Thinking of buying a workbench. Any recommendations?

You can buy a worktop from grizzly or woodcraft and build your own base. That is what I did.

-- -John "Do I have to keep typing a smiley? Just assume it's a joke." www.flickr.com/photos/gizmodyne

Geeze! The price is outlandish! I got a ton of fun building all my stuff but if you’ve got the itch and can’t wait, then I’d go with Gizmo’s suggestion. Good luck and let us know what ya do.

-- Bob Vila would be so proud of you!

I’m with you Damian. I want to work in the shop, not on the shop. But that is a chunk of change. I wish they would offer a second version and lower the price a couple of hundred by removing the drawers. But then again, real guys are not supposed to buy benches.

Steve

-- Stevethepeeve -- I'm no rocket surgeon

I think it’s a hell of a bench for a grand. You can build one cheaper if you factor your time at $0. I don’t have that luxury. It’s one of the better values I’ve seen in a full feature bench like that. Let us know what you decide.

Cheers!

-- You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. (Plato)

FWW didn’t like the Griz bench in their reviews. I think I’d get a top and build the bottom. You never know what you might learn. Besides, sometimes, I just have to do something for ME. Besides, you might just have some fun.

-- Thos. Angle, Owyhee Design, Oregon

I was going to make the same comment Thos. made about FWW last year, I believe the grizzly was not rated very well. I’ll check that issue tonight when I get home and see what was well rated for the same amount of money….

It is pricey… all of the pre-made ones are unfortunately. There is a cheaper one with a slide out bin type thingy under it but I quite liked the drawers.

-- I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso

Have you seen the one at Garret Wade in the same range?

I believe it is made by Ulmia.

Also, have you seen Diefenbach benches?

-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA

I know of someone that may a have a similar Grizzly bench and could give you a review…I’ll PM you…

Also, here’s the link to the Workbench review in FWW (you may have already seen it…)

-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA

Hey, yeah, I have the H7724, and it is pretty good. The drawers / doors are very reminiscent of IKEA, but the top is great and vise is nice. I presonally wouldn’t spend $900 on one, tho (felt bad enough dropping $300 on mine).

-- 10 fingers, 2 eyes, and healthy lungs. for now. :P

Tool well is important, narrow width works when you’re doing cabinetry, shelves collect dust, drawers keep all your tools handy, height should be common to something in the shop….tablesaw, other cabinets or tool tables, and the heavier the better.

-- arborial reconfiguration specialist

I bought a SJÖBERGS Nordic Plus Workbench (Woodcraft) and have enjoyed it. For less than $500 I feel its a good value. Its a little lightweight but I need that for portability.

-- The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance. Aristotle

Thanks for all the input guys, much mulling to do :)

-- I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso

Lei-Nelson makes absolutely a wonderful bench but it is expensive(like their hand planes) and takes about 6 months to get one.But it has been rated as the best by fine wood working.
I have made 2 European type like Garrett Wades Ulmia bench and I can assure you it is satisfing doing it and more so being done.This is not an easy project for anyone.The base is a snap but the tail vise is a project the first time.
But just remember you are smarter than pieces of wood and metal.

I saw the Lie-Nielson one, very nice, and I must say I might, just might, be coming around to just building one…

-- I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso

FIrst thing is: What do you need it to do now?
Second: What vises am I going to hang on it (or does it already have)?
Third: What do i want to progress to?

If its for a power tool base, It will mainly be used for sanding, routing, drilling, using a biscuit cutter, and assembly. A wide bench with and end vise and double dog holes to hold the flat pieces will work. A front vise will aid in drilling dowel holes, etc. The top will need to be about 1 1/2” thick to hold the small bench “pups” If you are now or plan to get into hand tools, then the choices go up exponentially. A tail vise is great for holding boards for planing, large square stock for working on ends of table legs, etc and pieces end on and vertical for cutting tenons. A front vise , shoulder vise, and knee vise all will work for edge work, but it depends on the size of stuff you are working. If you hand plane boards from the rough, you will need more substantial dogs, which means a thickness of 2 1/2” plus and it needs to be hard wood (by hard I mean Hard maple, White oak, etc, not just a diciduous tree). If you plan on using a Gramercy-type clamp to hold pieces for carving, face molding with planes, etc, the top will need to be 3” thick where the clamp hole will be. For hand tools, you will end up wanting a tool till so that is a bonus if you don’t have to add it. Being able to reach the tools in the till means the width of the top will be 24” or less unless you have long arms. Whatever you get you will eventually want to add to it or change it if you stay with woodworking. My take would be to get the longest one you can afford ($$ and space wise), good quality HARD wood if you have neanderthal leanings, minimum end vise and front vise and double dog hole rows.

Just my take

Go

-- Go http://ncwoodworker.net/pp/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=730

I built my bench using a bowling alley for the top. 3” thick Maple 100” long and about 3’ wide. I added about 8 boards on the side of the alley. Alternating cherry and walnut so that I could drill holes for bench dogs. The alley is constructed with hardened nails and I was afraid i’d drill into them somewhere when drilling with a Forstner bit.

So I added my own wood to drill into.

Legs and aprons were all maple.

I haven’t seen the top in 2 years.

-- Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com

I think it’s genetic that all woodworkers have a built-in need for, if no other thing in their shop, that ultimate euro-old world-style bench as a center piece. For me, though, it’s the same old thing. I’m so busy making stuff for others, I don’t have the time to make something for myself.

GUess I’ll just keep looking at pictures and circling them every christmas

-- arborial reconfiguration specialist

If you don’t want to build your own, I’d recommend the Lie-Nielsen bench. Top notch quality and great vises. I built my own, but used their tail vise and a plan that is quite similar to theirs, and I’m very pleased with it. Nothing beats having a nice flat, rock solid bench.

-- SteveL

That Grizzly you are looking at seems like a good deal to me. 4” is nice and thick for a top.

You could almost spend that much building one, not to mention all the time you will spend making it.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

That said, by the guy that built one.

-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA

ooops – my bad – posted the same thing twice, first time it looked like it never processed…my oh my.

-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA

It’s on.. I’m going to build one instead..

-- I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso

yee haw!

-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA

Dang skippy, dude. I wasn’t even going to respond unless you at least gave it a good bit of frontal lobe action. Nowadays building thine own bench-erific appurtenance is the way to go as the only commercially available benches are mucho $$$ for anything worthy of furniture building. I knew I’d be doing large stuff so none of the commercial jobs would do, I had to make my own. And it’s been a pleasurable experience to boot.

So go ahead, lavish some time and study on it and go for it. Keep us posted. We’ll all be curious as to what design you’ll settle on. Think about the projects that you might be doing and just don’t forget to have fun doing it.

always,
J.C.

-- "Imagination is more important than knowledge" -- Albert Einstein

Dorje – I didn’t have anything else to do though. Just an empty shop and a brand new table saw.

Damian – Are you going to blog it?

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

Damian,

If you’re planning on building your own workbench (a wise decision in my book) you really owe it to yourself to check out Christopher Schwarz’s book on workbenches. You can find it at his website www.lostartpress.com or your local book store may have it.

Two of the bench designs in his book are made from inexpensive southern yellow pine and, if memory serves, about 40 hours to build. Not bad.

-- Craig, www.WoodworkersResource.com (Where Information meets Inspiration)