Instruction Manual for 10 foot rollaround workbench

Materials

3 2x4x8' redwood studs $18.00

3 x4’x8’ birch or oak plywood $120.00

1 ¼”x4’x8’ birch or oak plywood $20.00

1 1"x2X10' hardwood for top $80.00

8 Door handles $5-10.00

8 Blind self closing hinges $10.00

4 Pairs of drawer roller guides $20-40.00

8 2"dia ball bearing wheels w/ brakes (Harbor Freight sells these wheels for $3.99 for set of four)

1 Box of 2" drywall screws $2.00

20 3" lag bolts $6.00

3 Quarts satin finish polyurethane $15.00

Instructions

FRAME CONSTRUCTION

1. Using a dado blade, make a ¾” deep groove down the center of two of the 2X4s (groove one side only and on the narrower 2” side). The third stud will be used for the front of the frame and doesn’t need a groove..

2. Cut one of the grooved 2x4's into five 16" pieces.

3. Mark the other two 2x4's at 24" increments with a pencil & drill two " holes at each center of the pencil marks. Countersink using " forstner bit.

4. Center the cut pieces between the two 2x4x8' at the 24" marks you made and screw together with 3" lag bolts. Using a chisel, chisel out the cross section of the dado 3/4” forward x3/4” deep x ¾” wide, so the sides will fit into the groove.

5. Mount the 8 wheels 32" apart on the front and back studs. Countersink nuts so they don’t protrude above the top of the board.

CABINETS AND DRAWERS

1. Set your table saw fence for a 17 3/4" cut and cut one of the plywood sheets lengthwise so you have a 30" and an 17 ¾” piece. The blade will eat up the remaining ¼” of the plywood.

2. Cut the 30" piece into five 17 3/4" wide pieces, these will be used for the inner and outer sides. Mark one piece right end and one piece left end and the remaining three pieces as inner sides. (DADOS WILL BE MADE IN THESE PIECES IN STEP 6)

3. Cut a second piece of plywood at 30" and cut four 23 ¾”" pieces from it, these will be used for the cabinet and drawer fronts. Then cut the drawer fronts from these pieces at 7 ¼” and the cabinets at 22 ¾”. Mark these with a pencil for being able to locate them later. (FOR A BETTER APPEARANCE, SUBSTITUTE PLYWOOD WITH SOLID WOOD AND USE ROUTER TO ROUND EDGES.)

4. Cut the ¼” plywood sheet into eight pieces 17”x6” for the drawer sides. Cut four more pieces 22”x 6” for the drawer backs. Cut four pieces 16 ¾”x21 ¾” for the drawer bottoms. Dado the drawer sides ¼” from the bottom using a ¼” dado blade. Using a dovetail jig, create dovetail joints for the rear sides and back of the drawers. If you don’t have a dovetail jig then you can simply glue and nail the backs on.

4. Cut four 17 ¾”" wide pieces of plywood into 23" lengths to be used for the bottoms. The bottoms will not sit into a groove in the back so you will need to cut them to 17 3/8” wide. Mark them with a pencil.

5. Cut the remaining 18"x8' piece into four 23" x 17” pieces, these will be used for the shelves. Mark them with a pencil

6. Cut a dado from the side pieces for the shelves to rest on. The opposite side should be dadoed so it’s staggered from the other side so you will be able to screw the shelves in later. The dado should be 3/8”" deep x "wide at aprox 11” from the bottom edge (remember to staggar them eg.: one side is 11” and one side is 9”). Cut a second dado centered at 7 ¼” from the top. Repeat the same dado’s on three of the pieces and the ends should only be dado’d on one side. (BE CAREFUL YOU DON’T DADO THE WRONG SIDE) You can make the shelves height whatever your preference. I like to have them at different heights to accommodate different items.

7. The last 30”x96” piece of plywood will be used for the back. Prefit back into groove in frame and mark dado locations with pencil, then make the dados.

ASSEMBLY OF CABINETS

1. Fasten the back into place on the frame using wood glue and drywall screws through the bottom stud (be sure to pre-drill holes so you don’t split the plywood.

2. Using 1 ¾” finishing nails, blind nail the bottom pieces into place.. .

3. Slide the shelves into place blind nail with finishing nails also.

3. Using a forstner bit, mark and cut the holes for the hinges. Holes should be drilled aprox 3" from the edge, be consistent for a professional appearance.

11. Fasten the hinges to the cabinet doors and then mark and fasten the doors to the cabinet frame.

12. Using a dado blade, dado the drawer sides 1” from the back edge and ¼” above the bottom edge for the bottom piece to fit into. Cut the front pieces for the drawers and dado ¼” above the bottom edge so the bottom will rest in the groove. Fasten the drawers together with two 1 ¼” drywall screws on each side.

13. Fasten the drawer rails to the cabinet frame.

14. Install drawer and cabinet door handles.

15. Fasten two 10’ x 12” x ¾” pine boards to the cabinet frame, then line the top of the pinewood with laminate flooring, cut the edges flush, finish the edge with ¾” x 1 1/8” oak, miter corners with a 45degree cut.

16. Finish your workbench using Satin Finish Polyurethane. I prefer using at least three coats, sanding with 400grit between coats, then waxing with 0000 steel wool and Johnson paste wax.

That's it! You now have a roll around workbench that you can use for many projects and with the 12" of overlap on each end of the table you can easily mount a woodworker’s vise and other tools.