Oh, how I would love to do my wood carving on a bench like that. All our local woods of any use (spruce, pine, fir, birch) are the color of the background in this page.

My bench is 5 pcs 2x6x8' spruce on a ladder frame, lower shelf and the legs are just bolted in with carriage bolts (square profiles below a rounded/flat top.) I swing a 30oz lead core mallet and fairly big gouges (eg 5/35. 3/25 and a 9/15.) Bench doesn't move.