I normally build mine. I've never found something that ever fits my needs at the time. In the old house, I repurposed a 6' base cabinet which had nice cupboard storage underneath and 4 drawers. Now in this house, I have plenty of storage but I want drawer space.
I looked around and didn't see much of what I really wanted that would also support a vice, so I took Menard's up on thier 11% rebate offer and bought some materials. I'm going to use Superstrut for the framework which is the stuff they use to supprt conduit and stuff under girders and rafters. It's like steel C-channel that uses threaded rod to hold it in proper position. $15 for a 10' piece.
I figure I'll use flat stock for the drawer glide mounts and use either a used solid core door or some 5/8 plywood with a tempered hardboard top. 6 foot wide x 22" or so deep x 36" tall with 8-8" drawers. Should cost under $300 and be solid.
69SSConv said
Jan 3, 2012
I have both, a section I built, and some bench cabinets I purchased. Downside to a lot of the purchased ones are they are particle or pressed board and do not stand up well to any weight on them over time and start to sag or bow shelves, etc. The one I built will handle a lot more weight with no signs of sagging.
I like the idea of steel supports, as they take less space than 2x4's and provide better strength.
-- Edited by 69SSConv on Tuesday 3rd of January 2012 10:39:44 AM
Back in Black said
Jan 3, 2012
I have two that are homemade. Low budget operation here. The original owner/builder of my Mom's house in Duluth built a workbench back in the 50's. It was in the garage and my Mom wanted it out of there so I dismantled it and hauled it home. The thing weighs a ton. The work surface is made of two 2.5" x 12.5" x 99" (actual dimensions) pieces of lumber that now look petrified. I don't know what kind of wood it is but it hasn't bowed so much as a fraction of an inch in over 60 years. It also has a couple of crude drawers. When I pulled it out of my Mom's garage, I found a couple newspapers in one of the drawers from November 1963. Guess what the headlines read? :(
The other bench I built using a scrap piece of laminated countertop.
Neither one of them is much to look at but they're both sturdy as hell and do the job nicely.
67ss said
Jan 3, 2012
Mine is one of those gorilla rack benches from menards with a solid core door cut to fit as a top. I think I then ran a 2x6 under where the bench vise bolts for added support. Has worked great and I have beat the crap out of it. Only thing I would like to do is cover the top in metal for easier clean up.
dashboard said
Jan 3, 2012
Bryan how big will it be and what do you think it will cost to build with that stuff?
bowtie said
Jan 3, 2012
It will be 6' wide x 22" deep x36" tall. I keep refining the actual build design-I started at 8' wide, but will be cut to 6'. Figure $60 for the beams (10' beam is $15) though I think I might only need 3, misc corner brackets are $2 each- need 8, need 6 other L brackets @ $2 ea, 8 drawer slides @ $11 ea, make some basic drawers, plus some nuts/bolts and a top. I was thinking of using flat stock to span from front to rear leg and give more mounting point for drawer slides. Those add another maybe $20 to the total. It should come in under $300 and be what I want. I'll eventually weld it, but I want to assemble it first and see how I like it-make changes if necessary since it's pieced together. I could add another section underneath the ends and put adjustable feet on it too, but my floor is pretty flat-nothing so far has been off or wobbily. My other bench will probably become the tool platform in the front garage for mitre saw, grinder, etc.
Dave Seitz said
Jan 3, 2012
I bought a shelf and cut that apart to make a bench, the cut one of the shelves in half to make a smaller bench. I think I sold 1 of the remaining shelves to John Enga for him to build a bench out of. Steel is nice but if I move I will need a forklift to clear off the bench and move it out.
Enganeer said
Jan 3, 2012
I still am working were I will mount that shelf...I only want to move it once as it weighs a ton. Or I may put wheels on it an make a movable work table that I can weld on.
Either way...it is heavy duty enough I could throw a big block on it and not have a worry about any bowing with that thick steel top.
SShink said
Jan 3, 2012
Check out the workbenches at Sam's club. They have steel legs with a butcher block solid wood top. I think they cost about what you will spend to build something similar, and all you have to do is put it together.
Pushrod put some in his shop, bolted them to the wall, and they are sturdy as all get out.
dashboard said
Jan 3, 2012
Before man first fastened a piece of stone to the end of a stick and called it a tool. Before he allowed woman get near the fire for warmth (scholars have documented this moment as man’s first mistake) and certainly long before the wheel that we now know was invented to transport beer. There was a flat horizontal surface somewhere in his cave; it allowed him to get up off the floor and for the first time and work standing up. It also provided an excellent location to store his beer; this would keep his prize possession out of the reach of both the cave kids and the guy from the cave down the trail, it became known as the…..Workbench.
The woman; same one he allowed to get up near the fire, at some time began to stack things on it, to get them off the floor and make more space in the cave. This first domestication of the Workbench lead to it being called The Shelf and for about the next 200,000 years it would be called The Shelf.
At some point over the next 200,000 years man realized his error with fire and the Workbench; man then chiseled and dug out a small space in the hill next to his cave and called it Garage, here he would think great thoughts, plan for the future of the world, and create wonderful things, one of which would be the automobile. Woman and all domestic items would not be allowed in the Garage.
So after all these years of evolution what defines the best Workbench? I just added up how many Garages I’ve had, I stopped counting at fifteen, everyone had a Workbench most became The Shelf. I’ve learned that if the flat horizontal surface is attached to the wall regardless of its size the probability of it becoming The Shelf is much greater.
So the next evolution of the Workbench will be called the Work Station; at a minimum it must be mobile so it can be taken to the work, as solid as the first one made of stone in the cave, have excellent lighting, provide ample storage, be able to supply electrical power on demand, be capable of being stored against a wall when not in use and have a safe place to set a cold beer. It is the most important tool in the Garage and regardless of cost it is man’s most important investment.
However, and most important, it must never be allowed to be a repository for domestic items their- by becoming The Shelf.
22’ x 72” solid as the rock, lots of storage, $400.00 at Sam’s.
The one I saw at Sams is what Kevin has, nice but at $400 for the one with drawers or $220 for the open bench which would still need drawers added on, it's more than I want to spend. The idea is like this, but with 2 columns of 4 drawers 8" deep.
I normally build mine. I've never found something that ever fits my needs at the time. In the old house, I repurposed a 6' base cabinet which had nice cupboard storage underneath and 4 drawers. Now in this house, I have plenty of storage but I want drawer space.
I looked around and didn't see much of what I really wanted that would also support a vice, so I took Menard's up on thier 11% rebate offer and bought some materials. I'm going to use Superstrut for the framework which is the stuff they use to supprt conduit and stuff under girders and rafters. It's like steel C-channel that uses threaded rod to hold it in proper position. $15 for a 10' piece.
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=superstrut&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1280&bih=558&tbm=isch&tbnid=jOFcmrSEwaekWM:&imgrefurl=http://www.contractorsupplymagazine.com/pages/Spre/Thomas-%26-Betts-Superstrut-with-SilverGalv-Electro-Galvanized-Finish.php&docid=_3O88mgDd5BdEM&imgurl=http://www.contractorsupplymagazine.com/wysiwyg/images/Products/Thomas_Betts_Superstrut_250.png&w=250&h=192&ei=LyEDT8_YB8Hv0gGtqcDAAg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=588&vpy=287&dur=203&hovh=153&hovw=200&tx=138&ty=149&sig=100901131282717493865&page=2&tbnh=153&tbnw=200&start=23&ndsp=10&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:23
I figure I'll use flat stock for the drawer glide mounts and use either a used solid core door or some 5/8 plywood with a tempered hardboard top. 6 foot wide x 22" or so deep x 36" tall with 8-8" drawers. Should cost under $300 and be solid.
I have both, a section I built, and some bench cabinets I purchased. Downside to a lot of the purchased ones are they are particle or pressed board and do not stand up well to any weight on them over time and start to sag or bow shelves, etc. The one I built will handle a lot more weight with no signs of sagging.
I like the idea of steel supports, as they take less space than 2x4's and provide better strength.
-- Edited by 69SSConv on Tuesday 3rd of January 2012 10:39:44 AM
The other bench I built using a scrap piece of laminated countertop.
Neither one of them is much to look at but they're both sturdy as hell and do the job nicely.
Mine is one of those gorilla rack benches from menards with a solid core door cut to fit as a top. I think I then ran a 2x6 under where the bench vise bolts for added support. Has worked great and I have beat the crap out of it. Only thing I would like to do is cover the top in metal for easier clean up.
I still am working were I will mount that shelf...I only want to move it once as it weighs a ton. Or I may put wheels on it an make a movable work table that I can weld on.
Either way...it is heavy duty enough I could throw a big block on it and not have a worry about any bowing with that thick steel top.
Check out the workbenches at Sam's club. They have steel legs with a butcher block solid wood top. I think they cost about what you will spend to build something similar, and all you have to do is put it together.
Pushrod put some in his shop, bolted them to the wall, and they are sturdy as all get out.
Before man first fastened a piece of stone to the end of a stick and called it a tool. Before he allowed woman get near the fire for warmth (scholars have documented this moment as man’s first mistake) and certainly long before the wheel that we now know was invented to transport beer. There was a flat horizontal surface somewhere in his cave; it allowed him to get up off the floor and for the first time and work standing up. It also provided an excellent location to store his beer; this would keep his prize possession out of the reach of both the cave kids and the guy from the cave down the trail, it became known as the…..Workbench.
The woman; same one he allowed to get up near the fire, at some time began to stack things on it, to get them off the floor and make more space in the cave. This first domestication of the Workbench lead to it being called The Shelf and for about the next 200,000 years it would be called The Shelf.
At some point over the next 200,000 years man realized his error with fire and the Workbench; man then chiseled and dug out a small space in the hill next to his cave and called it Garage, here he would think great thoughts, plan for the future of the world, and create wonderful things, one of which would be the automobile. Woman and all domestic items would not be allowed in the Garage.
So after all these years of evolution what defines the best Workbench? I just added up how many Garages I’ve had, I stopped counting at fifteen, everyone had a Workbench most became The Shelf. I’ve learned that if the flat horizontal surface is attached to the wall regardless of its size the probability of it becoming The Shelf is much greater.
So the next evolution of the Workbench will be called the Work Station; at a minimum it must be mobile so it can be taken to the work, as solid as the first one made of stone in the cave, have excellent lighting, provide ample storage, be able to supply electrical power on demand, be capable of being stored against a wall when not in use and have a safe place to set a cold beer. It is the most important tool in the Garage and regardless of cost it is man’s most important investment.
However, and most important, it must never be allowed to be a repository for domestic items their- by becoming The Shelf.
22’ x 72” solid as the rock, lots of storage, $400.00 at Sam’s.
The one I saw at Sams is what Kevin has, nice but at $400 for the one with drawers or $220 for the open bench which would still need drawers added on, it's more than I want to spend. The idea is like this, but with 2 columns of 4 drawers 8" deep.
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=custom+workbench&start=611&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&biw=1366&bih=566&tbm=isch&tbnid=sctdzRV9qzdTTM:&imgrefurl=http://www.greenemfg.com/photo_gallery.php&docid=W79FdUCcEm5NOM&imgurl=http://www.greenemfg.com/photo_gallery/main_1297195627_DT-WORKBENCH.jpg&w=600&h=500&ei=HrsDT8O_Dc3iggez1ImFAg&zoom=1&chk=sbg&iact=hc&vpx=873&vpy=250&dur=156&hovh=205&hovw=246&tx=135&ty=135&sig=114971891923136810773&page=57&tbnh=158&tbnw=195&ndsp=10&ved=1t:429,r:8,s:611
There are also people selling decent used workbenches on craigslist all the time. Same goes for auction sites like Auction Masters.