench project has come along a treat.
I decided that the three more traditional benches would have oak slats and the fourth would be a bit different. The framing of the cast iron back rest took a little time to get right, because a) I was using wood thicker than the depth ofthe casting and b) the sides of the casting were not square so I had to cut the edges of the timber abutting the frame at a slight angle.
Probably the longest part of the whole project was giving the slats several coats of Danish Oil – three benches and well over half a litre of oil butt he final finish is worth it!
All the fixing bolts started out as galvanised roofing bolts and each was given a couple of coats of hammerite to the heads and then a final couple of coats once the benches had been put together.
As for the more colourful bench, this is painted with several coats of masonry paint. What? Something of an experiment – but a while back my daughter painted old car tyres in masonry paint and probably 5 years they are still looking in reasonable condition. The paint is Valspar bought from the local B & Q as a set of four tester pots – I think its the only supplier that mixes tester pots in the type of paint i.e. gloss, emulsion that you intend to use.
