On Friday, January 29, 2021 at 9:41:28 AM UTC-5, Jack wrote:
On 1/27/2021 11:43 AM, Leon wrote:

I don't think wrist height will even come into play unless she will be
using a hand plane and or chisels. Staining will be all different
heights so no height will be correct or incorrect.

Everything has a different ideal height, so the only perfect height is
an adjustable one. Finishing kitchen cabs is not the same as finishing a
mantle clock. If you don't want "perfect" for each task, then the best
imo is table saw height.

So 30" is dinner table height. Test there. 36" is kitchen counter
height, and test there.

All my bench's are a tad under 37". When I built my main work bench in
1975, I built it the same height as my Table saw for use as an in-feed
table. Years later I moved into another house, and it had a "bench"
around the walls of half the shop. The height was slightly under
37",perfect for a "wing" extension support on my Tsaw. A few years later
my kids bought me a steel 13 drawer mechanics work bench with a maple
top. It is just under 37", perfect for my Tsaw out feed table.

Other than my original workbench, this height was totally unplanned, but
works fine for me.This to me means the people building my steel
mechanics bench, and the guy that built the wood "bench" around the
walls of my garage, and the guy that built my original tsaw bench were
ALL uncannily on the same page.

The correct answer to me then is the same height as her table saw. Also,
the standard height of a kitchen counter is 36". That would also be the
correct height for a workbench unless the person has special
circumstances, as in project specific or other issues like wheel chair,
or super short/tall person, or of course owns a tsaw.

This made me chuckle:

"The correct answer to me then is the same height as her table saw".

Her table saw? I just bought her her first drill for Christmas. ;-)

As I said in my OP: "The person I have in mind is not a woodworker. She
knows which end of a screwdriver to use, but she might not always use
the right bit. ;-)"

IOW, she's just getting started with tools, home repairs, etc. The workbench
is merely to give her a convenient, dedicated place to keep her tools, stir some
paint, maybe fix a broken shelf (eventually).

As far as the user's height, she's barely 5'1", so kitchen cabinet height might
be a little too tall.

I've decided to go with this style and I cut the front legs such that the workbench
top will be at 32". If that is too short, all it will take is the removable of a few screws
and 2 new front legs. The back will simply slide up the rear supports to match the
new front height. Even easier would be to remove the top, add some height to the
benchtop frame itself and screw the top back down.

https://i.imgur.com/rL5d5SV.jpg

The parts are cut and hopefully it will be assembled tonight. She lives about 2.5
hours away. I'm bringing a spare 2 x 4 so I can make taller front legs immediately
if need be.