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Two wide garden benches whose backrests rotate flat and meet in the middle as a picnic tabletop — pinned with bolts you pull and re-seat to transform it.
| Part | Qty | T × W × L | Material | ✓ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Back legs Both ends 10° off square, parallel, long point to short point. These carry the pivot and pin holes. | 4 | 1 1/2" × 3 1/2" × 28 7/8" | — | ☐ |
| Seat supports Short point to short point, both ends 10° off square, NOT parallel. | 4 | 1 1/2" × 3 1/2" × 27" | — | ☐ |
| Front legs Both ends 10° off square, parallel, long point to short point. | 4 | 1 1/2" × 3 1/2" × 16 3/4" | — | ☐ |
| Seat and tabletop boards Three per bench seat, three per tabletop half. | 12 | 1 1/2" × 5 1/2" × 47 7/8" | 2x6 | ☐ |
| Tabletop supports | 4 | 1 1/2" × 5 1/2" × 17" | 2x6 | ☐ |
| Bottom back supports | 2 | 1 1/2" × 3 1/2" × 41" | — | ☐ |
| Item | Qty | ✓ |
|---|---|---|
| 2x6, 8 ft Seats, tabletop boards, and tabletop supports. | 7 each | ☐ |
| 2x4, 8 ft Legs and back supports. | 5 each | ☐ |
| Exterior deck screws, #9 x 2-1/2", star drive | 80 each | ☐ |
| Bolts, 1/2" x 4", with washers and nuts Four pivots, four pins. Galvanized or stainless — these get pulled and re-seated for years. | 8 each | ☐ |
| Exterior wood glue | 8 oz | ☐ |
| Exterior finish | 1 quart | ☐ |
Overall cost: $$. Lumber varies by region, species, and season, so we give a band rather than a figure.
Tools: Tape Measure
Cut list makes TWO benches that convert to ONE picnic table. Before lumber: the source builders found this most comfortable as a bench — the wide seat is great to sit on and slightly awkward to swing legs over in table mode. Mostly-table users should build a conventional picnic table; mostly-bench users are in exactly the right place.
Tools: Drill / Driver, Drill Bit Set, Speed Square. Materials: 2x4, 8 ft
Drill a 1/2" hole centered near the top of all four back legs. Drill straight — these are the axles the whole transformation swings on. A drill press is nice; careful freehand with a speed square sighted from two directions works.
Tools: Drill / Driver, Pencil, Speed Square. Materials: 2x4, 8 ft, Exterior deck screws, #9 x 2-1/2", star drive, Exterior wood glue
Lay a front leg over a back leg's bottom, edges flush, and trace the front leg's top edge — that line locates the seat support. Glue and screw the seat support across both legs with 2-1/2" screws.
Build two with the support on the RIGHT and two on the LEFT. The plan bolds this because someone always builds four identical: each bench needs one of each hand.
Tools: Drill / Driver, Pencil, Tape Measure.
Mark the seat boards 2" from each end (the overhang past the legs), then screw three boards per bench to a left and a right leg assembly, 1/4" gaps, glue and 2-1/2" screws. Square each bench by matching diagonals before the final screws.
Tools: Drill / Driver, Drill Bit Set, Tape Measure. Materials: 2x6, 8 ft, Exterior deck screws, #9 x 2-1/2", star drive, Exterior wood glue
Screw three tabletop boards across a pair of 17" 2x6 tabletop supports, same 1/4" gaps and 2" end overhangs as the seats. Drill a 1/2" hole in each support's lower end to match the back legs' pivot holes — each half will bolt between its bench's back legs.
Tools: Drill / Driver, Drill Bit Set, Hammer, Level. Materials: Bolts, 1/2" x 4", with washers and nuts
Line up each tabletop half's support holes with the back legs' pivot holes, thread the 4" bolts through with washers, and snug the nuts — snug, not crushed; this joint rotates.
Rotate the top flat, clamp it, and lay the level across perpendicular to the boards. Level? Drill a second 1/2" hole through leg and support together and drop in a pin bolt. Both sides. Those in-place holes are why the tabletop will sit flat forever.
Tools: Drill / Driver, Drill Bit Set. Materials: Bolts, 1/2" x 4", with washers and nuts
Pull the pins and rotate each top up into a backrest. SIT IN THE BENCH and adjust the angle until it's genuinely comfortable — this is a decision your back makes, not the plan. Clamp, drill the third hole through leg and support, and pin it.
Converting is now a ten-second job: pull two pins per bench, rotate, re-pin.
Tools: Drill / Driver, Random Orbit Sander. Materials: 2x4, 8 ft, Exterior deck screws, #9 x 2-1/2", star drive, Exterior finish
Screw the 41" bottom back support across the back legs, 6" up from the leg bases, two screws per end — it keeps the legs from splaying under load.
Sand hard (hands grip these edges every conversion), finish exterior-grade, and label the pin holes discreetly if houseguests will be doing the converting. Building longer? The source shows an 8-foot version: full-length boards, a third center leg assembly, and an added back brace.