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Thread: Space saving hinged bench

  1. #1
    Supporting Member ranald's Avatar
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    Space saving hinged bench

    I can never seem to have enough bench space for assembly & for years planned a bench that hinger up using 60's & 70's car bonnet/hood springs. The prototype was published by Better Homes & Gardens Wood Mag last year. It is shown here also. It was excellent as it allowed a lathe & router table to be snugged against it (folded up)when not used, reducing floor footprint. It is quite and made from concreting FORM PLY which has a non stick finish & very durable construction

    Space saving hinged bench-rsz_dsc_1229-1-.jpg


    Unfortunately, despite it being cyclone rated & my adding 2 extra rails to the original 3 as engineered, my sheds walls were too flimsy to cop the stresses of the bench & its car bonnet springs. I really wanted a full four foot wide assembly bench so decided to hinge it down still cluttering some floor space.

    Another point is that I made the bench height slightly below that of my table saw to avoid problems of its mobility.

    Space saving hinged bench-rsz_dsc_0002-10-.jpg

    The other point about this bench is that I used standard dog holes.My other tip to readers is to use old mitre saw clamps. Mine are from Makita & Hitachi (common here ) & can be picked up cheap at boot/ garage sales/fairs/markets. That introduced another issue & as I dont own a metal lathe I had some sleeves made to fit the clamps and slot into the dog holes. They cost a few bucks but allow me to use them on my other benches even B& D workmates.I cut a slot lengthwise to allow easy insertion & removal.

    Space saving hinged bench-rsz_rsz_dsc_0066.jpg

    Regards,
    Ranald

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  2. The Following 6 Users Say Thank You to ranald For This Useful Post:

    Beserkleyboy (Feb 10, 2019), PJs (Feb 8, 2019), sossol (Feb 8, 2019), Steved53 (Feb 8, 2019), Toolmaker51 (Feb 7, 2019), Tule (Feb 8, 2019)

  3. #2
    Supporting Member Toolmaker51's Avatar
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    I admire hinged benches, have one awaiting installation. Your improvements hadn't occurred to me.

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    Toolmaker51
    ...we'll learn more by wandering than searching...

  4. #3
    Supporting Member Steved53's Avatar
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    Nice work. I have some sprung hinges from an old lift up divan bed that would work fine... now to work out where to put it in a small garage.

  5. #4
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    Thanks ranald! We've added your Hinged Workbench to our Workbenches category,
    as well as to your builder page: ranald's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:






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