$200 Workbench? Not Where I live

[John LoDico]

There's the maple workbench with the houndstooth dovetails at the end vise and the Benchcrafted leg vise -- works of art for a significant investment. And then there's the $100 workbench (let's say $200) made out of Southern Yellow Pine (SYP) or Douglas Fir with a scaffolding screw for the leg vise. I was looking to build the later but ran into a problem; I live in the Northeast. SYP is a rarity here, although it's used in pressure-treated lumber. Douglas Fir? A common West Coast species but here it costs $92 for one 2 x 10" x 12' board. So I'm looking at building the "affordable" $750-800 workbench for my basement shop. Oh well.

[mike stenson]

I just built a bench out of the cheapest wood I could find. Red oak. It was about $400 for the lumber. If there had been a cheaper, heavy, wood choice I'd have gone that way (there isn't really such a thing as 'cheap' here in the desert IMO). I think the idea with things like SYP and fir is just to build a bench. Really just a cheap (in the midwest) alternative. The benchcrafted leg vise? Oh yes, that's a luxury, but man.. it's nice (especially after years of dealing with racking). edit: I sat on the vise hardware for a couple years before building.


https://photos.smugmug.com/Woodworking/Shop/Roubo-Bench-/i-2z59QWn/0/dbe0cc16/L/IMG_8023-L.jpg
https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=I+do+one+thing%2C+I+do+it+very+well&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

[Jim Becker]

You can generally get the heavier "framing" grade boards from a good lumber supplier that can be utilized for a great benchtop. And SYP is often available to you that way because it's sometimes what's required for building engineering. The 10" boards at the top of the walls of my new Post Frame workshop building are all SYP with a special grade. The point here is that you need to find the right source for your benchtop material and that may not be the big box home center. As an alternative, soft maple (which is still pretty darn hard) is reasonably priced and readily available...great to use for a benchtop. The understructure brings more flexibility so you can use less expensive building materials since it's all about the joinery for that.

[Mel Fulks]

You can probably buy North Eastern white pine there. I would use that , with Masonite ‘table protector’

[richard poitras]

Ash is generally very reasonably priced as well, due to the Ash bore some years back. Check with one of the local sawmills for better lumber pricing, sometimes they have a surplus of certain lumber they want to move.

[Peter Schussheim]

As Richard suggested, Ash is by far the most reasonably priced wood with fantastic properties ideal for a bench. I feel your pain with respect to the lack of SYP in the north east. I recently built a moving shop table using framing lumber (douglas fir) and while it looks absolutely beautiful and can handle significant loads and stress, douglas fir is incredibly soft and if used as your primary bench surface, you'd do well to build it extra thick to provide you with plenty of wood that can be flattened and cleaned up over the years of use.

[John LoDico]

Jim: I haven't gone to HD or Lowes, or rather I know they don't carry non-PT SYP or Doug Fir. I've been trying every specialized lumber suppliers in my area. It's all about where you live.

[John LoDico]

Mike, your red oak bench looks great! I have some red oak slabs drying in my basement from the old oak tree in my yard that I cut down and slabbed with an "Alaskan sawmill." But I'm saving that for a dining table -- old family tree built into family dining table.

[Patrick Kane]

John, I wouldnt get discouraged by prices. You just havent found the right source yet. Have you tried searching facebook marketplace or craigslist for lumber? I would be shocked if some local yocal mill wasnt selling air dried softwood/hardwood. It wont be graded, and probably isnt kiln dried, but it could be a fine source of material for a workbench within your budget. I would cheap out a bit on the wood, but i wouldnt be too cheap for the hardware. I used poplar that was $0.50bdft, and spent maybe $50-60 on cheap vise hardware from lee valley. The front vise is OK, but really, i should have saved and spent a bit more for nicer hardware. Years ago, i picked up an Emmert's vise and removed the leg vise from my workbench. The emmert's is infinitely better than my original vise hardware. It was also 3-4x the price off the used market, but i would have been better off getting by with just holdfasts and dogs for a couple months versus installing the inferior vise hardware. If you do it right, this is something you will invest many hours in and live with for many years.

[Warren Lake]

Had an oak door on metal legs and record vice forever. Then got used benches from old European shops in the city as they had auctions. Guess some number of cabinetmakers in each shop wanted what they learned on.

[John LoDico]

Thanks Patrick. Good suggestions.

[Holmes Anderson]

Ash is generally very reasonably priced as well, due to the Ash bore some years back. Check with one of the local sawmills for better lumber pricing, sometimes they have a surplus of certain lumber they want to move.

Absolutely, ash is the wood to use right now. It is currently less expensive than pine here in New England. This is a great time to building a bench because ash is perfectly suitable and they are practically giving it away. My local supplier tells me that people are using ash for framing now because it is so inexpensive.

[Jim Becker]

You can probably buy North Eastern white pine there. I would use that , with Masonite ‘table protector’

Funny thing about white pine. There's a lot of it produced in the Northeast but it's still hard to buy, surprisingly expensive and for this application, pretty soft compared to material like SYP. I needed a bunch of board feet of clear white pine a couple years ago for a client project and had to order a larger quantity on a pallet just to get it. (And my supplier had to order an additional $3K of material at the same time because the pine had to come from a supplier they didn't normally deal with)

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I agree with the suggestion to consider ash...it completely slipped my mind and shouldn't have, given we lost... Every. Single. Ash. Tree. on our previous property to the borer. Like a couple dozen trees on that almost four acres of land that was half wooded. I milled some of it at least.

[Ron Citerone]

Jim, it seems 1X White Pine is all over the place here. Thicker stuff is not so easy to find. I agree it doesn't make sense with the fact that it grows here.

For thicker pine either white or SYP, John might go on craig's list for reclaimed pine. It shows up n there at times.

Groff and Groff lists it.

[Ron Citerone]

Absolutely, ash is the wood to use right now. It is currently less expensive than pine here in New England. This is a great time to building a bench because ash is perfectly suitable and they are practically giving it away. My local supplier tells me that people are using ash for framing now because it is so inexpensive.

Interesting Holmes. My take here in Southeast PA is while ash was cheap here a few years back it seems to be in the same price range as other domestic hardwoods lately. Ash would make a nice bench for sure!

[Dave Zellers]

Agree TOTALLY with using ash. A joy to work with (you need sharp blades) and really stable.

Have you tried REX Lumber in Acton? https://www.rexlumber.com/lumber/product/white-ash/

Even though they call themselves a wholesaler they are not likely to turn down a $400+ order. I was able to buy from them in the past but that was many years ago. Put your entire order together, generously allowing for waste, and include extra because you will fall in love with using ash and want lots of leftovers. Give them a call and make sure you use the correct lingo like 4/4, 6/4, 8/4, S1S, S2S, skip planed, rough sawn, etc. I wouldn't pretend you are anything but what you are. You're just hoping they could include your order on one of their trucks headed your way. You have nothing to lose.

Also if you are in NE Mass, you could try Highland Hardwoods- https://www.highlandhardwoods.com/lumber/retail/
They are east of Concord NH. I made the trip up there (I'm in SE Mass) years ago to buy all the Cherry for our kitchen when they had a sale.

[John LoDico]

"Have you tried REX Lumber in Acton? https://www.rexlumber.com/lumber/product/white-ash/"

That's a good lead. Thanks.

[Alex Zeller]

Around here yellow birch can be had cheaply. The heartwood is popular "red birch" but not the sapwood. Beech also can be found but working with it requires a little thought process since it can twist when it moves. Neither ash or birch will resist denting as well as oak though.

[Carl Beckett]

I built my workbench from Elm. Why? Because it is what I had (from a tree in my mothers backyard). Squirrely stuff, but made a great bench.

My belief is that there is no one 'exact' wood for a workbench and availability is a primary factor in the choice. Some may be too soft, but there are many choices that will work great without needing to pay for premium 8/4 maple... yikes.

[Bob Riefer]

Ash was plentiful (due to many dying from "Emeral ash borer") and therefore well-priced around here when I built my bench a couple years back. Nice and strong, straight grained. Went together really well.

Edit: For the legs, I simply used poplar. Scraps of walnut uses here and there for visual interest. The overall bench is heavy as a truck.

Also, +1 for the benchcrafted hardware.

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[Peter Schussheim]

Funny thing about white pine. There's a lot of it produced in the Northeast but it's still hard to buy, surprisingly expensive and for this application, pretty soft compared to material like SYP. I needed a bunch of board feet of clear white pine a couple years ago for a client project and had to order a larger quantity on a pallet just to get it. (And my supplier had to order an additional $3K of material at the same time because the pine had to come from a supplier they didn't normally deal with)

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I agree with the suggestion to consider ash...it completely slipped my mind and shouldn't have, given we lost... Every. Single. Ash. Tree. on our previous property to the borer. Like a couple dozen trees on that almost four acres of land that was half wooded. I milled some of it at least.


I am experiencing the same difficulty right now trying to source clear white pine. the best quote I found about a month ago quoted freight charges that would have been around 40% of the total cost.

[Jim Becker]

I am experiencing the same difficulty right now trying to source clear white pine. the best quote I found about a month ago quoted freight charges that would have been around 40% of the total cost.
John and Morgan at Bucks County Hardwoods were able to source it for me, Peter, but as noted, I had to take a whole "lot" (pre-selected quantity, but well chosen fortunately) to get it. That was for 6/4 that I needed for the client project. The "leftovers" from the "lot" have made very nice clear grain body cores for some guitars to-date plus a very nice bench that's now in our bedroom but was in the guest bath at the old house.

[Thomas Crawford]

Reclaimed Longleaf Pine would be excellent if you can find it.

[John LoDico]

Reclaimed Longleaf Pine would be excellent if you can find it.

Thomas, it's not around here. I'm probably going to go with Douglas fir for the top which is the cheapest, strongest, non spruce-pine-fir lumber I can find. (Even Ash ain't that cheap here plus I'd have to travel and mill it to really save money -- and not that much of a saving.) I'm at the "Just build it" with what you can point.

[Stan Powers]

Highland Hardwoods just over the line in New Hampshire
https://www.highlandhardwoods.com/
They are a good source for lumber of all type and are happy to deal with small retail sales.
I like many made my workbench out of Ash and have been very happy with it.

[Holmes Anderson]

Interesting Holmes. My take here in Southeast PA is while ash was cheap here a few years back it seems to be in the same price range as other domestic hardwoods lately. Ash would make a nice bench for sure!

Up here the prices have changed/inverted in some strange ways. I often buy from Highland in Brentwood, NH, which someone already suggested to the OP who I think is from Mass. 4/4 RGH Ash is currently 3.99 and 4/4 D+btr RGH pine is 5.05. 4/4 RGH Hard Maple is 7.10 and cherry is 6.70. Retail prices of course but wholesale would still have the same differences and issues with availability. I don't remember ash ever being less expensive than pine or cherry less expensive than hard maple. The reverse was always true. Red oak at 4.10 is still affordable, but white oak at 8.60 has skyrocketed relative to a few years go, or maybe a lot of years. Availability is still problematic. I've seen entire bins of ash disappear in a few hours and I've emptied bins trying to complete projects or just plain had to use a different species. Wide boards can also be hard to find. Years ago we never worried about availability and even white oak was not too expensive. All marine lumber including white oak and tropical hardwoods like teak have increased in cost most I think. 4/4 RGH teak is - wait for it - $46 bd/ft.

[mike stenson]

Holy cow yea. I paid less than $3/bdft for the 8/4 red oak, but white oak.. 8/4 flat sawn was about $15/bdft. I was shocked.

[John LoDico]

Up here the prices have changed/inverted in some strange ways. I often buy from Highland in Brentwood, NH, which someone already suggested to the OP who I think is from Mass. 4/4 RGH Ash is currently 3.99 and 4/4 D+btr RGH pine is 5.05. 4/4 RGH Hard Maple is 7.10 and cherry is 6.70. Retail prices of course but wholesale would still have the same differences and issues with availability. I don't remember ash ever being less expensive than pine or cherry less expensive than hard maple. The reverse was always true. Red oak at 4.10 is still affordable, but white oak at 8.60 has skyrocketed relative to a few years go, or maybe a lot of years. Availability is still problematic. I've seen entire bins of ash disappear in a few hours and I've emptied bins trying to complete projects or just plain had to use a different species. Wide boards can also be hard to find. Years ago we never worried about availability and even white oak was not too expensive. All marine lumber including white oak and tropical hardwoods like teak have increased in cost most I think. 4/4 RGH teak is - wait for it - $46 bd/ft.

Thanks Stan and Holmes. I checked Highland out online. I'll have to drive up there next week -- it's only about 50 miles away.

[Edward Weber]

I'll throw something else into the mix.
Depending on what style of bench you're looking to build.
The frame can be soft-wood and the top can be hard-wood. A soft-wood frame will hold up just fine, not to mention be less expensive. You can then attach any top you want to depending on budget and so on.
Just a thought.

[mike stenson]

I'll throw something else into the mix.
Depending on what style of bench you're looking to build.
The frame can be soft-wood and the top can be hard-wood. A soft-wood frame will hold up just fine, not to mention be less expensive. You can then attach any top you want to depending on budget and so on.
Just a thought.

Always a good option. My old bench is an alder base. I'd note that volume pricing may beat the costs in the end (did for me). But it is worth doing the math.

[Bill Bukovec]

I have some 4" thick x 26" wide white oak slabbed up from a tree in our yard. Once that dries, it will be my next bench. I reckon that should by sturdy enough.

[Dave Zellers]

I have some 4" thick x 26" wide white oak slabbed up from a tree in our yard. Once that dries, it will be my next bench. I reckon that should by sturdy enough.

Hopefully you're young. :)

But seriously, that's awesome.

[Justin Rapp]

i built my bench for under $500. I used kiln dry select construction lumber to build the base. I picked up a 72x39 butcher block counter, ripped down to 30"wide and used the cut-off to make the skirt. A few vices with rock-maple blocking and a bunch of bolts. I have also since added retractable casters so it's easy to move.

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[Curt Harms]

Ash is generally very reasonably priced as well, due to the Ash bore some years back. Check with one of the local sawmills for better lumber pricing, sometimes they have a surplus of certain lumber they want to move.

I concur with checking with local mills. It can take a little looking to find them. Being in the Northeast is a benefit, hardwood is plentiful but it may require some poking. Another downside is that local mills may not be selling kiln dried stock. Air dried stock can be used but it may take extra care. I invested in a good moisture meter early in the game. You may have to buy the lumber and let it sit for some weeks or months to let the moisture level stabilize and check for bugs; you don't want to import powder post beetles or something. You could find your bargain wood wood is no longer a bargain once you deal with the pests. The local mill I buy from has air dried wood that runs 12% to 15%. I bring it home and put it in the basement which is dry and will have wood running from 6% to 9-10% in a few weeks to maybe 6 months depending on the season.

[roger wiegand]

Highland has com/sel red oak for $2.45/bf right now, about the cheapest thing going. White ash is a bit more at $3.99. They've also got some brown hard maple at $4.25 that might make a pretty and very resistant top. I find it well worth the drive up there, you can get some nice bargains if you can use what's in the shorts bins. Prices in general are, as we all know, high. Scored some spectacular curly black walnut last time I was there, but it was $15 (ouch!). It will need to go someplace special. My son is making a guitar from the piece he bought.

[Patrick Kane]

Here is my local wholesaler's "specials" this month. Im in PA, but i cant imagine prices vary too too much between us. The minimum order is 500' unless the pack is smaller than that. In this example, 236 bdft of 6/4 white oak should be enough for a roubo bench 28-30" by 96". It is 1com, so you will have some defects you need to hide or potentially fill with epoxy, but you could build your bench out of white oak for $365, and more than likely have white oak leftover for another project. Poplar is even cheaper, better grade, and 8/4 would save you labor on all your laminations. I prefer the look of white oak and its obviously harder, but i can tell you my poplar top has aged just fine over 8-10 years of use. Any wood species will get beat up if you are chopping into it with a sharp chisel. Live with the patina, or use a sacrificial board underneath. Also, it is a work bench after all.

[Bill Dufour]

Here in California box store wood is almost all the 2x wood is df or redwood. Pine and hardwood is just for trim and shelf boards. A few studs are "white wood" which is hemlock, fir etc.
Bill D.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

As the OP stated earlier, it's all about where you live! Here no lumber is cheap. Hardwood is incredibly expensive!

[John LoDico]

Just a quick follow up on this thread I started -- I took some of the advice above and drove up from Massachusetts to NH today to Highland and got some nice 8/4 surfaced red oak. I would have went with rough stock but the lengths they had would have resulted in a lot of waste without much savings. Plus, I want to get the project done. (I was hoping for ash but they were out.) I also connected with some other sawyers around here for future supplies. So thanks for the recommendations. I'll post a photo of the bench when (and if!) it's done.