Home Depot work bench

[Joe]

Any opinions of the $129.00 Home Depot work bench?

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Not bad for the money, but . . . . . . . . .

If you are truly a handyman, woodworker, DIY guy, wouldn't you rather build exactly what suits you?

[Bob]

Had one and gave it away after I decided to build my own to better suite my needs.

[Joe]

Thanks for your input I was just curious see $130 I have, time I don't have

[Silvan]

Don't know if the one you're looking at is anything like mine or not, but I imagine it probably is. I bought a workbench kit at Lowe's when I bought my house. I figured I'd build a real one on down the line. At that point I didn't really know what I would ultimately do with a workbench anyway. I just felt like it was something I ought to have, seeing as how I finally had an official shop-like space all my own.

It's not a very good bench, and I could build a better one, but it would cost a lot of money, take a lot of time, and I don't have room for such a huge project either. I grafted a flatter, smoother top onto the thing, drilled some dog holes in it, put a couple of front vises on it, and it's a lot better than nothing. Still pretty crappy though. It's just 2x6s rudely cut and screwed together. It has a lot of wiggle in it, and it makes planing a challenge sometimes because the bench will wiggle in such a way as to cause the plane to chatter. I need to shore it up with some tension rods or something one of these days, but the bench itself works fine, and it's built, and it's there, so I expect I will probably continue using it until 2500 or 13,000 years from now, when I finally have enough money to afford a new shop.

[Roy Smith]

I bought one a few years back. It's made out of crap lumber, but you know what, it was easy to put together and it works just fine. It sits out in my garage where it gets banged on and sawn on and used as a potting bench.

How wrong can you go for $129?

Somebody mentioned that it's a bit wobbly. Well, you could get some 1/2" plywood, cut panels to fit the back and sides of the legs, and screw them on. That'll stiffen it right up. It'll still be ugly, but it won't be wobbly anymore.

Buy it, abuse it, and a few years from now when you know better what you want and are a bit inspired, make another one from scratch yourself. Some of the workbenches I see pictures of in Fine Woodworking look like they belong in a museum or an art gallery, not in a shop.

[Unquestionably Confused]

on 3/18/2005 6:04 PM Joe said the following:

'Zat the one they had on special a couple weeks ago for around $100? The one I "saw" was labeled "walnut" on the box. They had none that were assembled. The picture on the box looked pretty decent as a hobby bench for something lightweight like craft stuff even though the top was either 5/4 or 6/4 stock.

Don't know that the overall strengths or weaknesses of the thing are but it did look pretty good for the money. Thought it might make one helluva nice plant or potting bench on an enclosed porch, etc.