Help me design my ultimate workbench

[Rezarf]

So, I bought a new home last summer with a 3 bay garage. I am hoping to turn the 3rd stall into my workshop area. The other two bays will store the vehicles and kids stuff, but the 3rd car is all mine!

I am trying to think through a new workbench. There are a lot of great idea's on this forum and I really benefited already from all the great posts. I am hoping to draw on the collective wisdom of the board in designing this thing. I am retiring my wood bench and it is going onto CL once the new one is built.

Here are my criteria:

7' x 30" x 32"... due to space.
Metal frame
Metal top with wood top option (drape over the metal top)
Mobile on casters
Mounted vise (removable is fine too).
Painted to match my tool box

I like fabricating stuff so this should be fun, I weld and have the tools to make everything in house.

I am trying to figure out what else I should consider before diving in too far.

I am considering:
*An electric source... power outlets
*Air hose reel
*Receivers for 2" hitch type accessory mounts
*Dropping a cheap-o craftsman tool cabinet for storage into the "frame."
*Some form of leveling adjustment as my floor is sloped.
*Some form of hutch.
*Totally enclosed with sheet metal and doors to keep it clean and to keep the garage tidy.

Here are a few that I pirated from the interweb... I like parts if not all of the workstations below... mostly for their weld friendly design. I am wanting something more like a cabinet base than an open frame design.

 

[bluebolt]

I have thought about doing my own ulitmate workbench using some of the ideas from here. Here are my ideas so far.
1. Legs made of 2 1/2" square steel open at the top so I can drop 2" receiver hitch type mounted items in.
2. End pieces made of the same size so I can put horizontal mount receiver type items in there. This would be handy for a vise if you wanted to turn it horizontal to hold a particular item.
3. A removable center section with a "floor" down a few inches. I could remove it, put in my cutoff saw or miter saw so I could cut long pieces easier.
4. The long side pieces would be 3" steel angle with the "open' edge toward the outside to make it easy to use C-clamps on the edge.

Size would be similar to yours

 

[metalhead212121]

as far as wheels go you might wanna read this thread...

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=137395

 

[JayL]

I just finished mine however I don't have cabinets so I just added two lower drawers. Having four locking swivel casters makes it a bit difficult to move straight but easier to reposition.

It's not much but here goes ... I wish I have seen the leveler / stopper in your first pic earlier. I could have added it when I was building my table.

I tapped the holes to make it easier to mount or remove the vise.

 

[BPJOOP93]

This is just a thought but would it be possible for one of the mods to put all the workbench how to threads into a sticky? it would make it a lot easier for those of us needing ideas to go to one thread for all ideas, instead of looking through all 200 individual threads.

 

[porphyre]

Mounted vise (removable is fine too).

Never understood this idea. In my mind, unless you're a big-ole hoss, any vise that's removable is too small to do heavy work.

If you want a CLAMP; work holding for welding or fixturing... sure. Get a little 3-4" vise that attaches via hand screw. But I couldn't imagine moving an 80lbs machinist vise with any regularity... and I couldn't imagine hammering on something smaller...

 

[E.rodz]

first before we can help you to much.What might be your goals on this bench,woodworking?automotive?welding.fabricatoin,pipe fitting?
you mentioned a lay over the steel and covering it with wood?just trying to get more info.there is alot of great help on here but everyones ultiment bench is going to be different.there is a work bench thread on the site somewere.what is the porpose of the bench.

 

[BPJOOP93]

where did you guys get the clamps that hook into the top of your tables?
tried wiltons site but nothing

 

[Rezarf]

first before we can help you to much.What might be your goals on this bench,woodworking?automotive?welding.fabricatoin,pipe fitting?
you mentioned a lay over the steel and covering it with wood?just trying to get more info.there is alot of great help on here but everyones ultiment bench is going to be different.there is a work bench thread on the site somewere.what is the porpose of the bench.

Mostly auto work and welding fabrication. I would think it will end up looking quite a bit like a welding table that is mobile, but throwing a wood top on it would allow me to be "nicer" to some of the other stuff I work on, firearms, some woodworking type projects. I am looking for the mythical "do-all" table

Never understood this idea. In my mind, unless you're a big-ole hoss, any vise that's removable is too small to do heavy work.

If you want a CLAMP; work holding for welding or fixturing... sure. Get a little 3-4" vise that attaches via hand screw. But I couldn't imagine moving an 80lbs machinist vise with any regularity... and I couldn't imagine hammering on something smaller...

Meh, I figure most of the time I would keep it mounted, I have a Columbian Machinist vise that probably weighs 50-60#'s. I can see myself needing a flat surface sometimes for certain jobs I work on. A removable vise would be nice, for me it'd be worth tossing it around a few times a year.

 

[E.rodz]

Ok here are a couple ideas for you my best advice for you is build one with what you have laying around.office cabinets work great and they are cheap. my suggestion to you is put it on wheels. then use leveling feet to put it off the floor when not rolling it around. use 4x4's if you have them,used tube or angle iron works well also.its all about building something to be proud of and something that will last a lifetime.as for putting wood over it I would vote against it just put a 1/2 steel plate on the top and be done.or make it out of wood. solid core door slabs work well also.

idea #1 file cabinets,steel top over a old door.blueprint file and a couple of lista bases.
Idea #2 welding bench old bench legs,file cabinets,old desk drawer and some casters with a foot brake lock.with a 1/2 steel plate top.

Idea #3 this one I built for a paint mixing bench and paint storage.

old bench legs old file cabinets and a couple of drawers made of plywood and scraps of plexiglass/topped with a door slab and a glass top.
Hope this helps just use your imagination and use this site for some research and don't forget to share the build with everyone here.good luck.

 

[roberts56]

Will this help as an initial sketchup design ? This would be my shall we say ultimate workbench. I n the process of fabrications, many features will still be added to make welding and metal projects easier to accomplish.

 

[A**holes Garage]

where did you guys get the clamps that hook into the top of your tables?
tried wiltons site but nothing

http://www.stronghandtools.com/

 

[Rezarf]

Thanks guys these are great ideas. Craftsman had a deal running last week/month and I picked up three of the entry level ball bearing 4 drawer cabinets for like $94 each. I will line the front of the workbench with the toolboxes, but create a strong welded frame to carry the load from the top to the casters.

I am thinking of making a lighter top like 1/8" with structural tube underneath and then making a 2x4" welding/hammer table with a heavy top and storage for all my welder related gear. Two tables for me makes more sense than overbuilding one table and needing to still store all my welding junk somewhere else. I have the perfect spot in my garage for a small table and a larger workbench.