Building My Foundation: A Workbench for My Tiny Shed
The Workbench Build Journey: An inside look at the initial design and considerations for my shed workshop's most crucial tool.
Building My Foundation
Welcome back to The Woodworking Shed! In this post, we’re kicking off an exciting new… Sorry, my first woodworking project: A Workbench!
Building a workbench suitable for my 6-foot by 8-foot shed workshop is certain to present a few challenges along the way! This post covers the design considerations, a few of the challenges, and why I think a workbench is the perfect first project!
Update: A change of strategy has allowed me to build a bigger workbench, meaning that some of the talking points in this post will no longer be relevant or true. Still, it’s good to look back and reflect!
New to The Woodworking Shed?
Catch Up: Explore every episode in this series and more on the index page!
Join the Community: Subscribe for free to get the latest projects, tips, and tales from The Woodworking Shed. Let's build something together! 🪚
Why Build When You Can Buy?
No thanks!
I think that building a workbench is a fantastic first project. It will require me to learn so many new skills in order to pull it off. Best of all - It's not fine furniture. It doesn't need to look good… It just needs to work!
That takes the pressure off a bit… Whew. It won't be easy. But it will certainly be rewarding!
It's also a bit symbolic…
The workbench is the foundation of the workshop. It's where all of our craft is performed and refined. A self-made workbench is a reflection of the maker’s skills at that time. It's built on achievements - AND mistakes!
All of the mistakes are literally carved into the bench, a permanent reminder of every mis-cut, every slipped chisel, and all those lessons learnt!
All future projects will be built on top of these lessons… Poetic really!
Building a Bench Without a Bench: The Paul Sellers Way
There is a bit of a snag!
How can I build a workbench, without a workbench… It's like the chicken and the egg!
Now there's a question!
I'm going to prioritise building the bench top first to give me a work surface. This, combined with a couple of saw horses will provide a makeshift workbench to build the rest of the workbench on.
I can't take the credit for this idea!
The credit goes to the legendary Paul Sellers, who has a fantastic video series on building a workbench where he uses this method. He makes it look so easy… I suppose that’s what happens when you’ve been woodworking for longer than I’ve been alive!
To be honest, it was this video series that finally pushed me into woodworking. Paul is a fantastic teacher - I came away from those videos thinking:
“I can do this”
And so I shall.
It's going to be tough and many mistakes will surely be made, but I'm excited to make and grow from them. That’s how I will become a better woodworker.
I should point out - I'm not copying Paul's workbench. That would be too easy! (Yeah… Right!)
My workbench will take inspiration from elsewhere. More to come on that… Enough rambling, let's look at features and challenges!
What inspirations led you to start your hobby or profession? I want to hear about them!
Want to help make woodworking accessible? Share this post! Let's build a community and inspire more woodworking projects. 🪚🤝
To Tool Well or Not to Tool Well?
I’ve read a lot about workbenches over the past month or so… Too Much… One thing that I kept seeing mentioned was tool wells. But what the hell is a tool well?
Do you throw pennies into it and wish for new tools? Seems a bit far-fetched…
It was all quite confusing, really. Reading people’s divided opinions on whether or not this thing… this “tool well”, is needed on a workbench.
So what is it?
A tool well is a recess at the back of a workbench. Its purpose? To store tools (and sawdust!) safely without the risk of them being knocked onto the floor. A noble purpose.
I am sure there are many solid arguments for including a tool well in a workbench design, but I won’t be including one in mine. Why? That’s easy, it will make me lazy.
Yes, I could have all of my in-use tools within arm's reach on my bench - but hang on, how big is my shed again? 6’ x 8’… I can touch both walls if I stretch out! Everything will always be within arm’s reach in my workshop. It’s a problem, not a solution.
I plan to have all of my essential tool storage close to my workbench, which will allow me to have quick access to my tools at all times.
Keeping Things In Place
Is a workbench a workbench if it does not have some form of work-holding ability?
Surely it’s just a table!
I can only imagine trying to cut a tenon with the workpiece sliding all over the place! That’s where vices come into play.
There are a few types of vices out there used by woodworkers:
Bench Vice
Tail Vice
Leg Vice
To name a few… I’m not going to go into them all, that’s not really what this post is about! Besides, I’m only fitting one: The traditional bench vice.
They’re the most common type of vice used in woodworking, and I think it’s the best place to start as a beginner. I’ll be sure to get one with a quick-release mechanism as that really speeds up use!
Where is it fitted?
Conventionally, these vices are fitted to the left side of a workbench either next to or over a leg. However… I do have a small confession to make… I’m a lefty…
Don’t judge!
This means I’ll be mounting my vice on the right side. I’m also in the market for left-handed chisels if anyone knows a place?
There are other types of work holding out there, one that I’ve come across is the dog hole - Who comes up with these silly names?
Dog holes basically turn your workbench into a 3D pegboard… There’s loads of accessories that can be used with them. How useful they are I don’t know. It all seems a bit over the top for a beginner, so I’ll give them a miss!
For now… A vice will do.
What’s your go-to workholding solution and why? Let me know in the comments!
Space: The Final Frontier
…Yeah, I’m a Trekkie.
I keep saying it, and I’ll say it again: My workshop is small.
Just Google "Traditional Workbench" and you can share in my pain. They’re huge.
I’ve come to understand that the “typical” workbench starts at about 6 feet long… That’s just not possible for me. Compromises have to be made. It’s not as bad as it sounds, though. I recently stumbled across a different concept entirely - Apartment woodworking - What?
Yep! There are loads of people out there woodworking on small benches (Some of them are tiny!) in their living room, dining room, or anywhere else they have space indoors!
Perhaps I should ask… Nah, I know the answer…
Sizing Things Up!
I have decided that the size of my workbench will be 4 feet by 2 feet. I was worried that this would be too small and impractical. But after discovering the apartment workbench, I’m filled with newfound confidence!
I don’t think it will be an issue, but it may limit the projects that I will be able to undertake - But will it really? This limitation was set by the size of the workshop, long before the workbench.
A smaller workbench does come with a few challenges, though!
The first is stability. I need to ensure that the bench is stable throughout all my woodworking activities,
The other challenge is weight - I don’t want it sliding across the floor when using planes…
…And I’d rather not bolt the bench to the floor either!
To combat the weight issue, I will oversize the thickness of everything - Make it chunky! The original plan was to build using standard 2” x 4” construction timber. This has now changed to 2” x 6”, which is a little more expensive but still easy to get!
Building a workbench of this size gives me options on where it can be positioned within the workshop. This is good since I am yet to make a decision on where it will go.
I’m expecting to rearrange a couple of times…
How big is your workbench? If you could change it, would you? Let me know!
Subscribe for free to get the latest projects, tips, and tales from The Woodworking Shed. Let's build something together! 🪚
Putting Pen to Paper
Now I've got some sense of direction, I need to draw the thing…
Having a drawing to work from should keep me on track when I'm building it. It will also help me to determine how much material I need and produce that all-important cutting list!
I thought about using a digital tool like SketchUp to draw my workbench. But that's another skill to learn and frankly… I think I've got enough on my plate.
Besides, drawing on paper is more traditional. It matches the tools I’m using!
Now where’s my pencil… Next time, I'll be sharing the actual design I came up with. Wish me luck!
Do you have any woodwork design experiences to share? Have you built your own workbench before? Feel free to share in the comments!
How You Can Help!
Just hitting that like button on my posts helps me to get The Woodworking Shed noticed!
If you'd truly like to support my mission to make woodworking more accessible, you can do so by becoming a paid subscriber or by buying me a coffee!
Early bird paid subscribers get 33% off forever!
Your support directly enables the growth of The Woodworking Shed and supports accessible woodworking!
Look forward to hearing from you -
~ The Woodworking Shed
Hungry for more?
Check out my other content! Head over to the homepage to find all of my content!
Hey there fellow lefty! I’ve got a full lineup of left handed chisels, and screwdrivers too.
I’m sure you’ve noticed that skill saws are traditionally a right handed tool. My grandfather had a left handed one back in the 80’s but I’ve never seen another.
Hi, and welcome! I highly recommend books on workbench design by (Substacker) Christopher Schwartz at Lost Art Press. Great resource, and the principles can be adapted to your needs.
I recognize the value of a challenge and you like woodworking, too, so win-win. Having said that, to provide any meaningful comments I'd have to ask what you want to build on your bench. 2'x4' is small for many projects, and it will not be motionless under significant planing work. Mine is 25"x75", beefy support, and weighs approx 330lb with vice hardware, so it ain't moving (except when I lift it on the removeable casters because I want to reposition it). You mention sandbags, but that's actually a good idea and is not permanent. Consider barrel bolts, aka bench bolts, combined with mortise&tenon joints, instead of lag bolts, for strength and ability to disassemble if needed without compromising strength.
I happen to have, and use all the time, a leg vise and a wagon vise (Benchcrafted hardware, my favorite). Just as I'd not travel to another country without trying to learn a bit of the local language, don't dismiss the "jargon", but rather embrace it to some extent. If you want to do some planing, you can't beat an end vise or wagon vise combined with bench dogs and dog holes. You can make your own bench dogs with a good hardwood dowel and some inexpensive spring/ball cabinet latch parts.
Some of the best advice I've seen is to build the biggest bench that you can reasonably use and fit into your workspace. Mine is a one-car garage, and my workbench is big enough for all my needs while leaving room for all my other tools and equipment.
Last, look into French Cleat style wall storage. It is easily constructed and strong. It is entirely flexible so you can move all your shelves, racks, tills and tools any time without tools nor adding new holes.
Have fun!