One-car garage: One big or two smaller benches
waking_crickets
| Posted in Workshop on
I’ve been working on a makeshift workbench setup on collapsible sawhorses in one half of a two-car garage. I’m thinking of making this year “workshop setup year” and am having trouble deciding between one big workbench for everything or two slightly smaller benches – one for joinery, stock prep, etc. and another for assembly and finishing.
If it were your choice, what would you choose and what factors would you consider in making your decision?
Replies
I like one bench that you can do all your building on, and then I have a sheet of Masonite I put over my tablesaw and outfield table to use as a finishing and maybe assembly bench.
Ditto on reusing the top of the table saw - I have a large crosscut jig for sheet goods and with the blade retracted it also serves as a finishing area.
Faced with the same decision, I went with two because I'm primarily a power tool woodworker. I only use hand tools as required to make small adjustments during assembly and fitting.
So my joinery bench is small at 2 feet by 5 feet and has a Veritas twin screw vise on one end and a machinist's vise on the other.
But my assembly table is my multi-purpose bench. It's bigger at 4 feet by 4 feet and doubles as my table saw outfeed. It's also used for random-orbit sanding, sharpening, finishing, routing, etc....
If I had enough space I'd like a separate outfeed table. That would make 3 benches in my ideal workshop!
Mike
I have Matt Kenney’s monster work bench which I built several years ago - then I have a mobile table saw outfeed table that works great for jobs I wouldn’t do on my hand tool bench. As well I have a mobile router table and the table saw as useful surfaces as well and I’m in a very small shop at 12x20 feet. I find this arrangement works great and I love the one big solid bench for handtool and joinery work as my primary surface.
The most important question is "What do you plan on making?". Mostly small stuff (under 3 cubic feet) like boxes, jewelry boxes, signs, etc. is a different answer than large furniture. I make a lot of big stuff (6 to 8 feet tall on a 2 to 3 foot base have a look at
https://beasleysevindesigns.com/ ) and really like having a large table that will support everything. My table also acts as my outfeed table or vice versa my table saw is an expansion of my bench. My bench is 48x68 so I have plenty of room for sub assemblies and finishing.
Every woodworker will have their own opinion, and they are all right. But in my humble opinion - bigger is better.
Truly large pieces would be rare. I might build a dining table or two, but the bulk of what I build and wish to build is on the small (boxes, frames) to medium (coffee tables, chairs, small casework) range.
The separate assembly table idea appeals to me because it seems like (a) a place to keep completed parts separate from the ravages of in progress work, (b) a table where I can add storage underneath without interfering with my ability to use holdfasts, (c) something that could be kept out of the way when I’m not using it.
(c) is actually somewhat important as the space needs to be easily reconfigurable to hold... a car.
On the other hand, bigger is generally better, as you say.
As others have said it will depend on what you're making. If it works for your needs and doesn't offend any sensibilities you have about fine woodworking, Josh Finn's set up as shown in "Forget What You Know About Workbenches" is a very versatile: https://www.finewoodworking.com/project-guides/shop-projects/forget-what-you-know-about-workbenches
This type of set up works incredibly well in a home/garage shop as well as a professional environment. I believe there's an article somewhere in the JLC archive from Mark Luzio about how he uses box beams as well in his shop. They can be used with a sheet of MDF as a flat top when needed, used for dead-flat glue ups, or end-to-end for long work if ever necessary. If you use any mobile power tools they also make a great stand for a planer, tablesaw, etc.
I use them in my cabinetshop as my primary workbench and over the course of building a kitchen I have them in probably 5 different set ups per phase of the project. When I need my whole work area for staging, they tuck against a wall and take up hardly any space at all. They are excellent!
I'd go with two smaller benches. One stationary and the other on lockable casters that doubles as an outfeed table.
The amount & shape of the available space, along with the list of things that need to be in the workshop, is going to determine the best arrangement of work surfaces.
A very much reduced available space (a small one car garage) for woodworking meant I had to sell many large-footprint machines when we moved house. I had three work surfaces in the old larger shed and didn't want to lose them, so something else had to go. This winnows down the tools to the essential minimum. I now have no bandsaw, large belt sander, drum sander or lathe; no shaving horse or steam box; no .... well, you get the picture.
So, how to use the new & reduced garage space? The first parameter was to make the minimum usable space for me, the woodworker, to leave the maximum available space for the benches and remaining tools. Any arrangement with a big work surface in the middle of the space demands far more walk-about space for the woodworker. It also vastly reduces the wall-space available for other stuff, as you must leave that space for walking 'round the central bench.
So, I ended up with a smaller central space in the middle for me, with two narrow corridors to get in & out of it at either end. This meant pushing workbenches to the walls. To leave enough central space for me, the workbenches can't be very wide.
When a lot of tools and tool-cupboards are against the walls, you need to be able to reach over the benches to get them with ease - without breaking your back or toppling on to sharp things anyway. This too means narrow worktops rather than a large 6ft X 4ft (or larger) bench.
Here's a photo that gives the an overall impression of the result. With super-organisation of every tool (a place for everything and everything in its place) it works despite being a very full space.
Lataxe
It's fun to watch these threads. I could expound on what I like but my first bench is Steve Ramsey's BMW (basic mobile workbench). It is 2x4's and one sheet of plywood. It was my first project and got me by. Not much of a workbench so I am about 3/4 of the way through a Moravian workbench build. I when finished will only have experience with one real workbench. Short of trying each style this is about as good as we can get for testing out different benches.
Before we moved I had my workshop taking up about one third of a three care garage, about a one car space. I built a work bench for hand tool work that also worked as an out table for my table saw. When I got a commission for a large (4' x 8') conference table I expanded to the adjacent car space. I built a grid out of kiln dried 2 x 4 from a big box and milled with jointer and planer. The final size was 5' by 7' set on solid saw horses with the boards half lapped and screwed together. the open grid was dead flat and the open grid allowed for a huge variety of clamping options. It allowed me to flatten and glue several boards of reclaimed elm (from an 1860s diary farm) to the final size. Afterwards, the grid was disassembled and stored in a very small space. A similar grid might solve your space problem, allowing one always there workbench and an assembly grid for larger projects.
I tried to upload pic but no luck. There were two long rails and four cross pieces.
I have similar shared garage space, project sizes plus some large pieces. My entire shop is mobile. Different configurations over the years as tool collection and other use of space needs changed. Considerations include what do you have, how do you use it, and what might you add over the coming years.
My inherited commercial workbench is 20" x 5' lowered to hand planing height. I'm currently building a 2' x 3' extension workbench. Primary use as sharpening station withdrawer bank for hand tool storage. It is designed to work with main workbench for the really big stuff. At some point, I'll reconstruct the main bench for better clamping and longer at 6-7'. Dog hole mounted roller bearing strips provide extra tablesaw support when needed. I like a workbench narrow enough to work from both sides. Wall storage remains reachable when not free standing.
Rolling carts (2'x3', 30"x4') built to match my router table height serve as assembly, finish tables with shelving for hand power tools, small offcuts, etc. A 2'x3' cart has MFT style dog hole grid and a T-track laid into the top. It's great for up close work and back friendly variety. Roller bearing strips here provide bandsaw outfeed support. The larger assembly cart has torsion box base keeping the top dead flat. Carts were sized based on the garage recess space and to fit most assemblies in clamps.
Roll and lock a few tools and carts adjacent for easy breakdown of rough lumber and sheet goods. Add a few torsion or i-beams when you build those larger pieces.
This allows tool, cart and bench relocation as needed: number and size of vehicles change, easy access to power tools or carts in use next while a vehicle is parked in garage. Smaller size carts and tool stands make locating gaps for opening vehicle doors easy.
Elmaduro | Jan 17, 2021 10:08pm | #7
"I'd go with two smaller benches. One stationary and the other on lockable casters that doubles as an outfeed table."
In a one car bay I would do this in a heartbeat.
I'd consider how easy it would be to move one big bench by yourself (versus two small ones), as you will likely need to do sooner or later.
Oh, that's a really good point. I will definitely be moving things about frequently in the winter to pull the car in during bad weather (not so much a concern in the spring / summertime).
I do have a set or two of the retractable workbench casters sitting around for this project.
there is no correct answer here.
my shop is about the size of a long one car garage.
i have one workbench (about 7' long), but it invariably gets 1/3 filled up with stuff. about every other month, i put that stuff away in its rightful place, but soon after more stuff accumulates on the bench. chaos and entropy.
i use that bench for portable and hand tools.
i have another work bench - actually a collapsible (to store it, not to collapse while i'm using it) table, that is for placing of wood that is/has been sized, and awaiting assembly.
a rolling cart can be used can be used as an assembly site, as an off-feed table for your planer or table saw, and as a storage unit for stuff that needs to cleared off your work table.
i've bolted peg board to spacers on cabinet doors, and that is where the measuring utensils/squares/etc and other small jigs go: readily accessible and obvious when they aren't back in their designated locations.
good luck. whatever you do, it will be a process in evolution.
let me know when 'wall stretchers' go on sale. i'd like one for 3 of the walls of my shop. maybe there will be a volume discount for them.
I work along a wall in the garage. I have an 8 foot workbench that I use with just hand tools. I am happy with the length. What I do NOT like is the height of the workbench. It is 36" tall. I am 6 feet. If you read a lot, folk will talk about the bench height being at your wrists. That is where 36" is for me. It's a bit uncomfortable unless hand planning rough stock.
For hand tool use, I find it too short for most work. Paul Sellers reccomends a bench height of 39" for general hand tool. I think he may be more correct than most. If you dig about on Jim Toplin YouTube videos (where he uses hand spans), he basically comes up with three different bench heights depending if you are planning stock square, fine joinery work, or cutting dovetails. Those heights are more aligned with a higher bench.
If I were doing it over again, I'd start at 40" bench height and see how it works. As it is, I have riser "shoes" to put on my current bench to raise it up.
Then again, bench heights are one of those much debated topics. If you already have a bench, you have a better idea of what you may need.
Well, Mr. Leonetti, I'd say you have the solution to your bench height dilemma at hand. I'd also say that once you get to a certain size and weight of an object like a workbench, adding "Shoes" is a whole lot easier to do single handedly than trying to saw off the bottoms of four (or five) bench legs "EVENLY".
Many woodworking tasks are best at this, that or the other height when standing at the bench on which they're performed. No single bench is going to be the right height for everything.
One solution is to have numerous benches - fine if you have the space; and beneficial in that it provides a lot more work surface so you don't have to constantly clear your only bench top to perform different tasks.
Another approach is to have a variable height bench. These seem a poor solution, though, in that the means to raise and lower them is likely to be a weak point that can allow shake or flex of the bench top with some tasks, particularly planing. I wouldn't like to be cranking an immensely heavy bench upwards five times a day, either.
The "latest" solution is to employ a sub-bench that fixes to the full bench. The Moxon vise - especially one with a dog-holed platform extending back from the rear jaw - seems a very handy thing. There are some designs with a step in the bottom part that clamps to the workbench at two different heights. It can also be located in all sorts of different locations around your bench.
Lataxe
I’ve always worked in group shops where I had a small bench space. Now that I have my own small shop I’ve stuck with a single decent size bench that I use for building and assembly. A lot
I have two small workbenches, one of their pluses is mobility, relatively lightweight, convenient folding design.
“[Deleted]”
If the garage is attached, and perhaps to an unfinished or out-of-the-way space, you could borrow some of the house for space gains. I’ve applied finish to parts on top of the chest freezer before, dust free environment compared to the shop. I find the one-car garage setup okay with one 8’ bench under a window of the same length. I don’t lose wall space because it’s not there, so doesn’t factor into that decision. Assembling anything of a decent size requires equipment to be pushed around to make space but that doesn’t happen every day, most of the time is spent getting stuff ready to assemble.
Although not quite in the realms of Necromancy, it is interesting to see the older comments here. Certainly an interesting question.
For me the answer is 'it depends' - I worked out of similar circumstances for many years and the answer was a Black and Decker Workmate - remarkably versatile and much underestimated devices, the folding workbench.
The problem is that it depends on what you want to build, how you want to build, your climate, proximity of neighbours and budget.
If you use few machines, then you have the luxury of space. If you need a shave horse, you don't. If you have to work with the door shut then a smaller table is better, if it can be open then you can use the space near the door for a larger one. If the floor is nice and flat, then an assembly table is not so useful, ditto if the ceiling is low.
Have a look at Woodshop Junkies on YouTube if you are interested in small shop work - Jean favours the one big bench approach and it works well for him though most of what he produces seems to be shop projects!
https://www.youtube.com/c/WoodshopJunkies
I rarely see the need for a separate assembly space. About the only times I do are when a project has a lot of smaller parts or assemblies (a kitchen full of doors as an example). In those cases I don't need a full work bench of extra space, just a place to put stuff. I have a folding table that I can bring out for those cases, but is not something not taking space when I don't need it. If I were doing this professionally I might have a different approach to keep production running.
Also I think my current work bench is probably bigger than I should have made it (2x7). A bit more depth would be ok but I never use the full width. I would have been better served by some floor to ceiling shelves.
I happened to be at the right place at the right time, or wrong place at the right time, or.....
A manufacturing facility was getting rid of their production floor, so I grabbed up 10 of 5' x 30" butcher block bench tops with leg supports. I outfitted 5 of my friends and lined one wall of my garage with 3 benches (the last one on casters), and added 2 more, end to end to divide my double garage. So to spell it out, I have 25ft x 30" in the space of a single car garage. I store my boat and EVERYTHING else in the other bay. I have a table saw, mitre saw, bandsaw, stand alone jointer and all other benchtop woodworking necessities. It's all about the shelving, drawers and over bench cabinets. I've built a floor to ceiling entertainment centre, jewelry boxes and everything in between.
Put simply, I don't think you can have too much bench space. And at the same time, I got by with a single large bench on casters for years before my winning the bench lottery.
For what it’s worth, and since this thread got bumped… I’ve ended up with two benches: A “handtool” bench on locking casters where I do most building and my old collapsible 4’x6’ plywood on sawhorses bench which I use for sharpening, finishing, and storage of completed parts.
Despite the big snowfall we got here, I did not once tear everything down and move the car inside. I probably should have given the garage was too cold to work in after November.
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