I am playing around with the idea of doing a workbench that can be disassembled, using pinned mortise and tenon joints. I haven't found anything that could be used where two spans meet at a corner (leg) and be able to pin each one with a removeable pin.
I had a bit of a play around in Sketchup today and below is what I came up with – but I really want to know if this method would weaken the joins to the point where it's not worth doing?
The idea is that the pin on the end of the component on the right would pin the component on the left, therefore to assemble you would first slide the tenon on the left in, then the tenon on the right, then the pin through the tenon on the right to hold it all in place. Disassembly would be in the exact reverse.
Note that the pin to go through the hole on the component on the right is missing, but would have to be something that was either wedged or other to ensure it didn't move.
Also note that these will be 2×4 hardwood, for strength considerations.
Best Answer
I'd be worried about the wood splitting, especially in the beam on the right. That's only an inch or so of material to hold it firm.
If you disassemble the workbench then the largest piece will be the surface so you only need to keep the rest smaller than that. So I suggest assembling the short side permanently.
Then you can use a dado joint to attach the long beams and use a through dowel to be able to put a wedge in.