The Workbench: A Complete Guide to Creating Your Perfect Bench

by Lon Schleining

Book Overview

In this contemporary look at the world of workbenches, Lon Schleining takes us on a guided tour of a wide variety of classic, modern, and specialty benches and offers hundreds of options for choosing or building that perfect bench and its accessories.

This is a fresh look at the classic subject with a focus on helping readers find the right bench and accessories for their needs. The object is to guide the reader through...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1561585947
• ISBN13: 9781561585946
• Release Date: October 2004
• Publisher: Taunton Press
• Length: 202 Pages
• Weight: 2.68 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 9.2" x 11.0"

Customer Reviews

Read again and again and again

It seems that I read this book then I am reading another book on the same subject. It never fails but I will have to reread a portion of this book to put everything together so the new book makes sense. Other times I will just have a thought come to mind as I am designing a new bench. A quick scan of this book puts the idea's in order to fit what a customer wishes for their custom bench. Saves making a lot of false steps while building a bench you have not built before. drayegon

Great book on workbench philosphy and design

This is a great book for what I wanted - a survey and idea book to design my own bench. Essentially the author surveys a number of different woodworkers and what type of benches they use and why. The book is broken down into logic chapters on various components of the bench including the top, base, vises and holding techniques. He covers ideas on how the bench fits in the shop, ergonomics, tool storage/trays, holding wood, and other issues related to layout and placement. It covers some history of workbenches but isn't a history book. In Chapter 8 he explains his bench design and building process. This is really a nice design and I think I will use it for the basis of my bench. Note as 1 reviewer mentioned that this isn't a very detailed engineering view plan; it contains basic part measurements in a 3-dimensional view. It is enough information to design and build the same bench but you may have to dimension out a few things in more detail when building yours. The layout and photography in this book are excellent, and the writing style is easy to follow.

Buy this book

Though I am a huge fan of Scott Landis' book on this subject, I think I like this book even better. Because I will soon build my third and final bench (yes I am a dreamer), I have been reading a lot about this subject lately. This book does a great job of grabbing your interest, showing you the thought process you should use to determine what design and features are best for you, and then showing many beautiful examples of hard working benches in scores of woodworking shops. Three things stood out to me as I read this book. The color photography is excellent, the text is well written, and the whole package culminates in giving you the inspiration to go out and build that new bench you have always wanted. In response to the notion that there is too little detail here, I say that this book is not intended to be a set of plans for one to construct a bench. this is an IDEA generating book, so you won't have to say later "Gee I wish I had thought of that before I built my new bench." I highly recommend this book for any woodworking book collection or anyone interested in options for bench design.

Excellent Book

This is an excellent book. If you are thinking of designing and building the perfect workbench, you absolutely should buy this book. There is no single perfect workbench. Any design is a tradeoff between competing demands. The author discusses all facets of workbench design--vises, tops, support/chassis. It is up to the reader to design a workbench that satisfies her needs. The author provides several examples of workbench designs / plans. These plans include important dimensions but leave the details to be worked out by the woodworker of an intermediate skill level. This I feel was the right decision because the book is directed at the intermediate woodworker. If you are a beginner and looking for detailed plans, I suggest the article from this month's Wood magazine or any of the other magazines. The layout and format of the book are top notch. The photos are superb. Reading the book makes one eager to get in the shop.

This book delivers on building your own dream workbench

After years of wanting my own dream workbench, I finally took the plunge and began building one this year. My workbench is a slight variation of one of the workbenches profiled in Mr. Schleining's book and I couldn't be happier with it. This book covers many different designs of workbenches from traditional style benches, to European, to more modern workbenches (suited for the woodworker that uses more power tools). What I liked most about this book is that it not only covers some of the nation's most well-renowned woodworkers' workbenches, but Mr. Schleining also goes into great detail why their respective benches work. Mr. Schleining does an excellent job of getting you to think about how you work in your shop to come up with your dream workbench. This is not a cookbook packed with a ton of plans. Instead, Mr. Schleining includes plans that are representative of today's styles such as Tage Frid's bench, the New Classic bench (modern), windsor chair maker Mike Dunbar's traditional bench (complete with wood screw vises), Niall Barrett's no-frills bench, and a Sam-Maloof style bench. Each bench profile gives details on how to build the bench. But more importantly, Mr. Schleining arms you with a wealth of information to customize each bench to your liking, giving you the benefits and drawbacks for each design and add-on. For example, for those who wish to have cabinets under their bench, Mr. Schleining notes that his helps to add mass and storage space to the bench. But it also may impede your ability to clamp certain work pieces to your bench. Other examples include comparisons between wood and steel vise screws, round versus square dog holes, tool trays versus no tool trays, and a host of other feature comparisons. In addition, Mr. Schleining also provides a number of very helpful tips for building your own bench such as flattening the bench top, using offset-pinned tenons, picking the right location for your vises, and others. This book is more than just a show-and-tell piece on different workbenches. It provides inspiration, practical advice, and detailed plans for those planning on making their own dream workbench someday. Even if you aren't interested in making your own workbench, Mr. Schleining provides ample information for regarding pre-made workbench kits, bench tops, and custom-built workbenches. As a woodworker just returning to the craft after a ten year hiatus, Mr. Schleining does an excellent job of communicating his ideas through his pointed prose and his numerous color photographs. I give my highest recommendation for this book.