DIY: Scaffold Table

Determine the height your scaffold table will need to be. In workbench mode, the tabletop is most convenient at waist height; if this measurement also allows you to reach your ceilings when standing on the tabletop, it is the correct height.

Use a circular or hand saw to cut eight lengths of 2-inch-by-6-inch (nominal) wood to the lengths necessary to support the tabletop at the desired height. Throughout this project use pine framing wood, most often sold in the decking aisle of home improvement warehouses and lumber yards; a scaffold table need not be highly decorative, and this wood strikes a good balance between cost and strength. These legs need to be cut longer than the tabletop’s actual height, because they will be deployed at an angle; between 65 and 75 degrees is recommended. Cut the bottoms of the legs at an angle so that, when used, they rest squarely on the floor.

Cut out the panel that will serve as the tabletop. This wood must be sufficiently strong to support your bodyweight plus all the tools and materials you will be using for projects; balance this consideration against the eventual weight of the scaffold table, which you will need to move from storage to project locations. 3/4-inch plywood is typically used for building subfloors, so is ideal for a scaffold tabletop. The usual size is approximately 20 inches wide; the length must be at least one inch greater than twice the height of the legs.

Make a rim beneath all four lower edges of the tabletop; the rim discourages flexing and imparts strength. Use 2-inch-by-6-inch (nominal) wood, and attach the wider side to the underside of the table top. First measure, cut and fix the longer sides, then repeat for the shorter sides so they fit between the ends of the longer pieces. To attach the rim, drill and countersink holes through the table 2 inches in from the edges and approximately 8 inches apart. Lay the table top on the rims, using proprietary wood glue between the two surfaces, then use an electric drill fitted with a driver attachment to drive 2-inch screws through the tabletop into the rims.

Measure the distance between the inside of the two longer rims. Cut four pieces of 2-by-4 (nominal) wood a 1/2-inch less than that length; these are the crowns of your leg assemblies. Lay out one leg assembly on the floor, with the two legs parallel and one crown bridging one end; the crown must be above -- not between -- the two legs. Use proprietary wood glue between the joints, then clamp the assembly together with sash cramps.

Measure the distance between the insides of legs of the semi-assembled leg structures. Cut four pieces of 2-by-4 (nominal) wood to that length; these are the braces for your leg assemblies. Again using wood glue, fit one brace between the legs of the semi-assembled leg structure, locating it two-thirds of the way down from the crown. Use another sash cramp to hold the joints together.

Use steel reinforcing plates on both sides of all four butt joints when the glue has set; these are commonly available in multipacks in the decking aisle of home improvement warehouses. Because the scaffold table will be baring considerable weight when in use, it is vital to mechanically reinforce these joints; simply driving screws through one piece of wood into another is insufficient.

Repeat the process of building the leg structures until all four assemblies are complete. Join them in pairs, using two heavy-duty 4-inch hinges screwed to the insides of the crown timbers of each pair. Locate the hinges 2 inches inwards from the outside of each crown and use 2-inch screws.

Assemble the scaffold table so that the top rests neatly on the two hinged pairs of leg assemblies, with the legs between the long tabletop rims and the crowns tucked firmly up against the short rims. Screw a further two pairs of hinges to the insides of each pair of legs, joining the crowns to the underside of the tabletop. These hinges hold the legs in place when working, and allow them to be folded closed inside the rims for storage.

Fix securing chains between the legs, pulled tight when in the 65- to 75-degree open position. The staff in the hardware aisles of home improvement warehouses are able to advise on the necessary gauge and appropriate fasteners.