Modern Park Bench

Assemble the two 72" rails with the five 21" crosspieces — glue every joint, two of the longer screws per joint. Five crosspieces on a six-foot bench is the anti-sag budget; space them evenly.

Attach the front and back legs to the seat frame with glue and THREE screws per joint. This is the bench's highest-leverage connection — every sit levers the legs against these screws, which is why this joint alone gets the third screw.

Set each arm on top of its front leg and tie it into the taller back leg — glue, two screws per joint. Check the arms are level with each other; on a bench, mismatched arms read instantly.

Screw the short stretchers between the bottom of each leg pair, glue and two screws per joint. Their job is exactly what the plan says: they stop the legs splaying under load.

Center the 69" stretcher between the two leg assemblies, low, and attach with two screws per end. It ties the ends into one frame — the difference between a bench and two chairs holding hands.

Attach the three backrest supports with glue and two screws per joint — ends and center. These set the back's angle; dry-fit a back board and sit against it before the glue grabs if you want to fine-tune the lean.

Lay the 1x6 seat and back boards with even gaps and screw down with the shorter screws, two per joint. Sand the arm tops and the seat's front edge until they're kind to skin, then finish exterior-grade.

Place it where the afternoon light lands, and accept that it will become the most-photographed thing in the yard.