We make a carpentry workbench with our own hands. Do-it-yourself locksmith workbench How to make a workbench in a garage from a corner

  • 16.06.2019

The device and purpose of the workbench

The carpenter's workbench is a workbench for manual and mechanical processing wooden products. The design and ergonomics of a classic carpentry workbench allow you to fix parts in various spatial positions and perform basic carpentry operations with maximum convenience: make wooden parts, assemble structures, cover them with finishing compounds. The traditional carpenter's table is designed to work with lumber up to 3-3.5 m long. For processing longer pieces, a carpenter's workbench is used.

The carpentry table consists of a workbench (cover) and a workbench (bearing frame). A traditional workbench is equipped with front (front) and rear (end) vices, with the help of which the workpieces are fixed in the required spatial positions.

There are holes in the table top and wooden vise jaws. They are designed to install clamps and stops of various sections and heights.

Having placed the stops in the desired configuration, a part is placed between them and pressed with a screw vise mechanism. Thus, the workpiece is securely fixed in a horizontal position. Based on the thickness wood detail, use a stop of the appropriate height, which will not protrude beyond the edge of the workpiece and interfere with processing.

How to choose the optimal workbench height?

The height of carpentry workbenches varies between 85-95 cm. Optimal Height tables are selected based on the growth of the master. If, standing at the workbench, the palms freely rest against its lid, then the size is chosen correctly. Behind such a workbench it will be convenient to perform all basic operations, without frequent bending and stretching, which lead to rapid fatigue.

What materials are best to make a structure?

The carpentry workbench must have sufficient strength and rigidity, since during operation it is subjected to heavy loads, both static, formed under the weight of massive workpieces, and dynamic, arising in the process of sawing, drilling, impacts, etc. Sufficient strength characteristics are provided not only by the features of fasteners, but also the type of materials used.

Coniferous wood is traditionally used for the manufacture of the base. The table top is made of durable wood: oak, beech, ash, maple, etc. The lumber used to create the workbench must be dry (moisture content of about 12%) without knots and other defects.

About making a bench cover

Experience shows that when making a carpentry workbench with your own hands, it is more expedient to purchase a ready-made glued shield, which will become a blank for the lid. The effort and time spent on cutting, jointing the edges, gluing the shield and leveling it when creating such a massive part will be incomparable with the money saved.

When performing work that increases the risk of damage to the lid: drilling, chiselling, etc., it is better to cover the working surface of the workbench with a thick plywood sheet or fiberboard cut to the shape of the lid. It is advisable to make this simple flooring immediately with a workbench.

Manufacturing and assembly of sidewalls

The design of the sidewall consists of two legs (B), tsargs and supports (A). The part is assembled on a through glued spike.

Figured cutouts of the tsarg and supports (detail A) are cut out on band saw followed by edge grinding.

In accordance with the dimensions indicated in the diagram, the legs are marked with sockets for the spikes of the prolegs, after which they are selected with a chisel or milled.

On the outer side of the legs, a conical recess is made for the head of the coupling bolt. A recess with a diameter of 35 mm and a depth of 11 mm is made with a Forstner drill. A through hole with a diameter of 14 mm is drilled in the center.

Sawing spikes and eyelets

Spikes and eyes are made on a saw machine or manually, guided basic principles creating spiked joints. In such a critical design, the first option is preferable, since it allows you to minimize errors and inaccuracies, ensuring a flawless fit of the connection. The blanks must have prepared flat surfaces and conform to the dimensions indicated in the drawing.

The halves of parts A are glued together, having previously placed an insert in the groove that will prevent displacement.

Sidewall assembly

Parts A and B are glued into a finished joint. After drying, the excess glue that has come through is carefully cleaned with a chisel. The assembled sidewall is polished.

A hole 19x38 mm is drilled in the center of the glued drawer side under the dowel (L) to fix the cover of the workbench.

Production of prolegs and underbench shelves

According to the dimensions indicated in the drawing, blanks for prolegs (detail C) are cut out in the amount of 4 pieces. Spikes are made at the ends of each part, adhering to the dimensions indicated in the photo. As in the case of the sidewall, this operation is best done on a saw machine.

The connection of the prolegs with the sidewall is made detachable on a bolt screed with a transverse nut. To do this, a recess for transverse nuts d25 mm and a depth of 32 mm is milled on the inside of the prolegs. A hole of 14x95 mm is drilled at the ends of the prolegs. At this stage, it is better to use a drilling jig, since the holes must be made strictly at an angle of 90 °.

The support strips (details D and E) are screwed with self-tapping screws with an offset of 22 mm from the upper edges of the prongs.

According to the dimensions specified in the “General Detailing” drawing, the slats of the bench shelf are cut out (detail F). Holes are drilled and countersinked at the ends of each plank. The planks are ground and sequentially mounted on the assembled frame.

Mounting the bench cover

On the back side of the workbench, do not drill through holes d19 mm and 32 mm deep for dowels (L).

With a d19 mm drill, through holes are made on the lid for bench stops. Similar sockets 45 mm deep are drilled at the end of the cover. All holes are chamfered. The stops should easily enter the sockets and not play.

Advice! For all drilling operations, use a drill with a jig to ensure neat holes at a perfectly right angle. It is not difficult to make such a guide yourself, having a piece of timber at hand.

Bench vise installation

Having decided to make a workbench with your own hands, it is more expedient to buy a carpentry vice ready-made. In this case, you will get the most reliable and functional design, and, importantly, get rid of unnecessary headaches during their installation.

Manufacturers of bench vises strive to adhere to standards in the manufacture of their products. Here we will consider the installation scheme of typical structures. But it is quite possible that you will have to improvise, adapting the installation to the features of non-standard bench vise.

Vice jaws - parts H, I and J (2 pcs.) - are sawn from hardwood. After that, holes are drilled for guide rods, a lead screw, sockets for bench stops and holes for mounting screws.

The rear jaws of the front and rear vise are mounted to the workbench cover as shown in the photo.

Wooden linings (detail K) are cut to fit the vise. Through holes are drilled in the drawers for the guide rods and the lead screw.

Advice! To accurately mark the holes, use the guides themselves, pieces of masking tape and a soft pencil.

I want to weld a workbench in the garage. Locksmith, as in the workshop.
To cook on it, and sharpen, and screw the vise, and put tools in boxes.

I was able to visualize my intentions. For a long time I went through different layout options and figured out the dimensions. I think I found the best option for me.

Metal parts are marked in blue, wooden parts are in yellow.
The tabletop will be made of a 50mm thick board, girded with a 50x50x4 corner and covered with a 2mm metal sheet. The frame of the workbench will be welded from a profile pipe 60x40x2. Stiffeners will be welded from a 40x40x4 corner. Shelves and side panels will be made of 30mm boards. From the 40x4 strip, guides for attaching the side panels will be made. The boxes will be welded from 2mm metal and mounted on a powerful skid.

For the purchase of metal, we agreed with Diky to order a Gazelle for two in order to pay less, and on Saturday at 8:30 in the morning, in order not to stretch it out for the whole day, we went to the metal depot.

The weather was slippery and with a cold wind. A loader in a tattered army pea jacket, who looked like he was suffering from a hangover, took out wet metal for cutting. Nearby, in a puddle, lay a dirty carrier with a grinder connected to it. Cut off pieces of rolled metal plopped into a slushy puddle. The ordered Gazelle was waiting nearby. It was getting light.

Do not consider me a maniac, but after arriving at the garage, I washed with water and wiped dry grubby rusty pieces of freshly bought metal. Anyway, clean it before painting, otherwise it will be more pleasant to work with it.

On that harsh January morning were bought:
1. Corner 50x50x4 6.4 meters
2. Pipe 60x40x2 24 meters
3. Corner 40x40x4 6.75 meters
4. Strip 40x4 8 meters
Only 121 kilograms of metal for 4000 rubles.
Now I will cook my workbench.

Cutting the main parts of the frame took two evenings, in total five hours.
In total, it turns out that the skeleton of the workbench will consist of 45 welded parts.
The tags indicate what it is and where to weld it.

Now you can safely put everything on the back burner and surrender to the thick fetid sticky quagmire of everyday hopeless routine.

Welded brackets for the toolbar above the workbench.

And the base for a homemade countertop is welded.

The crossbars of the base for the worktop are welded flush with the corner. For this, figured cutouts are made in the crossbars. Here's a little sketch of what it looks like:



In the meantime, scalded the instrument panel brackets.

Overlays from 4mm strip reinforced loaded joints.

Welded 24 brackets for the side panels. The panels will be plywood - cheaper than metal and look better.

Brackets give additional rigidity to the entire structure.

I want to cover the countertop with a sheet of metal 4mm or 5mm. There is an office on Moskovsky Prospekt that immediately cuts sheets of metal to size. I need a 2200x750 sheet.
If you take a sheet of 2500x1250, then two good pieces will remain (2200x500 and 300x1250) or (2500x500 and 750x300), which can also be chopped into the desired size.
If such pieces are useful to someone, then [b]let's cooperate, otherwise it's a little expensive for one.

I made boxes from 15mm plywood. Assembled with 80mm screws. Each box contains 20 screws. It came out strong just the way I like it.

The size of each box is 0.6m x 0.7m x 0.2m

The sled was fastened by welding. I learned how to weld a 1mm tin to a 4mm strip with a 3mm electrode at a current of 100 amner. It's like putting in food processor 3 liter V8 car engine. It was just that the TIG was lazy to uncover. What's more, it's so secure.

Now I'm thinking about different options facades.

This completes the welding phase. Ahead is a carpenter and a painter. Still in a trifle locksmith and electrically conductive.

Painting the frame of a homemade workbench.
I asked the seller to recommend a good paint.
- Wah, what nice paint I swear on mom! - he answered, holding out a can of paint over rust with metal chips for 500 rubles.

I covered the countertop with a 150x40 edged board. I fastened the boards to the frame with self-tapping screws 4.0x35. I used 60 screws in total.

I sanded the surface a little so that the sheet of metal lay denser.

Watered about protecting the tree from fire. Impregnated wood cannot sustain combustion on its own.
When the impregnated wood is heated, a melted film is formed, which does not burn and limits the access of oxygen to the surface. The manufacturer of my impregnation declared group I of fire retardant efficiency - the highest.

Of course, this does not allow you to cook metal directly on the surface of the workbench. All the same, if the boards do not catch fire, they will char. To organize a welding post, I plan to weld a removable grate that will reliably protect the surface of the countertop from thermal exposure.

After drying, I will cover the countertop with an already prepared 4mm metal sheet.

Covered the countertop with a 4mm sheet of metal. The sheet was attracted to a wooden base with rows of self-tapping screws with a hidden head. The tabletop turned out to be monumental.

Shields of 10mm plywood closed the extra openings in the frame of the workbench.
Pictured is the paint shop.

Registered on the tabletop permanent residents - grinder and vise. On a hefty tabletop, they are lost.

1) What is the best way to cover bare metal on a countertop? I'm leaning towards a rust converter, which will create a strong protective film and easy to update as needed. Maybe there are better ideas?
2) Where can I get a sturdy chair with adjustable height?

P.S. I think it will be interesting for those reading this thread - a bourgeois site with a bunch of ideas for welded tables and other welded things: http://www.pinterest.com/explore/welding-table/ You can find the manufacturing process for everything presented on the links.

Nevertheless, he decided and smeared the countertop with a rust converter. It is necessary to smear with a thin uniform layer.

While the countertop was drying finished with shelves in the left drawer

Well, in general, smearing the countertop was not a bad idea. It really turned out to be a film, as if varnished. True, it is not covered very neatly, but it is really easy to restore - because. the film is easily dissolved by a new portion of the transducer and dries again, hiding all old damage.

From the big one - it remains to make a panel for tools and place fasteners on it for everything-everything-everything.
I want to hang a sheet of plywood or a solid furniture board 15mm thick and 2.2 meters x 1 meter in size. If anyone has one, I suggest an exchange for a sheet of metal 4mm 2.2 meters x 0.5 meters (left from the countertop).

Well, actually, for the sake of what ...

Test passed

Class! No more huddling with hand power tools on stools, lay out tools, fasteners, screwdrivers, taps and tape measures on all available shelves and nooks and crannies around and look for them, forgetting where to put them - all in one place and at hand.

Installed the instrument panel. Solid, from 21 mm plywood.

4 corners 50x50x4 plus plywood 21 mm plus 16 bolts 8x40 equals to hang tens of kilograms of tools without fear of breaking something

Facades for drawers made from the remnants of the 21st plywood

That's all.
The dream workbench is ready. In some places, something came out crooked, but I am very pleased with the result.


The net weight of the workbench exceeded 200 kilograms. Worktop area 1.65 square meters, instrument panel area 2.2 square meters. The total volume of the left and right pedestals is almost the same cubic meter. A feature of the workbench is that you can sit behind it when working with TIG, and the tabletop covered with a 4mm sheet of metal is not afraid mechanical damage. Roomy shelves, drawers and panel allow you to conveniently store almost all the tools I have, providing convenient quick access to it.
Here is such a homemade workbench of dreams.
I think my great-grandchildren will work on it.

P.S. And after a little refinement, you get an excellent dressing table)) -816- http://gazeta-v.ru/catalog/detail/192_vizazhist_i_fotograf/15464_grimernyy_stol_svoimi_rukami/

Well, to put a bullet in the project a few more photos.

Self-tapping screws are screwed in and out quickly and easily (with a screwdriver, of course).

In time I will add spanners, holders for drills and screwdrivers, bracket for paper towels Oh, and extra lighting. Thankfully for two square meters there is room to expand. I made an awesome piece. Satisfied like an elephant.

Firstly, the small vise could not withstand the load and burst.

Instead, more powerful vices are installed. On one side they have a cast five pointed star, on the other - the numbers 1958 - probably the year of issue. So they are 56 years old? Hope they last me the same. In general, a good vise is the pride of the master.

The photo shows that the table top does not protrude beyond the dimensions of the table at all. Therefore, when attaching a vice to the bolts, it will not be possible to crawl from below to tighten the nut. I thought so. The vise and sharpener are fixed to the tabletop with anchor bolts. Looks neat and holds deadly.

Secondly, it turned out that the deep drawers in the right cabinet are not very convenient. It would be better to make them smaller. I will invent some organizers inside them.

The rest turned out great. All tools in one place, in plain sight and always ready. On a large tabletop there is also where to decompose.

You can purchase some items from this blog in our VKontakte group:

The garage is a multifunctional space. In it, you can install and repair cars, design and make various things and mechanisms with your own hands.

If a person likes to spend time in the garage, doing repairs, you need to properly equip your workplace. The workbench is a multifunctional work table on which you can process various materials, carry out locksmith, electromechanical and installation work. Also in the design of the workbench, you can think of shelves and drawers to store tools and other items.

Types of workbenches

Workbenches are made for processing metal (locksmith) and wood (carpentry). The designs differ in the material of the countertops. For locksmith models, the countertop must necessarily be metal, since working with metal involves the use of engine oil and other liquids that are on wooden surface may leave traces.

Also, when processing metal parts, effort is often required, the use of a sharp tool, so it is best to equip the workbench with a metal worktop.

Carpentry workbenches are designed to work with wood, so they are not as durable and functional as locksmith models.

Workbench design

If the design of the desktop in the garage is made by hand, then first of all you need to carefully consider every detail, figure out where the tools will be placed, what work will be carried out on the workbench. The model of the table in the garage depends on this.

Standard models are often equipped with drawers, which can be made of wood or metal. Also, the design of the table can be supplemented with shelves, a power shield for hanging tools, which will always be at hand. But most importantly, the workbench must be stable, durable and reliable.

Tool

    Bulgarian with a circle for cutting metal and a grinding disc.

    Welding machine and electrodes. Overalls and protective devices for welding.

  1. Screwdriver.

    Jigsaw for cutting plywood.

materials

    Corner 50 mm by 50 mm, thickness 4 mm, length 6.4 m.

    Square pipe 60 mm by 40 mm, thickness 2 mm, length 24 m.

    Corner 40 mm by 40 mm, thickness 4 mm, length 6.75 m.

    Steel strip 40 mm wide, 4 mm thick, 8 m long.

    Steel sheet for countertop 2200 mm by 750 mm. Thickness 2 mm.

    Steel sheet for making drawer holders. Thickness 2 mm.

    Wooden boards for countertops. Thickness 50 mm.

    Plywood for the manufacture of drawers and for the side and back walls of the table. Thickness 15mm

    Guides for drawers.

    Screws for assembling plywood boxes.

    Self-tapping screws for metal.

    Anchor bolts.

    Paint for wood and metal.

The workbench, which will be made from these materials, has quite impressive dimensions: the length of the table is 220 cm, the width is 75 cm.

The first step in the manufacture of a workbench is cutting the available material into elements. profile pipe intended for the manufacture of the frame. The steel corner is designed to create stiffeners. It is cut into pieces and a power frame is formed from it. Also, a steel corner is needed for edging the tabletop on which the boards will be laid.

The steel strip is intended for the manufacture of guides on which the side panels will be attached. Also, this material will go to the brackets for attaching boxes and plywood.

Table drawers are made of plywood.

The second step is welding the power frame of the workbench. The elements of the countertop are welded first - 2 pipes 2200 mm long and 2 pipes 750 mm each. The frame must be welded so that another frame of corners can be welded on top of it, into which the tabletop boards will be laid. To reinforce the countertop, it is required to weld a few more steel pipes after 40 cm, which will act as stiffeners.

Then 4 side legs are welded along the edges of the workbench. Their length is 900 mm. Power jumpers are welded between the legs, strengthening the structure.

After the base frame is ready, you can start welding the structure for the boxes. To do this, square frames are formed from steel pipes, which are welded to the tabletop on both sides of the table. Frames are reinforced with longitudinal stiffeners.

The third step is to make a frame for the countertop. Two steel corners, 2200 mm long and two more corners 750 mm long, are needed to make the frame. The structure is welded so that wooden boards lie inside it.

The frame from the corner is laid on the frame of pipes and welded. It turns out a reinforced tabletop, 8 cm high with internal stiffeners.

The metal frame of the workbench is almost ready, it remains to weld the crate of the panel for attaching the tool. This requires one metal corner with a length of 2200 mm and 4 corners with a length of 950 mm. Two elements are attached to the sides of the structure and two in the middle, for reinforcement. The toolbar is welded to the worktop.

The frame of the corners and pipes is ready. You can start strengthening the structure. Brackets are welded to the sidewalls of the table, which are cut from a steel strip. A total of 24 parts are needed. A hole is drilled in the middle of each bracket. Using these holes, the side and back walls of the plywood table will be attached to metal frame workbench.

The fourth stage is the manufacture of drawers for the table. Plywood is cut into blanks, which are twisted with screws. The number of drawers depends on what will be stored in the table. If the details are small, then 3 boxes can be built, if large - then 2. It all depends on personal preference.

You can place drawers on two sides of the table, you can mount pull-out structures on one half, and ordinary open shelves on the second.

After the drawers are assembled, metal strips with holes need to be welded between the sides of the drawer compartments. To these holes inside skids for guide boxes will be attached.

The fifth stage is laying the boards in the tabletop frame. Boards with a thickness of 50 mm are cut into blanks of a certain length. If a long board is available, then you need three blanks 245 mm wide and 2190 mm long. If there are no long boards available, then you can lay the blanks across the table. For this purpose, wood 205 mm wide is cut into 10 blanks 740 mm long.

Before laying the wood in the table frame, it must be treated with an antiseptic solution. This will protect the material from rotting and damage by beetles.

Then, without fail, it is required to paint the entire metal structure workbench. This will protect the metal from corrosion. It is best to use a weatherproof and anti-corrosive coating option. Be especially careful when painting welding seams. Drops of metal and irregularities are recommended to be thoroughly cleaned before painting. This can be done using an angle grinder with a metal grinding disc.

After the structure is dry, you can start laying the boards on the countertop. They should not be driven too tightly into the frame. This is due to the fact that the tree tends to expand and shrink with a change in temperature and humidity. It is better to leave a small gap of a few millimeters between the boards. The surface of the wood needs to be sanded, this will make it easier to lay the metal sheet on top of the wood. Boards around the entire perimeter of the table are screwed to the frame with self-tapping screws.

The sixth stage is the fastening of the upper steel sheet. It can be welded to the countertop, but there is wood inside the structure, which can ignite during the welding process. Therefore, it is best to attach the steel sheet with hidden self-tapping screws to wooden planks. Previously, the metal must be painted on both sides with a rust converter. This covering material looks like a transparent paint coating, is easily restored and reliably protects the metal from rust. You can also paint the metal countertop with the same paint that covered the frame. It will be beautiful, but over time, the paint may scratch and the table will not look too new.

The last step is to install the boxes on the rails and fasten the plywood to the side walls, shelves and power shield in front of the table. This work can be called finishing workbench. After work with plywood is over, it must be coated with a composition that will protect the material from environmental influences. Also, do not forget about the design of the power shield for tools. You can attach special hooks or screws to it, to which the necessary things will be hung.

In order to make it convenient to work at the workbench, you can attach a special lamp with a bending stand to the power shield. In this case, you can optionally direct the flow of light to the right place.

Video - The process of making a workbench

Installing a vice on a locksmith's workbench

A vice is an indispensable attribute of a locksmith's workbench. It is not recommended to attach a clamping tool weighing several tens of kilograms to the tabletop itself. It is best to place a metal gasket between the metal of the table and the tool, 1 cm thick. It is required to drill holes for the anchor bolts in the gasket. Then, in the same places, drill holes in the countertop of the same size. The whole structure is fastened with anchor bolts.

Safety requirements for a homemade workbench design

  1. If the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe garage is not too large, then you can make a smaller table for plumbing work with your own hands. But, it is worth knowing that the whole structure must be stable, not sway or budge with little effort.
  2. The workplace should be organized in such a way that nothing interferes with a person. When working with a vise, all unnecessary tools should be removed from the countertop.
  3. The corners and protruding parts of the table should not be too sharp and have cutting edges.
  4. After repair work behind the workbench, you need to clean the workplace from metal shavings, drops of oil and other materials.
  5. If a homemade workbench is made correctly, then it can easily withstand a load of 200 kg.

Shield plywood

Video - Do-it-yourself workbench in the garage

Everyone knows that a garage is necessary in order to put a car in it. However, many car owners use this room as a warehouse for unnecessary things, and if space permits, they remake it into a small workshop. Therefore, appropriate equipment is installed in it - racks, shelves and a workbench. The latter is a multifunctional desktop used for processing various materials, implementation of plumbing, assembly and electromechanical works. Workbenches for the garage can be made by hand.

Design features of the workbench

The garage workbench is often compared to desk, because it makes it easy to carry out a variety of tasks. and enables everything necessary tools keep on hand. Thus, in addition to the countertop, it has a large number of shelves and drawers. The design of the workbench consists of the following elements:

Be sure the workbench should be well lit. For this install a stationary rotary lamp that plugs into an outlet. It can be equipped on the wall, near the workbench, but it is much more practical to build electrical equipment directly into it. In this case, there will be no problems with electrification if you need to install the table in a new place.

Garage workbenches




















Types of workbenches

These tables are of two types:

  • carpentry;
  • metalwork.

Carpentry is a metal or wooden frame with a wooden table top. It is best not to process metal parts on it, because traces of engine oil remain on its surface, which are very difficult to get rid of. In addition, metal chips often damage the surface of the table, as a result of which it will not last very long.

To work in the garage it is best to use a locksmith workbench, which is a universal model. Its tabletop is metal, therefore it is used for processing wooden and metal parts. A wide variety of actions are performed on it: sawing, cutting, sharpening, grinding. In addition, this design is much more stable than a joinery, which is very important for working with metal parts, since during operation there is often a strong pressure on the surface of the countertop. Tools are stored in shelves that are specially provided for this.

Material used

To make a workbench in the garage with your own hands, two materials are used: wood and metal. The difference between these designs will be in reliability and resistance to various force and mechanical influences. In this regard, a metal workbench will significantly outperform a wooden one. There are other points that should be mentioned:

  • It is difficult to make a metal structure with your own hands, because welding work required and you also need to have skills in working with metal. It is also quite difficult to process an iron billet. Therefore, to make a desktop of this type with your own hands, you will need special equipment and specific knowledge.
  • A tree is a completely different matter. To make for the garage wooden workbench with your own hands, only a standard set of home tools will be needed- grinder, screwdriver, electric jigsaw, hammer, etc. You can even use only hand saw, but the work in this case will become a little more complicated.
  • If we take into account the operational and technical aspects of a desktop made of a particular material, then it is necessary to highlight big weight metal product and rather small strength of a wooden workbench. The ideal option it would be a combination of these two materials in one product, for example, make a workbench from wood, and cover its countertop with a thin layer of iron. In this case, even the use of a vice and other similar devices will not be able to harm him.

In this way, the combination of materials is the ideal solution for making a workbench to the garage with your own hands. However, if the desktop will not be used too often, but from time to time, then it is best to do without completely wooden structure.

Preparatory work

Before you start making a workbench for a garage with your own hands, you should decide what dimensions and configuration the future design will have.

When equipping a garage with your own hands it is very important to choose the right place where the workbench will be installed. The best option will be considered the part of the garage where there is good lighting and equipped with electrical outlets. It is necessary to take into account such a moment as the direction of natural light. The light should fall from the left side or straight ahead. In this case, the work surface will always be illuminated.

The length of the tabletop should be such that it can easily accommodate the tools and large parts that are required for the job. Its width should not be more than 50 - 60 cm. This allows you to easily reach the opposite edge. One side can be equipped to work with an electric cutting tool: circular saw, jigsaw, etc. For this purpose, the plank is fixed in such a way that it protrudes 200 - 300 mm beyond the edge of the workbench.

Also, before you make a workbench in the garage with your own hands, you need to clarify one more parameter - its height. The convenience of carrying out the work depends on how correctly it will be determined. To determine the height, you need stand up straight, bend your arms at the elbows and mentally lean on on an imaginary table. The distance between the floor and bent arms will be the ideal height for future construction.

Necessary tools and materials

To make a workbench in the garage, you will need the following tools:

  • a grinder with a grinding disc and a circle for cutting metal;
  • level;
  • screwdriver;
  • drill;
  • welding machine and electrodes;
  • roulette;
  • jigsaw for cutting plywood.

Materials:

  • corner 4 mm thick;
  • steel strip 4 mm thick;
  • steel sheet required for the manufacture of holders for boxes 2 mm thick;
  • plywood for the manufacture of back, side walls of the table and drawers 15 mm thick;
  • screws;
  • anchor bolts;
  • square pipe 2 mm thick;
  • steel sheet to be used for the countertop, 2 mm thick;
  • wooden boards for countertops 50 mm thick;
  • guides for drawers;
  • self-tapping screws for metal;
  • paint for metal and wood.

The design made of these materials will be reliable and very durable. Planks will be used for niches and shelves, and steel strips will be needed to create rims on the table surface.

Assembling a workbench for a garage with your own hands

After completing all the preparatory work, they begin to assemble the workbench for the garage with their own hands. For this, 4 supports made of a steel corner are taken. The legs for the desktop should be the same size. In the upper part they are fastened together with the help of a corner and welding. Thus, if you look at the structure from above, you should get a rectangle measuring 100x50 cm.

The same action is done from below. At a height of about 15 cm from the floor, corner trims are welded, which will subsequently provide additional rigidity the whole structure. If such a need arises, then additional racks can be welded, which will be needed to mount shelves and drawers.

As soon as the frame is ready, they begin to make the cover of the workbench. Edged oak boards are taken, 25 cm wide and 5 cm thick. The length of the boards is determined based on the calculations made earlier. Boards are laid on top of the frame and very tightly fixed to each other. To do this, a number of holes are made for the bolts along the perimeter of the upper connecting elements of the frame.

Holes are also drilled in the boards of the countertops through which they will be attached to the frame. From the top too need to drill holes to fit the bolt heads.

After the cover is fixed, proceed to its sheathing with metal. For this, galvanized iron is used. Suitable for size a metal sheet fixed to the surface with ordinary screws. You should be aware that when cutting, burrs can form on the metal edges, so for safety, they should be processed with a file.

On this, work on the manufacture of the simplest workbench for the garage is considered completed. It is quite simple to make such a design with your own hands. For better stability on workbench legs welded from below metal corners or rectangles, which allow you to screw the structure to the floor.

Thus, the workbench in the garage is very convenient fixture. It can be equipped with additional drawers, shelves and tool holders. A special screen is screwed to that side of the structure, which is closer to the wall, which will be used to place pliers, screwdrivers, wire cutters, etc. on it. A do-it-yourself workbench is often no worse than a purchased one.

The general principle of the development of material processing technology from prehistoric times to the present day is how to make details on inaccurate equipment for more accuracy. And it all started with a workbench, its prototypes are found during excavations of Stone Age settlements. It is quite possible to build a workbench, and a full-fledged one, with your own hands, and this will not only save a significant amount, but also simplify, facilitate work and improve its result.

Three mistakes

Amateurs, sometimes, judging by their designs, very experienced, knowledgeable and diligent, sometimes make workbenches for themselves, on which, figuratively speaking, a tank can be smashed with a sledgehammer. They take a lot of time and labor, and hardly less money than a good branded amateur workbench. Repetition in the design for own use of industrial prototypes designed for intensive work in 3 shifts and a static load of more than a ton, with a service life of 20 years is one of the common mistakes development of workbenches of their own design.

The second is the neglect of vibrations. Not a clearly felt “play” or “recoil”, but a small tremor that significantly complicates the work and reduces its quality. Vibrations are especially strong in workbenches on a metal frame.

Third - repeat carpentry or locksmith workbenches; perhaps with some tweaks to your liking. Meanwhile, there are many designs of workbenches for home / amateur work of a different nature. There are workbenches that are more or less specialized or, on the contrary, universal, temporary from improvised materials, etc.

In this article we will figure out how to make a workbench taking into account these errors, firstly, simpler and cheaper according to the range of needs and / or hobbies of the craftsman. Second, how to make a workbench general purpose or universal for special conditions of use - in a cramped garage, for carpentry at a construction site from improvised trash, home for fine precision work, for children.

About universal workbenches

Among branded products, sometimes very expensive, you can find "universal" workbenches in the form of a carpenter's workbench with a lid without a tray, a complete bench vise on a wooden cushion, and a clamp for installing them, like the one in the photo:

“Universal” prefabricated workbench

This is the wrong decision, not only because the wooden countertop deteriorates from carpentry. The main thing that is bad here is the technological fluids used in metal processing - oil, kerosene, etc. The wood impregnated with them becomes much more combustible. Self-ignition is also possible; remember, it is strictly forbidden to accumulate oiled rags in production. The approach to designing the countertop (board, cover) of a universal workbench needs a different one based on what kind of work it is mainly used for - thin or rough, see below.

work bench

In the West, amateur / home workbenches with a type-setting worktop framed by a side are widespread. Drawings of such a "working bench" are given in fig. Under the locksmith, the lid is covered with a sheet of steel 1.5-2 mm thick and a vice is placed on the pillow.

The workbench dampens vibrations well; You can make it from pine or spruce. But the design is complicated, it is inconvenient to work with lengthy materials and furniture on such a workbench. Therefore, we will first look at how to make the most common carpentry workbench, then garage and metalwork. Next, we will try to combine them into a universal workbench and see what we can come up with on this basis for special needs.

The composition of the workbench

The workbench of "our" type (conditionally, since it is impossible to establish its origin exactly) consists of:

  • Underwork (in carpentry workbenches), or bed (in metalwork), ensuring the stability of the entire unit and the ergonomics of the workplace.
  • Covers, box-shaped or in the form of a tray, giving the work area the necessary rigidity.
  • Shelves; possibly with a tray, nests, and stops on which work operations are performed.
  • The apron on which the tool is hung. The apron is not a mandatory accessory of the workbench, it can hang on the wall or be replaced by a pedestal, rack, etc.

Note: workbench height approx. 900 mm. The length and width are selected according to the place of installation and the type of work within 1200-2500 and 350-1000 mm, respectively.

A lid with a shelf is most often made at the same time, one-piece, and is simply called a lid, benchtop or table top. To dampen vibrations, the shelf is always made on the basis (bed, substrate) of wood. In the locksmith's workbench, the bed is covered steel sheet from 2 mm thick and can be made of softwood. Its overall strength is sufficient, and the steel tire protects the tree from local damage and ingress of technical fluids. In a carpenter's workbench, a bed made of high-quality (without knots, strands, and other defects) solid small-layer wood (oak, beech, hornbeam, elm, walnut) serves at the same time as a shelf; -layer construction, see below.

The traditional construction of the bench, on the contrary, is collapsible from the same wood as the joiner's shelf. This comes from the master covens of the past, who transported their equipment from customer to customer on a cart. It is from the bed / underbench that you should start developing your workbench no worse, but simpler than traditional ones.

Bed: metal or wood?

A stationary wooden workbench has advantages over that on a steel frame, not only in lower cost and labor intensity. Wood, firstly, is not plastic. Workbench on wooden base can be broken, but if the wood is used seasoned and impregnated, it will never sag. Secondly, the tree perfectly dampens vibrations. The foundations of your buildings are not reinforced vibration-absorbing ones, like workshops at a factory, are they? And the overall strength and stability of the frame home workbench coniferous commercial wood of ordinary quality will quite provide.

The design of the wooden frame of the workbench made of boards 120x40 is shown on the left in fig. Permissible static load - 150 kgf; dynamic vertically down for 1 s - 600 kgf. Corner posts (legs) are assembled on self-tapping screws 6x70 in a zigzag (snake) with an indent from the edge of 30 mm and a step of 100-120 mm. Double-sided fastening; snakes on both sides of the package are mirrored. Intermediate support beams are fastened with steel corners on self-tapping screws; edge - with pairs of self-tapping screws at the spikes of the racks and, outside, with corners.

If a beam of 150x50 or (180…200)x60 is available, the design can be simplified, as shown in the center in fig. Load bearing capacity will rise to 200/750 kgf. And from a bar 150x150, 150x75 and (180 ... 200) x60, you can build a frame that can carry 450 kgf in statics and 1200 in dynamics, on the right in Fig.

Note: any of these beds is suitable for both carpentry and locksmith workbenches. A box-shaped cover is placed on it under the carpentry (see below), and under the locksmith a tray from a 60x60x4 corner with welded 4 mm strips above the intermediate beams. A wooden pillow is placed in the tray and covered with steel, also see below.

If there is no welding

Solid wood workbench, no need for welding work for its manufacture, you can do according to the scheme on the next. rice. The “chip” here is in the tabletop, glued from a 75x50 bar and fastened with ties. If the beam is oak, then the permissible load is 400/1300 kgf. Corner posts - timber 150x150; the rest is timber 150x75.

Metal

It happens the other way around: metal is more accessible than wood, and there is welding. Then the workbench table for a load of 100/300 kgf can be assembled according to the drawing on the left in fig. Materials - corner 35x35x3 and 20x20x2. Drawers are galvanized. The disadvantage is that it is impossible to make an opening at the bottom for the legs, the structure will lose its ability to carry a dynamic load.

Under a load of 200/600, a more convenient metal workbench is suitable according to the scheme at the top right of a professional pipe 50x50 (corner racks), 30x30 (other vertical details) and a corner 30x30x3. The plank cushion of both workbenches is laid only across (bottom right) from tongue-and-groove boards (120 ... 150) x40.

Shelf - steel 2 mm. The shelf is attached to the pillow with 4x (30 ... 35) self-tapping screws, a pair from each edge of each board, and along the extreme boards - with a step of (60 ... 70) mm. Only in this design, the workbench will show the specified load-bearing capacity.

These workbenches are already universal: under the carpentry, the lid is turned over with the wooden side up or adapted, as described below. The locksmith's vise is mounted on a wooden cushion, but is not fastened with a clamp. A collet anchor under the M10-M14 bolt is driven into the vice cushion from below, and a through hole is drilled under it in the cover. A washer from 60x2 is placed under the bolt head. This solution is convenient because it is possible to use inexpensive non-rotating vise.

For carpentry

The lid of the carpentry workbench, in contrast to the metalwork, is tightly attached to the workbench and is box-shaped, for general rigidity. The best mounting option for a non-separable workbench is steel corners and self-tapping screws. Podverstache can also be a steel bed from those described above.

How a traditional carpentry workbench is arranged is shown in pos. And rice; accessories to it in pos. B. The workbench (in this case, this is a separate device) is used to work with a long length. The emphasis in its groove is made from a wedged trimming of the board, see below. It is advisable to drill a longitudinal row of holes in the board and fasten it into the sockets with sunken cone-head bolts. The traditional construction of a carpentry underbench is shown in pos. G, but - see above.

The cover of the carpentry workbench can be made cheaper by making a 2-layer, pos. Q. Then high-quality hardwood boards will only be needed for a shelf. They lay it down, laying the boards with “peas” of annual layers alternately up and down, in order to avoid warping. The flooring of the shelf is first rallied with PVA glue or carpentry, tightly squeezing with a clamp or wrapping it with a cord; put on a pillow on the same glue. The skirt of the lid is assembled separately with glue and through spikes (insert at pos. B) and is attached to the pillow-shelf package with self-tapping screws.

Vice for carpentry

All-wood carpentry vices, front and chair, are now almost completely replaced by a vice with a metal screw clamp, pos. D; their device is shown in pos. E. Some remarks are needed here.

First, you need to put 2-3 steel washers under the head of the clamping screw, otherwise it will quickly eat through the pillow (4x4x1 cm piece of wood). Second - if the nut is not custom-made and not purchased shaped, then get at least for a while a set of taps for the thread used. In this case, do not try to use too thick a screw for evenness and smoothness of the clamp; M12-M16 is enough.

The nut of a home-made clamping pair is welded onto a base with a diameter of 60 mm or more, square, from 70x70 mm. It is not necessary to sink it into the clamp pad, so it is less likely that the nut will be torn off when clamping. But the thread will ugly lead away from welding, you can’t drive it away with a bolt. The thread of the welded nut will need to be tapped according to the full scheme, as when cutting: the first tap - the second - the third (if included in the kit).

Note: the nut welded on the base must be allowed to rest for at least 2 hours before the thread passes, so that the residual deformations “subside”.

Vice and carpentry for a locksmith

The vise on the locksmith's workbench is installed in the corner (see the inset in the figure), so that as much as possible of the dynamic loads during metal processing falls vertically on the corner post. The location of the cross beams and intermediate vertical racks of a workbench with a stationary vice is desirable to be made a little asymmetrical, placing them at smaller intervals towards the corner with a vice. The installation of the vice is also carried out starting from the corner:

  • A collet anchor is driven into the wooden corner post under the mounting bolt, and a high nut or threaded sleeve is welded into the metal post (attachment point 1 at the bottom left in the figure);
  • If the fastener is welded, thread with taps, as in a homemade carpenter's vice nut, see above;
  • Put a vice temporarily on 1 bolt and mark holes for fixing points 2, 3 and 4 in place;
  • The vise is removed and through holes 2, 3 and 4 are drilled;
  • Put a vise on the bolts 1, 2 and 3;
  • For mounting on bolt 4, put under the cover (tabletop) a strut U from wooden beam from 60x60 or professional pipes from 40x40. It is not necessary to fix the jib, but it should rest from under the bottom against the upper frame (strap) of the bed, but not against the tabletop!
  • Attach the vise finally to the bolt 4.

Note: stationary power tools are also fixed in the same way, for example. emery.

Under the carpentry

A locksmith's workbench can also be adapted for carpentry work if you drill 2-4 pairs of holes in the tabletop for fixing the carpentry stop (on the right and in the center in the figure). In this case, round bosses are screwed to the bottom surface of the stop with self-tapping screws; plugs fit well plastic bottles, they withstand tight landings many times.

Garage workbench

A workbench in the garage cannot be made optimal in terms of ergonomics of the width of the workplace - the dimensions of a standard box 4x7 m with a car standing in it do not allow. For a long time already, through trial and error, the width of the garage workbench was determined at 510 mm: it is quite convenient to turn between it and the hood, and you can more or less work. A narrow workbench under a heavy load (for example, a motor taken out for bulkhead) is unstable, so it is made attached to the wall. Often - angular, this increases stability, but any wall-mounted workbench "responds" stronger than a workbench-table of the same design

The scheme of the device of one section of the garage workbench is given in fig. In this design, an ingenious method of additional damping of vibrations is used: cells of the frames of the cover and the lower shelf of the edge farthest from the corner different sizes. The accuracy of the installation of the crossbars is +/- 1 cm. For the same purpose, the cover and the lower shelf are made of chipboard 32 mm thick and covered with linoleum instead of steel. For garage work, its durability is sufficient; replaced without difficulty.

Fastening to the walls - self-tapping screws from 8 mm or bolts from M8 with a pitch of 250-350 mm. Deepening into a stone wall 70-80 mm; in wooden 120-130 mm. Propylene dowels are placed under the screws in the stone wall; for bolts - collet anchors.

More for the garage

Another version of the garage workbench is already on the wall, and on the wall, on the left in fig. It can only be mounted on stone walls. Bench board folding 2-layer; each layer of plywood 10-12mm. Opening under the machine with a stepped inner edge. In this case, a “milling cutter” means a mini-drilling machine with a movable rotary table and a workpiece clamp. The design is convenient in that the chips fall immediately onto the floor.

If your car is something like a Daewoo or Chery with a 3-cylinder engine, and the garage is very small, then you can put a folding mini workbench with a lifting table top in it, on the right in the figure; it will also fit into the house for fine work (electronics, precision mechanics). The tabletop is suspended on a piano hinge, the legs are on card hinges. For folding, the legs are tucked under the tabletop (it would be useful to tie them with a leg), and the tabletop is lowered.

Note: for a cramped garage with an ordinary city car, a folding workbench-box may be optimal, see the video below.

Video: folding workbench box


Home station wagon

At home, they are engaged in smaller, but painstaking technical creativity: soldering, modeling, watchmaking, artistic sawing plywood, etc. For fine fine work, a universal workbench is suitable, the drawings of which and its accessories are given in fig. The resistance of the work surface and its vibration absorption in this case are not as important as evenness, smoothness and some adhesion (“stickiness” of parts), so the table top is covered with linoleum. Locksmith vices for this workbench need small, with screw clamping.

More about plywood

In fact, it is undesirable to work with metal “roughly” on plywood, because. she calls back well. If, however, the pillow of the board of the locksmith's workbench is nevertheless made of plywood, then a frame (frame) must also be glued to its bottom on the PVA, also made of plywood, see fig. Then it is desirable to cover the upper (working side) first with unlined linoleum, and then lay steel on it.

To the rising shift

Another case where making a workbench out of plywood is justified is a student's workbench for a child. Pedagogical considerations play a role here: let him learn to feel the material and not to beat for nothing, but to work carefully. For the same purpose, the masters of the past deliberately gave students a bad instrument.

Workbenches in the country

When country house or others. light wooden the structure is still being built, there is no time for bench wisdom, at least something is needed on which simple carpentry work can be done. For such a case, hastily you can put together a carpentry workbench for giving from improvised materials, on the left in fig. The design is remarkable in that it clearly and fully embodies the principle: we do good things with bad equipment.

For subsequent work on the arrangement of the dacha, a mini-workbench is useful, on the right in fig. With a minimum consumption of material and an extremely simple design, it is stable enough for ordinary carpentry work in all respects, because. the middle of the workbench is supported by a pair of struts. If you put them on bolts, the workbench will turn out to be collapsible and stand in the pantry from weekend to weekend. For disassembly, after releasing the struts, the spacer is removed with them, and the legs are tucked under the board. Finally, for a summer residence, inhabited permanently or all summer, with a master owner, by the way, you will have a more complex, but fully functional folding workbench, see the video below.