the author does like to from scratch, shaping and trimming wood from large blocks into fine finished products. kzfaq.infoUgkxD-QRFQz730FJEh4f9BYSf-nkIMIC9hL_ as another reviewer mentioned, most projects require a lot of high-dollar equipment that most of us dont have the room or budget for. But, knowing how to do these things, even if we wont be able to practice the full stack project, is still great.

I loved this video so much that I went to your web page and ordered the four hour video and plans. What I did not expect was a personal call from you - long distance. Like my best friend said "That is customer service". If you keep this up you will be swamped with orders. Thank you for the personal service.

I think this bench has given me the solution to my needs. Thanks for posting!

Excellent video, Rob. I've been searching, and I can finally say this is the bench I'm going to build. Thanks.

Elegant! anyone can design an uber expensive, ultra complex bench- but it takes some imagination to develop a unit to a budget. Bravo

Just purchased! Excited to finally get a good solid bench in the shop! Thanks for your videos and wisdom!

Thanks Rob, you answered my questions I submitted to the Q & A session. The work bench video is very informative and is going to be helpful when I start to build the bench. Thanks again.

Nothing short of revolutionary. Honestly, the best use of modern materials.

This looks like an amazing bench, I have built a traditional bench years back, it was a lot of work, and expensive, as you state here. I am going to build this bench, MDF and Baltic Birch are easily obtained in my region. Thanks Rob for the info, and the design!

thankyou Rob, enjoyed video, going to start bench soon, this bench is the perfect model to copy.

I purchased the plans & videos for this workbench build to add one or more supplemental benches to my workshop, because the first one I made I ignorantly mounted it to my wall with angled trusses off the wall as support. It's super strong, but I can't move around it. Plus, I need more surfaces! So far I've got my stock and done most of the plywood cutting and the plans are very clear and I'm happy. Moreover--last evening Rob himself called me on the phone to thank me for my interest and purchase, and asked me some related questions and made suggestions. What a gesture! I only wish I'd had the presence of mind to ask him a few more things while I had him on the line. What a genuine and swell guy. Can't wait to spend the extra on one of his dovetail saws to send some more support his way!

Excellent video. This brings possibilities within reach.

I built something very similar to this, inspired by you. I love this bench! Cheap, heavy, and flat!

This is fantastic. Im going to attempt to build this. Thanks

Excellent video. Thank you. I built a bench using this same type of matterials and jointery some years ago. I got the plans from a wood working magazine. It was rock solid and extremely sturdy. I recently gave it away, but plan to build your design very soon.

Love it. Can’t wait to get a chance to incorporate this into my shop. Thanks Rob!

I've used damaged solid core doors from the home center for work benches for years - lined my basement with them. Love the idea of using MDF. You could use it for the legs as well - using the "Lego" method. Unfortunately my basement floors are jacked, so everything is wall mounted on one side and suspended from the ceiling joists. Great videos. Thanks, NY

Ordered the video and plans two weeks ago and now have a really nice workbench. The video and cut list were very helpful. I highly recommend this bench for the advanced hobby woodworker that doesn’t want to spend $2500 + on a good “store bought” bench. I spent a little over $650.00 and justified (rationalized) purchasing a few new tools that weren’t required but helpful nonetheless (I like any excuse to buy shiny new tools). You really could build this bench in a couple of days - took me about four including finishing. Suggestions: Wood Owl drill bits work great for the dog holes. Don’t use too much glue like I did on the first (bench top) layer - made a mess. If you have a drill press, use it for the two inch Forsner bit holes. Do make the assembly jig as suggested. Pay attention to Rob about not putting the staples too close to the edge and away from the corner on the end of the feet. Thanks Rob for a great design and excellent instructions. You saved me $2000 and I had a lot of fun building the bench.

I'm gonna make this! Thanks for putting out ideas and options for people with limited time, space, budgets etc. It's a tremendous help when so much of youtube is "best ever" versions of things. I'm a casual wood-worker with lots of other interests so I try to do my best to have good quality basics needed to enjoy a particular pursuit without spending a ton. Now I can afford more kitchen gadgets! Thanks!

I like that Vise, it seems well-thought-out and simple.

I made my bench out of 2 x 6 yellow pine laminated. Very solid and heavy. I haven't any problems. Has remained flat and stable for 7 years. Put an old pattern makers vise on it along with a leg vise. Love it

Ordered the video and plans for this bench. Just got all the mdf (had to go with 3/4) and Baltic bitch plywood together. Now I must find a free weekend to build it! Have not ordered the vice yet, but will be shortly. Extremely excited to get it built and use it! Wish I lived in your area, I would love to take some of your in person classes, love the videos though, and your style of teaching! You're doing a great service! Keep it up!

Just finished mine, and I love the design. Thanks for inspiration!! Spike

This makes a great 1st work bench. I made one almost exactly like it as my first "real" non-saw-horse supported type, lazy man's work bench. Very solid and easy build.

Hey Rob. I finally got my vise and the lamp is in the mail. I’m gonna be making a slightly modified version of this and I can’t wait! Only major change is I will make the legs flush with the top so you can clamp things to the leg/top

I built a version of the bench. Mine was sized to also serve as an outfeed table for my table saw. I had enough 1 inch MDF, so I made it 4 inches thick... probably overkill. Rather than use staples, I used screws. Once the glue for a layer was dry, I removed the screws and glued on the next layer. When all was glued, my son helped me turn the whole top over...the bottom became the top...with no screw holes. I didn't think it would ever quit soaking up tung oil, but it did and WOW what a wonderful flat, nearly impervious, stable bench. Haven't yet drilled dog holes yet, but that's on the list. THANK YOU ROB for sharing your genius!!!

Just what I was looking for thank you!

What a master craftsman!

Good learning video Rob, thank you. :) Stay safe, Bill (from Australia).

Absolutely amazing. I built a somewhat similar design (all plywood, with the “easy” mortise/tenon) but too big and with a crap (racking) vice. I sooooo wish I had seen this!! Trust me guys, if you’re thinking of making a bench, this looks GREAT! (I have casters like these...they are great)

Good job Bob enjoyable to watch

Rob - you are truly a teacher! This workbench and the way you’ve made it so accessible are fantastic. You’ve addressed my situation perfectly. In my younger years I apprenticed with finish carpenters doing residential construction before moving on to my professional training in architecture. That experience with the tools informed every detail I’ve ever drawn. Traveling across the US for projects and jobs meant putting my tools in storage for some 30 years. Toward the end of my time in carpentry, I found myself more and more drawn to hand tool woodworking. Over the years of sketching and sitting behind a computer screen, I’ve missed the smell of fresh sawn lumber and the inherent beauty of plane shavings. Now in semi-retirement, after a long battle with cancer, my tools have come out of storage and I’m beginning to re-engaging with hand tool woodworking. Your workbench is just what the doctor ordered. I’ve gone to the website and ordered a DVD. Thank you for your ‘work’ and your intentionality.

Built mine with the video to help. I have very little experience so far but I was able to pull it off over about 2 or 3 weekends with only handheld tools. Now the bench is done and it's working great, I don't regret it all.

Built this wonderful bench from your plans and couldn’t be happier. The vise is rock solid, casters are great, and really like the lamp. Had an extra Philips Hue lamp that works good. Ended up spraying 5 coats of General Finishes High Performance. My only real challenge was drilling the 1” holes. Need to work through the bit sizes up to that 1”. I like your teaching style and learned a lot of valuable skills. Looking forward to transitioning from an all power shop to a combo hand/power tool shop. Thanks!

I bumped into your videos looking for help with mortise and tenon joints and have gone on a ride of discovery with you. Love your style Rob. Im gonna build this bench. after Ive done my project looking for help with M&T joints.

Well spoken. To the point! No big long stories. The two strong flags on your chest are the best👍

Had to subscribe. Great presentation. At 71+ years I have worked on projects all my life without any formal training. Not much time left for trial and error. Looking forward to learning from you. Thanks

Just ordered the plans for the workbench, the vise and the casters. A couple weeks ago I ordered the Rob Cosman marking guage which I just received yesterday. Very impressed with the quality of the tool. Even more impressed by the fact that I received a personal call from Rob thanking me for my business. I only wish that all businesses treated their customers the way Rob does. It won't be my last order for Rob Cosman tools.

Awesome video Great work!

Thanks Rob. I have a LieNielsen bench and have been happy with it. However is was expensive. I want a second bench in the garage for a whole variety of reasons. Something that is quick and doesn't break the bank sounds like a win to me. Also, having now done hand tool woodworking for four years, I can easily see where this bench has all that I need.

Magnificent item - well done Rob, for sharing this. That vice looks perfect - it's on the list. Excellent video with the new-look production, by the way - I think you've found the winning formula!

I've never seen a bloke make serious woodworking skills look so easy!

I ended up making the whole bench out of baltic birch and it's great. Didn't want to deal with the MDF dust in my small garage. The only down side to the plywood top was the chipping when I drilled the dog holes, but you can remedy that by using blue masking tape. The vice and wheels in the kit are perfect. Overall very happy I chose to build this. Thanks Rob!

I built a bench about 25 years ago that is a hybrid of your two designs. I had the Drif bench and built a long bench with the Veritas end hardware a lot like what you have their, though I also have a Tucker vise on mine. What I would say to help a few people into your design is that if you build two sets of dog holes, left and right, it makes the bench perfect for people who also work with Japanese pull planes. I use 4 national styles, and krenov planes, over 40 years I have tried and made a lot of planes. It is great to have a bench that has two sides, and if you have enough room to have your bench in open space, you can get projects working on both sides.

Great bench. Great video. Straight to the point and quality work

Looks great! I've got a 9" Eclipse quick release vise that I could repurpose for this bench.

I finished my "Cosman Workbench" this weekend. Your videos, layouts, and cut lists were outstanding and helped make it a wildly successful project. I am an extremely satisfied customer. I have a few sidenotes: 1) I avoided putting staples in the very middle of the stretchers and the tops of the end pieces, knowing that I would eventually be drilling 3/8 inch holes in those locations. I wouldn't have known to do this if I hadn't completely watched your videos (twice) before starting the project. 2) I could only find 3/4" baltic birch plywood (actually, 18 mm.) The plans alter the length of the stretchers if 3/4" is used, but the layout for the dog holes seems to only account for 5/8" plywood. Luckily, while transferring the dog holes from the layout to the benchtop I noticed that I would get dangerously close to a support leg, so I altered the dog hole locations to account for that. 3) Installing the Sjoberg vise was a breeze, made even easier with your instructions. You are 100% correct that the vise needs to be installed as part of the bench construction. Adding it later would have been much more difficult. 4) I also installed your "Cosmanized casters. I was very precise in installing them per the manufacturer's instructions. However, once installed, when the bench was lowered it took quite a bit of positioning to get all four casters completely out of the way so the bench would rest solidly on the floor. And even then, there was slight pressure on the casters that I couldn't alleviate. It seemed that the casters were about 1/8 to 1/4" too low. I added 1/4" shims to each of the bench's four feet and the casters worked like a dream. I re-measured the screw hole locations and I was dead-on per the instructions on the box, so I'm unsure if the instructions were off or if "Cosmanizing" the casters may have affected them in a way that required them to be installed 1/8 to 1/4" higher on the legs. Other than that, everything went exactly as I expected it to with no surprises. Thank you so much for putting together such an informative, comprehensive instruction video.

Its great to see both yourself and Paul sellers both thoughtful enough to design benches with cost and skill level in mind for e next generation of woodworkers I'm privileged to live at a time to see and enjoy your teaching. I honestly feel blessed thank you Rob,Jake et al

Great video Rob and Jake!!! Keep them coming!!!

I'm adding the sharpening shelf to my bench. I needed a smaller profile workbench when I build one, and still wanted to use hand planes- I used 2x6 pine, doubled for legs. Glued two pieces of 3/4 birch ply together- about 30"x40", and made the shelf under the bench with 2x4 stretchers, added a bottom to the shelf, poured in as much sand as it would hold- about 50lbs. and then covered it with another piece of 3/4 " plywood. I added a vice to the side, and since it such a small bench, instead of dogs, I just clamp a 3/4" board across the bench and use a dog in the vice- I can plane easily, and this thing does not move. downside- this bench does not move, so be sure where you want it.. I love a small bench, and you might too!

Looks awesome and I’m sure that more importantly it works awesome 👍

Took your advice and picked up the vice and bench dogs. Thanks for the call, it was good chatting with you. Looking forward to getting this built!

I’m 1/2 way through my build. The video is a great reference that I can go to when I have a question. You make it look so easy! Mine looks good from 10ft.

Lol. I just watched Al Bundy's "Handyman's Workbench 5000." Love your show, Sir.🇨🇦🙂

I love the Scandinavian bench design. I also like David Charlesworth’s design. I ended up buying a Sjoberg bench from Axminster tools in UK. I still have a set of bench screws from US for a front and end vice that have never been used. Maybe one day.

Rob, only one thing I can't find in my place (Angola) is this work vise. But in general, this workbench is fantastic. Good one.

Thank you!

FYI In one of your live Purple Heart project videos you were talking about the mat for the sharpening station. If you know any commercial print shops in your area stop by and ask for some used press blankets (They will give them to you). They have a rubber face and a patterned cloth/canvas type backing. Most likely it will be about 1/8 to 3/16 of an inch thick and you can cut it to any size you need. Or even paint on some epoxy and glue it right to the plywood. The blanket itself is extremely tough. I had a section of one work bench partially covered with some blanket material and it's very useful so you don't mark things up when moving it around.

Great content

Love the new mic! Sounds way better

I started my bench about a month ago after gathering all the materials. It's not 100% as nice as Robs but it's close. A couple things I'm doing just slightly different. For the bench dog holes. I had a piece of 2x4 kicking around. So I put the 1" drill bit in my drill press against the fence. I used a pair of dividers set to 3.5 inches and walked 3 holes on a center line. The 4th hole I made at 5.5 inches. I set up the 2x4 inline along the edge and clamped it tight and drilled the 1st hole. I put the bench dog into that hole and drilled 2 more holes 3.5 inches apart. Once finished with the first set, I used the bench dogs as an indexing tool until I got to about 32 inches. From there on out I used the 1 5.5 inch spacing. Better than moving your drill guide ever time. The 3.5 inch spacing gives you 3" from the flats on your bench dogs. I'm using the clear lacquer finish but for the edges I'm using a table top epoxy mixed/thinned with rubbing alcohol. My friend uses this on RC airplanes to seal the cell that the fuel tank is in. The alcohol makes it easy to paint on, the epoxy hardens the area and it's fuel/waterproof.

beautiful looking benches and vices

Thanks Rob. Great plans. Mostly finished. Just need to attach the top after I get the vise and install it. I can’t wait to put it to good use!.

I built this bench. It only took about 5 hours plus drying time. It is VERY stable. I haven’t received the vice yet, but it is awesome even without it. Great Job designing this. Sooooooo easy to make.

Thank you for the call. I’m sorry if I swore but it took me completely by surprise. I will forever support your causes and your work. Thank you.

I love that vice

Hello Mr. Cosman. A few months ago, I ran across some of your videos on hand-cut dovetails, and I've been hooked ever since. You're a great teacher and you've inspired me to begin my woodworking journey. Tomorrow, I begin my Cosman-Esque workbench build. I hope I have enough glue and patience. Lastly, thank you for supporting our wounded veterans. It can be extremely difficult to find one's purpose after a career in the military, but you have opened the door to a new mission.

Nothing to do with workbenches but just wanted to say thanks for your excellent plane blade tutorial. I wondered why my plane was OK but not great and now I know. While I employed the ruler trick, it never dawned on me that you need to ensure that you have a few mm of dead flat surface (at a slight angle) on the back of the blade. So when I had been polishing the burr off using the ruler trick I had been exposing new scratches etc that were messing up the edge! I have just spent a while putting a nice polished slightly angled strip on the back of the blade (this showed how "wonky" the back was) and hey presto 2 thou full width shavings and glass like finish.... Thanks again Bryan

I built My Sharping station with an additional base below, with dividers to hold the various stones required! Base is SOLID, dividers, for stone storage! I feel this is a superior system.

thanks ❤

Thanks

Very interesting.

That movable light in the dog holes is genius!

Thanks Rob I love the Lamp idea.

Nice!💜

Hi Rob, a terrific workbench and genuine assistance any woodworker establishing their tool set. Having a good bench early is a huge advantage.....wish it was around when I was starting out. You've nailed this....no pun intended. I am not sure how it compares to your end vice price wise but I would also recommend HNT Gordon's Front Vice. I have owned one for a year now and love it; absolutely no racking and a joy to use. This project is a great initiative.

I bought the video. Hopefully get started on it later this month. Looking forward to it.

Thank you. It is exactly what I need. I can not find video how to glue those 3 sheets of MDF you mentioned.

I enjoyed your video and plan on building the one you show. I have a bench now that is not very strong. I installed the same casters on mine that you installed on yours with one addition. I took 2 pieces of 3/4 inch steel angle iron and bolted it from one caster leg to the other and did this on both sides. Now I just step down on the middle and it lifts the hole side in one step. I appreciate you and what you do and stand for. Thanks again.

Beautiful design Rob! If you see any of my videos you'll see I built my bench waaaay to high for planing. I am going to build this exact bench once I have a bit more funds!

Hi Rob. I just found your channel and like what I’ve seen so far. However, as someone new to the hobby, I must admit to being a little thrown off by the idea that the Cosman bench is considered "cheap" given that the recommended vice is $360 (as of Jan 2022). If, as you suggest, the rest of the materials cost about the same, the whole bench would cost about $720.00. Given how expensive lumber has become in the last two years I'm afraid to guess how much this would cost today. If $720.00 is considered "cheap" I don't think I can afford woodworking as a hobby. Thanks for the great videos. Cheers.

Several commenters have asked about the lamp that mounts in the dog holes. I totally agree that a movable light source is a mandatory bench accessory but mounting in the 1” dog holes presents a problem. Here’s another solution...Lee Valley sells a lamp adapter bushing (search “Lamp Bushing”) that has a 1/2” ID hole to fit the IKEA base post. The bushing is stainless steel and can be dropped into any dog hole. They are offered in 3/4” and 20mm OD and cost $7.50 ea. 35 years ago I bought a pile of blue stained sugar maple from a local sawmill for $50 (SCORE! 🤑😜) and built my forever bench. My dog holes are 3/4” (I make dogs out of 3/4” dowel with a small flat cut in the top) and was delighted to find the LV bushings. They work great!

I am thinking of using this MDF sandwich for a Roman Bench. With pine being so expensive, it may save me a LOT of money for hardwood later.

I hadn't realized 'till now that it was the IKEA lamp! I have two of those over my workbench on the wall and think about making a movable one for dog holes.

It cannot get any better than this. I made a bench like this out of 2 sheets of 3/4 mdf from the homeless depot, same ikea lamp, same vise (don't cheap out on the vise). I applied 3 coats of tung oil, even more on the edges, it literally stopped the mdf from stinking. As much as I hate MDF, this is a perfect application. I would not use solid wood for a workbench, I would rather use it for projects.

I tried building mine without the video. While I manage to build the bench, I encountered several obstacles that I’m sure the video addresses. My recommendation is get the video and save yourself a lot of time and effort. However, Here are some tips for those who follow my same route. 1. When assembling the top make sure to use a flush trim router bit after gluing up each layer. If you wait until all 3 layers are glued you will need a very large bit or a circular saw with an edge guide and that probably won’t be enough and will need to trim the top from both top and bottom faces. Not very pleasant to fix if not lined up. 2. The instructions that come with the vise are not very good and the dimensions mentioned on the sheet of paper seem to be for an older version of the same vise. Make sure to double check the dimensions of the slots and holes that need to be made so that the vise mounts flat to underside of the table top and there are no instructions to the vise screw. [Edit] Also make sure you install the vise while the top is upside down and not mounted to the base🤭 Will make your life a lot easier. 3. Add a hardwood or plywood end to the bench on the side where the vise will be mounted. It will give better durability in the long haul and can always be replaced in the future. 4. If you have issues with the bench racking a bit when planing difficult boards, add a cross brace to one of the long sides of the bench (I ended up closing the back all together with the left over plywood I had) This made the bench even more sturdy. 5. Enjoy the process and learn from your mistakes. Hope this helps. Cheers, JC

An additional advantage of the double row of dog holes is to set up sliding wedge clamping for edge gluing.

Built one with plywood and the 3 sheet mdf top. Top and frame are finished with a bucket full of Danish oil, the bench is butt ugly but it's solid as hell. Only problem I have is the vice which racks like crazy and I must admit to being tempted by that Sjoberg. Casters would be great but my floor is so uneven that they probably wouldn't work for me. Great bench, cheap(ish) and easy to build !!

Great video. I have a similar bench and have wanted to replace the work surface for quite a while.I find MDF is always great mostly because it is so flat to begin with but also so stable.Rob: What finish has worked out the best for an MDF top.?? Thanks!!

That looks like a great bench. Can you use a holdfast with it, or will they damage the MDF top?

Great video. Did you coat the MDF with anything?? Thanks

I built a bench based on the original design but didn't go for the MDF top or Sjoberg vice. The bench is against a wall so mounting the vice on the end would have been a problem. But I'm far more used to working on a Workmate with the split top pieces making sawing so much easier than a traditional bench with a face vice because the cut line has clear air beneath. Further, I was persuaded [Paul Sellers] that the face vice should be on the left because I'm right handed but if I had mounted it to the right I could have had the easier situation of clear air to the right. I was wrong on the top and wrong with the vice but the bench is a rock solid 24x48 inches. I wish I had more space! The legs are 5 layers of 18mm hardwood ply and so is everything else. How do you have so few subscribers Rob? I love your KZfaq offerings.

Freaking genius 🙌

Excellent video Rob. I will hopefully be building this workbench soon

Doesn’t the particle board give way in areas of high load like about the holes. Is it really a long term solution? Many thanks for the great vids.

This looks great, Rob. My only question is how, without a side vice and supports, you edge plane long boards and panels. Just add those, I guess.

Thanks, Rob! Got the video! Needed a bench. Now I'll build one!

Great bench. Already have a Sjoberg bench but loved your lamp holder. Any chance you can offer those turned lamp holders to fit in the dog hole? I think I may order the plans to see your techniques for the bench that could apply to other projects. Thanks.

This looks great! Do the plans only come in inches or do you have them in metric system as well?

Hey Rob, I purchased the bench plans and video. I built my bench and love it. I think you should change the plans though. In the plans it states you can use 5/8 or 3/4 baltic birch plywood. I used 3/4 because 5/8 was not available in my area. when I went to mount the top it did not fit once the vise was on. Using the 3/4 plywood made the base an inch longer and the top didn't cover the base. I added 3/4 Walnut around the outside of the top and made it work. Just a suggestion to make it work if people have to use 3/4 plywood.