PALLET RACKS - INDUSTRIAL / WAREHOUSE SHELVING FOR WORK BENCH CONSTRUCTION

[jaymar_]

Both of these come out of Australia.

Anyone offering similar, ready-made benches in the US (with or without tops)?
Or can anyone here suggest quality US components for the same kind of setup?

Pic 1: https://www.macrack.com.au/
Pic 2: https://www.racknstackwarehouse.com.au/

Title edited to add "Pallet Racks" as the more common term.

 

[crewchief888]

Bottom one is pallet racking cut to size

 

[TobeyA]

I did something similar, although not mobile, with used pallet racks. Under the plywood are 2x4 supports about every foot. The beams have a ledge they are resting on. The pallet rack was a little under $500. 30" x 8' x 10' tall. There are 3 sets of rails; the other two have wire racking on them. One below and one above the work bench.

 

[BillK]

Here is a couple to start with:

Global Industrial Company - Industrial & Commercial Supplies

Global Industrial offers over 75 years of expertise in industrial and commercial products. Shop our extensive selection with exceptional service and fast delivery.

www.globalindustrial.com

https://www.grainger.com/

I did something similar to Tobey with pallet racks. Will post a picture later on.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Pallet racking is fairly easy to modify. Simply cutdown the uprights to size. Recip saw, 4.5" grinder with a cut off wheel or even a hack saw.

If you're making it mobile like the one pictured, I think I would weld the beams in place with a few tacks...or atleast, drill and bolt

 

[BillK]

Here is one of mine. Pardon the mess

 

[nadogail]

I have found pallet beams make good fence posts, I also use them to frame carts and benches.

 

[dfiler2]

SJF has locations in a few different areas, I bought some from them a few years ago. They have lots of used racking. I have also found them at salvage yards, if units get a small dent or a hole drilled somewhere most companies have to replace them.

Teardrop Pallet Racking for Sale | Used & New Teardrop Racks

Shop teardrop pallet racks for sale. SJF offers both new and used teardrop pallet racking systems in multiple configurations and capacities. Browse here.

www.sjf.com

 

[jaymar_]

SJF has locations in a few different areas, I bought some from them a few years ago. They have lots of used racking. I have also found them at salvage yards, if units get a small dent or a hole drilled somewhere most companies have to replace them.

Teardrop Pallet Racking for Sale | Used & New Teardrop Racks

Shop teardrop pallet racks for sale. SJF offers both new and used teardrop pallet racking systems in multiple configurations and capacities. Browse here.

www.sjf.com

Interesting on the replacement. Liability I assume. When was a kid(-ish) I worked briefly in a warehouse. If one bottle of liquid or powder or whatever got punctured, they'd forklift the whole pallet to the trash bins...

 

[jaymar_]

Seems like the critical factor is where the side-braces weld up, because you don't want to cut into those when shortening the uprights to bench height. I wonder if cutting down alters the weight distribution on what's left.

Now that I have the right term (pallet racking) my google-fu is much improved, thanks! Looking around for 30" D options...

 

[alex71]

30" depth pallet rack uprights are not a common size. They exist (I have some in my garage, but i had them made to that depth) but will be hard to find in the used market. 36" will be much easier to find.

 

[nadogail]

Used Load Beams, a Metal Cutting Saw, and 7014 Electrodes are the ingredients of many creations.

 

[jaymar_]

[Deleted]

 

[TobeyA]

30" depth pallet rack uprights are not a common size. They exist (I have some in my garage, but i had them made to that depth) but will be hard to find in the used market. 36" will be much easier to find.

Weird. In my neck of the woods, used 30" was easy to find. First place I called had them.

 

[jaymar_]

Weird. In my neck of the woods, used 30" was easy to find. First place I called had them.

What was the first place you called?

 

[dfiler2]

That is strange, in my neck of the woods all pallet racking is 48" deep although I see SJF does have some 42".

 

[TobeyA]

What was the first place you called?

Just some local guy that buys and sells used pallet racks out of his back yard. Found him on FB Marketplace. I also live in Houston, where you can't throw a rock on the east side without hitting a giant warehouse, thanks to our container ports.

 

[bradpac]

I'm looking for a good deal on some 30-36" ones for a workbench shelf setup like pictured. The 48" are way more common around here, but too much depth for anything i would put on it and take up too much floor space. But i think ideal for a good workbench.

 

[qqzj]

Why cannot you use those big selves sold in Costco? The size seems okay. They are about $200 now. Used to be $150. Wahlen is the brand.

 

[jaymar_]

Why cannot you use those big selves sold in Costco? The size seems okay. They are about $200 now. Used to be $150. Wahlen is the brand.

Pallet racks have insane load capacities--tens of thousands of pounds, with even the skinnier ones supporting one-ton-plus per deck. Do you NEED that? Probably not. But if you want something that's severely overbuilt for shop work, it seems these are the ticket...

 

[TobeyA]

I have 2 other pallet racks, one 30" and one 48". The 30" one is against the wall, the 48" one is parallel to it, about 2.5' apart. I built a deck across the top of the two; the supporting beams are about 9' high; 14' to the bottom of the rafters.

It's very sturdy and provides a lot of storage space. I'm about to disassemble a '31 Model A, and need some square footage for storing body parts, etc.

 

[jaymar_]

I came across a pic of someone using pallet racking as a hoist frame to pull an engine. Wouldn't recommend it without a way to evenly spread the load. They used metal sleeves that fit over the shelving supports--but I'd still be concerned about torquing the supports in a direction they were not designed to handle. Interesting idea, though...

 

[PoorUB]

I ran a warehouse that sold chemicals. Pull and engine with pallet rack? No problem!
We had individual shelves with close to 6,000 pounds on them, then 3 shelves high so 15,000+ pounds. The racking was rated for twice as much. But it does depend on the racking but even the lightest weight pallet rack should hold an engine without any issues.

 

[TobeyA]

Here's the setup with the deck.

 

[dfiler2]

The uprights I have would all be very simple to make narrower, you have one diagonal brace and one straight crossover every couple of feet. You can cut one side of it with a sawzall or a grinder and then weld it back at any width you want.

 

[californiamilleghia]

hard to find 6ft wide crossbeams , I had to have some shortened ,

I used them to build a "cage" to store a car with 2 layers of storage above the car.

 

[wreckdiver1321]

Pallet racks have insane load capacities--tens of thousands of pounds, with even the skinnier ones supporting one-ton-plus per deck. Do you NEED that? Probably not. But if you want something that's severely overbuilt for shop work, it seems these are the ticket...

Ha, we meet again Jaymar!

I'm planning on using the Costco Whalen racks for my workbenches in my new shop, and they're built to a very similar standard as a pallet rack, just smaller. The units are 77W x 72H x 48D, and rated for 2,000lbs per shelf. I happen to own three of them already, so it's a no-brainer for me. I plan to cut one down to have nothing overhead and build cabinets over the other.

 

[jaymar_]

Ha, we meet again Jaymar!

I'm planning on using the Costco Whalen racks for my workbenches in my new shop, and they're built to a very similar standard as a pallet rack, just smaller. The units are 77W x 72H x 48D, and rated for 2,000lbs per shelf. I happen to own three of them already, so it's a no-brainer for me. I plan to cut one down to have nothing overhead and build cabinets over the other.

Hey, actually didn't see this 'til just now. Happy Holidays!

 

[iagsxr]

Menards has 36" tall by either 17" or 30" deep end frames. 4', 6', and 8' crossbar lengths.

Deck it with either two pieces of 3/4" plywood glued and screwed together or 2 x construction lumber. They also have those edge glued pine pieces. You could make a quasi butcher block top.

I go in a truck shop that has a few benches made out of those shelving components. You're not going to load one heavier than they do. I've never seen a failure.

 

[nadogail]

I really don’t plan ahead when I start any project involving pallet racking. With an Abrasive Chop Saw and an Arc Welder, I can almost make Ice Cream from discarded bed frames,

 

[wreckdiver1321]

Can now confirm from experience the pallet racking from Costco makes awesome benches. Nice and sturdy with no wobble, and the top is really well supported if you put some scrap pieces of ply underneath. Great size too, if slightly on the short side. They could stand to be 8 or even 10 feet long, but at 78" they're not small.

If/when I redo the tops, I'll do some sort of butcher block since the plywood is a bit bendy. Would prefer a 1.5" or 2" butcher block. I might make a top out of 2x4s to replace these at some point. We shall see.

Highly recommend these though if you're willing to cut one up and do some welding. One shelving unit will easily get you two benches. In fact, you could connect them together and have one bench 13 feet long if you wanted.

 

[Mrgreen617]

Both of these come out of Australia.

Anyone offering similar, ready-made benches in the US (with or without tops)?
Or can anyone here suggest quality US components for the same kind of setup?

Pic 1: https://www.macrack.com.au/
Pic 2: https://www.racknstackwarehouse.com.au/

Title edited to add "Pallet Racks" as the more common term.

Is there a better photo of the top bench here? Old post I know but want to see that whole bench.

 

[csp]

Not the greatest photos, but the uprights were narrowed to the correct width to allow a stainless elevator door to drop into the ledges of the rails. I happened to find rails the exact length to match the elevator door length. This bench doesn't see a lot of use as it's in a machinery shed. I did put plywood on the upper rails and there are LED lights attached to the bottom of the plywood.

 

[kbs2244]

most of the pallet racking workbebches I have seen are an empty bay with rack shelveind above

 

[Mrgreen617]

Not the greatest photos, but the uprights were narrowed to the correct width to allow a stainless elevator door to drop into the ledges of the rails. I happened to find rails the exact length to match the elevator door length. This bench doesn't see a lot of use as it's in a machinery shed. I did put plywood on the upper rails and there are LED lights attached to the bottom of the plywood.

Very nice I’m in the process of cutting the beams and welding them now and will have a set of photos of completed project.

 

[bdbecker]

Here are some additional ideas for pallet rack workbenches...

Benches - Welter Storage

www.welterstorage.com

 

[jaymar_]

Is there a better photo of the top bench here? Old post I know but want to see that whole bench.

That's all I have...

 

[Sumboodie]

Pallet racks are gold plated around here. Lots in auctions in the last several years and always go for more than I've paid for running cars!