simon c
11th August 2004, 03:51 PM
I'm looking at making a couple of mobile workbenches and am trying to decide how best to make them mobile.
From a design point of view, one will be small (600mm x 600mm) and move quite a lot and the other will be larger (maybe 1800x900) and sit in the same place for long periods but this place will change. The benches will probably be made out of angle steel at this stage with an mdf top so faily simple design and lowish cost and the full wooden bench is a couple of years away (basically I'm in a Catch 22 - in order to build the good bench I need to have already built one...). I have a single car garage as a dedicated workshop so space is tight and mobile benches will fit the sort of work I do well.
I want to build the wheels myself (as much for the enjoyment as anything) but am wary of the cost of buying the parts (eg decent castors are maybe $25 each which is $100 to start if I go four 4 wheels) compared to just buying some commercial product. I'm not afraid to spend the money, I just don't like paying to build something when I can get something just as good for a cheaper price.
I have reviewed a lot of the posts on the forum and have come up with the following options and I wouldn't mind some advice on what people think and if there'e anything else out there.
Options:
1. Two wheels at one end and feet at the other with handles, it is moved like a wheelbarrow. Pros: cheap (only two simple wheels), easy to construct, fairly sturdy (with the two solid legs). Cons: Might not be sturdy enough for the big bench, doesn't have the same ease of positioning for the small bench. I suppose I could offset the two wheels so they only come into play when the bench is at a angle.
2. Four wheels, at least two lockable. Pros: easy to construct, easy to position Cons: more expensive (perhaps 4 locking wheels), not very sturdy.
3. Raisable wheels, bench normally sits on legs. Pros: sturdy, easy to position, easy to operate Cons: tricky to construct (I have no idea how to do it), may be pricy (4 wheels, but not necessarily fancy ones but the mechanism could be expensive)
4. Lowerable feet - maybe something like feet you get on the bottom of kitchen units etc. Pros: sturdy (and can be adjusted for uneven floors - this is a big advantage to me in my garage), easy to position, relatively simple to construct, not a bad price Cons: There's no way I'm going to get on my hand and knees with a spanner and raise the feet every time I want to move the bench.
What I'm thinking of is the lockable wheels for the small bench (which has the downside of tripling the construction cost of the small bench) and the lowerable feet option for the big bench (but will I ever use the feet?)
Thanks for any input you can give.
Simon
From a design point of view, one will be small (600mm x 600mm) and move quite a lot and the other will be larger (maybe 1800x900) and sit in the same place for long periods but this place will change. The benches will probably be made out of angle steel at this stage with an mdf top so faily simple design and lowish cost and the full wooden bench is a couple of years away (basically I'm in a Catch 22 - in order to build the good bench I need to have already built one...). I have a single car garage as a dedicated workshop so space is tight and mobile benches will fit the sort of work I do well.
I want to build the wheels myself (as much for the enjoyment as anything) but am wary of the cost of buying the parts (eg decent castors are maybe $25 each which is $100 to start if I go four 4 wheels) compared to just buying some commercial product. I'm not afraid to spend the money, I just don't like paying to build something when I can get something just as good for a cheaper price.
I have reviewed a lot of the posts on the forum and have come up with the following options and I wouldn't mind some advice on what people think and if there'e anything else out there.
Options:
1. Two wheels at one end and feet at the other with handles, it is moved like a wheelbarrow. Pros: cheap (only two simple wheels), easy to construct, fairly sturdy (with the two solid legs). Cons: Might not be sturdy enough for the big bench, doesn't have the same ease of positioning for the small bench. I suppose I could offset the two wheels so they only come into play when the bench is at a angle.
2. Four wheels, at least two lockable. Pros: easy to construct, easy to position Cons: more expensive (perhaps 4 locking wheels), not very sturdy.
3. Raisable wheels, bench normally sits on legs. Pros: sturdy, easy to position, easy to operate Cons: tricky to construct (I have no idea how to do it), may be pricy (4 wheels, but not necessarily fancy ones but the mechanism could be expensive)
4. Lowerable feet - maybe something like feet you get on the bottom of kitchen units etc. Pros: sturdy (and can be adjusted for uneven floors - this is a big advantage to me in my garage), easy to position, relatively simple to construct, not a bad price Cons: There's no way I'm going to get on my hand and knees with a spanner and raise the feet every time I want to move the bench.
What I'm thinking of is the lockable wheels for the small bench (which has the downside of tripling the construction cost of the small bench) and the lowerable feet option for the big bench (but will I ever use the feet?)
Thanks for any input you can give.
Simon