ZED ZONE Crafting: Workbenches and Parts
ZED ZONE crafting in 1.0: the eight workbenches, the material chain, ammo press recipes, repair kits, and the order to unlock each station.
ZED ZONE has more than two hundred craftable items, and almost all of them are gated behind a workstation. You cannot craft a rifle scope at a campfire, and you cannot make gunpowder without a chemical bench. The crafting system is a chain of stations, each one unlocking the next tier.
This guide covers the station chain, the materials each tier needs, and the recipes worth prioritising.
Official source: ZED ZONE on Steam ↗
If a recipe is missing, the problem is usually the bench, not the materials. Build the next bench before farming a rare component.
The station chain
| Station | Tier | Unlocks |
|---|---|---|
| Campfire | 1 | Light, warmth, basic cooking |
| Cooking hob | 2 | Clean water, meals, biofuel |
| Stone furnace | 2 | Smelting, metal parts, glass |
| Simple workbench | 2 | Basic tools, repairs |
| Planting pot | 2 | Farming |
| Advanced workbench | 3 | Advanced gear and stations |
| Ammo press | 3 | Ammunition |
| Simple lathe | 3 | Precision parts |
| Chemical bench | 4 | Explosives, fuel, advanced materials |
| Pharmaceutical bench | 4 | Medicine and potions |
| Canning machine | 4 | Long-life food |
| Mold workbench | 4 | Specialised parts |
Build in this order. Skipping the furnace to rush the advanced workbench leaves you without the metal parts the bench needs.
Materials
The core materials are:
- Wood — trees, fences, furniture. The first building material.
- Stone — rocks, ruins, roads. Walls and furnaces.
- Metal scrap — cars, appliances, machinery. Refined into metal parts.
- Cloth — clothing, curtains, bedding. Bandages and armour padding.
- Glass — windows, bottles. Optics and containers.
- Chemicals — lab supplies, cleaning products. Medicine, explosives, fuel.
- Mechanical components — machines, vehicles, military loot. Advanced crafting.
- Electronic parts — radios, computers, military loot. Sights, turrets, power.
A good habit: dismantle every appliance and every wrecked car you pass. The components are the bottleneck, not the wood.
The campfire and cooking hob
The campfire is the first station. It gives light, warmth, and a place to cook raw meat. Place a cooking hob on top of it to unlock:
- Clean water — contaminated water becomes drinkable.
- Meals — meat, fish, vegetables, and recipes that give buffs.
- Biofuel — an empty can or bottle plus the hob produces fuel for molotovs and generators.
Do not drink unboiled water. Do not eat raw meat. The food guide→ covers the buffs and the recipes.
The stone furnace
The furnace turns ore and scrap into usable metal. It also makes glass from sand and some salvage. Prioritise it after the cooking hob; metal parts gate the workbench, the lathe, and most weapon repairs.
Fuel the furnace with wood or charcoal. Do not leave it running unattended in a wooden base.
The workbenches
The simple workbench handles tools, basic weapons, and repairs. The advanced workbench unlocks the mid-game gear and the specialised stations.
At the workbench you can:
- Craft and repair melee weapons.
- Make repair kits and lockpicks.
- Build weapon attachments (with the right materials).
- Craft station components.
A lockpick is a small metal piece plus sturdy wire. A firearm repair kit needs metal parts and oil. A vehicle repair kit needs mechanical components and rubber. These recipes are stable, but check the bench for exact quantities; patches can adjust them.
The ammo press
The ammo press is the reason to build a base. It converts materials and gunpowder into ammunition:
- Pistol and rifle rounds — 9mm, .22LR, 5.56, 7.62.
- Shotgun shells — 12 gauge.
- Specialty ammo — depending on the press tier and materials.
The press does not create gunpowder from nothing. You need to salvage or craft it, which means chemical bench access or military loot. A press without gunpowder is a paperweight.
The lathe, chemical bench, and mold bench
The simple lathe makes precision parts: barrels, mechanisms, and components that the workbench cannot produce. The chemical bench makes explosives, fuel, and advanced materials, including the ingredients for gunpowder. The mold workbench makes specialised parts for high-tier gear.
These three stations are the mid-game bottleneck. Build them before you attempt the Far Island guardians; the boss drops are less useful if you cannot repair the gear you brought.
The pharmaceutical bench
The pharmaceutical bench makes medicine and potions:
- Bandages — cloth plus disinfectant.
- Painkillers — chemical supplies.
- Blood bags — medical loot plus processing.
- Skill potions — strength, stamina, health, antitoxic.
- Vials — the skill currency, rendered from mutant tissue.
The skills guide→ explains how vials and skill points work.
The canning machine
The canning machine preserves food for long trips. Canned meals last longer than cooked meals and do not need a fridge. It is a quality-of-life station, not a first-week priority, but it is excellent before a Far Island expedition.
Repair, not just craft
Crafting is only half the system. Repair is the other half:
- Firearm repair kit — restores gun durability.
- Vehicle repair kit — restores vehicle parts.
- Item repair kit — recharges repair kits.
- Melee repair — wood, metal, and leather patches at the workbench.
A gun at zero durability jams. A vehicle at zero engine condition stops. Carry one repair kit per critical item and a spare item repair kit.
What to craft first
A practical priority list:
- Cooking hob — water and food.
- Stone furnace — metal parts.
- Simple workbench — tools and repairs.
- Bandages and lockpicks — survival and access.
- Ammo press — ammo independence.
- Advanced workbench — better gear.
- Simple lathe — precision parts.
- Chemical bench — explosives and fuel.
- Pharmaceutical bench — medicine and potions.
- Canning machine — expedition food.
Do not craft decorative items until the base is defensible. A rug does not stop a Breaker.
Co-op crafting
The host's stations are the only ones that persist. Guests can use them, but the output goes into the host's world. Split the work: one player gathers wood and stone, one gathers metal and components, one cooks and farms, one repairs.
The multiplayer guide→ covers the shared-save rules.
FAQ
How many workbenches are there?
Eight main stations: campfire, cooking hob, stone furnace, simple workbench, advanced workbench, ammo press, simple lathe, chemical bench, pharmaceutical bench, canning machine, and mold workbench, depending on how you count the campfire and hob as one.
Can I craft guns?
The workbench can craft some weapons and attachments, but the best guns are loot. The ammo press is more important than gun crafting.
Where do I get gunpowder?
From military loot, chemical bench production, and dismantling ammunition. The press needs it; it does not make it.
Do stations need power?
Some do. The ammo press and lathe are manual; the fridge, lights, and turrets need power. Check the station panel.
Sources
- ZED ZONE store page ↗ — 200+ craftable items, stations.
- ZED ZONE news hub ↗ — 1.0 crafting and farming changes.
- ZED ZONE Community guides ↗ — recipe notes.
- ZED ZONE on SteamDB ↗ — build history.
More ZED ZONE Guides
ZED ZONE boss guide: the three Area Guardians, the Supreme Intelligence's three phases, the Giant Mutant Lizard, and the gear each fight demands.
ZED ZONE console commands for 1.0: how to open the console, the four working command types, and a verified item and infected ID table.
A ZED ZONE enemies guide: every infected type, the mechs and war machines, the Giant Mutant Lizard, and the tactics that actually work against each.
ZED ZONE Far Island guide: how to repair the boat, the ten new areas, the railway power loop, and a route that reaches Area 61 without wasting trips.
ZED ZONE farming in 1.0: planting pots, twelve crops, watering and fertilizer, mushroom caves, and the recipes that make a farm worth the space.
ZED ZONE food and cooking: clean water, the campfire and hob, meal buffs, preservation, food poisoning, and the best meals before a boss.
A practical ZED ZONE 1.0 guide: what changed, which route to take first, and the systems that decide whether your run survives week one.
How to play ZED ZONE in 1.0: the full keyboard map, mode selection, save rules, and the first-hour route that gets a new survivor to a stable base.