re: Building A Workbench

I agree with Jim, you can make a good bench with lumber yard dimensional lumber. There are a lot of good plans floating around on the internet that use dimensional lumber that is simply glued and screwed together. Not everyone has to have a Roubo :) The most functional part of the workbench will be ensuring you have a good vise and that the bench is solid enough for the work you do.
Making a workbench is a great project to expand handtool skills; it’s a lot of work but great experience at jointing and planing for the top, as well as doing some large mortise and tenon joints for the base.