Project Information
[Legebla ankaŭ en Esperanto]
My aunt has a bench that she told me belonged to my grandfather. It's a typical five board bench. When we were visiting one time I took some measurements to build one of my own.
The bench can be built using just a 6 foot long 1×12 and 1×3. I built this one out of pine and nails using basic tools.
[Above] I started out by measuring and cutting the 1×3 to length. For this project I limited myself to an electric jig saw for cutting. I'm using a Workmate for a work bench.
[Above] Using the 1×3 that I cut as a straight edge, I measured and cut the 1×12 for the top and leg pieces.
[Above] This is why it's called a 5 board bench. You end up with 5 pieces of wood.
[Above] The 1×3s get a corner cut off of each end.
[Above] With the legs clamped together an angle is cut out of them. This not only help the stability a bit, but helps the appearance. Some would drill a large hole at the apex of the angle to help prevent splitting of the leg. Since a jig saw is being used, an arc could also be cut instead of the angle.
[Above] Notches are cut into the top of the leg pieces to accept the 1×3's
[Above] In the top/seat a 2 inch holes are drilled about 5 inches apart in the center of the piece. The jig saw is used to connect the holes, creating a hand hole. This hand hole comes in very handy for carrying the bench. My grandfather's bench did not have it, but it's well worth the deviation. If you didn't put the hand hole in the top, this project could be accomplished with a hand saw, the drill would not be needed.
[Above] After sanding, the bench is assembled with nail. I used no glue, but it could certainly be used.
[Above] Since I used only nails, I angled the nails holding the top on so that they wouldn't pull out so easily.
All the bench needed after this was some paint. My grandfather's was a royal blue when saw it, so painted mine similarly. The paint I used was actually left over from when we painted the exterior of our house before we had it sided.
PS [Above] As long as you don't make this a fine piece of furniture, it can be useful for doing simple woodworking outside. That handhole will allow an F-clamp or two to hold pieces for sawing. If you turn the bench upside down, the V notch holds branches for sawing or large tube stock. I used two of these benches (I now have 3) to hold a large book case that I had to paint on its back .
My aunt has a bench that she told me belonged to my grandfather. It's a typical five board bench. When we were visiting one time I took some measurements to build one of my own.
The bench can be built using just a 6 foot long 1×12 and 1×3. I built this one out of pine and nails using basic tools.
[Above] I started out by measuring and cutting the 1×3 to length. For this project I limited myself to an electric jig saw for cutting. I'm using a Workmate for a work bench.
[Above] Using the 1×3 that I cut as a straight edge, I measured and cut the 1×12 for the top and leg pieces.
[Above] This is why it's called a 5 board bench. You end up with 5 pieces of wood.
[Above] The 1×3s get a corner cut off of each end.
[Above] With the legs clamped together an angle is cut out of them. This not only help the stability a bit, but helps the appearance. Some would drill a large hole at the apex of the angle to help prevent splitting of the leg. Since a jig saw is being used, an arc could also be cut instead of the angle.
[Above] Notches are cut into the top of the leg pieces to accept the 1×3's
[Above] In the top/seat a 2 inch holes are drilled about 5 inches apart in the center of the piece. The jig saw is used to connect the holes, creating a hand hole. This hand hole comes in very handy for carrying the bench. My grandfather's bench did not have it, but it's well worth the deviation. If you didn't put the hand hole in the top, this project could be accomplished with a hand saw, the drill would not be needed.
[Above] After sanding, the bench is assembled with nail. I used no glue, but it could certainly be used.
[Above] Since I used only nails, I angled the nails holding the top on so that they wouldn't pull out so easily.
All the bench needed after this was some paint. My grandfather's was a royal blue when saw it, so painted mine similarly. The paint I used was actually left over from when we painted the exterior of our house before we had it sided.
PS [Above] As long as you don't make this a fine piece of furniture, it can be useful for doing simple woodworking outside. That handhole will allow an F-clamp or two to hold pieces for sawing. If you turn the bench upside down, the V notch holds branches for sawing or large tube stock. I used two of these benches (I now have 3) to hold a large book case that I had to paint on its back .