Work Bench

A couple decades ago when we bought our first home I decided to put my wood working shop in one end of the unfinished side of the basement.  While this arrangement worked there was several drawbacks that eventually forced me to think about moving my woodworking operations up to the garage.  In the basement cramped quarters made maneuvering longer pieces of lumber problematic and controlling the dust was always a difficult task.

Over the past couple of years I moved most of my woodworking tools up to the garage and this weekend I spent cleaning out an area in the back of the garage to set up my work bench.  I designed my bench and constructed the assembly from 2 x 4 lumber, carriage bolts and wood screws.  A friend of mine sourced for me a solid core institutional grade door that I used to make a very solid bench top.  I ripped about a 5" strip off one side of the door to make a tool stop along the back edge of the table top.

Fully assembled the bench weighs a ton but is very sturdy.  I have no doubt it could hold the weight of an automobile.  Luckily my modular design let me break the bench down into manageable pieces and bring them up from the basement.  The following picture shows the frame reassembled in the garage with bench top leaning against the wall behind.

I've got the urge to get creative and I think the garage is going to work out much better as a base of operations for my woodworking hobby especially once the weather warms up.  Opening the big overhead front door and the smaller walk out door along the back wall sets up a cross breeze that will help pull the dust out making it much easier to keep things clean.  The last piece of equipment yet to make the move up to ground level is my vintage Sears wood lathe.  Like the workbench I crafted a sturdy table for the lathe that will have to be disassembled before I can bring it up.