What's the BEST height for a Workbench? 

As a retired bench joiner with a knackered back I have always had a high bench ie about wrist hight it's painful working on a low bench my advice is go as high as you can work at it for a good time and adjust to suit

Thanks for this well thought out discussion. I really wish I would have had this when I was looking to buy my bench 7 years ago. It is a Lie Nielsen bench and delivered it was over $3,000 and it is too low. Yes, I have boots I can install but it pisses me off. As such, I've spent an abnormal amount of time digging into this. I will end up buying a taller bench and selling off my LN bench. Fortunately, I will likely get most if not all of my money back. Paul Sellers (5'10 or 11" tall) has blogged about his bench. He makes his to 39". I'm 6' and will likely make mine to 40" (or buy another one). Speaking of building a bench, I want a second bench in my garage so that I can keep my sharpening stones (messy water stones - long story), do my finishing (longish times between coats so a second bench helpful while I start the next project), and one my daughter can work at if I am on the primary bench. I think the English jointers bench is the way to go. Of the various sub designs, Rex Kruger found one that was popular 100 years ago that is super simple to build and that is likely what I will build. I could certainly make a fancy bench but I want to spend more time on the furniture than the bench. Also, if I build it quickly, I will not feel as reluctant to drive a screw into the bench top if needed. Kind of like having a beater car for going to the bad part of town, sporting event parking etc. Will build this bench and given it a good run on the height before I order my next bench for sure. To be fair, I had not good way of knowing what height to go with. It's annoying but fixable. Having worked at the bench for seven years, when it comes time to do the fine joinery, I simply sit at a stool to get closer to the work. That really has helped my back and neck so that they don't bother me anymore.

Great, sensible approach to a confusing issue for an enthusiastic, but unexperienced woodorker such as myself. Because my shed has no power, I only work with handtools, and planing to size after resawing is the most time consuming aspect of all my projects. When I built my first (and current) workbench this was the aspect I considered, so I took a handplane in the house and checked my positioning on all the different heights of tables and countertops, and ended up with a workbench wrist high. Just like Paul's, it is rather low for joinery, and I do not really have the space for a barstool, which I think would be a rather comfortable alternative. Due to my pre-existing back issues, I am now considering a multi-functional mini-workbench. I think it will be a fun build and a good use for the scraps that I am going to be left with after finishing this year's Christmas gifts. Thank you for the video!

Practical cheap workbench. 1) find used solid sideboard with at least 3 drawers. 2) buy solid beech Island unit counter top. 3) screw one to the other. 4) and any vice u like 5) take out drawers, drill holes in top for holdfasts and stops. 6) fill cupboards with all your tools/ crap It's cheap, has storage and is a bit high but not too bad for average height UK man

Another thing that needs consideration is that the average height of the population at the turn of the 19th century was quite a few inches shorter than it is today when referring to historical reference books

My bench I can rest my palm on top of it standing aside the bench with my arm at my side. So it is pretty low. But I found that doing joinery it is too low for that so I made a moxon vise that I clamp on top of the bench. That vise is pretty tall and it brings the work right up. Whatever you put on your bench is going to add height.

Tks. Learning a lot from you! Off-topic, i noticed the baby oil on your bench. What are you using it for?

My bench is at 38". I am 5'9" and I find it to be too tall for me. Especially when planing the edge of a pretty wide board in the vise. I will try 36" because that is about wrist height for me. Thanks for the video! It is funny that after all these books being written about workbenches, the answer to perfect bench height really is "it depends". How are you going to sell books with that answer?