My new old workbench

[dngrmse]

I picked up this old workbench from the estate of a Ham Radio enthusiast / watchmaker. I guesstimate the date of this from 1930 and 1950, due to the vintage 7up beverage crate piece he used when it was constructed. It's got a couple of neat features, including the knee-activated on off switch, wire spool holder underneath, and wiring throughout. The drawers are pretty smooth, and overall in decent shape. I plan on stripping the top part down to bare wood and applying some stain, updating the fluorescent fixture with an LED unit, adding a small bullet vise I have laying around, and leaving the rest as is. I paid $50 for it.

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[txvwnut]

Nice little bench for fifty bucks.

 

[thehorse13]

Certainly worth the 50 bucks. I would go through all of the wiring. That one picture has some sketchy connection work.

 

[dngrmse]

Certainly worth the 50 bucks. I would go through all of the wiring. That one picture has some sketchy connection work.

Sure does, lol. I plan on replacing the wiring, but keeping the outlets and such exactly where they are.

 

[twertsy]

Awesome bench!

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[jimreed2160]

Nice bench. It is worth $50 just to see all of his clever enhancements up close. It looks like he added features as he needed them. I know you will enjoy using it.

 

[Apache3057]

Nice bench! Well worth the money.

 

[Lookin4'67Galaxieconv]

I guess I'll have to be the fly in the ointment here. While I like the bench and think it's cool, I think you overpaid. Can't imagine there would be a big market for it.

 

[dngrmse]

I guess I'll have to be the fly in the ointment here. While I like the bench and think it's cool, I think you overpaid. Can't imagine there would be a big market for it.

I can relate. There's lots of things I see people purchase and think to myself "what were they thinking" - Different strokes and all that. But this wasn't bought for resale. I plan on putting my own spin on it and using it. And at the end of the day, $50 isn't really much. It's like the price of lunch at a nice place, at least by me.

 

[txlonghorn1989]

I like the bench. I'd pay $50 for it. Nice find!

 

[hemifalcon]

Cooler than anything you could buy today... has a story attached--totally practical=cool.. all my work benches minus one is old-school heavy duty stuff.. $50 if you're happy with it--is a fine deal! Thanks for sharing!


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[Richard Cranium]

not a bad price for the bench.

 

[Richard Cranium]

and I agree it needs rewiring, after going back and looking at all the pictures.

 

[dngrmse]

Started the cleanup. Got the top down to bare wood, rounded off the front edge with my router, removed the grime with some simple green, and took off the handles for some wire brushing and clear-coat. Will post some more after I stain the top.

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[SweetD]

Woah, looking good so far! A true diamond in the rough!

 

[454ragtop]

Nice job, looks like $50 well spent to me.

 

[Odes]

I would pay 50 bucks all day long good job

 

[rick carpenter]

Nice looking old desk, and $50 is a good price. The cleanup process is looking good but I'd caution against staining the top too dark. You'll probably be using this for small things with small parts. A light colored top would be helpful with small parts.

 

[claymont]

That bench was setup to work on electrical/electronics equipment, as such, it's a nice bench for that. Re-purposing that bench to use with that vise is going to require significant re-enforcement and some modification to take advantage of the capability of that vise. IMO
Not a bad bench for the money though.

Started the cleanup. Got the top down to bare wood, rounded off the front edge with my router, removed the grime with some simple green, and took off the handles for some wire brushing and clear-coat. Will post some more after I stain the top.

View media item 74843

 

[uncwstudent]

That bench is a beaut! I like what you are doing with it. Are you going to go with a dark stain?

Started the cleanup. Got the top down to bare wood, rounded off the front edge with my router, removed the grime with some simple green, and took off the handles for some wire brushing and clear-coat. Will post some more after I stain the top.

View media item 74843

 

[Shiftless]

I too agree that $50 is a great price for what it is. If a guy wanted a bench of more or less the same size and design and set out to build one, he couldn't buy the materials alone for $50.
Personally, I would just varnish the top surfaces and maybe even the drawer fronts with some satin poly to preserve some of the old patina. Others are correct that having a lighter color surface is often better.
You've got a fine vise to mount there! You probably won't be bending heavy metal shapes or anything so no reinforcement is needed. The precision feel of a Wilton machinists vise makes it a pleasure to use. Just bolt it in place and enjoy using your "new" workbench.

 

[dngrmse]

And I'm done, at least for now. The stain I picked was way too dark. I had to do quite a bit of sanding to lighten it up some, and I finished it off with some satin poly. I replaced the light with a single bulb unit I had laying around, and put the handles back on after some wire brushing and clear coat. I may repaint the entire thing at some point, but for now I'm happy with the faded gray.

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Nice looking old desk, and $50 is a good price. The cleanup process is looking good but I'd caution against staining the top too dark. You'll probably be using this for small things with small parts. A light colored top would be helpful with small parts.

Good point. I painted the top shelf a light gray, I can see how that's an advantage.

That bench is a beaut! I like what you are doing with it. Are you going to go with a dark stain?

Red Oak- but I had to really sand quite a bit off. It was way darker than the can.

That bench was setup to work on electrical/electronics equipment, as such, it's a nice bench for that. Re-purposing that bench to use with that vise is going to require significant re-enforcement and some modification to take advantage of the capability of that vise. IMO
Not a bad bench for the money though.

I've got a bigger vise on a different bench. This would be more for lighter work.

 

[countryroad82]

Dang that looks really nice!

 

[jimreed2160]

Great restore! Not too much, not too little, just right.