New Work Bench

Pete Janke

Member
Messages
49
Location
Northern CA Bay Area
I have read a number of work bench builds, knowing I would finally build one to suit my needs. The top is 25 1/2" by 67." The base is 23 1/2" by 53 1/2." It's made out of douglas fir 2x4s (top), 2x6s (stretchers) and 4x6s (legs) from Home Depot. It uses mortise and tenon joinery in the base with pegged ends and through bolts holding the stretchers. The top is covered with screwed down cheap laminate flooring and edged in poplar. The laminate is easy to replace and easy to scrape off paint and glues drops. Before attaching the laminate, the top was flattened with a homemade router sled. The front vise is a Rockler 9" quick release. The tail vise is the small Woodcraft kit model. Rockler work bench casters make it easy to move it around my garage. The vise jaws are made from poplar and wood scraps I had. The electrical strip is a HF model with a 15' cord.
Top.jpgVise.jpgWB2.jpgWB 1.jpgTail Vise Plate.jpgTail Vise.jpgKreg Clamp Plate.jpgJoinery1.jpgJoinery.jpgCasters.jpg
 
Looking good. I like the kick away casters. Not sure how I feel about the top, I like the idea of it being easy cleaning but am uncomfortable with the idea of screws being in the potential line of fire from my tediously sharpened tools.
 
New Work Bench Revisited

Thank you for the comments. Dog holes are in the works. Still working on where they should go and what type of dogs to use. The screws holding down the laminate top are below the surface, but I still have to be a careful around them. LIke Ned said, the the plate is for a Kreg Clamp. It comes in very handy.
 
Nicely done, Pete. :thumb: You should get years of work out of that one. I like the idea of the cheap laminate on the top.
 
The Casters Came from Rockler

Where did you get the castors from?

I got the casters from Rockler. They are called Work Bench Casters. Currently on sale for $67.99 on their website. The bench is rock steady when off the casters and easy to move around when on them. I now have dog holes. Next up is some drawers for storage.
 
Not from NYW.

Is this from the NYW? (where did you find the plans)

This is not from NYW. I looked at many different work bench builds and plans. I started collecting the vises and ideas for stuff I liked. The main inspiration came from a work bench build which was featured in either Shop Notes, WoodSmith or Wood Magazine. The magazine bench had shop-made front and end vises and only one large bottom stretcher. I changed the plan to suit my needs. Of course, I can't find the magazine, but I'll look some more.
 
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