Workbench Questions

[Bob Haskett]

I am new here. Excuse the lengthy post but I was going to give some background before I posted my questions.

I grew up doing very little if any work with my hands. My Dad was not very handy so I did not have access to many tools etc. I do build custom computer as a hobby. Therefore, I was hesitant to take on projects due to my lack of inexperience.

About 5 years ago yesterday I got married and bought a house. During our time here I have had to tackle some different things that have come up. In doing so I have at least gotten somewhat comfortable with my hands.

Also about 5 years ago I bought my first motorcycle. It required some work to get it running well so I got my first experience with engines. I sold that bike and bought a newer one about a year later and did the regular maintenance and modifications on it as well. That led me to my current bike which I also do maintenance and modifications on myself. I got tired of working on the garage floor so decided I needed a bench.

Last weekend my wife got the flu, I had some time to burn while I was stuck at the house caring for her, so I decided to take the 2 minute drive to Home Depot and buy the lumber for a bench. I had no plans or idea of how to build a bench and limited tools to work with. The only tools I owned that would benefit me in the process were a circular saw, and a 18v coordless drill. I am somewhat dissapointed in the end as I am very net savy and normally do a TON of research before taking on a project like this but I did not in this case for some reason. I had NO IDEA workbenches could be as extravagant as I have seen on this forum. It really inspires me as I had LOTS of fun building this bench and my wife already has some projects she wants me to take on now that she has seen the bench.

I went to home depot and got a sheet of 3/4 plywood, and 2x4s. I built the frame with 2x4s, legs with 2x4s (doubled at the bottom), and the top shelf and bottom shelf with the plywood. I coverd the plywood with 1/4 hardboard. I decided later I wanted a pegboard and a flourescent light above along with a powerstrip so I added that this past week.

I have some pictures below.TRY NOT TO LAUGH! This bench is nowhere in the same vicinity as some I have seen on this board. My questions are, what could I have done better/differently? (Looking for constructive criticism)..I have 2 guys that saw the bench and were wondering if I could help them with one, so criticisms would help there. Also, I want to add some drawers below the top. The hardboard you see in the pic near the bottom shelf is just leaned up against it so disregard that. How would I go about adding drawers?

Keep in mind that until I hit this forum last week, I did not even know what a planer, jointer, router etc were (still dont think I fully understand the difference in planer and jointer), so I am about as newbie as they come.

[Zach England]

I would consider some sort of edge around the plywood. That plywood will tend to split and chip on the exposed edges. You also might want to consider some sort of reinforcement across the front of the top shelf. It looks like a lot of width with relatively little support.

Basically, a jointer flattens one surface in reference only to its own plane. A planer flattens a surface in reference to its opposite plane.

[David Christopher]

Bob, first let me say welcome to the creek..I think you will get all the information here that you will ever need..theres alot of knowledgeable people here.....as far as your bench goes, I think it turned out really well. and as far as advice goes, you will have to decide after you have used it far a while.....when you get more projects under your belt you will know if you need to change your bench or build another one


BTW what year is your Glide...I have a black 03

[Bob Haskett]

Bob, first let me say welcome to the creek..I think you will get all the information here that you will ever need..theres alot of knowledgeable people here.....as far as your bench goes, I think it turned out really well. and as far as advice goes, you will have to decide after you have used it far a while.....when you get more projects under your belt you will know if you need to change your bench or build another one


BTW what year is your Glide...I have a black 03

Thanks! I have been quietly reading for a few days and have information overload! I am trying to figure out how to put drawers in this bench to make it a tad more useful. This forum has been great.

As far as the bike goes, it is an 09 Ultra.

[Gary Breckenridge]

Nice first effort. I like drawers and lockable storage. These can be added later.

[Craig T. Smith]

Bob, Welcome to the creek. For drawers you can go fancy or no frills. For a first bench I think yours turned out fine. You could make drawers out of a simple box design and get drawer slides to mount them then update them as your skills improve. Good luck , Craig

[Denny Rice]

Go out and purchase a 1/4" 4x8 sheet of masonite. Cut it to fit over your workbench. This will protect that 3/4" expensive plywood and when the masonite gets screwed up you can remove it and replace it with a new piece. I like the other post about the edge band around the tabletop too. I would work both into the bench.

[Denny Rice]

And I forgot! Welcome to the Creek my friend!

[Steve Sheehan]

For a first effort it's really nice . I think you might think about a small vise mounted on it . The size /shape/type of vise determines how it mounts and might have to considered before starting a new bench .

[Todd Hoppe]

First off, that is a great bench. It is far better than what I have used for several years. It will last a long time.

[Lee Schierer]

Welcome to the creek. For a first effort and no up front plan, it turned out really well. In light of your other hobby of rebuilding bikes, I would ad a nice vise to one corner, but be sure to reinforce the table top with a second layer of plywood under the top so the vise has really good support.

[Bob Haskett]

Ok so it sounds like next step should be a vise, some edging, and an additional layer of plywood.

As far as drawers go, do you just buy the rails, mount them to the legs and support in the middle, and build a box to fit the size and mount the rollers on it? Does it matter that the drawer would be roughly 35 inches wide?

[Jeff Monson]

Bob, welcome and nice 1st project!!

As far as the drawers you would be better off making a box that hangs below the bench to house the drawers, you can make a center divider to attach the drawer slides and seperate the drawers, I would make 2 17" drawers as 35" is a pretty wide drawer, especially when you fill it full of heavy tools.

[Bob Haskett]

Bob, welcome and nice 1st project!!

As far as the drawers you would be better off making a box that hangs below the bench to house the drawers, you can make a center divider to attach the drawer slides and seperate the drawers, I would make 2 17" drawers as 35" is a pretty wide drawer, especially when you fill it full of heavy tools.

So build a box that hangs from the top and the drawer just slides into it? Are there particular woods that would work better for this purpose? I am trying to visualize the divider but am having a tough time seeing how it would come together to make the drawers look natural and not an afterthought.

[John Schreiber]

Nicely done. That puts you way ahead of most homeowner benches. I'd agree about a metal working vise in one corner and a 2nd layer of plywood with a replaceable layer of hardboard on top of that. I wouldn't worry about covering the edges of the plywood now. Perhaps on the next bench you build, the surface could be inside the 2x4s instead of on top.

Regarding drawers. Even the most complex piece of furniture is a set of boxes with no top (the drawers) inside a box with no front (the cabinet). Totally simple. Think simple and take a look at the drawers in your kitchen to see how the slides are installed. 35" wide is on the big side, especially if you will have heavy stuff in it. I'd suggest two smaller drawers.