workbench height?

[skuld]

Howdy everybody,

I'm moving right now into a new place, and I get to use half the garage for my workshop. Yay! Assuming I get permission from the landlord to run another breaker box out there I'll be running just some small stuff, my grinder, a belt sander, scroll saw, bandsaw, and hand-power tools, nothing too big.

I salvaged two 3 foot by 7 foot by 1.5 inch solid core doors that I'd like to use for workbench tops (I almost had some same sized steel solid core doors but they were too heavy to carry by myself to the truck ). I've been basically workbenchless for....wow... 6 or 7 years so I'm not sure what height to make them. My dad's shop has a welding bench outside and a square maple table inside but it's too low to use standing up, you have to sit. We've been meaning to add workbenches along the walls for years but never got around to it. Lately we've been using the tablesaw as a light workbench.

Anyway, I'd like to use these doors as bench tops but I'm not sure what the correct height should be. I'm 6 foot even if that helps. The welding bench at my dad's is about 4 foot high, it's really too tall. My desks are all around 27-29 inches. I've seen a few plans floating around for workbenches 31 inches high. Is this about right? For standing? For extended sessions I'd use a stool. I may build one about 27 inches high for mainly sitting at, and the other higher and mount the belt sander and grinder to that one. But at what height? Sound like a good idea?

Thanks for the help,


-Skuld

[Mark at CGA]

skuld, I'm also about 6 ft and I like about a 40" high bench (standing)
Your milage may vary.
Happy building...
c u, Mark

[Dan at VOW]

I agree with Mark, mine is about that height, you can either stand or sit on a tall stool. The doors make great benches, even the steel one sif you can get someone to help carry them. Dan.

[Pluribus]

From an ergonomic perspective a place to start would be waste high to what your height is. About 15-16 year's ago, when I built the bench I have now, I held my hand's straight out in front of me and had the wife measure from the floor to the bottom of my elbow. That was the height I made the top of the bench. I'm to lazy at the moment to get up and go measure it so, you'll have to do your own formula. It's worked for me just fine. Everything's at the right height when standing and, with a bench or bar stool it's the right height to sit comfortably also.

[usmc326]

Most of those kitchen center work islands are 34". Find a stool you like, then build from there. You don't want to bend much while standing.

[DoubleA]

After looking at different pre-built ones, I decided that they were all too low. Mine home built unit is 40" tall and I'm 5-6". It is just the right height to work on firearms. A 30" tall stool is perfect for this bench height.

[idsubgun]

I'm 6'3" and built a bench just for standing. I just measured it and it's 43.5" tall. It could be an inch or two shorter, but with my height, it works out quite well.
At your height, the 40" bench mentioned before would be about right for standing.
One thing that a bench this height allows is easy work in a vise. I've got a vise mounted on one end and when filing, it doesn't cause me to bend my back while working. Stand hunchbacked over a bench or lathe all day and you'll soon see the advantages of that.

[Dick S]

I just measured mine. The one with the vise is 42" high...the bench which is 90 degrees to the vise bench is 36". I use them both for different operations. BTW I am 6'1" tall. So I agree that 40" is about right for someone a little under 6 FT tall while standing.

[skuld]

Well I scrounged around in my dad's workshop's attic and found my great-granddad's workbench's legs. They are cast iron(? they weigh a ton!) and are 39 inches high, so the table top would be 40.5 inches. I also got some legs from work that are 32 inches high, but they are harbor freight legs and I'm not too sure how sturdy they'll be. The workbench they were on was just used to hold empty boxes, but it did stand on it a few times, so it should be ok. We broke the top of the bench while moving it to the new shop.

I also scrounged up a grinder stand, well the top and bottom of one, still need to get a good length of 3 inch pipe, so the standing bench will just have the belt sander and the vise on it.

Now I just need to scrounge up a good vise. Mine is only 4 inches or so, I'm pretty sure I'll need a big 6 incher for gun work, right?

[Dick S]

This is the best deal I found about a month ago.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...temnumber=3796

[sportsnut]

Originally posted by Dick S
This is the best deal I found about a month ago.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...temnumber=3796

That is the vise i have and it is a steal @ $50.00

[cal]

36" is standard. 34" is ada. 30- 32if you're rolling your butt to to it(chair). what are you going to use it for? if your mainly going to use to work on guns or short projects, i'd go with 40, i'm about your height and it doesn't kill my back. if your going to work on bigger projects, tall stuff, i would take it lower. a safe bet would would take one high and one low on opposite walls if possible, so you would get the best of both worlds. it still leaves you a bench of 7'. if you use your table saw a lot, i would recomend making one of the benches the same heighth as it.

[Farmer from Hell]

Skuld I done pretty much what you are about to do only four months ago. I got a solid wood door from UMCP surplus and made a heavy ass work bench out of it. I think I have a total of like $60 in it maybe less.

As far as height I say make it as tall as your belt buckle. Thats the simplest way to explain it. Mine are 38" tall and I can lay my hands palm down on the tops of mine without bending at the waist.

This is what I done to make a bench out of a door and I think it turned out super good. I went and bought, after measureing what I needed, a bunch of 2x6 wall studs from HD. The wall studs are pretty cheap. I also bought a sheet of 11/32 laminated plywood that was finished relatively smooth on one side. I cut 2x6's to give the door a skirt underneath. I then made legs for the bench from pieces of 2x6 screwed together in the shape of angle iron. Everything was screwed together with drywall screws of appropriate length. I screwed together the skirt first then inside of the corners of one end I attached the legs making sure that that end would be level width wise. I then took large C clamps and clamped the legs to the inside corners of the other end and adjusted them until the skirt was level in both directions then screwed them in place. This is the best way IMHO to get the bench truly level if you floor is uneven or sloped like mine. I then layed the door on top of the skirt which now had legs and used some screws to hold it down. I then cut the plywood to fit the top of the door, screwed it down to the door with some really short drywall screws, sanded it down, and gave it a couple coats of poly.

The bench is super beefy, I dont have to bend over to work on it, and the plywood protects the door itself. If the plywood ever gets beat up I just go buy another sheet of plywood and Im back in business. I have some pics but I havent had much luck with hunting pics.com lately. I could e-mail them to you if you like. I put one of those rotating Columbian vises from HD on one end.

HTH
FfH

[Mainecr]

I do this workstation stuff (ergonomics) for a living at L. L. Bean. Here's the general rule of thumb for standing work

* Light work, highly visual 3" or so above standing elbow height
* Medium work, keying and/or assembly at elbow height
* Heavy work, hammering, etc 3" or so below elbow height

I set my standing worksurface at 2" below my elbow height of 41" for working on firearms....