Building a work bench

[Tom Bussey]

In my opinion and I say that because everyone has one, the most important detail of a work bench is the height of the bench. I will come back to it.

I have the room for a big bench. I wanted to build a workbench just big enough so I could put the top into the bed my pick up truck. I can put a full sized sheet of plywood in-between the wheel wells and still close the tail gate. Also I prefer to glue up panels on my bench and the clamps of choice are Bessey K clamps 24 inches long. So I wanted to be able to place the clamps a crossed the top and have every part of the clamp completely on the top.

I had sold my last bench and didn't have anything to work on or from. Also I prefer the Frank Klausz style over the Roubo style. Today it seems that more woodworkers prefer the Roubo, but I travel to the beat of aa different drum.

Anyway hopefully know you will understand the pictures a little bit better.

I built a frame out of 2x4s and from past experiences started with a height of 35 1/2 inches. Now that is to the top of the plywood on the frame. Just a note: kitchen counter tops are 36 inches off the floor, standard height today.

Anyway you will see from the photos the progression I went through to come up with the height. The height that my body liked is 34 1/2 inches. (Let me be clear about this.) this is the height my body likes, not the height your body will like. Not yours.

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I took the frame apart a couple of time to cut off the legs. and when I was finished I thought I should have built the frame shorter and then just raised the bench by pitting a 1/4 or 1/2 inch thick of plywood under the legs for the height. What you don't see is I had to shrove the bench up against something so it wouldn't move when planning.

Latter on, after the bench was built I saw a YouTube video by Tom Choplin and he said to make your bench 4 hands high. And do you know what? 4 hands which are in exact proportion to my body are very nearly prefect to 34 1/2 inches. He said the width of the bench should be an arms length or roughly 3 hands which is basically the length from your shoulder to the first knuckles on your fist. Now for me that is 25 7/8ths Which fits my desire for my 24 inch Bessey clamps.

Now to be truthful a bench should be no larger than its invirement permits. My shop will support the size, if yours will not it is not my fault, so please do not find fault with mine.

I wrote this for the one who is thinking about either building his, her, first first bench or possible a new one able to serve them better. I hope this aswers the most important question which is about height and it can only come through some trail and error.

Height is to me the most important part of the bench. Mine is 35 inches because I stand on a rubber mat that is all but 1/2 inch thich. Thus the 34 1/2 height is maintained.

My currant bench finished

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[Jim Becker]

In my opinion and I say that because everyone has one, the most important detail of a work bench is the height of the bench.

I agree with this 100%. The bench needs to be comfortable for the worker to be able to do the things they want to use the bench for comfortably and for long periods of time, potentially.

Now to add a small little thing to that concept, years ago I embraced the idea of adjustable height work surfaces because for me personally, different activities are more comfortable at different heights. Where one needs to pick a height, zero in on the one that provides the best comfort overall, however. It sounds like that near 35" is perfect for you!

[Warren Lake]

all my benches are raised over how they came by 2 or 3 ".

There is always work that is more comfortable at different heights and I dont expect to do on a bench so build what I need at a height I want. had a welded stand that could be any height to do router work that at the time was more comfortable at much higher height than a work bench. I dont clamp panels on my work bench, Ulmia benches are not made for that and would not work well unless covered by a wider sheet, i dont want to tie up my work bench, set up horses and beams for clamping.

Looks like you built a nice bench Tom

[Tom Bussey]

I do not disagree with any of the replies. But I believe I wrote (I wrote this for the one who is thinking about either building his, her, first first bench or possible a new one able to serve them better. I hope this answers the most important question which is about height and it can only come through some trail and error.) An Ulimia bench is not considered building a bench. It is a factory made bench and the height is already established. Please do not get me wrong here an Ulimia bench is a great bench and I think anyone that has one is very fortunate to own one. Nothing that is a fixed height will work in every instant for router work or anything else for that matter of fact. I may have something on my bench and have to stand on a latter to do router work.

Lets be clear here the directions on my bottle of glue says and I quote: clamp for a minimum of 30 minutes , do not stress the joint for 24 hours. So 30 minutes to me is not tieing up my work bench. I used clamping up a panel with my 24 inch clamps as an example of how I derived at the width for my bench ,not yours.

I did reread you response and found that your benches are raised by 2 or 3 inches. I do not know why but if they fit your style of woodworking is great. That is what I call personalizing your bench height so it works for you. That is what I am writing about. getting the height for you right. trial and error.

I agree that an adjustable work bench is the way to go but how do I make it so that it is adjustable and rock solid at the same time. Do I make it adjustable in 1/4 inch heights or 1/2 inch heights. Again I agree that an adjustable height bench would be the way to go. And I have put a lot of though into how to do it and the cons outweigh the pros. If you have the answer why not share it.

Working with routers and such are just moot points. what one does or doesn't do on his, her bench is also a moot point, just as the type of work they like to do or not to do.

Personally 4 of my hands are right for me., because it is in portion to my body. Again my height is 35 inches because a stand on a mat which is almost 1/2 an inch and 34 1/5 is a good height for me.

How many of you out there have a bench that is an established height verses adjustable?

Again this post is about finding the right height that is right for you and I am using myself as an example of what I went through to find what is right for me. My first bench was 33 inches and all I got was a back ache. My next one was 36 and it was to tall and I had to use all upper body strength when planning and ended up with worn out arms and again a low back ache. Also hard to find a stool for a 36 inch bench.

[Warren Lake]

My first bench was adjustable. Then I was glad I got a European bench. Clamping on a work bench works fine for you it doesnt for me. Theres the first bench, likely had 20" of adjustment. It stayed in one position and other specific things were used for work that needed different heights.

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[Monte Milanuk]

Tom,

I'm curious what you mean by "make your bench 4 hands high".

Where I grew up (cattle ranch in Nebraska), 'hands' were used to describe the height of a horse from the ground to the withers. 4 hands would be about the height of a child's rocking horse, so I'm thinking we're talking different versions of 'hands'.

I typed 'Tom Choplin workbench' into the search bar on YT, and got zip for results, so I'm not sure what video you're referring to.

Looks nice, btw. I would not have connected the starting pictures with the finish pictures - quite the change!

Monte

[Jim Becker]

I agree that an adjustable work bench is the way to go but how do I make it so that it is adjustable and rock solid at the same time. Do I make it adjustable in 1/4 inch heights or 1/2 inch heights. Again I agree that an adjustable height bench would be the way to go. And I have put a lot of though into how to do it and the cons outweigh the pros. If you have the answer why not share it.

You bring up a good point and most implementations of adjustable height are not going to be totally rock solid and a serious amount of hand tool work would make one unhappy with that. I'm not a heavy hand tool user, so it's not made any difference, but if I started doing more of that, I'd consider adding a heavy Roubo style bench to my shop specifically for hand tool operations. I'm actually considering that once I have a shop building up with space to make that consideration practical. The height of that kind of bench would be tagged at what feels most comfortable when using said hand tools and will vary by person. So again, as you noted, zeroing in on the right height for the individual is really important as part of the design and build process. Mow for general purpose...the adjustable height is wonderful and I wouldn't give that up at all.

[Warren Lake]

The metal Base weighs more than wood. the 2 x 2 there is 1/4 thick sliding in the 3/16 thick. There was an adjustable stringer from side to side. You splay the legs out slightly at the bottom same as camber on a slalomn car. That makes it more solid for hand work. My bench was originally anchored to the staircase. Even with wood say with the Ulmia you will have to tighten it up from time to time. The method they had on the old ones was not well thought out. Different build quality now than the past though only know the old ones.

[Bryan Lisowski]

I forget if my bench is 33 or 34” from floor to top, but I for certain tasks I like it higher, so I made a bench top bench. It is basically a 12”x16” top that is 3” think and the base raises about 8” High. The other option is to build a completely separate joinery bench that is a lot taller. The Renaissance Woodworker has 1 in his shop if you wanted an idea. If a major hand tool user, I wouldn’t want an adjustable bench.

[Richard Coers]

A bench that is used primarily for assembly and power tools should be higher than a bench used for hand plane work and chopping mortises. There is no universal height for everything or everyone. A Japanese work bench is a plank on pair of short saw horses so the user can sit on it and use one foot to hold work.

[Tom Bussey]

I do not disagree with any of you. But most of what you are saying is making exceptions. Really go back and read and (I mean actually read word for word what I wrote at the beginning of this post, before you go out of your way to find exceptions.

I belong to a couple of forums and over time I have observed the most frequent asked question when it comes to work benches is what height do I make it. Lie Nielsen makes a bench that is custom ordered anywhere between 33 and 38 inches. It is $2750 plus shipping. I checked Woodcraft and they sell Sjoberg benches and the height ranges from 33 to 34 7/8ths The prices range all over the place. Rockler was basically the same in the height area.

I stopped at the Amana Furniture Factory last week and I saw a Roubo style bench for sale for well north of $2000 on the show room floor. If you have ever been there then you know you can go back in an protected area and watch then make high end furniture that the person who makes it, signs his name on the piece. While back in the area I saw several work bench tops stacked in a pile. I asked and found out that they are making Roubo work benches for Bench Crafted. But the funny thing is they were all the same height.

In fact none of the benches I saw at Amana or any other commercially benches that I can find anywhere, are Adjustable in height. WHY? And basically all are about the same in height. Why?

Frank Klausz is about the same height as I am. According to Scott Landis's, The Workbench Book, Frank's bench is 33 inches tall. And he is now retired but when working was a cabinet maker and built furniture and did work for museums If you ever watched some of his videos you will find out that he is also a power tool woodworker. Why isn't his bench higher?

If you want to take exception one can find it on anything that is written here. If you wish to find fault so you can argue about something anyone can. But stuff can be added to the top of the bench to make it higher or put something on the floor to lower the bench. so some of the objections are groundless. If you think a bench should be higher then make your bench higher. If you think the bench should be adjustable, then make our bench adjustable. It is your bench

If you are going to build your own bench then make it to fit your needs and wants, that is all I am saying. I showed pictures of how I came to the height that my bench is. How you do it is up to you. Whether or not you just go off someone else's plans it is your choice. It is your bench and you are the one who is going to have to live with it, not me. I have enough problems of my own.

As far as hands go , if you spread your hand out and measure from the tip of your thumb to the type of your little finger that is the distance I was told. I know they measure horses by hands but how and to where, I do not know. Mine is a little over 8 1/2 inches which multiplies out to be a little under 34 1/2 inches. I figured out the 34 1/2 and made my bench that height long before I saw Toms YouTube video and I was surprised how accurate I found it to be. It is in proportion to my body and I think it works so I am passing it on to anyone who will Listen. I said listen, not to find an exception. It is a good place to start. I didn't say to make it that height, I said a good place to start.

[Tom M King]

In horse measuring, a hand is 4".

Football players measure hand size with the spread hand, like Tom is talking about:
https://howtheyplay.com/team-sports/Quarterbacks-With-the-Most-Impressive-Hand-Sizes-in-NFL-History#:~:text=Most%20NFL%20teams%20today%20prefe r,that%20measures%20less%20than%20that.

[Tom Bussey]

Thanks for to reply. What is a withers. And thanks for the reply. I always wondered about a horse . I read about one being 15 hands high and according to my way of measuring the horse would be over 12 feet high not 5 foot.

[Lisa Starr]

Tom,
A horse's withers is the "high spot" between their neck and their back. Horses and ponies are measured from the ground to that point when talking about height. For example, a horse that is 15 hands high measures 60 inches.

[Jim Becker]

And to make it more fun, a horse that is 16.1 hands is 15 hands plus one inch. After 16.3 you hit 17. :) And the state of their feet relative to where they are in their farrier schedule can also affect the measurement. Real precision. LOL

[Warren Lake]

Geez I havent even learned metric yet and now we are measuring in horses. My bench is a Freisen high at birth.

[Jim Becker]

LOL. Warren...I wasn't fond of equestrian measurements, either, but while I was a horse owner, it was a necessary evil. For woodworking, "Imperial" is now my necessary evil as I much prefer metric. :) :D (don't shoot me folks...it's a subjective thing) Since this is a thread about benches, my main benchtop was built in metric other than a few extra .75" dog holes for hold fasts within the metric grid. It goes as low as about 700mm and as high as about 1000mm.

[Randall J Cox]

After all the back and forth, I like your bench, simple as that. Randy