Thread: Finally - A decent bench for myself

My last workbench was a large 6 seat pine dining table and after the legs fell off for the umpteenth time I decided that it was time to stop repairing it and put something decent together.

The new bench clocks in at a good size of 2105 x 940 but maybe a little high at 980.

Most of the materials were bought with gift cards or I'd been carting them around with me for years, so aside from the front KD hardwood apron it felt like a relatively cheap build.

The base is framing pine, jointed and thicknessed smooth, with peg board sides and 18mm MDF lower shelves. The top is a solid core door with an 18mm removable MDF top surrounded by salvaged or new hardwood. The rear apron is made from three pieces as I was trying to use as much salvaged timber as I could and figured that since the bench is against a wall the joins wouldn't matter. The top weighs a tonne and is held is place with cleats that keep it against the frame nice and tightly.

The frame uses open mortises in the legs and since I don't particularly trust my drill press for accuracy I set up stops on the table saw and cut most of the waste out there. With a guide bushing in the router I was able to remove more of the waste and make a flat bottom before I cleaned up the sides with a chisel.

To do the splines for the aprons I made up a guide for the circular saw so I could cut the slots on the door. A few layers of gaffa tape on the fence let me make a second cut to get it to the right width. I didn't do stopped cuts on the aprons and just plugged the ends when they were in place.

I had to put some hardwood blocks on the bottom of the legs to attach the locking swivel wheels or they probably would have broken out fairly quickly.

It's been finished up with a 1:1:1 mix of walnut poly, boiled linseed oil and turps. 5 coats on the top and 3 on the base and it isn't looking too bad. When it's completely dry I'll give it a buff as it's got a few gritty bumps that got caught up from having to do the finish outside in the wind.

When I can, I'll put a large vice with a 450mm face on the front left and fill the bottom cavity with a box of drawers. Some dog holes are on the cards too.

Can't wait to start whacking at it next week