Thread: Folding bench - make the whole thing move also?

Originally Posted by AndyDent

Well, that's one way to decide the direction it should fold - do I want my loose drill bits rolling backwards onto a shelf or forwards?

The correct answer, of course, is that if you have loose drill bits you are a Bad Woodworker and should not have a bench at all.

*hurriedly hides his loose drill bits*

Originally Posted by AndyDent

Well, that's one way to decide the direction it should fold - do I want my loose drill bits rolling backwards onto a shelf or forwards?

Assuming you fold down your bench for storage, the depth of the bench will dictate the overall bench height eg a bench 1200mm deep gives you a 1200mm working height, bench heights are usually around 900mm. This would not be an issue should you fold up your bench for storage.

Originally Posted by Juffy

I built a folding bench with a mate in his garage ...mount the bench a couple of mm out from the wall (when folded out) and it'll be able to swing far enou

Juffy, what kind of hinge did you use to be able to do that? I'm having trouble picturing it and where it would be located to be able to move. I figured if the bench folds up, that the back effectively folds onto the rear legs, which requires something fancier than a plain strap hinge.

Hmm, just did a picture with accurate dimensions and that deep bench is going to have to stand a long way off from the wall. I'd forgotten that my original plan had the full depth only at the bits between the pillars so the standoff would be a mere 160mm. Bugger!

That's what you get for not checking original conceptual drawings (OK, OK, I lost them in the toolbox...) and drawing diagrams not-to-scale!

Looks like it's gonna fold up, after all.

Originally Posted by AndyDent

Juffy, what kind of hinge did you use to be able to do that? I'm having trouble picturing it and where it would be located to be able to move.

Ordinary gate hinges bolted straight into the wall, as far as I can rememeber. Of course, our bench was only 800 or so deep. I reckon the only way you're going to be able to do it with any reasonable strength (other than overengineering the hell out of it) is to fold it up - that 1200 depth is the killer.

I figured if the bench folds up, that the back effectively folds onto the rear legs, which requires something fancier than a plain strap hinge.

*scratches head* Not sure where you're folding things....if it folds up, how do the back legs come into play at all?

Originally Posted by Juffy

*scratches head* Not sure where you're folding things....if it folds up, how do the back legs come into play at all?

Urk, I had to read that twice and look at the diagram to make sense of what I said.

Try it this way, looking at the diagram, if the bench is built to fold down, when you swing it up into position, with a hinge at the front of the rear legs, it forms a solid T with the rear legs. That prevents it moving any further and so there's no clearance at the front for the final swing of the front legs.

If the bench is pivoted at the wall, there's no problem as it can swing up past horizontal.

I think it's all become a moot point now, as discussed, I'm gonna have to make it fold up onto the wall to get it close enough, because of the 1200 depth.

I'm not convinced the depth is a mistake (yet) because of the nature of framing work I'll be doing, but it has certainly made things awkward.

If you fold the bench up onto the wall, the base need not be attached and it can be made into a collapsible concertina type of structure stored below the bench top.
Zelk

Originally Posted by zelk

If you fold the bench up onto the wall, the base need not be attached and it can be made into a collapsible concertina

Wow, I could use some sawhorses with bricks on them!

(Ignore me, I grew up on a farm!)

Hmm, worth thinking about - whether is harder to have folding legs that end up exactly the right height or building robust free-standing ones.

Originally Posted by AndyDent

Wow, I could use some sawhorses with bricks on them!

(Ignore me, I grew up on a farm!)

Hmm, worth thinking about - whether is harder to have folding legs that end up exactly the right height or building robust free-standing ones.

I have a simple method but robust method in mind, it can be done.