10-01-2009, 10:55 AM
Kevin one trick you might use is to build your bench work as a "kit" where all of the pieces are designed and cut outside of the basement, then you just carry the pieces down and bolt them together in the basement. The problem with having a restriction in your stairwell that limits the size of a part of the bench work that can be carried downstairs while the actual bench work in the basement is not so restricted is that some complicated track that you might not want to straddle a joint may have to straddle the joint if you need to carry the completed bench down the stairs. If you want to use dimensional lumber, the modular club that I belong to has found that poplar is a relatively inexpensive and light weight hardwood that is more dimensionally stable than the typical pine, fir or what Home Depot calls "whitewood" whatever that is.