Tow - able workbench? Ideas for wheels/axle/suspension?

[WildBuckwheat]

I was thinking about building a steel workbench around two 13 drawer harbor freight cabinets when I got to thinking how much better it would be if my workbench was way more portable.

I farm, and the shop is not large enough to work on much farm equipment.

Working on equipment either means pulling equipment just outside of the shop and working outside (wind, dust, bearings), or walking back and forth between the driveshed/shop a million times and not having a workbench. In addition to the equipment there are also several livestock buildings that occasionally need work done on them.


So I thought; why not add some trailer wheels to the workbench? All of our land is within several miles of the shop and I have an ATV, golf cart, gator, and lawn tractor for tow pig duty. If my workbench had a drawbar and wheels I could tow it to where I need and have all (most) of my tools, a table, and a vise right there.


Has anyone seen anything like this and have ideas, pictures, or links for me? I'm in the brainstorming stage and I've been creeping garagejournal and noting all sorts of ideas; but I havn't found anything quite like this yet. I would appreciate any and all input.


The trailer wheels and tongue could stay attached, or be quickly removed/attached. I would be prepared to spend up to 5 minutes attaching the wheels/drawbar. Its going to sit in the shop unmoved for months at a time during winter, and then be moved all over the place in spring. What would you use? A leafspring assembly? Torsion suspension? No suspension at all? Adding suspension means I could tow it down the road a couple miles and into a field to work on something broke down. That doesn't happen often but it would be nice to be able to do that.

I would also add lifting loops on each corner and incorporate rectangular tubing into the bottom so I can move it with pallet forks (we have some two story livestock buildings, and also just to make moving it easier).

I'm pretty well versed in CAD so I would model/plan the whole table before hand.

 

[PassnThru]

If you already have a trailer then invest in a winch?

If you don't already have a trailer then shame on you - get one.

And a winch.

 

[bullnerd]

Sounds cool, but I don't believe your a farmer AND know how to use cad! LOL!

Im not a farmer, but as I think about your idea, the first that pops into my head is just a small 4x4 vehicle with everything you described built onto the back of it. like a welding truck basically, but smaller. Flatbed, vise, welder, homemade boom/winch , maybe make the welder easy to load so you can use it in your shop and then "hook" it to the truck quickly. Like an old solid axle Toyota 4x4! Sounds like a fun project actually.

Also, I do have a really close friend that is a 3rd gen farmer using some of the original to the family equipment, he drags everything to the door, just like you described! LOL!

Good luck, looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

 

[dewalt378g]

I think this might be a job for the Mule

http://olive-drab.com/idphoto/id_photos_m274.php

 

[jkwilson]

Seems to me that bouncing around on a trailer with weight in the drawers would probably destroy a toolbox like that pretty quickly, not to mention the fact that your tools would be a disorganized mess.

One of these
Seems like a much better way to haul tools.

 

[rslaback]

My biggest concern for you is actually weight. I think any of the vehicles you mentioned would likely move your two boxes. My concern though is if they could stop it.