The Crafting Bench Chain

What is the crafting bench chain?

The crafting bench chain is the set of benches you place from the Mechanic Station Dispenserbot. Each bench has a unique recipe list and visual identity. To craft anything in Scrap Mechanic Survival Mode, you need at least one of these benches placed.

The five benches

Craftbot

The core bench. Yellow robot with a single eye and a long arm. Recipes include:

• Structure parts (wood, metal, plastic)
• Functional parts (seats, batteries, wheels)
• Tools (sledgehammer, water bucket)

Place it first. You cannot craft anything else without it.

Refinery Bot

A smelter-style bot with two chimneys. Converts raw materials into refined materials. Recipes include:

• Raw ore → refined metal
• Raw plastic → refined plastic
• Raw titanium → refined titanium (underground only)

Place it within 5 blocks of the Craftbot. Refined materials are required for almost every advanced recipe.

Cook Bot

A chef-style bot with a chef hat. Turns raw crops into cooked food. Recipes include:

• Cooked Carrot, Cooked Tomato, Cooked Beet
• Cooked Pineapple, Cooked Broccoli (best food in the game)
• Cooked Wheat (rare drop)

Place it within 5 blocks of a Refinery Bot if you want a complete crafting chain.

Dress Bot

A mannequin-style bot. Cosmetic recipes only:

• Paints
• Skins for vehicles
• Decorative blocks

Skip it unless you care about looks. It has no gameplay impact.

Schematicbot

Added in the 1.0 chapter. A scanner bot with a screen on its chest. Unlocks new Craftbot recipes by scanning objects. Recipes include:

• Plasma Drill schematic
• Trash Bot parts
• Digital Clock
• Boombox

Place it within 5 blocks of the Craftbot. It scans objects automatically as you walk near it.

Bench placement rules

• Every bench must be within 5 blocks of the Dispenserbot to be reachable.
• Benches cannot overlap with each other. Leave at least 1 block between them.
• Benches are invincible. Bots cannot destroy them.
• Benches do not need power. They run on the same infinite energy as the Dispenserbot.

Bench order recommendations

Most players place the benches in this order:

1. Craftbot — first, always.
2. Refinery Bot — second, for refined materials.
3. Cook Bot — third, for cooked food.
4. Dress Bot — fourth, cosmetic.
5. Schematicbot — last, after you have at least one Schematic item.

Advanced bench automation

The controllers and sensors system lets you automate every bench. Common patterns:

• A Conveyor belt from a Refinery Bot to a chest, wired to a motion sensor.
• A Cook Bot triggered by a timer that cooks every harvested crop automatically.
• A Schematicbot linked to a Raycast sensor that scans items as you walk past.

For the broader context on how automation fits into the survival loop, see the controllers and sensors guide.

What comes after the five benches

The 1.0 chapter adds a hidden sixth bench inside the underground: the Ore Crusher. It processes raw ore into refined metal faster than the Refinery Bot and is required for titanium processing. See the underground mining page for details.