Tool Stand Design - How Wide & Deep for Stability?

[N00b Machinist]

Have you a good rule of thumb for dimensions of a tool stand, specifically width and depth? Height, while obviously relevant to stability, is a rabbit hole unto itself.

I'm looking to build stands for power tools, e.g., drill press, miter saw, and portable table saw. With large blades and bits going around and around really fast, however, I'd prefer they not topple during use. And I don't want to drive bolts through my new garage floor. Clearly, wider and deeper is better, but floor space is limited and I'd like to keep the footprint reasonable, if not to a minimum. I've looked around the 'net for guidance and while the optimum height for a given tool discussions rise to the level of religious debate, not much "out there," that I've found, on the subject of how best to determine how broad and deep.

Suggestions?

[mklotz]

It might be worth measuring some commercial stands to give you a starting point. If you live in an earthquake zone, add a safety factor to account for that. Tall, top-heavy machines like floor drill presses may benefit from an anchor line fixed to an overhead joist.

Also, consider work envelope when arranging machines. For example, a window or hinged flap in line with the left end of a lathe spindle can allow you to accommodate longer workpieces if those are in your future.

Shop layout is a complex task. I contend that it must be evolutionary. One doesn't know what's best for himself until he actually works in the shop. Plan for easy rearrangement; your chance for being happy with the initial layout is very minute.

[Gpavek]

You may find some useful material if you do a web search for the words: Millwright guide. The person who sets up and maintains the equipment in a mill is a millwright. Another term is "Industrial Mechanic." The verb form appears to be millwrighting. Audel's has a Millwright and Mechanics Guide.

These are some older books on the topic, in no particular order:
(Swingle) http://www.unionmillwright.com/Pract...illwrights.pdf
(Hobart) http://www.unionmillwright.com/millwrighting.pdf
(Pallett) http://www.unionmillwright.com/millw...%20millers.pdf
(Overman) http://www.unionmillwright.com/mecha...illwrights.pdf

The UnionMillwright.com web site is maintained by a retired millwright and you may find some other useful info there. Heck, he might even answer questions if you send him an email, but I don't know him.

Canada makes some training info available here: Industrial Mechanic (Millwright) Red Seal Occupational Standard (RSOS) 2017 / Red Seal

Good luck and let us know what you find out!

[CharlesWaugh]

A friend of mine was the in-house carpenter at a big manufacturing plant and built desks, benches, stands, etc. all the time.
After talking to a zillion people about what they wanted him to build here and there in the plant he got a bit frustrated.

So, he took a tape-measure and put masking tape down the length of the blade right over the numbers.
Then he wrote along it with a Sharpie:
"Standard"
"Normal"
"Usual"
"Common"
"Whatever"
"You know"
"What Bob has"
etc...

:-)

[mklotz]

The first thing you need to do is provide your personal definition of "stability".

From a pure physics standpoint, an object is stable (i.e., won't topple over) if the vertical from its center-of-mass passes through the base when tilted to a given angle. Stability is then quantized to be the angle at which this isn't true and the object will tip over.

As an example, an object with its COM one foot above the center of its three foot diameter circular base can be tilted to an angle of 90 - atan(1/1.5) = 56.3 deg above horizontal before tipping.

[CharlesWaugh]

Serious reply:
Height thoroughly depends on who YOU are and how YOU work.
I'm 5-10 but I like to work up high, closer to my eyes and to where I can tuck my elbows in to steady my hands while a lean into something.

Depth (footprint) can be reduced by adding ballast at the base, like bags of sand, which also dampens vibration some.
Or, head down to the tire shops and get buckets of used tire weights (lead).

Make sure to put rubber pads on the bottom of the legs so they 'grip' the floor a bit and the benches don't slide around.

Also, putting your tools on a bench in 'pinwheel' fashion can let each one have more room for the workpieces.
Or, even making the bench-top rotatable.

If you are setting up to do some repetitive functions, I suggest a U-shaped layout (I'm used to design production facilities for manufacturing and I ALWAYS tried to set things up fro one-piece flow rather than batch-by-batch)

You can also bolt each of your tools onto a sub-plate of 3/4" ply or MDF, then screw that to the bench. If you want to rearrange things, just pop those few screws out and move the tool. And, again, each tool's sub-plate can rotate to aim the work out a window (as mentioned previously) or over to a work support (Like a piece of wood clamped in a vise)

I like overhead wiring when I can do it as well - it keeps things off the floor. Same with air hoses.

As mentioned, shop layout can be a life's work (it was for me!) but KEEP YOUR OPTIONS OPEN! There will always be that project when you have to get the boat into and back out of the shop.
:-)

[CharlesWaugh]

'Stable' also depends of the use of the tool.
A vise needs a different type of stability than a 1" belt sander.
And a dinky drill bench-top drill press needs a different stability than a 12" sliding compound miter saw.

[Crusty]

I scored a roll around work table next to a dumpster and it's so stable that I'm taking the melamine top off and welding upright I-beams to it for a welding table. The footprint is close to 4' square and the top is around 36" off the floor.

I also built a wooden stand for my mini-mill and the footprint is around 30" square and each leg is slanted inward at a 10º angle towards the center so that as weight is added to the top it becomes increasingly more stable and rigid. Works good.