How to make a Hall Bench or Bed End Bench.

Instructions (steps 1 to 4)

Step 1.Cut the members to length and shape

Cut the front and back rails 1138mm (45 1/2″) long. Refer to the materials list and plans for stock sizes.
Cut the four leg pieces 650mm (26″) long.
Cut 8 pieces of dowel 375mm (15″) long.
Make a pattern out of cardboard for the legs. Refer to the plans for dimensions.
Place the pattern on each leg piece, then mark the pattern outline on the leg piece and also mark the positions of the holes.
Cut the legs to shape. A band saw would make the task easier but they can still be cut to shape using a circular saw and a jig-saw.

Dimensions for this project are both metric and imperial. All measurements are given in millimeters first, followed by feet and/or inches in brackets ( ). The metric sizes are not an exact match to the equivalent imperial sizes. A project built using the metric measurements will be approximately 1.6% smaller than the same project built using the imperial (ft and in) measurements. The imperial measurements are more suited to North America. The metric measurements are more suited to Australasia.

Step 2. Drill the holes for the dowel

Mark where the holes are to go using the card pattern.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Mark the holes on two leg pieces with the pattern and then turn the pattern upside down to mark the other two.
One pair of legs should be a mirror image of the other pair. See picture in ‘step 4’ below.

Drill 25mm (1″) diameter holes 25mm (1″) deep using a drill press.
There should be four holes in each leg. A total of 16 holes altogether.

Step 3. Notch the legs to house the rails

Make a notch in each leg to house the front and rear rails.
Refer to the plans for position.
Cut the notch 20mm (3/4″) deep and the same width as the front and rear rails.

The notching is best done by making multiple cuts using a circular saw with the blade set to a depth of 20mm (3/4″) and then by cleaning out with a sharp chisel.

Step 4. A bit of sanding

This can be done by hand using two or three different grades of sandpaper, and both flexible and rigid sanding blocks.

Begin with a reasonably coarse sand paper and finish with a fine grade.

A little bit of elbow-grease and the legs should look something like in the picture to the right.