Build a picnic table

The classic 6 ft table with attached benches. Seats six and lasts for years outside.

This fits in a car

About 266 lb of materials. Comfortably inside what a car carries (200 lb), so any shopper can take it.

Before you start

Wear a dust mask when cutting pressure-treated lumber and wash your hands before eating. Safety glasses on the saw, and get help lifting the finished table — it is over 200 lb.

What to buy — untick anything you have

Lumber

5 Pressure-treated 2×6, 12 ft12 ft boards will not fit in a car. Ask the cut station to cut each one in half to 72 in.
4 Pressure-treated 2×6, 8 ft
1 Pressure-treated 2×4, 8 ft

Hardware

12 Galvanized carriage bolt, 3/8 × 5 in, with nut and washer
1 box of exterior screws, 3 in (1 lb)

Tools — already ticked off, since most people have them

Tools

1 Circular saw· most people have this
1 Cordless drill· most people have this
1 Drill bit, 3/8 in· most people have this
1 Socket wrench· most people have this
1 Speed square· most people have this
1 pair of bar clamps· most people have this
1 Dust mask and safety glasses· most people have this

It lands in the shopping form, where you can edit anything and say what you think each thing costs. Nothing is ordered until you send it.

How it goes · about a weekend · some experience

Print a standard 6 ft picnic table plan for the leg angles, and cut every piece before assembling anything.
Build the two leg frames: two angled legs clamped between a top cleat and a seat support, drilled through and bolted.
Stand the frames up 5 ft apart and screw the five top boards across the cleats with a nail-width gap between.
Screw the seat boards to the seat supports, two per side, then add the two diagonal braces underneath.
Sand off splinters on every edge people will touch, and let it dry out for a couple of months before staining it.