"Ideal" Bench Size

[Jim Eller]

I have found out that building a laminated hardwood bench is not as easy as I thought. At least not in this area.

The problem is material size.

I started out to do a 3"x24"x96" bench but can not find the material unless I spend twice as much to include all of the waste I would have.

So, I am planning on a 2.75"x24"x72" bench with side and end vises.

I realize that bigger is better in most cases, but is this adequate for woodworking in general. Or, is there some reason it must be eight foot and three inches thick?

Keep in mind I do not do a lot of hand tool work if that matters.

Is there a "best" size for this beast?

Thanks for any input and/or suggestions.

Jim

[Chuck Tringo]

I would say that unless you plan to make alot of large cabinets or house doors then you should be fine

[John Schreiber]

Bigger is better, but lots of great work has been done on much smaller.

I think 2.75 x 24 x 72 will work fine. With the shorter length, you don't need as much thickness to prevent sagging anyway. You may want to add some sand bags or screw it to a wall or something so that it doesn't move under hand tool work.

I'm just finishing up a 3.75 x 30 x 90 and I gotta say I love it. Stout Stout Stout.

[Myk Rian]

My favorite size is a solid core door size.

[Dewey Torres]

My bench is 2.75"x24"x72 and I have yet to wish it were larger.
my.02

[Mike Gager]

im with mark, i have a 36"x79" solid core door top and its perfect

[John Sanford]

IF the bench isn't going to be against a wall, I would suggest that you go a little wider. Clamping something that is 2' wide up on a 2' bench is a PITA, because your clamps have no end support. My current bench is 25" wide, and I would prefer it to be 27" - 30".

As for length, the longer the better, until it starts to interfere with shop traffic.

[Sonny Edmonds]

A man with 12" arms have trouble holding 84" round woman. :D

Any bench has to work for you.
You'll likely find need of more than one, and more than one size.
All your shoes aren't the same, now are they? ;) :)

[Jim Becker]

The best size is relative to what you intend to use the bench for....

[Michael Donahue]

My favorite size is a solid core door size.

Me too :D

One of my benches is 36"x80" and that size has come in very handy for putting together bigger projects.