Introduction: Pallet Wood Bench

By Find me on the Internet!
About: I like to dabble in a bit of everything: woodworking, metalworking, sewing, electronics.

This is a small bench I made for my parents out of pallet slats.

Step 1: Collect Pallets

The apartments up the road from me had several of these half pallets sitting by their dumpster. I guess someone had some appliances delivered.

Step 2: Process Wood

Once I broke down the pallets, I ran the slats through the thickness planer to clean them up.

Step 3: Glue-Up

I first glued them up in three sections to make clamping a little easier, then glued those sections together making this butcher-block slab thing.

Step 4: Plane the Surface

It was heavy and a bit unruly, but I ran the whole slab through the thickness planer until the top and bottom were smooth and even.

Step 5: Cut to Length

I decided to cut the ends at an angle to make things look a little more modern and funky.

Step 6: Round-Over and Seal

After sanding it and rounding over the edges with a router, I sealed it with a couple coats of Danish Oil.

Step 7: Done With the Slab

Before the glue-up, I made sure the two most interesting looking slats were on the outside.

Step 8: Bending the Legs

The hairpin style legs were bent out of 1/2" round steel rod.

Step 9: Leg Mounting Bracket

They were welded to a "T" shaped mounting plate made out of flat stock.

Step 10: Welding the Legs

I clamped the legs to this plywood template to make sure they were angled and spaced correctly.

Step 11: Attaching the Legs

I wanted the legs to angle out a bit to mirror the angle in the slab.

Step 12: Finished!

I am very happy with how this turned out! I especially like the contrast between the rustic coloration and texture of the wood with the more modern silhouette.

Step 13: Approved by the Dogs

The dogs seem to like it, too!

View project on Instagram.

This project was completed July 25, 2018.