My dad impressed upon me early on the truism that every good woodshop needs a good bench. As I was just setting up my shop, a fortuitous sale at my local Woodcrafters helped me set aside my Ikea driven pre-conceived notions that all Swedish wood products are a pile of hot garbage, and I splurged on Sjobergs workbench.

Knowing what I know now, I would have built my own workbench and saved some money, but it’s kind of hard to build a bench when you don’t already have one. A bit of a chicken and egg problem.

The build process was smooth, producing a quality bench without any of the familiar Ikea construction rage.

The top was made from thick, bulletproof maple and there were variable locations where you could seat the dual vises, which I found over time to be super useful. Something to keep in mind whether you are building or buying.

As the bench came together, I pondered over the mysterious holes in the top, not knowing they would be the future homes to bench dogs, holdfasts, and other benchtop curiousities that still lurked just past the limits of my knowledge.

A bench is the heart of a woodshop, the seed from which all future projects will flow. Make sure you buy or build a good one. It will serve you well.