I received my compound miter saw as a birthday gift from the boyfriend a couple of years ago. I was so excited I just pulled it out of the box and set it out on the first available surface. This surface also happened to be the only work table in the garage. It wasn’t until all the wood was cut for my first project that this thought finally popped into my head …Uh, now where exactly do I assemble this thing? A small piece of plywood dropped across a couple of saw horses became the new workspace and that’s how things stayed until we moved out.
It never was a great setup, so when we moved I was determined to get a table built (just for the saw) before starting any new projects. Fast forward two months and me seriously itching to build something… ta-da! Isn’t it beautiful?
I thought about sharing how I put this table together, but there are bunches of easy to follow plans already out there (I googled “2×4 workbench plans”). You can find the particular plan I used here. The biggest change was the use of 4×4′s for the legs instead of 2×4′s. I just like the extra sturdiness that the 4×4′s provide. One other small change was the use of lag screws to attach all the 2×4′s to the posts. I actually used some that had been salvaged from an old set of wooden shelves my neighbor kindly donated to me (aka – set out on the curb).
My daughter chose the lovely blue color from one of my many oops paint pots. She loves to help me paint & this project was perfect for my heavy handed painting assistant. While we were busy painting, she said “Mom, we make a great team. I’m the painter and you’re the spreader.” And, it’s true. As we work, I follow behind her spreading out the large blobs of paint left in her wake as she moves from spot to spot. The little paint pot was just barely enough to cover the table. I’ll probably leave the bottom shelf au naturale.
This table only took a few hours to put together & paint, so it really is super simple. The biggest amount of time spent was ratcheting all the lag screws into the wood. I know regular screws would have been quicker, but I really do want this table to last a long time.
Cost Breakdown:
1 – 4×4 @ 10′ : $9 (I had the guys at the local HD cut the 4×4 legs to length (29″) for me, so they would easily fit into the car)
3 – 2×4 @ 8′ : $7.50
1 – 2×4 handi panel plywood: $7 (can’t remember the thickness)
1 – 2×4 handi panel mdf: $3 (1/4″ thickness)
32 – 5/8″ x 3″ Lag Screws: $0 (recycled screws from another project)
Paint: $0 (oops paint on hand/but .50 cents if I had to purchase)
Total Cost: $26.50
The best part about this project is that I am almost set to start building again. Can’t wait…
