Workbench on casters?

[Crash2510]

You might be interested in this its kind of an all in one work station

looks neat, but i do not have time to build it right now

ultimate tool stand not mine but includes plans and cut list









http://christophermerrill.net/ww/pla...l_Stand_1.html

[big tim]

The Benchlift

Have a look at this, David.

http://www.bt3central.com/showthread.php?t=24318

I'm not sure if this will suite you, but it has worked fine for me for many years now. The benefit is that it puts the bench back on it's own legs after you move it.
Good luck!

Tim

[krogers]

David, i put one of my benches on casters as well. My bench is 60"x28" made out of 2'x material and 3/4 ply. It is at the same height as my saw for an outfeed table. Loaded with tools and supplies it weighs a couple of hundred pounds. I have four double locking swivel casters on it. They are rated for 250 a piece. I believe that I ordered them from McMaster. But I will have to confirm that for you. I have been known to stand on this bench from time to time in order to get things out of the rafter storage. I have not had any problems with th casters. This bench normally sits nested under another bench. I roll it out when I need extra surfaces for a big project. The four swivel casters allow me to push the bench straight back toward the wall in a very confined space.

I forgot to add that the casters are 4" wheels. So the total height was about 5 1/2 inches.

[dlminehart]

Krogers, your idea of tucking the workbench under another bench sounds good to me. I often putter with household stuff, and a higher bench would be good for that. And, when I needed the woodworking bench, I usually would want to be able to move around all sides, and would want it a bit lower, so having it on 4 swivel casters normally tucked under the higher general purpose bench sounds great. Do you have a photo of your setup? Do you have racking problems with the larger bench, since you presumably don't have a rail across the bottom front of it?

[dlminehart]

Big Tim, I find the method of getting the bench up onto casters to be ingenious. I'm hoping, however, to make use of the space under the bench to install cabinets with lots of shallow drawers to hold my tools. Wish there were a way to use less space in getting the bench up onto wheels!

[Knottscott]

My work bench has two wheels on one end that don't touch the floor unless I lift up on one end, then it works like a wheel barrow. I don't move it too often, so I opted for more stability while in place, but it's more cumbersome to move....it was a good trade off for my needs and was inexpensive and simple to implement.

[krogers]

David, Sorry to be so late with a reply. Here are a couple of pictures of my bench on casters. These pictures show it nested under the permanent work bench and rolled out. I finished one cart. My intention is to build another one for the left side of the bench. It will be a cart to include the BT3, router table, vacuum, etc. The cart/bench on casters is 39" tall to provide an outfeed for the BT3 on a herculift. That makes the top of the permanent bench at about 43". I like having a work surface at a comfortable height for standing. (I am 6'3"). You asked about the span of the bench. I was worried about sagging over the span and it needed to support a lot of weight. The construction is plywood, 2x4, mdf and steel. Not sure it is technically a torsion box, but it goes together like this. Interior frame of 2x4 with half lap joints screwed and glued. Then I routed space and screwed in a piece of eigth inch angle iron on the front edge. Then I skinned the whole thing with half inch ply on the bottom and 3/4 mdf on the top. The maple edging is raised a 1/4 inch above the mdf to allow for a piece of 1/4 hardboard. This just sits on top so that it is easily replaceable. I can stand on either one of these benches with little or no sag. Let me know if you have any questions or want any more information about the construction. - Kevin