Reply To: Workbench design
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I agree with point 2, a leg underneath a vise makes rough work like chopping mortises or joining tight joints etc. much more pleasant.
I also agree about joining the legs to the apron(s?). You got a thickness of 100 mm, so you plenty of meat to make a wedged housing dado (see Paul Seller’s video about making his workbench). This should be a very good insurance against flexing. Furthermore, I wouldn’t like the endgrain of the through tenons on the top surface, because it is quite abrasive.
If you want your bench rock solid, and according to your measurements, you probably do, check Paul Sellers blog and videos about building a workbench. I don’t mean to say, that you should build yours like his, but try to understand the concepts. It should help you to improve your design.
As for the bench height, I would leave it high for the moment. It is fairly easy to shorten the legs, but quite a challenge to make it higher.
Have you considered to make a bench, that can be taken apart? I think, yours will be quite heavy.
My only concern about the front and back rails is, that you eventually want to sweep the floor underneath the bench. The side rails give some clearance, but if you want a clean workshop, especially the front rail might be quite annoying after a while. If you use wedged dados to house the legs in the aprons, you might not need front and back rails at all.
Anyway, I think, your design might work as it is. Good luck making it, with or without any modifications. I would love to read a bit of your making process.
Dieter