Plywood Sawhorse Plans: A Knock-Down Pair from One Sheet
Two knock-down sawhorses that slot together with no hardware and come apart flat for storage. Each horse is a 32" beam and two tapered legs. The pair comes from one 4×8 sheet of 3/4" plywood, with plenty left over for a third beam or a set of support blocks.
- Finished size
- 32" L × 23-1/2" W × 28" H (each)
- 3/4" plywood, 4×8 ft
- 1 sheet · 67% yield
Assumptions behind every number
- 3/4" plywood measures 23/32", which is typical for US sheet goods. Parts that fit between two others subtract the actual thickness. Measure your sheet; if it differs, edit the sizes in the optimizer.
- Every layout uses a 1/8" saw kerf on every cut, run through the same optimizer as the app.
Cut list
3/4" plywood, 4×8 ft
| Part | Qty | Width × Length | How it's sized |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beam two 3/4" × 3-1/2" slots from the bottom | 2 | 7" × 32"(grain locked) | one per horse |
| Leg blank one 3/4" × 3-1/2" slot from the top; taper to 12" at the top | 4 | 23 1/2" × 28"(grain locked) | two per horse |
Width × length is in inches, with length along the face grain. Parts marked "grain locked" are kept with the grain running their length in the layout.
Sheet and board layouts
This is the optimizer's output for exactly this list: 1 sheet of 3/4" plywood, 4×8 ft.
3/4" plywood, 4×8 ft: 1 sheet, 67% yield
Materials list
- 1 sheet of 3/4" plywood, 4×8 ft
- None. The joints are slotted. Optional: a 2x4 screwed on top of each beam as a sacrificial cutting rail
How it goes together
Each beam is 7" × 32" with two slots cut up from the bottom edge, 3.5" deep, centred 4" in from each end. Each leg is a 23-1/2" × 28" blank with one slot cut down from the top, centred and 3.5" deep. The two slot depths add up to the 7" beam height, so the beam sits flush with the leg tops.
Cut the slots 3/4" wide. With plywood that actually measures 23/32", that is a snug slip fit with 1/32" play. If your plywood measures a full 3/4", cut the slots 25/32".
Taper each leg after cutting the blank: mark 5-3/4" in from each top corner and cut down to the bottom corners, leaving a 12" wide top and a 23-1/2" wide foot. Cut a hand-hold in the beam if you like. The cut list shows the blanks.
Build order
- Cut two 7" × 32" beams and four 23-1/2" × 28" leg blanks.
- Lay out and cut the slots with a jigsaw or a bandsaw: two per beam from the bottom, one per leg from the top.
- Taper the legs and ease every edge.
- Test-fit and pare the slots until the joints slide together with firm hand pressure.
FAQ
How many sawhorses can you make from one sheet of plywood?
A pair of these with room to spare. The four leg blanks and two beams use about two-thirds of the sheet (see the layout for exact yield), and the leftover holds a third beam.
Are plywood sawhorses strong enough?
Loaded on edge, 3/4" plywood is very stiff, so a 7"-deep beam over a 24" span carries full sheets and long boards without trouble. The weak point is a sloppy slot. Cut snug, and do not cut the slots deeper than half the beam height.
What saw kerf does the layout assume?
A 1/8" kerf on every cut, which is a standard full-kerf table saw or track saw blade. With a thin-kerf blade the parts still fit; you just get slightly bigger offcuts.
Change a size, add a part or use up offcuts. The optimizer re-nests it in seconds.
Open this plan in EZNESTING →