Building new workbench - any good plans out there?

[Jack Olsen]

Thanks.

That's a 55-lb Harbor Freight Anvil I've got mounted to a trailer hitch in the wall. There's actually a steel base for the hitch inside the wall -- I took the plywood off to make it. But I don't keep the anvil there regularly and wouldn't do any serious banging on it without even more support. More often, I use that mount for a vise or a grinder.

Since buying that one, I picked up a larger anvil, which makes my inch-thick steel bench look kind of small.



I found it on the way home from a track day, and had to get it into the 911. One of these days I'm going to mill the top smooth and mount it to something. Right now, I've got both of those anvils sitting in my shed.

[911roman]

Very helpful thread.

Jack certainly took it to the nth degree with his ridonkulous garage.

I'm dully inspired. Thanks for the ideas.

[fbarrett]

Before you do anything more, check out Sears for decent deals on workbenches. They have various sizes, types, and options with drawer units, tool racks, etc., and they have occasional sales with very good deals. You assemble them, but next to expensive fancy cabinetry, they are the best deal around.

Frank

[rrichar]

seeing the heater in MArk's garage makes me want to ask: what kind/size of temorary heater are you using to occasionally heat uip your garage? Living in Houston I don't need a full bore heating system just something to take the chill out of a two car garage when it gets cold here. It will be in the forties all weekend here. Those metal parts get pretty cold!

[Jack Olsen]

I use a Mr Heater MH18B Portable "Big Buddy" Heater, which I think makes 18,000 BTUs with an ordinary propane tank.

For 'California cold,' it works fast.

They cost a hundred bucks when they're on sale. $125 the rest of the time.

[rrichar]

Thanks Jack I will try to find one locally tomorrow. It appears to have great reviews.

[Jack Olsen]

Make sure you get the plug in adapter for the little fan in it -- it makes a big difference to have the heat moving, and the batteries will run out pretty quickly.

Also, be aware that unvented propane (and kerosene) heaters do have a mild smell to them when they're working. It doesn't bother me at all -- it's not an unpleasant small -- but I wouldn't use one of these to heat a home.

[Charlie V]

Hmmmm, anything that burns and the particles of combustion dump into the space being heated will give off CO. Thru work, I've seen too many people have CO poisoning to put myself in this situation.

I use a small $25 electric space heater I picked up at Home Depot. SW BC is mild most of the time. Usually I can heat the shop with a small 1000W heater with a built in fan. I just turn it on when the temps dip in the Fall and it runs until the weather warms up in the Spring. I get about 1.5 years life out of them. This keeps everything in the 50 to 65d F - depending on outside temps - and dry. Because I'm frequently in the shop, this works best for me. There is a cost, but this is off set when the pool pump is turned off for the Winter. Shop size is 450 sq ft and well insulated.

The heater has a 1500W setting when it is colder. For a really cold day, I have a 220V temporary construction electric heater. But, I can only recall using that maybe 5 times over the years.

[nesslar]

"Hmmmm, anything that burns and the particles of combustion dump into the space being heated will give off CO. Thru work, I've seen too many people have CO poisoning to put myself in this situation."
Exactly what I was thinking. You DO use this with the door open?!? That might explain why you are still breathing?

[Jack Olsen]

As I said, I wouldn't recommend heating a house with it. But it has two shut-off sensors, one for low oxygen in the room and one for movement or tipping. It's designed to be used unvented in an enclosed area. But I agree that anyone should be cautious with an unvented heat source.

[Charlie V]

Not to drag the space heater thing out.....

CO is lighter than air. The sensor for low oxygen would be on the heater - say 18" above ground level. That means inhaling CO until the alarm sounds.

I still wouldn't use one for heating an enclosed space like a shop or garage. But, comes down to personal choice.

On the flip side, Jack's garage set up is a shrine to DIY folks. Very practical solutions with designer flair. Love it!!

[nesslar]

Shrine, indeed, and fantastic work, as is the car and all the man's skills; but propane burning in an enclosed space could put an end to a lot of good. CO kills. I can't believe what I've read so far............ Haven't you read of people heating their garage with a BBQ and dying in the HOUSE? Good grief, please crack the door... a LOT. Thank you.
Sorry, but I do care....

[Drisump]

I wired my shop like a kitchen. That is to say, double pull breakers with 12/3 wiring, "leap frogging" every second outlet box. What you end up with is, any two adjacent boxes have four individual circuits. My thought is that I'm usually working in one area of the shop but may be using a couple of "high amp" tools (there is often not just me). My shop is primarily for wood-working and space is at a premium, so all the "stationary" tools are on wheels (cabinet saw, two band saws, jointer, and planer) and the shop has been wired with two 220 outlets. If it's possible to do so, you may want to consider the vice on a fixed bench but all other benches to be put on wheels....if you are like most guys, no matter what you start with space wise, you will run out of room at some point.....either due to collecting "stuff" or tools, or taking on projects that require much more space than you have. Cheers

[RWebb]

so, Jack, how many angle grinders do you own???

[911pcars]

Originally Posted by RWebb

so, Jack, how many angle grinders do you own???

Using a separate angle grinder makes a lot of sense if you need to use different grinding/cutoff/sanding wheels instead of constantly R&Ring the abrasive media on a single grinder.

If you have the budget and the HD need, get the good ones (Metabo, DeWalt, Makita, Milwaukee, Bosch, etc.). For occasional use, the hand-held grinders from HF at $20 do their job quite well. I have 3 of them. I've used two of them for the past 10 years. However, as with many things at HF, YMMV.

As long as I've ventured off-track, but here's a good read about HF and their tools:
Buyer Beware, A Harbor Freight Buying Guide: The Good Enough, The Bad and the Abysmal |

Sherwood

[RWebb]

sense yes - but I think I saw close to a dozen hanging there

maybe Jack has dibs on the Angle Grinder Museum?

[Jack Olsen]

I have six, since I picked another one up this weekend. They're the cheap HF models; you can get them for about $15 on sale. At that price, you can keep one each with:

1. Grinding wheel
2. Fresh cut-off wheel
3. Half-used cut-off wheel
3. Flap disk
4. wire brush
5. wire cup brush

I could almost buy one Metabo for what I paid for the six HF units.

[RWebb]

would you be happier with a single Metabo?

you would be happier with 6 Metabos...

[byfdinky]

[Danny_Ocean]

Originally Posted by Jack Olsen

I found it on the way home from a track day...

Was there a coyote under it?