Foyer entry way benches

Comment

Comment by David Thomas on December 16, 2015 at 10:19am

Hi Brett,

I found these old plans on the internet and am about to start building them.  I was frustrated by the lack of photos in the original article but an internet search turned up your post.  Your photos have been immensely valuable in answering some of the questions I had about the build.

I thought the side frame uprights were a different width and the plans are not very clear.  Your post settled that.  I agree that the middle rail on the back panel should be higher and I will incorporate that change.  I also don't understand why the author of this article didn't take into account the actual width of a standard 1x4, that is, it's really 3.5 inches, not 3.  So we all have to do the adjustment.

Anyway, thanks again for your post, it was most helpful.  Where did you acquire your oak?

Comment by Brett Johnson on March 5, 2015 at 6:22pm

Apparently there is a problem with the link to the plans for this bench.  I've tried unsuccessfully to repost a link that works.  And, when I attempted to email the .pdf version of the plans, the embedded images are not working either.  Weird.  

All the oak boards you see are 1x4s with three exceptions.  The side boards on the two end frames, and the support across the top that the back of the hinge sits on, are 1x3s.  The lid is 45" wide, 14" deep.  The box is 44" by 17 1/2" tall, by 16 1/2" deep.  Each square inset you see is 10"x10".  Perfect for an art canvas from a hobby shop to display artwork masterpieces made by children or grandchildren.

The three squares you can see on the back rest are also 10x10, and if I had it to do over again I would have raised them up so that they lined up with the top of the lid.  Also, I would have figured out a safer type of hinge so the lid doesn't come slamming down onto little fingers.  

Overall this is a rather simple construction, the measurements and lining everything up takes the most time.  Take your time and you'll have a great piece.  Feel free to post any questions.

Comment by Scott G on October 22, 2013 at 9:02pm

Cool. Always good to see others' techniques. I've just started my first bigger 'real' furniture project; the sofa table from the Kreg DVD. (Slightly modified for our needs.) I've been finding with a lot of stuff there's always some little special thing you don't know yet or that you maybe want different. I'm finding YouTube just rocks for some of the tricks you're talking about. Thanks for details.

Comment by Brett Johnson on October 22, 2013 at 2:10pm

Thanks Scott for the feedback and comments.  The wood is oak, just standard 1x4's.  The plans call for 3" wide boards so I did have to adjust all the measurements to account for the 3 1/2" width of the oak I used.  The buttons are just to cover screw holes on the front, I pre-drilled and countersunk all the screws on the front and the back just like in the plans linked in the September 24th comment.  I tried the pre-made oak plugs and they were too large so I made my own.  I picked up an oak dowel just a bit larger diameter than the screw holes and used my disc sander to shape the end until it fit snugly in the hole, cut it with my saw, put some wood glue into the hole, tapped the plug into place and then used a flush cut saw to trim it down.  A light sanding removed any scratch marks and the finishing process I followed came out really nice.  It was a little time consuming to figure out how to make my own oak plugs, I had never done anything similar before, and I'm happy with the finished product.  Other than the 1 1/4" Kreg screws to hold the four frames together, I just used 2" wood screws to attach the front and back to the sides.  I'm sure there are a few options I could have used.

Brett 

Comment by Scott G on October 21, 2013 at 8:34pm

What size wood and Kreg Screws? Just curious as to what other joinery you used. It looks like there's some buttons of some sort in there. Are those to cover screw holes? Or through and through dowels?

The finish looks like it came out really nicely!

Comment by Dan S on September 24, 2013 at 9:11pm

That's awesome thanks! Now I just need to figure out depth collars on my bit!

Comment by Brett Johnson on September 24, 2013 at 8:31pm

Dan, try http://www.popularmechanics.com/cm/popularmechanics/pdf/PMX0906Foye...

Glad to answer any questions, I used the plans as a general guide and adjusted all the measurements to the dimensions of the wood I bought, so for example the plans list 3" width and I bought 1x4's.  The other difference, the plans added quarterround in the interior of each square and we left that out, personal preference.  As an interesting side note, something to think about, the interior squares are the exact match to standard art canvas.  Our daughter has expressed an interest in using the benches as frames to display her artwork.  Sky is the limit with these!

Comment by Dan S on September 24, 2013 at 8:16pm

Do you have a link to the plans?

Comment by Brett Johnson on July 16, 2013 at 6:58pm

Thanks KregRep and Claude!  I really like the design, the only change I made was the plans called for a 3/4-inch ply bottom and we left it open, my wife wanted to be able to put a plastic mat in there for wet boots or shoes and this way we can move the bench to clean up spills etc.

Comment by Claude Bradford on July 16, 2013 at 2:47pm

Great looking benches x 2! Like the design, very well executed. Like the big storage. Great work!

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