there's a gigantic thread on this subject somewhere
ZICK's has listed one large thread and here is another large thread
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=464&page=48&highlight=show+workbench
I started using BING as a search engine and really like it as it shows up more than some of the other search engines. But anyways, go to
www.bing.com and click on "Images" then in the search block, type in Workbenches or just workbench. You have all sorts of styles to look at.
As far as my workbench, I have been through a few in the years I've had my garage. In doing so, I have found out what works and what doesn't work. For myself, I hate to stoop or get on my knees to find something. Arthritis has taken it's toll on me over the years. And combined with that, I hate having something on the floor that dirt collects around or underneath. So my benches have legs that go down at an angle to support the bend top. I have a clear floor underneath and no legs or no underneath cabinet to collect trash underneath. Everything I have I can have out of the garage in a couple of minutes other than the air compressor, my mill, and my lathe. All of my storage is overhead. My countertops are just the factory countertop with the built in backsplash that you can get at Lowes. It's adequate room, but to be truthful, it's not deep enough.
Before that I had cabinets and overhead cabinets that I made. I bought a bunch of doors and built around that. For the overheads, I used 1x12's for the box, and I used 1x3's for the facing. The lowers were made from a 2x4 frame, and as the above cabinets, I used 1x3's for the facing frames.
I eventually gave all of those to a friend of mine that didn't have cabinets along with a gas furnace for his garage. I took a different route on mine. I bought 18 Gladiator overhead cabinets then arranged them all down one wall. That is where I made the bench with legs angled back to the wall and foundation top blocks. No storage at all underneath. It all gets stored in the top cabinets. If per chance you do make your own, try to design things so that your top is 30" deep, it's at a height that suits you, and for storage, if you want underneath storage, build it and hang it underneath the top, but only make them 1' deep. You will have an area behinf the cabinets, but pull the cabinets out towards the front and still have a small over hang for the countertop and make the ends the full length. No one will know about the foot or so of wasted space behind. The reason I say to make them like that is because if you make the lowers 2' or more deep, things tend to get hidden and forgot about. Or with that dead space behind the cabinet and underneath the top.....cut out a portion of the top, add a hinge, add a shelf behind the lowers. Then you can lift up the hinged top section and have a nice storage area there, or a nice hiding place if you keep the joints tight enough when closed. Just an idea
