Jon A Posted October 30, 2015 Report Share Posted October 30, 2015 (edited) Hello,I am hoping you folks can help me decide which type of workbench/outfeed table/assembly table might work best for my situation.I have a two car garage shop that has to store one car most of the time. I know that is blasphemous but the car is a cobra replica I built a few years ago so I am more than happy to live with this concession. My wife is awesome and we keep our daily drivers and most non-shop related stuff out of the garage. I usually store the cobra off-site during the winter, when I do most of my woodworking (though, when serious snow is predicted, I put one of our other cars in the shop).Since I generally have to move the cobra replica in and out of the shop to do an y work, I have to be able to set up and dismantle my shop relatively quickly. I have a 3HP Steel City Cabinet saw on wheels. When not set up, it is tucked away by the wall. When in use it is in the center of the garage. I really need a decent outfeed table that either folds down or can be stored on top of the saw when not in use. I also roll the lunchbox planer (in a cart), jointer, and dust collector to the center of the shop while I am working.I have two very heavy-duty workbenches against the walls. These were built for a machine shop that was set up during WWII at my grandparent's house. I have a woodworking vice on one and a big "regular" vice on the other. These benches aren't flat or clean enough for woodworking but they are very handy.I am leaning towards a modified Ron Paulk workbench on sawhorses. I already purchased his well thought out plans. I would make the top (at least) out of 3/4 high quality ply and the rest out of 1/2" to save weight. One thought is to make it reversible with have one side having dog holes and the other more "clean" for assembly. I would make it one piece ~3' x 6' to roughly match the size of the table saw top where it will be stored when not in use. My only hesitation is that I do not know how well it will work for hand-tool work. I, like most here I suppose, am primarily a power-tool guy but I am getting more and more interested in hand-tools and the "hybrid" approach. I would be interested to hear from anyone who has used a Paulk bench thinks about this plan.Other ideas are: a more traditional torsion box assembly/outfeed table and a separate milkman's bench clamped to the top of one of my existing benches for handtool work. I aslo considered a knock-down bench with a more solid top but that would be pretty heavy to move around and set up on my own. I have seen some nice folding outfeed tables but worry that they would not provide enough support for assembly or to use as a workbench (fold-down legs would help but are they enough?)Here are some pictures of the shop so you can get an idea of what I am working with. Thanks in advance.-Jon A. Edited October 30, 2015 by Jon A Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted October 30, 2015 Report Share Posted October 30, 2015 Welcome, Jon! Nice car, don't blame you for keeping it inside. My suggestion is to use a light weight / kmockdown table for assembly and outfeed, and a smaller heavy-duty "joinery' bench for hand tool work. This could easily be the millman's workbench clamped to one of your machinist's benches. Check out Shannon Rogers on Youtube for a good joinery bench example. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted October 30, 2015 Report Share Posted October 30, 2015 Yeah, I'd be keeping the faux-bra in there as well. It looks like your pretty set up already. A hinged fold down outfeed support would be very simple to add to the steel city saw. As far as the other benches, I would either flatten one if it were wood or install a top onto one of the two that could be flattened/throw a torsion box on one of them. It doesn't appear that you much extra space with the snake in there so why not use what you already have? A machinist bench week be much much more sturdy for hand tool work than anything else you can throw together then move out of the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted October 30, 2015 Report Share Posted October 30, 2015 Agree with the fold down idea because your shop has to be pretty mobile. Out feed support is a really good thing to have! The only issue with it is that it won't function well as a work surface. An additional knockdown bench of some sort would be a nice addition when you need it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobInAustin Posted October 30, 2015 Report Share Posted October 30, 2015 Car Capsule for the baby to keep it dust free.http://www.woodstore.net/plans/shop-plans/workbenches/598-Fold-Flat-3-in-1-Workbench.html for assembly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkrusen Posted October 31, 2015 Report Share Posted October 31, 2015 Oh my that Cobra is beautiful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColinF Posted October 31, 2015 Report Share Posted October 31, 2015 Wait, there was a shop in those pictures? All I saw was that graphite sexiness 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coop Posted October 31, 2015 Report Share Posted October 31, 2015 I'd give up woodworking completely until I outgrew that ride. Seriously! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted October 31, 2015 Report Share Posted October 31, 2015 You're gonna have to cover the car to keep the dust off of it anyway. At that point you might as well keep it outside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prov163 Posted October 31, 2015 Report Share Posted October 31, 2015 Okay. Hate to see a fellow woodworker struggling like this. I'll be glad to store the car at my house, and just to add a level of service, I'll throw in driving it to work and dinner occasionally. My Harley will either get jealous or horny. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon A Posted November 1, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2015 (edited) Thank you for the compliments on the car. It is a Factory Five Racing Roadster that I built between 2006 and 2010. It was my first automotive project and was an absolute blast. It was as fun to build it as it is to drive. I really appreciate the generous offers to "store" the car for me but I've got it under control ;-)I think the point about using the machinists benches as a base for a milkman's bench or bench on bench for joinery makes sense. I may still make the Paulk style bench but I'll focus on it being used for outfeed and assembly. I doubt it will work well for hand tools.Thanks for the replies.Jon A Edited November 1, 2015 by Jon A typo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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