DIY Workbench With Drawers

Hi we’re Laura and Louis. We recently moved into a new workshop to run our camper van rental business out of and also have a dedicated place to work on our passion projects. It was a mess for a bit as we tried to get organized so we decided to make a dedicated workbench a drawers and shelf space to neatly store all of our supplies.

Before, we mainly worked off of the floor or a makeshift table with 2 sawhorses and a piece of plywood when we had limited space, so we’re excited to have a functional workspace.

Before starting on the build, we modeled the general construction on Fusion 360 and made a cut list because we knew it would be too many pieces to keep track of on the spot. You can download both the 3D model and the cut list HERE.

Here is the list of supplies we used: (These are affiliate links where we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you, Thank you!)

Firmgrip Women's Gloves M - homedepot.sjv.io/gbJ6W2

Firmgrip Duraknit Gloves L - homedepot.sjv.io/mgjR3e

Powerpro 1.25" Screws - https://amzn.to/3A4z4WB

Kreg Pocket Hole Jig - https://amzn.to/3tzBDyt 1.25"

Pocket Hole Screws - https://amzn.to/33G6LBC

Kreg Door Hinge Jig - https://amzn.to/3KjKMkF

12" Bar Clamps - https://amzn.to/3Ia1scA

Leather Sheet - https://amzn.to/3Ij6m7n

26" Drawer Slides - https://amzn.to/3tPUy8H

Inset Door Hinges - https://amzn.to/3FOeon7

CA Glue and Activator - https://www.starbond.com/?rfsn=4627514.f53079 (Use IMEEMADE15 for 15% OFF!)

We used ¾” plywood for the carcass and ½” plywood for the drawers boxes and faces. The overall cabinet dimensions are 96” x 28” x 36” (L x W x H)

To start the project, we cut down all of the pieces and labeled them for easy access. It’s wise to break down full sheets of plywood with a circular saw first because it can be difficult to maneuver large sheets on the table saw.

Then we cut out the toe kick recess (3.5” high x 3” deep) by marking with the combination square and removing the material with a jigsaw.

Once those were cut, we clamped our pocket hole jig onto our worktable and drilled pocket holes on all the stretchers and inside divider pieces

We attached the first side wall with the bottom runners using a square and spring clamps to make sure everything is 90 degrees. Then we attached the other side wall using the same method.

Then we placed the bottom panel on top of the bottom stretchers and screwed them from the top using 1.25” screws

Once the bottom panel was secure, we attached the runners on each corner of the outside walls and screwed in the middle panels to the bottom panel. Then we put the top on and attached it by screwing 1.25” screws through the stretchers.

Once that was done, the carcass is pretty much complete. At this point, we left the middle portion open because we were mulling over what this space would be used for because we didn’t think another set of drawers were necessary. We were torn between keeping it open to house the shop vac, and other larger tools/supplies. While we tried to figure that out, we started assembling the drawers.

The drawers don’t use any special joinery, just butt joints with wood glue and brad nails. 

Once the drawer boxes were done, we installed the drawer slides onto the carcass.

We used scrap pieces of wood as spacers to position the sliders in the correct position. For this build, we positioned the spacers 4” from the bottom panel, then 11” from the top of the first slider, 6” from the second and 3” from the third. In a nutshell, we placed the 4” spacer on the bottom panel and placed the slider on top then attached it to the wall with the provided hardware, then placed the 11” spacer on top of the slider, placed the slider on top of the spacer and secured the second slider. And so on.

Once the drawer slides were attached to the carcass, we positioned the drawer boxes in place with a scrap piece of wood clamped to the front of the box to mimic the face so we can butt up the receiving end of the sliders and screwed it in.

With all the drawer boxes installed, we attached the drawer face. We used paint sticks to make sure we have a consistent edge all around then secured them with brad nails making sure to shoot the nails into the side panel of the drawer boxes so the nails don’t poke through. 

Then we finally decided to close the center space – we cut a piece to fit the center section and secured it with pocket holes. 

Obviously, you can install this piece at any time, it doesn't have to be here at Step 9.

Using our kreg jig, we drilled the recess and then installed the door hinges. Mounting the doors was pretty straight forward and the hinges have a lot of adjustment so we can fine tune the position. Each hardware manufacture have slightly different installation instructions, so just follow whatever is provided. The cutlist uses dimensions for inset doors.

We added a door stopper using a scrap piece of plywood about 3 inches long, and used CA glue and activator from Starbond for a quick and easy solution.

To finish everything up, we cut 1” wide strips from a piece of leather left over from our van build and made a quick jig for the drill press, so we can drill holes through the leather.

Then we folded the strips to make a simple loop and screwed them into the drawer faces. And that’s it!

Before we had a huge mess with tools and supplies all over the place and now we have this awesome workbench with 8 super deep drawers and some shelf space to give a home to all of our stuff when we’re not using them. 

Thank you for reading our Instructable!

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