# Harbor Freight 60" Hardwood Workbench w/4 Drawers



## rogerpjr

I was looking for a decent bench on which to put my daughter's new Delta 46-460 12" Midi Lathe. I checked the local Craig's List and Harbor Freight for a tool chest or work bench and came up with the Harbor Freight 60" hardwood workbench with four drawers.  Their Item Number is 93454.  Another post by bking0217 in Casual Conversations talked about him using one of these and thinking it was pretty good.  The local HF didn't have any of the benches on display, but based on his comments and the reviews on the HF site, I bought one today.  The regular price is $199.99, but it goes on sale frequently for $159.99.  It is on sale for $139.99 for the Veterans Day weekend.  Here's a link to the workbench:  http://www.harborfreight.com/60-inch-solid-oak-workbench-93454.html

It took quite a while to unpack all the individually bubble wrapped parts and make six trips to the basement from the garage.  What I found was one of the better buys at HF.  It took me about two hours to assemble by myself.  It would go quicker and a little easier with a helper as their instructions tell you.  Although it is not the highest quality wood, it was a very good buy for the money.  I make furniture and cabinents off and on, and I could not even come close to making the bench for the price they asked and the time to assemble it.  It is very sturdy and easily supports the Delta Midi with one bed extension attached.  The top is actually only about 1" thick but it appears to be about 2" in the pictures as there is a framework around the edges of the top.  The finish is pretty good.  There is also a fairly low quality vise on one end, but you can leave it off if you wanted.  I put it on as who knows if it would come in handy later.

I had printed the instruction manual off the HF site and it was easier to read than the small size one supplied.  It also seemed to be worded differently and the pictures weren't exactly the same, but either one would work.  The instructions were pretty clear and easy to follow.  There were no missing parts and even a couple spare nut/bolt sets were included.  The only tool I used besides the included hex key was a cordless screwdriver as there were about sixty screws to install.  You could do it with a standard hand screwdriver, but who does that if they don't have to.  

The drawer slides are fairly low quality ball bearing type and unfortunately the drawers only open about half way, but they will do.  The drawer bottoms are almost 1/2" thick and are covered in dark green felt.  I did find that I had to remove the bottom piece from the legs and cut six inches off each leg and re-attach the bottom to get the Delta lathe to a comfortable working height.  There is a full length & width shelf on the lower part of the leg assembly.  I'm planning to add a small cabinet and/or drawers to the bottom to make the space more usefull to me.

All in all, it is a very good buy and well worth the purchase price.


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## bking0217

Glad you like it. I have no complaints about mine at all.


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## Chthulhu

I was tempted by this one at my local Harbor Freight yesterday. It seems quite solidly constructed, but currently don't have the room for a 60" bench that begs for an open space. 

Their 42" metal workbench is a wobbly joke, so rather than spend $99.95 on that I spent $60 today at Home Depot and bought some lumber and a big box of screws. It won't be pretty, but it will be solid, with plenty of room for my lathe and a couple of other things, plus it'll be at *my* working height.


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## Miles42

I went for this one also easy to assemble and great for the price.


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## flyitfast

Hope all of you that got the HF wood bench used a 20% off coupon...:biggrin:
gordon


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## scotirish

*I bought one to mount my DVR XP lathe on.  I beefed up the supports a bit and have had no problem with vibration.  :tongue::tongue:  Drawers make a handy place to store the chuck's in, close at hand for use.  It is long enough that the 20" extension does not need to be supported on the end.  :biggrin::biggrin:
Ron*


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## dbledsoe

I bought the same workbench, and I agree with everything you said. My only complaint is the drawers not pulling out very far. I use mine as a workbench behind me when I am at my lathe. I raised it up about 3 inches to a more reasonable height.


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## ghostrider

I'm currently in the (extended) process of building my own. I liked the HG bench enough, but like the other poster, 60" won't fit in my space. After collecting all the wood and hardware for the one I'm building, and shopping around, I do believe that that bench is a pretty good deal for what you get. I've been fortunate to not have to buy all my lumber, but have still spent enough to be competitive with the HF bench, and I don't have per-drilled dog holes, a vise, hardwood, and drawers. All I'm getting is a bench with a lower shelf. I agree with the OP that by the time you purchase hardware and materials, you couldn't build one for what they charge. 





Chthulhu said:


> I was tempted by this one at my local Harbor Freight yesterday. It seems quite solidly constructed, but currently don't have the room for a 60" bench that begs for an open space.
> 
> Their 42" metal workbench is a wobbly joke, so rather than spend $99.95 on that I spent $60 today at Home Depot and bought some lumber and a big box of screws. It won't be pretty, but it will be solid, with plenty of room for my lathe and a couple of other things, plus it'll be at *my* working height.



Don't know if it's of interest to you, but just in case, I found this.

Getting Started in Woodworking: More Woodworking Basics for Beginners

and this one is way cool I'm actually thinking of building mine so that I can use the pipe clamps, or at least add them in the future:

New-Fangled Workbench, Revisited - Fine Woodworking Video


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## cagey44

We bought 3 of these for the new workshop we are setting up. They are great but we ran into problems with the drawer slides just not working right on one. I guess for the price one can't complain too much.


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## randyrls

From the photos, it looks like the drawers have standard slides on them.  I'm sure you could get full extension slides from Rockler.


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## NotURMailman

I got the same bench when it was on sale and was also able to use a 20% off coupon. I think it is great for the price. Has my lathe and scroll saw on it. The fit on the drawers is kind of poor, but it was around $100, so I'm not complaining. I do agree that the assembly instructions were horrid!


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## Dalepenkala

Yup got 2 of these benches.  I back to backed them bolted them together and added a 2x6 support between the two and makes a great setup!


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## DDrag50

I've had mine about two years now. Use as a desk - reloading bench. 
Love it!


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## Jim Burr

Hmmm...sometimes old threads are worth a resurrection!! In need of one and this looks like a good deal!


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## Janster

..I too have one at it very nice and sturdy! Great price too! Be well......Jan


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## Haynie

Thanks for the review.  I have been wanting a bench and this is cheaper than building one.  Even if I have it shipped I still save money.  The price of lumber here is stupid.

How is the vice?


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## Janster

Haynie said:


> Thanks for the review.  I have been wanting a bench and this is cheaper than building one.  Even if I have it shipped I still save money.  The price of lumber here is stupid.
> 
> How is the vice?



.I've only used the vice a few times and it works quite nicely! Be well.....Jan


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## Dalepenkala

I have 2 of these benches and will be getting at least 1 more and possibly 2. For the money you can't beat them. I did the coupon thing too and got mine for about 119.00. Just a tip check out the clearance and scratch and dent section.  I have seen these benches with open boxes and dents go for under a hundred bucks!


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## Fay Prozora

Wow! That is a nice bench and it would be perfect for me. I will be setting up a new shop over at my sister's place but the shop at her place used to belong to my uncle and it hasn't been used in years. His benches are much too high for me and he was a tall man. I need mine to be at least 35" high for me to be able to use my lathe and this bench would be great. We don't have a HF over here  but they have benches at Home Depot that I can look at and get some ideas there. I miss making pens and we have to be out of this house in a week so we are in the process of moving what we can of ours and Mom's  things out. I like the idea of the drawers, but I would get the full slides for the drawers to use instead of those that come with it... Thanks for the ideas.. Fay


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## Rosewood

I have looked at my local HF. It seemed a little flimsy. Must be the way it was put together by a store employee,who neither cared ,nor knew how. Me thinks I must take another look.


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## donnalleyd

I got this bench on the latest deal.  One thing I did was glued all of the joints with wood glue.  It is solid a a rock now.  The only disadvantage I see is the holes that empty onto the top drawers.  I just added some tape and it was all better.


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## Sandsini

donnalleyd said:


> I got this bench on the latest deal.  One thing I did was glued all of the joints with wood glue.  It is solid a a rock now.  The only disadvantage I see is the holes that empty onto the top drawers.  I just added some tape and it was all better.


I took the pegs that come with it and cut the round portion off and glued that into the holes. I got tired of all the wood and acrylic turnings ending up in the drawers... 

Other than that, its a good sturdy bench.


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## Chuck Key

I received a batch of Labor Day weekend coupons from Harbor Freight in email yesterday.  $134.99 with coupon for this bench thru 9/1/2014.


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## pesto126

Its a nice table.. I got it for just over $100 last year... was on sale and the cashier also gave me 20% off using their coupon (came off somehow even though it was on sale)... barely fit into my SUV and took 2 folks to carry in/out... should have purchased 2 for that price!


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## CaptainJane

*Can you make this bench less tall easily?*

Hello all

I am about to join your ranks, and buy my first lathe.  I am a novice model ship builder, and want to use the lathe eventually to add more detail to my models.  Pens look like a great way to acquire some skills, and have a ton of fun too.

I plan to buy a Jet 1221 VS (unless someone here can convince me something else is better), and need a bench or stand to put the lathe on.  I am 5'-06" tall, so the Harbor Freight bench may be a little too tall.

Is it difficuly to shorten the legs on this bench?
What is involved?

I work on ships out of the country, and am home for only 3-1/2 week spurts, so I do not have time for much DIY fabrication.  I am trying to do my shopping from afar, so I wil be ready when I get home this time or the next.

Thank you in advance for your replies.

JBS


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## Skie_M

I wish I could afford one of these nice work benches ....  Instead, I bought what I could afford:

Folding/Clamping Workbench

This is very lightweight construction and I thought it might be too flimsy for me to really use, so I had planned to buy two of them and connect them together with a single top.  As it turns out, it's actually quite sturdy, and supports my Harbor Freight mini wood lathe with no issues whatsoever.  

I went out to the local building supply center and found that they had some scrap laminate countertop left over from someone's kitchen remodel and I paid 5 dollars for a roughly 6 square foot section that would handily fit on top the work table.  This provided me with a strong inch thick table top with waterproof laminate for my work surface.  

I flipped the bench over in my living room and put the piece of countertop upside down under it and screwed 3/4" by 1" by 6" wood cleats to the underside of the countertop and used the built-in clamps of the work bench to cam against them and provide a sturdy work surface that won't shift.

Thus, if I loosen the clamps a little bit, I can pop the bench's top off and put it away and fold the bench to put that away too .... perfect for takeaway demonstration setup.  The leg struts hold many of my lathe accessories, and my lathe tools come with a travel pack that can roll up.  A 5-gallon bucket packed with blanks, mandrels, chucks, tools, and some kits and it's an easy 4 trips out to the car and away I go.

Looks like that lil bench is on sale again .... 19 bucks!

(The other bench I bought I still have ... it now sports a 7-inch wet-cut diamond tile saw.)


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