Dinamitek presents the operational guide for building the workbench

BUILDING A WOODEN WORKBENCH WITH DINAMITEK

You've decided to renovate your workshop or garage, and the first thing you need is a workbench. You can buy a ready-made one, either a single piece or a modular one, in metal or wood. The range available is very wide.

Workbenches

Or you can make your own workbench . Your first DIY project of the year will be: building a wooden workbench.

Decide on the location of your new bench because that space will determine the size of the artifact.
First, you'll need to find the materials to build the workbench. For the top, you can choose thick wood planks or laminated wood; it's up to you whether you use new or reclaimed wood, obviously keeping in mind that this decision will significantly impact production costs. If you have an old solid wood door, you can make an excellent workbench while significantly reducing the cost; you also avoid the hassle of disposing of the old door. After all, the golden rule of DIY is to reuse materials.

Now that you have a board with a flat, sturdy wooden surface, you can cut the top to size.

The workbench's top is the most important part, but don't forget that legs are needed to complete the structure. The legs are made from 10x10 cm strips. For length, remember that the height of the workbench is the length of the legs plus the thickness of the worktop.

Of course, the legs and worktop can't simply be assembled together to create a sturdy and reliable bench. It's time to begin the actual construction phase .

Using the 10x5 cm strips, you can make the crosspieces. You can decide whether to make the top and frame flush or leave the frame protruding so you can use it to hang tools . If you cut the crosspieces to the same width as the top, you'll get a protruding structure; if you cut the crosspieces to the width of the bench minus the width of the crosspieces themselves, you'll get a flush bench .

Now start creating the structure. Place the two legs on a flat surface , parallel to each other, at the same distance as the crosspiece. They should all be flush. Do the same for the other pair of legs.

Now you need to screw the crosspieces to the legs. Using a 10 mm drill bit, you can drill holes in the strips. Be careful, the holes must be diagonally opposite , because we'll need to insert a third screw later, and space is needed. The screws are inserted through the smaller strips, also using washers and nuts. A wrench is all you need to tighten them. At the end of this operation, you should see the screw tips protruding from the legs . This flush assembly part is used for the head of the bench, where the worktop will then be attached. You need to repeat the entire process to attach the support crosspieces to the bottom of the bench legs. This second phase should not be flush, so as not to end up with the crosspieces at floor level: we're building a workbench , not a chest. Since you also need the lower crosspieces to reinforce the structure, why not take this opportunity to add a shelf? Simply insert a small shelf above the crosspieces . Remember, however, that you shouldn't attach the crosspieces too high, otherwise you'll have an unstable bench. You can raise yourself up to a maximum of a third of the height of your leg, remembering that the lower the crossbar, the more stable the bench .

You're almost there; you've created the elements for the bench's width-wise structure . We also need to take care of the length. From some 10x5 cm strips, you need to cut the two upper supports. The supports obviously need to be the same length as the benchtop. Now the location of the third screw we mentioned earlier is clear: once all the structures are positioned correctly, they need to be assembled with screws. Again, use the drill to pre-drill the hole, right in the middle of the previously inserted screws. Now, for assembly, choose the square-head screws . Repeat the process on the other side, and you'll have a bench without a worktop : four legs surrounded by a frame at the top. And at the bottom, the width-wise crosspieces are fixed inside.

It's time to secure the worktop . Again, proceed by pre-drilling holes and assembling using square-head screws. Screw from above only if the worktop is thick enough to ensure the screws don't pop out.

Now you can attach the bottom shelf, made from a sheet of plywood cut to size. The bottom shelf also needs to be screwed in .

Have fun completing your workbench: sand, paint and finish.

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Build your own workbench with Dinamitek