After building storage shelves towards the end of the year, I turned my eyes to the other side of that area and decided to build a workbench there. The idea being that it would house my new 3D printer, and also have room for other projects that I didn’t want to do in the dusty environment of the woodworking area. I drew up a rough plan on a photo and it came to 12 feet by 2 feet.

A workshop wall with a pegboard holding tools on the left. Centered is a computer setup with cables and networking equipment mounted on wooden panels. Overlaid on the image is a green and black sketch of a structure.

Its frame would be made of 2x4 lumber held together with pocket screws (a first for me, so I went and bought a jig!). The top would have two layers of 3/4" plywood. It didn’t need to be fancy, so I decided to use more of the same birch plywood I’d used for the storage shelves.

A woodworking setup featuring a Kreg pocket hole jig with a piece of wood clamped in place, showing two drilled pocket holes. A Makita cordless drill with a drill bit is nearby, along with a tool bag containing various tools.

Installing the frame was a little bit tricky but I managed to do it by myself by stacking some boxes for support, and attached it to the bare studs with lag screws.

A wooden frame structure, possibly a tabletop or workbench, is mounted on a wall. It is supported by storage boxes with yellow lids. A level tool rests on the frame.

Then it was time to make the front legs. The floor in the basement is not only not level but also has lumpy concrete in some spots. So each leg had to be constructed by trial and error for the place it would stand.

A wooden workbench situated against a pegboard wall in a garage or workshop.

Now I was ready to build the surface which had a base, and a top. The base went on pretty quickly. I screwed down from the top to attach it to the frame. The top was made of the same plywood but I finished it with two coats of polyurethane using a spray. Spray was a bad idea, but more on that later. I installed the top by screwing up from underneath the base.

After a week I started to build the other half. It was the same process but due to issues with the studs, I had to cut a couple of dados.

A close-up of a woodworking joint showing two intersecting wooden beams, with precise markings and measurements on the wood.

The rest of it went smoothly, and I lined it up as best as I could with the first half.

A wooden workbench frame inside a workshop or garage. It is constructed with natural wood and secured with screws. The wall has pegboard and exposed studs.

Next I fastened 2x2 boards all along the edges, and mounted a strip of the same plywood along the back, and with that, it was completed.

Workshop setup with a wooden workbench, a fabric enclosure labeled “TOPCUBE,” with a 3D printer inside, and a network rack with cables on the wall. Yellow-lidded storage bins are underneath the bench.

So far I don’t feel the need for all the legs I had in the sketch, but I can add more if needed.

Lessons were (hopefully) learned. Mainly to not use spray poly to finish a large flat surface, and also not to do it in the house, even if it was in the rough basement. I finished the second one in the shed.