Rustic Garden Bench

This Instructable will show you how to make this rustic garden bench, This was designed to create multiple seating solutions whilst being simple to construct with minimal tools and made from reclaimed timber. Enjoy.

I was recently given three large shipping pallets, which were due to be burned until I rescued them and thought they would make brilliant heavy duty rustic benches. I wont go into the detail but lets just say they were very difficult to take apart.

Once this was done I used the straightest boards I could find to make the first bench, as I currently don't have a jointer. These were the cut to size using my chop saw for the smaller boards and my circular saw for the top.

Each bench is consists off,

X1 Top - 900mm long x 190mm width x 40mm thick.

X1 Support - 750mm long x 90mm width x 40mm thick.

X2 Legs - 450mm long x 90mm width x 40mm thick.

Once all of the boards were cut to size it was time to assemble the first bench. I started by connecting the legs and the support together first to make a H frame. I did this to make it easier to position the top in place before final assembly. The support is positioned 150mm from the floor to make a rigid frame.

Getting the top of the bench in the right place was the most challenging part, just take care to mark out exactly where you want it to go first and then glue and screw, It would have helped if I had clamps long enough. I set the top 50mm in from each end to give a nice overhang.

The next step is to repeat the process until you have two benches, I connected them together with a stainless steel bracket. This holds them together really well but I think I might add another in the future.

Connecting the two benches together to from an L shape, really helps to give it more rigidity as one bench on its own was a bit unstable and had a tendency to tilt.

Once this was done I sanded down lightly using some 100grit sandpaper, this is a rustic bench after all. It was so surprising once I had gotten rid of the dirt and grime how nice the grain was underneath. Love using reclaimed timber.

I applied two coats of brown outdoor furniture stain, to protect the bench. You would never know that this was made from some shipping pallets that were salvaged from becoming firewood.

Really happy with how this has turned out, I personally love making furniture from reclaimed materials and giving it a new purpose. I hope this has inspired you to give it a try.

Appreciate any comments that you have and would love to see any other examples you might have made.

Thanks.

Happy Making.