A nice sturdy workbench made with relatively inexpensive materials. Let’s check it out:
I was looking at your site and noticed the article about the workbench. I just finished the heart of my workbench and thought I would share. The bench is made from Douglas Fir and Birch Plywood. The top is layered plywood making it thick and heavy. I am going to add dog holes, vises, drawers and a cabinet door to this bench. I think of it as a craftsman meets a traditional woodsmith bench. It was not really that hard to build. If you look on the internet for a Heavy Duty Workbench you can find the pdf with the plans. The original plans called for MDF and since I don’t like MDF I used birch plywood. I also lowered the shelf to the floor which gives me more room for drawers and a cabinet door later. I used boiled linseed oil on the bench and am going to put something like poly on the top so the plywood will last for a long time. I don’t care if I have to repoly the top. its a workbench not a piece of furniture. Hope this helps someone out there looking to build a heavy workbench the easy way.
Just need a screw gun, table saw and sanding equipment (belt sander, ROS , block sander) and a hand or circular saw. No special tools for this one.
I just started out woodworking in my own little one car garage this year with my new house, though I grew up doing some of this with my dad. I love watching the videos Marc and I hope your new shop gets built soon. I have learned a lot from your show and site. Really made this project easy and fun. Thanks!
11 Responses to “Bill’s Workbench”
Very nice. Looks like a great place to work on and assemble your future projects.
I made the same work work bench using those plans also. Only I used MDF. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_1rsQ.....bench2.jpg
I also need to install vise and holes. It came together easily. I put adhesive “movers” on the feet so I can slide it away from the wall and use both sides.
Nice work. Looks like a very stable table.
I love your bench, looks great. I too wanted a sturdy, inexpensive workbench. So I came up with this several years ago. It has held up wonderfully.
http://lumberjocks.com/projects/10595
Very nice bench Bill. It looks quite sturdy. Just a suggestion on the vise (if you haven’t thought of it already), is that when you go to add a vise, and assuming it’s a bolt on vise, you can mount the rear jaw in a recess behind the face of the bench top edging. The edging becomes the wood protection for the metal rear jaw plate. This will allow you to clamp longer boards flush against the front edging. Just a little better support for the board.
that is something I have already thought of. getting my vise from lee valley soon.
A good simple bench, something every woodworker needs.
Thanks for the show and tell. I need a new bench and I don’t want to spend any more than I have to. I found the plans you used and plan to get back to work. Thanks :)
I just started woodworking out of a 1-car garage too…and this simple/sturdy design is exactly what I need. Thanks for sharing.
I made the same workbench, of course with a few mods. Used OSB instead of MDF, and I found a $50 maple plywood sheet (3/4″) priced at $10 in the bargain bin at my local big box because the sheet had marks from being on the top of the stack during shipping (perfect for workbench!). It was in perfect condition aside from the marks, so I got a maple top for my bench at a lower price than if I’d used regular ply!
One thing I wish I’d done with my bench is lower the shelf as Bill has done. I haven’t really utilized the space between my shelf and the shop floor (about 10″), so I’d recommend lowering that shelf to get more usable space.
I also used poly on the top, which I’ve been happy with in the year the bench has been in use. Maybe I’ll regret it down the road when I need to redo the surface, but for now it’s fine.
It looks great mate and almost too good to use with that finish applied :)