Modern Five-Board Bench

Stack and screw each leg set per the diagram — the tall back leg with three 16-1/2" supports — using three screws per joint. Three, not two: a two-screw joint in wide 2x6 faces can still pivot; three triangulate it dead.

Build the second set clamped against the first, matching edge for edge. Identical leg sets are the entire structural story of this bench.

Stand the leg sets on a flat surface, spaced so the 48" boards land flush at the ends, and screw down the seat slats and the back slat — three screws per joint into each leg set, even gaps between slats.

Sit-test it, touch up the cut ends with stain, and put it by the front door, at the foot of a bed, or against the fence. A design this quiet works everywhere.