Build a REAL workbench for $30
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- Опубліковано 27 бер 2019
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Rex, you get it. You actually get what it means to not have money for tools. I see articles and videos about getting started in woodworking, and the authors have no idea. Steve Ramsey touts his list of tools to outfit a beginner's shop for under $1000. If I had done that as a beginner my kids would have starved and my wife would have left me! Great job with this one.
I love Steve and I've watched SO many of his videos, but his thousand-dollar "hobby" shop is just out of reach for so many of us.
I made a standard modern workbench for about the same amount, in parts at least). But you really only need a handsaw (I recommend the Japanese style) and driver (I recommend a corded one, so it is always ready and you dont need to charge it all the time) for screws. (glue too, it helps a lot). One thing I find tough about his videos is that the bench planes require some work to get working. Sharpening the iron is a task and expense all its own. I feel investing in an electric hand planer ($40-100) would be better in the long run (this is a guy that owns three manual hand planers).
Cheap tools can make things frustrating though. All hobbies require a bit of investment to start. But you dont need a ton of them to really wood work. There is another channel similar to this where a guy does simply projects that most should be able to do with few tools.
most of my tools have been yard sale finds and Harbor Freight bargains. There are a few exceptions to this, such as my makita skill saw, and dewalt drill, but picking away at the core tools, hitting up the old guy yard sales and not being afraid to buy walmart brand, is the best way for a beginner to build a shop that can produce beautiful work. Just look at those craftsmen from third world countries using a handsaw, jack plane and chisel to build absolutely every tool needed to make very fine wood furniture. They certainly aren't maxing out their credit cards to buy fancy tools.
@@animematt99 When you are broke, you spend time instead of dollars. My planes came from yard sales, flea markets, farm auctions. All Stanley or Record. $10 tops, $7 for my #3 smoother, all complete, all good condition, all required tuning and sharpening. I used sandpaper on a 50 cent floor tile. Or, on a piece of mirror glass on a 3/4" mdf backer. 600 grit is plenty fine enough to start woodworking. No need for an 8000 grit water stone. Every woodworker needs a good way to sharpen. Planes, chisels, and spokeshaves are only useful when sharp.
@@wdtaut5650 I have a dual grit sharpening stone that I bought 25 years ago for an advanced carpentry class. It cost $5.00 I still use it. We learned how to sharpen everything with that and a piece of leather. Still in the original container soaked in 30w oil
As an amateur with woodworker, i typically feel overpowered with the entire arrangement ua-cam.com/users/postUgkxrYREG3-7f1Aqk9ams3ZESRNzGnfdUtyQ . Be that as it may, this arrangements drove me through with much clarity and effortlessness woodplans. Works i now work like a genius. That is great!
Primer?
As a former Hope Depot employee in the lumber and building materials department, thank you for restacking your rejects
My god, thanking people for not leaving a mess, but I guess that's where we're at.
@@TheTurinturumbar Retail work in general. You'd be amazed how lazy people are.
@@Tehinstrumentalist I'd say it's a bit beyond just lazy at that point
I worked for HD. Quit after a few months. Never seen such a poorly run retail store. Loved my job (hardware department) bur the corporate woke childish mentality was too much. They also treat their employees like children (bs like sell a credit card, win a chocolate bar! Seriously lol). HD hires a lot of part time employees, often cutting their hours from 25 or 30 to 8 or 12. Waste of anyone's time. The store is a joke.
No, thank you, seriously.
"I've been involved in drug deals that were less sketchy than getting this thing" instant subscription!
same.
Yep, same here. Bought the book on woodturning too. Great work Rex! Woodworking for real people.
I had a similar experience buying a loptop from a guy off craigslist years ago... wasn't doing anything wrong but I felt like I was doing a drug deal lol
Hahaha yes! Me too!
Same
"yo man,you got any.."
*Whispers*
"Bench Vice's"
Not any of that pony crap, either. I need the high-test: Columbia, Abernathy...I'll pay, man!
Vises are my vices 😋
No but he’s got some adVICE on finding one
I’m experienced and at 76 I learned a couple of things that I wish I’d known 50 years ago. I subbed right up after this first look. Good original tips I haven’t seen before. Economical too! Thanks kid!
My pleasure!
That's fair, brother.
@@RexKrueger jjj
One thing I'll add as a suggestions is to drill holes along your bench to pass a rope through. Romans used rope for everything. If you have a rope going through your bench, where the holes are the width of the piece of wood you are working on you have a perfect hold down clamp where you can either stand on a board that is passed through the rope underneath the bench, or just step on the rope, you could also tourniquet the rope and clamp it in place for additional downward force. Lots of options, the majority of roman work benches were made extremely crudely by felling a tree, and sawing it in half and drilling holes in it this is a much easier way to build a good bench than carrying one while on military campaign. This is what I am going to do for my backyard benches around my fire pit, got the trees in my shed drying right now, so far it's been 1 year since they were felled so it shouldn't be long and I can do it. An old saying from Rome "Rope is dope!" lol
Camera angles and narration style...... everything about this is Blue's Clues
Never heard that as a method of comparison
Krue's Clues
Dude lol
I think this is more like Good Eats.
...... only if it’s from original dude
And this is probably why a workbench is called a bench instead of table.
I thought that myself the SECOND I first sat on it!
kke
Good point! Never thought of that.
Nail on the head
I JUST thought the same thing! 😂
Rex, I built this bench about two years ago using only hand tools and Irish stubbornness. It is the most versatile, portable, and user-friendly piece I’ve ever had. Thank you so much for showing all of us budget-based workers a straightforward solution to that first vital fixture.
Rex: "So, we're going to build a bench out of this book."
Me: "Wow, he can do anything!"
The dad jokes are on point
You're ready
Reminds me of all the jokes about Adam Savage's book "Everything's a Hammer" being used as a hammer itself xD
I built myself a workbench top using 2x4's for a heavy welded steel frame a friend made me years ago, was inspired by this.
I spent a little money on the fir 2x4's at around $5 each since they were a high grade, straight and generally square stock, and my workbench was WIDE and LONG (84 inches long and 40 inches wide) so it ran me about $125 for the wood and $25 for a gallon of glue.
The issue I ran into was that I only had 4 pipe clamps wide enough, none of my bar clamps were 48 inches, and for a 9 foot long glue up, that wouldn't do. So I used ratchet straps with carboard under the glue seams and little 2x4 off cuts at each point where the strap goes around, with offcuts under the straps to prevent them from digging in.
And holy crap did it WORK. Going to flatten it with my garbage $20 amazon stanley scrub plane in a couple days, get it as flat as I can, and then start drilling 3/4 dog holes. I also built your chisel rabbet plane from a scrap 2x4 cutoff and a 1/2 inch stanley chisel so I could make a deep rabbet for the benchtop to pass over the lip of the angle iron that makes the benchtop
Got a lot of inspiration from your videos!
There are tons of beginner woodworking courses in UA-cam. This one seems to be the most practical
I worked at Lowes for 11 years, if you restack your reject lumber, your basically a saint in mybook.
That idea of how to get the legs level is Outstanding. I've always had a hard time getting the legs of anything level, now I'll remember this forever. THANKS
It's not my trick. All credit to Chris Schwarz. Still, thanks for much.
First video I've seen where the host/Craftsman does not try to make a bench that's a museum quality piece that becomes a major costly project that takes up the entire shop and budget.
Thank you.
Building mine from free wood I get piece by piece. Straight, dense, and very flat. Thx!😊👍
I really like your continued emphasis on affordability. Thanks!
This is EXACTLY what I have been looking for for weeks online and on UA-cam. Thank you Rex!
I'll be building one of these, and probably helping two of my friends build their own. this thing will be a big help - I'm getting too old to beat hell out of my knees and back using the floor and blocks or sawhorses.
as an aside: your presentations are admirably concise, clear, and complete.
Dude! The trick for the square mortise!! I already have made 3 workbenches on the cheap, that trick is having me consider making this bench! Great idea
As a beginner woodworker (hand tools) I find the channel to be one of the best. Again, thanks!
Thanks for this... I was as impressed with the clarity and completeness of your descriptions I was with the simplicity and effectiveness of your project...
After a couple of small woodworking projects done on the floor of my living room, I realized I really need a work bench. This is by far the most practical project that fits my tight space and also includes skills I need to practice! Thank you!!
Thank You for this video, I had great fun making this bench, I actually made it a bit shorter (4ft as I live in a really small place with no shed) I made the top really flat (with my newly refurbished plane, thanks to your video series ) I now use it for all my wood working and crafts, as a coffee table, as extra seating when friends come over and somewhere for my bag of tools to live under :-) sorted
So glad I found this this channel. Love your vibe, man.
What a great idea for the levelling of the bottom legs --- the half-cut pencil glued to another flat piece of wood, simple but something the normal person wouldn't have thought of ---- only one word for it ... nice.
You don't even have to halve the pencil really, since they come with preinstalled flat edges. Superglue will hold one of those just fine.
Or, drill a hole slightly smaller than the pencil through a block of wood, then insert the pencil in the hole. Reduces the wastage of the height of the leg by doing that. If you need to get the pencil out, tap it out with a piece of dowel.
Hey Rex, I just finished my $30 work bench and wanted to thank you. My bench rocks and your channel is awesome!!! :)
Loving your videos Rex. I’m halfway through building my bench. I do rigging on traditional sailing ships and I love old fashioned hand tools and benches. I built a traditional riggers horse last year to help with the special work holding needs of rigging, holding lines under tension with space to work all the way around for splicing, serving etc.. the design is one used for hundreds of years. So naturally I was attracted to the simple historical style of the Roman bench. Cheers.
Ryan
3 seconds before drilling my legs, I just realized I haven't turned the bench upside down. Gonna be a long build.
As long as that happens before your first hole, you're good. Before the third would be... cumbersome.
Really wish I watched this before I laminated up the first half of the top for my mini workbench out of 12 3/4” thick boards that began their life as bed slats. They had some hella cupping and twisting and I definitely planed away half of the wood that was there in the first place.
But seeing how you clamped them and used the boards themselves to find gaps and identify twist and bowing… that would’ve been much easier than referencing them against the “flat-ish” grimy workbench built into my basement and then essentially planing madly until they rocked “only a little”
I like how you went about getting your vice fix ;) I'm glad I held on to mine!
For maximum strength, I would probably use an untapered 2x4” and just cut 2x4 angled slots to hold them in.
I have everything to make the bench, but space to put it.
Very good speaking style: clear, concise, great diction and delivery. No unnecessarily long or obscure words, no jargon or bafflegab and no talking down to the viewer. Great for beginners and the less experienced but experts could learn something too.
I love these vids, learning a lot. My back wouldn’t survive the low version for 5 mins but easy fix
I've just been building this workbench the last few days, and it coming on very well, really liking it! One thing I struggled with was the hatchet approach to making the tenons, my wood had quite a few knots and so very tricky to stop it splitting in all different directions. After couple of attempts I gave up on the hatchet, but then had better success with cutting down to octagon shape with saw, then using chisel to get to round(ish!). Hope this help someone else who has knotty wood!
Avoid knotty wood. It doesn't split well, is hard on your tools, and is generally a pain.
Just wanted to thank you for the inspiration and all the tips! Several months ago I was searching for different workbenches when I found your $30 workbench. Really liked it, went to read a Chris Schwarz book you mentioned, then several more from him and decided to build his anarchist's workbench. Then I realized that it could be too much to start with, so I scaled down to his Nicholson bench, but in the end got back to your video again, haha.
Yes, it's no longer $30 but I still went for a laminated top opposed to your updated version of just planks and battens.
Just for the record, I ended up using four 45x70mm (almost 2x4 which would be 38x89mm) 3m balks of douglas fir and it costed me EUR54 in Apr'22 in the Netherlands. Not $30 but still affordable!
This is a great demonstration of using simple techniques to get the job done! Things I know myself often would overlook or not even think of, thanks Rex!
Great illustrative video. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
That pencil trick, with it planed in half and glued to a small block to level the bottom of the legs is amazing, thank you for that.
All credit to Chris Schwarz, but thank you anyway!
Barely over a minute into this video he mentions the city I was born in and gives me a perfectly sculpted idea of what it’s like to hunt down quality tools that have stood the test of time. Liked and subscribed lmao
36 years ago as a apprentice, a old master cabinet maker showed me pictures of these benches and yes they are mainly for sitting on as you work but were made long so two people could work. Back then I thought, thank god times have moved on, here in the UK I can not imagine working that way, but it's nice watching youtube video's showing woodworking roots
I think you'd be surprised. It's nice to sit down a bit.
This video got recommend to me for some reason and as I’m watching you say you’ve been to Fresno where I’m watching this. Wild
Lived in Merced for years, bro!
Sit down workbench makes so much sense. I had never seen this before and it is a great idea. Thanks for the video.
Thanks! I find this design easy on my back...which really does need a break.
I got some free scrap wood from a friend and I was able to make a crappier version of this bench, but still totally functional. I don't do a lot of wood working, but every time I need it I appreciate having made it. it stores and takes up hardly any space and I will use it to bootstrap me to a better bigger workbench whenever I finally settle down. Thank you so much for this video!
I've finally made one!! I love it!! I made mine a bit shorter and made it so the legs come out because I have far less space than Rex does and because I tripped on the legs one afternoon, but it ROCKS!! Can't wait to put a vice on it! Thanks Mr. Krueger! 👍
Congratulations!
This is really refreshing, I've been watching literally 100s of woodworking videos and everybody seems to have a full industrial work shop with more tools I can handle and this channel, here's a guy using an axe to make round wedges lol, love it! - subscribed
I have LOTS more basic videos. Thanks for watching!
Rex, I have really enjoyed your channel. I've been carefully scrounging for what I need and I'm finally ready to make my own work bench. But I have a few questions. I watch your videos every week, usually a few times. I watch which wood holding accessories you use from the bench in your videos and which ones you don't. Now that you have had the bench for some time if you did it all over again what would you do different? What accessories did you add that wound up collecting dust? Do you ever use the palm hold. Does the crochet get in the way? After you added the vice what was superfluous? I would love to see a video with the 30 dollar bench 2.0. lessons learned. For those of us who are still way behind.
I hand-ground a large telescope mirror on a bench like this years ago. It's a very good arrangement for certain types of motions, all your weight is working for you, both in holding things down and applying force to your tool. It's a comfortable way to do some operations.
Fantastic. I made one and it reignited my love of wood working. Thank you!
17:55 Rex wearing hearing protection while drilling with his brace...Easy there bud! Thanks for your instructing, payment shortly.
I’m a carpenter. I’m also a photographer and videographer. I just wanted to let you know you’re focused on the wall behind you in almost all of your shots. Besides that keep up the good work!
I'm currently making this to start in woodworking, learning a lot just from the process. Thanks!
Since my joints got bad, I'm having to do most of my woodworking sitting down now & it's so much easier for most things & really adds to the stability. I even work at the lathe sitting down; the extra leverage you can get by standing doesn't seem to be necessary at all (at least on things up to about 8" diameter).
Love your videos.
I've built several different benches/tables similar to this with construction lumber like you did. But something I always do that makes things easier on putting the 2x4 benchtop together is I drill holes all the way through the boards. I then get some 1/2" all thread and put them through the boards. On a bench of about 6 feet long yours I use 4 pieces. It makes it easier to glue up all the boards at once. Cap the holes on the end and you never notice. Just keep in mind where they are for when you put on the accessories it drill dog holes.
nice one... I had this same thought, commented, then saw your post... =D if you leave them sticking out, you might be able to use them for attachments, and maybe add some at various angles to act as hardie holes, etc.
o.O or drill a few holes in some angle iron and instant bolt on legs... =D
Rex - thanks for this video/series and for the tip sheet. I've just finished the bench as a first real woodworking project. A great learning project - especially for those without a bench. Mine's far from beautiful but is certainly solid and way more functional than a pair of crappy sawhorses and plywood. I'd give myself the following grades on the components... wood selection B, bench top glue up B-, leg mortises B+, leg tenons C-, wedges D-.
Overall, I'm really happy with the results. I learned a lot and now have a solid bench that I can use for decades!
Thanks Again!
Congrats! I'm delighted to hear that you made it!
The minute you showed that book, I paused the video and went looking for it. $125! so I did a little searching and the minute I found one new for $37, I bought it. Now, on to the rest of the video. thnx for the tip.
Hey, Rex, just wanted to say I finally got around to building this little puppy. I should say I've never had a work bench to call my own. I've worked on top of table saws router tables, even lathe beds. Frequently, the kitchen table (my wife deserves a medal) and seasonally, the picnic table. I built it over the weekend, and tonight, I sanded it down, and cut a few pieces of scrap wood with a lousy saw. Then I practiced dove tails with dull chisels. Despite my shop tool limitations, this was SO much better than what I've been doing. I can't think you enough for the encouragement to try and do these things. I love your videos. I'll be joining the ranks of the Patreon peeps soon. (I have an agreement w/my wife to not spend extra money while work is threatened by the virus, and I'm going to honor that.) This is just wonderful.
Also, I didn't exactly follow your directions. (My mother says this has been an issue for the better part of 50 years.) Being on the shorter side (5'7") I went for "thinner." I had some scrap 4x4 (pressure treated) leftover from another project, so I'm using that for the legs as well. You had suggested an odd number of 2x4s to have a middle board. The 3 4x4 segments offer me the equivalent of 6 2x4s, but, still afford me the option of holes down the middle. I cropped both ends of each leg at 15* and splayed the legs approx. the 32* you suggested. Right now, the legs are only glued-and-screwed. I'm going to drill a 3/4" hole through the top and as deep into the leg as I can. I'm going to pound in a hardwood dowel. I think I have that sitting around. If I have that or bigger, I'll use it. Smaller, and I'll put in a couple per leg to strengthen the joint.
All in all I'm pickled tink with this bench. Thank you, my friend! And, thanks is not enough. All the best,
I'm really delighted that you find the bench helpful!! Don't worry about Patreon! Keep your money until we all know what the hell is going on with this virus!
Great video. I like the simplicity of the design. Looking forward to see how it evolves of the coming weeks.
Thanks for the info on the book by Chris Schwarz , you made an amazing bench.
So happy I just discovered Rex's channel, the best advice for woodworking on a budget. Thank you
Loving this channel my brother! Lots of great ideas and tips for a beginner like myself! The knowledge is greatly appreciate now for practice🙇🏻♂️
Another great video with lots of information.
Beautiful! You're killing it, man! Thank you so much for the quality content! I especially enjoy your sense of humor.
Very nice, im a welder....ironworker and machinist, i never really did any wood work outside of basic home repairs, but this i gotta build..it's the anvil of woodworking ,right down to the hardy hole. Thanks so much for sharing. Subscribed
I'm a blacksmith too. You're among friends.
Rex Krueger, please read:
I just got finished building this bench, and I think it will be a great addition to my woodworking tools! I only made mine 5' 6" long due to storage and weight constraints (I have back problems, and had difficulty carrying it at 7' long). I used "premium" whitewood 2x4s from my local big box store, as there are no other options near me.
I made a couple other changes that I think bear importance:
1. Rather than drill from the bottom, I decided to drill from the top, because I wanted to ensure the holes were the same distance. I simply measured to 10" from ends, and 4.5" from the sides (one inch offset from your measurements). This was more of a visual detail, but it would have driven me nuts to have them not match. I also helps with breakout issues.
2. You mentioned cleaning up the legs to make them appealing, but something you didn't discuss is easing the bottoms of the legs to help prevent breakout due to moving of the bench. Again, more of a visual, but also deals somewhat with structure.
Again, I really appreciate all you've contributed to the woodworking world.
Awesome How to build a 30 dollar workbench Rex. Thanks for the knowledge Sir
When I went to the store to get my lumber for this my only two options were white wood 2x4 or 2x8 SYP so I’ve spent the entire day ripping them into 2x4s and got my first set glued up, this build is turning out to be a bigger project than I thought
You made the right choice!
So you ripped 2x8s and they didn't bow? Must have been well dried.
Amazing to me! I've recently stewed some scrap material to the Bott of a couple of small wood pallets, basically making a low table/bench and I can't believe how useful and handy they are....the dog likes to use them to lay on as well!
Now here is a guy whose blogs are great AND I can hear and understand what he is saying. Thank you
A great video, but I would like to add a couple of things. First, having a similar - but wider - work bench can be a great workspace for assembly. Imagine assembling a cabinet or similar item on a regular height workbench, and you will see it could mean standing on crates of whatever to do the job. The alternative would be crawling around on the floor for much of the task. A low, stable bench would be ideal for such jobs. My second point deals with the glue-up of the top.
When gluing parts together, whether edge joining or just gluing doweled parts together and so on, I learned over the years that after the parts have been clamped, some of the glue is absorbed into wood pores and, in some cases, the clamps are really not all the snug any longer. While you might be doing this, it might be helpful to point this out to beginning woodworkers. After clamping, allow the parts to set for a few minutes, then tighten the clamps again. Sometimes no change is noted, but now and then you'll find the clamps can but easily turn 3/4 of a turn or so. Just good to check.
Love your videos, Rex, and believe they are helpful for nearly any beginner, and the seasoned woodworker can always pick up a useful tip or two as well.
Great video. And, great bench idea. That's not unlike a Japanese work bench. I subscribed!
This video arrived at just the right time. I'll be making one of these as soon as I can get some 2x4s. Thanks for the tips and sharing your ideas. Best wishes
Good luck!
Build you own bench is the way to go. I used birch plywood for the top because it look great. I have 1/4 " plywood the same size as the top for when I'm doing "work" on it.
just finished my bench. it has 8 legs incase any of them are weak it isn't to big of an issue. The one improvement I came up with is to use a 2x6 as the outside board. this way it works like a mini apron for a crochet and you can drill holes in it for holdfasts.
Tip for the poor woodworkers: the bottom support members of many kinds of pallets are rough-sawn oak which, with a little extra work can be used on tons of projects where you want a decent hardwood.
I'd be careful with that, pallet wood is already bottom of the barrel wood, most of them there ends are split, you might not be able to get much to use out of it, and all the chemicals they spray on it for bugs, and whatever it had shipped might have leaked onto it. If you find a use for it great, but make sure you have a respirator.
An alternative would be cull wood, it's wood that is considered not good enough to sell, or was rejected by customers. It might not be free, but it might be discounted. Lumberyards have cull lumber piles, and your big box stores, might try asking.
Sawmills are another option, you can get rough cut lumber at a lower price, the family own or mid sized ones would be a thing to try. The large operations might not sell to an individual. Also the ones I've looked at offer more than just lumber, jointing, planing, live edges, and drying services.
I've read that you can find some good deals at amish sawmills. The ones around me are a drive, but I might go take a look sometime.
Pallet wood also sits around on the floor or ground, picking up grit and trash. If you try to save the wood by removing the nails you find out those nails have spikes and hard points that come off in the wood, ruining your tools when you try to make something with them. Free ain’t always free.
@@18-tube-wattamp64 just requires a bit of extra elbow grease and some common sense.
I'm really enjoying this series Rex!
Made this over the weekend Washington state (9) 2x4x8 cost over $50, will flatten and add holdings next. Thanks for vid
Honestly these videos are so god damn helpful I finally have tools with which i can fuel my gaming addiction
Damn. That is kind of an awesome little bench. It's perfect for sitting and working. I might have to build one for myself.
You might be surprised how much you like it.
I felt the same way...last Thursday I bought lumber...last night...I started planing the lumber to get tight glue joints. Never heard of this style of bench before... looking up carpentry benches only brings up massive, expensive, and complicated, pieces demanding a fully outfitted woodworking shop. This is very doable and you make it incredibly easy to follow! Excellently done!
I'm looking forward to seeing how it develops. Seen some of your videos before and they were great. But this one is the "magic bean" that made me hit the Subscribe button.
Great video buddy. At last a knowledgeable woodworker who speaks in layman terms. Well done sir and thank you.
yay, fresno gets a mention. good ol' city in the heart of central valley
Thanks for your time making this series. You could also turn this into an outdoor shavehorse if you have no room for another work bench indoors.
You read my mind!
Yeah and a simple build to use the mortise to add a shave horse head and clamp for doing green woodworking
That is TOTALLY the plan. This summer: green woodwork and chairs in the yard. I'm getting out of this damn basement for a while!
@@RexKrueger That's be a great video, how to make a practical dumb head and turn it into a shave horse/Transformer (tm) bench. Robots in disguise.
this is the best video to teach, you don't need to have $20000 tools to make a $50 table ! good job.
Rex, i just finished my (shorter) version of your bench. Thank you so much for the 30$workbench video series, it was exactly what i was looking for. I have looked at the chris schwartz book, but was hesitant to buy it. Your videos gave me the neccesary insights and confidence to just go ahead and get started. Again, thank you so much, love your approach and content!
I'm SO glad you built it and had success. I think if I built mine again, I'd go shorter.
@@RexKrueger , do yoi have any other social media outlet to interact with your followers? Would be nice to share pictures and ideas with fellow enthusiasts (wife parlance:whackos)!!!
you even don't have to split the pencil:
- just drill a hole in a woodblock so the pencil fits in not to tight and not to loose.
- don't go through the block, so it can sit in - saves the glue too and the pencil can used "as intended" afterwards.
I inadvertently discovered this a while ago when I noticed a golf pencil fit perfectly in a hole I had drilled in a scrap piece of wood, and I have been using it for that purpose ever since. A couple of holes through the block measuring different lengths from the center to each side allows for each side of a cube to be a different reference height, allowing for a ton of different trim heights. Also, you can just add tape to the pencil to make it fit snug
This is a great bench. But can kick it up a notch. instead of getting the eight foot 2x4's go to the 16 foot 2x4 and have them cut it in half . And why you ask what the reason for doing it. The 16 foot 2x4's come from an older tree and the wood is much harder than the 8 foot ones. All of my work benches start with 16 foot material and well worth the extra for the longer material. Check out the difference between the woods.
I've never thought of that being a factor before. I'm going to think about this from now on when I get wood
Great tipp
A CYNWRIG I got wood only yesterday. My wife was so happy.
They aren't really older growth trees. They're actually fast growing pine, fir, or spruce from being genticely modified.
I've tried this. The only difference I saw between the two lengths (8 vrs 16) is that after picking the best 16 footers in the stack, they were cut in half and became my worst 8 footers due to all of the internal stresses probably from the quick drying. The new 8 footers bowed and twisted all over the place. I wouldn't have picked them to use as 8 footers. I've had better luck buying wide, not long, and then cutting to the width I want rather than starting with the huge lengths.
Thanks for sharing your skills with us, and doing it on a budget! I just found an old axe head, im going to Rural King to get a new handle. I THINK I HAVE A STARTING POINT! :)
After watching this video earlier this year I made a bench like this. Instead of 2x4 lumber I used a 9” spruce log cut in half length-ways for the top. I bought 1.25” pine wood dowels for the legs, which werent expensive. Same design otherwise.
I'm going to do the same to build a greenwood bench for use in the forest.
@@davidhawley1132 nice! I did something similar once but I was making a small atv trailer. I cut the log length wise and tapered the ends. The deck worked well but the truck wheels I used were flopping around a lot because I couldnt make a decent hub for them to ride tightly on the axle.
Remember when you reviewed that wooden Chinese plane? I commented that it was designed to use at a knee height bench so you can add leverage with your body. This would be the perfect chance to show off that plane now with this bench.
So much better for sawing on too. Rex, you looked loads more comfortable than in the saw test last video!
I raffled that plane off to Patrons, but I take your point. As to the sawing, yes! SO easy.
See! I actually have a folding aluminum one that some crazy person put out on the curb. I have used it for years. Now I want to take it to the scrap yard and make this one...
Dang you Rex! LMAO!
Very cool simple build. I can hardly wait to see your ideas for improving it.
Always good to hear your thoughts, Matthew!
Nice looking bench. I made something similar except I did the legs out of 2x3's that Lowe's sells. Since then I made a larger bench using clear SYP 2x4's for the top with 3x3 legs. I ripped 2x6's to get 3" boards to glue up for the framework for the base.
That got all intense into bevel gauges real quick.
Great channel!
OK, this is like the third or fourth time I have wathed this video, I also purchased the book yesterday. I read the book last night and went to sleep. I woke up this morning and Thought,, you know what, My buddy has built this bench for 30 bucks, it don't make sense to not have one. I believe I mentioned on one of the video in this series, I would like to add a shave horse to it. I have put some thought into this, making it out of oak etc. The more I think about it, that is ridiculous for what I want to ultimately do with this bench, I want to build bow and use it for numerous small projects, The money I would spend on all the oak I would need to purchase to make this bench, would ultimately take most of the "big boy toy fund" and then I have nothing left to buy misc wood to build stuff. hehehehe. Thanks so much for taking the time to make this video, so far, I have only found a couple of videos covering this roman style bench or low bench. I love your take on this bench. I may make mine a hair narrower than you did yours, but it will ultimately be the same principal as yours. Thanks again sir and I Hope you have a blessed week.
Oh, you replied yesterday, you would love to see the bow when I get it built, I will comment back on here when i get the first one done. I will also be posting pics on instagram etc when i have it built.
Thanks again sir and I hope you have a blessed week.
PS, not sure if i mentioned it or not, I am currently trying to heal up a injury to my left thumb, so I am out of the shop for a while, But i have a nice list of things I plan to start as soon as I can safely work again with out risk of infection. Thanks again sir and have a blessed week.
dale
Hey, @Rex Krueger, thanks for your videos. Here's a question: could one build this bench with fasteners instead of glue? I ask because I live in Brazil, and in my region it's not very easy to find dry wood, but I figured I could use some boards (2cm x 30cm x 3m) that are easy to find here. The problem: it's frequently very wet (green?) wood, mostly pine.
Really cool! Very well put-together and instructive video, thanks alot!
Just discovered your channel. Great stuff. Good content, great presentation. Looking forward to exploring your back catalog of videos as well as future ones. 🤜💥🤛
fantastic video. subscribed.
this video could not have come at a better time for me.
I'm really glad!
Love your profile pic dude
@@RexKrueger I'm serious man
I've been stressing about how I'm going make a decent workbench for the last 2 weeks.
AND my grandfather is a history buff so I think he'll get a real kick out of helping me make a piece of Roman technology.
@@suburbanyute340 Sounds like a win-win!
@@RexKrueger it is! i'm really excited to get started on it.
This is a really good series. I’m so glad our UA-cam overlords suggested this channel on my feed. It’s almost like the Romans knew what they were doing.
I will be starting the bench when a winter coat is not required. The Rockford Kiwanis I was told built the first rotary pancake maker for a fund raising. The standard part in every event that I have been to of theirs in two decades is taking a folding table and raising it up to counter top height. And put everything under the sun on them. Stable as a rock and cheep and easy to do. My collapsible folding table has leg extensions that fit nicely in the folded table.
I think these leg extension will make your bench just that much more useful. Try it out. They take PVC plastic pipe that fits over the leg, and it can be very loose fit. I had some 1.5 sitting around. Saw four to the same length. I made them long so I could take a second shot at getting the high correct. Slide them over the existing legs until the hit something and stop. Your case would be the top but for folding tables it is a bend in the leg. Your done. You may want to put caps on the pipe if your putting the bench on dirt and for sure if it could be muddy.
Buggy cord could be stapled to the bottom to hold the extension pipe legs.
Hi Rex
Thank you for your videos. I like this build. I have made some mallets using SYP and it works great. And thanks for the info on the source for some of the big box lumber. We have a local company that, although it has had its challenges, has come back strong, even with three major brand stores nearby. I have been buying product from them for at least 40 years. It's nice to know the people from whom I'm buying product. I built a couple mallets that I leave there on the contractor counter - they get a lot of interest - one of SYP and one using 200 year old apple wood. Woodworking is great. Too bad HS no longer teach drafting and wood shop.
Please stay healthy. Blessings to you and yours.
Yup. I had shop in Middle School, but nothing is High School. Sad.