On this page you can download the plan for making a simple Aldo Leopold bench, probably one of the simplest ever made.
The bench was designed by Aldo Leopold (1887 – 1948), a famous American author, scientist, ecologist, forester, and environmentalist. Unfortunately, he did not develop a plan for his bench. Leopold’s original benches no longer exist, so they can be reconstructed only according to the remaining pictures. The Aldo Leopold bench is of very simple design and thus easily customized to your needs. You can make it in different sizes, adjust it to children, adjust its dimensions to become a chair, install the armrests...
Dimensions of the completed bench according to our plan are as follows: Height 711mm (28''), Width 674mm (26 9/16'') and Length 1270mm (50'')
For the construction of the bench according to our plan we have used 51mm thick planks (the back can also be made of thin boards). All you need in addition are just the screws. As for the woodworking tools, you need to get a drill and a saw. If you decide to make an Aldo Leopold bench, you can use our plan; if you want to customize the bench to your needs, we hope that this plan will help you to do it well.
All drawings that are needed to make the bench can be found in next two images:
Aldo Leopold bench can be made from a variety of woods: Cypress, Yellow pine, Douglas fir, Cedar, Southern pine, Redwood...
Total bench weight is 30-40kg, depending on the chosen type of wood.