Very Sturdy Well Made
These are great as benches. I would not suggest making them more than five feet long however. The instructions say you can make them up to eight feet long but as a bench this would only work if no one ever sat in the middle and I can't imagine why anyone would want an eight foot long table that was 15-inches wide. I made four benches each four feet long. I used pressure treated lumber and the hardware provided. Assembly was easy and the finished product looked and worked just as I expected. Be advised the finished furniture is quite heavy.
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Great afternoon picnic table and benches projectI purchased 8 benches - 4 for our house and 4 as house warming gifts for friends who relocated to the country. These benches were a breeze to put together. After thinking it over I decided to incorporate 2x6s in place of 2x4s where I could to prevent warping. 2x6 lumber fits perfect into this construction. I've attached photos above - check 2x6 construction. the 2x4 braces below make for solid shake-free benches. I sanded and finished mine with three coats of Thompsons "Honey Gold" tint Watersealant. After this summer and winter in OK I'll report back on how well these held up. All construction so far has been 6 feet long.
You have to realize it's wood you're working with and prepare accordingly. Measure to get the most of each cut from the length wood you buy. I purchased #2 Douglas Fir - it's a bit stronger than framing lumber.
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