| Project by muesli | posted 05-15-2017 08:41 PM | 2118 views | 2 times favorited | 6 comments |  |
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When I built my workbench, I made it relatively big for my small shop, because I wanted a big base for some future projects, that I have in mind. That‘s why I planned from the beginning, to add a mobile base later. And now I did. In the meantime, I had a look on several videos and articles, where workbenches etc got casters. The most inspirational video for me was made by Ryan (Shop built), which you can watch here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRpVr4nwt9g
Because of other casters, dimensions, hinges etc. I had to adapt all. And I had to make a minor change on a rail of my bench. But now it works really well. Because of the long lever, it is possible to lift the bench on casters with very little effort and I can push it around. When the bench is set down on the feet, it stays rock-solid like before.
-- Uwe from Germany.
6 comments so far
kiefer
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5812 posts in 3675 days
#1 posted 05-15-2017 11:34 PM
Looks like a very helpful and relatively easy to build and perfect for a lot of us with small shops .
Klaus
-- Kiefer https://www.youtube.com/user/woodkiefer1/videos
muesli
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510 posts in 2516 days
#2 posted 05-16-2017 08:07 AM
I really love my workbench and after making it mobile, I love it even more.
And of course the mobile base is easy to build. Otherwise I couldn’t have done. :D
Best starting point for calculation and planing (I did it with sketchup) is to set the lever horizontal and the casters about 2cm under the level of the legs. That way, all comes together well. Ok, except the space for the lever when the casters are retracted. I was not able to precisely calculate that. But with a saw, a chisel, some wood and some glue…
-- Uwe from Germany.
helluvawreck
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32122 posts in 3874 days
#3 posted 05-16-2017 04:35 PM
This looks like a very practical solution for a base to move your bench about in your shop. Nice work.
helluvawreck aka Charles
http://woodworkingexpo.wordpress.com
-- helluvawreck aka Charles, http://woodworkingexpo.wordpress.com
PaulChau
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37 posts in 1969 days
#4 posted 05-20-2017 01:18 PM
In my opinion, wheels make everything better. From just a regular work bench, now you get to have a mobile storage cabinet if you were to add doors to the bottom section. I have since added wheels to almost every single one of my projects just to benefit from its dual functionality.
-- Paul Chau, manager at: https://supercheapselfstorage.com.au/facilities/perth/south-perth/
PaulChau
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37 posts in 1969 days
#5 posted 05-20-2017 03:01 PM
I am really into mobile work benches. I feel that they are more appropriate especially if you need to move around your work area. Not only will you be able to perform your work as usualy at the top, but you can also use the below section for storage purposes.
-- Paul Chau, manager at: https://supercheapselfstorage.com.au/facilities/perth/south-perth/
muesli
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510 posts in 2516 days
#6 posted 05-20-2017 10:58 PM
Thank you, Charles!
Paul, I love to have everything on casters too. Especially in a small shop that’s a great benefit. Building a cabinet for a part of the lower section of my bench has been on my list since I started planing the bench. But I am waiting for some boards which can be recycled for the cabinet. I always try to avoid unnecessary costs.
Thanks a lot to all of you!
-- Uwe from Germany.
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