DIY Mortise and Tenon 2×4 Bench

DIY Mortise and Tenon 2×4 Bench

I built this bench with a few changes to the plan. I don’t have a pocket hole jig and prefer traditional joinery so I went with mortise and tenon joints for the back slats, arm rests, and lower support braces. The seat slats are each held in place with blind dowels and the frame used through dowels. I am rather tall at 6’4″ so I raised the arm rests by 1 1/2″ using some riser blocks to make it more comfortable (I think even for average height, the plan has the arm rests too low).

Since I used cheap framing lumber, I wasn’t happy with the appearance of the natural wood with all of its flaws so I chose to paint it white. I like the design but if I were to do it again, I would have put the back at an angle to improve overall comfort. Overall, I am happy with the result. This thing is built like a tank and should last a long time. I didn’t think to take more pictures during the build process so there’s not much

By Troy

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