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Step 4The Base, step one - Cutting the parts to length
The first step of actually building the workbench is to cut to length the lumber for the base.
The original design used a base that was 24" wide and 48" long. To go larger than that you need a second sheet of MDF. I ended up building mine 23x48".
The original design had a height of 35-1/8". Their two-layer top was 1-1/2" thick, so their legs were 33-5/8" long. I want a height of 35", but I'm using a top that's 3" thick. My basement floor is anything but level, so I'm using levelers that are adjustable from 3/4" to 1-1/2". In other words, I want legs that are around 31-3/4" long. (If you're not using levelers, your legs need precise lengths. The levelers give about 3/4" of adjustment, so precision is less necessary.
The parts:
four short stretchers - 2x4, length 16" (23" - 2 x 3-1/2")
four long stretchers -2x4, length 41" (48" - 2 x 3-1/2")
four legs - 4x4, length 31-3/4" (35 - 3 x 3/4" - 1")
Mark out on each 4x4 exactly which part of them will form the two legs. With a 96" long piece of lumber, there is some leeway as to exactly where the two 33-5/8" legs will be. Layout the legs so as to minimize the number of knots, splits, or other flaws. Pencil the cut lines, and mark which side of the cut line is to be scrap.
We want to make these pieces square, and of identical length. Square is a matter of making sure the saw blade is square and that the cutting guide is square. The trick to getting the pieces of the same length is to clamp them together and to cut them all at once. For the 4x4's, that means making a rough cut in each first, so we have four pieces, each 3-4" longer than we need, from which we'll get our four legs.
The rough cuts:
There's no real need to make these rough cuts with the cutting guide on the 4x4's clamped together, but I did so anyway, just for practice. This revealed that with my first attempt at edge guides, the clamps would get in the way of the saw motor, when making a deep cut.
That's why we make practice cuts. In all, it wasn't until my fourth cut that I was satisfied.
With my second attempt at edge guides, I made the other rough-cut. On this, the edge guide worked fine, but the end of the cuts revealed that the saw blade wasn't quite square. So I adjusted the blade, clamped all four legs together, and made what would be the first final cut, if it came out clean enough. It didn't. I'd let the saw drift a bit away from the guide edge. So I adjusted the saw, moving the guide back half an inch, and tried again. the rough-cut parts were a couple of inches longer than they needed to be, so I had room to work with,. It's only the final cut at the other end that you only have one chance at.
How clean and how square these cuts need to be is entirely up to you. The cleaner the cut, the tighter the joints will hold together, and the squarer the cuts the squarer the entire bench will be.
The final cuts:
When you are satisfied with the cut on one end, flip all four legs -- still clamped together -- and measure and cut the other end. If you support them on the scrap pieces of 4x4, you can do this without moving the clamps.
With the 2x4's. you won't need to turn and cut from both sides, but you will need to make sure that there is clearance so the saw doesn't cut your table.
Layout on each 2x4 the best location for a 16" short stretchers and a 41" long stretcher. Line up the marks for outside end of the short stretcher, clamp the 2x4's together, clamp the assembly to the table, clamp your edge guide, and cut. If the cut is clean, reposition the edge guide to 16" and cut again.
Cut the long stretchers the same way.
The original design used a base that was 24" wide and 48" long. To go larger than that you need a second sheet of MDF. I ended up building mine 23x48".
The original design had a height of 35-1/8". Their two-layer top was 1-1/2" thick, so their legs were 33-5/8" long. I want a height of 35", but I'm using a top that's 3" thick. My basement floor is anything but level, so I'm using levelers that are adjustable from 3/4" to 1-1/2". In other words, I want legs that are around 31-3/4" long. (If you're not using levelers, your legs need precise lengths. The levelers give about 3/4" of adjustment, so precision is less necessary.
The parts:
four short stretchers - 2x4, length 16" (23" - 2 x 3-1/2")
four long stretchers -2x4, length 41" (48" - 2 x 3-1/2")
four legs - 4x4, length 31-3/4" (35 - 3 x 3/4" - 1")
Mark out on each 4x4 exactly which part of them will form the two legs. With a 96" long piece of lumber, there is some leeway as to exactly where the two 33-5/8" legs will be. Layout the legs so as to minimize the number of knots, splits, or other flaws. Pencil the cut lines, and mark which side of the cut line is to be scrap.
We want to make these pieces square, and of identical length. Square is a matter of making sure the saw blade is square and that the cutting guide is square. The trick to getting the pieces of the same length is to clamp them together and to cut them all at once. For the 4x4's, that means making a rough cut in each first, so we have four pieces, each 3-4" longer than we need, from which we'll get our four legs.
The rough cuts:
There's no real need to make these rough cuts with the cutting guide on the 4x4's clamped together, but I did so anyway, just for practice. This revealed that with my first attempt at edge guides, the clamps would get in the way of the saw motor, when making a deep cut.
That's why we make practice cuts. In all, it wasn't until my fourth cut that I was satisfied.
With my second attempt at edge guides, I made the other rough-cut. On this, the edge guide worked fine, but the end of the cuts revealed that the saw blade wasn't quite square. So I adjusted the blade, clamped all four legs together, and made what would be the first final cut, if it came out clean enough. It didn't. I'd let the saw drift a bit away from the guide edge. So I adjusted the saw, moving the guide back half an inch, and tried again. the rough-cut parts were a couple of inches longer than they needed to be, so I had room to work with,. It's only the final cut at the other end that you only have one chance at.
How clean and how square these cuts need to be is entirely up to you. The cleaner the cut, the tighter the joints will hold together, and the squarer the cuts the squarer the entire bench will be.
The final cuts:
When you are satisfied with the cut on one end, flip all four legs -- still clamped together -- and measure and cut the other end. If you support them on the scrap pieces of 4x4, you can do this without moving the clamps.
With the 2x4's. you won't need to turn and cut from both sides, but you will need to make sure that there is clearance so the saw doesn't cut your table.
Layout on each 2x4 the best location for a 16" short stretchers and a 41" long stretcher. Line up the marks for outside end of the short stretcher, clamp the 2x4's together, clamp the assembly to the table, clamp your edge guide, and cut. If the cut is clean, reposition the edge guide to 16" and cut again.
Cut the long stretchers the same way.
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