Shop Table

[Jim Rimmer]

I have a great shop table that I bought at a high school auction several years ago. It is 64" X 54.5" and 2" thick. The 64" is with the grain. It also has two vises mounted on it. My problem is that I have moved twice since I bought it and each time my shop gets smaller. I went from 20'x30' to 16'x24' to the third stall of a 3 car garage, about 10'x20'. In order to get a little more room I have been thinking about cutting 16" off the 64" length. I would also reposition the vises so I have better access to them (currently they are oriented in a way that get very little use). I would also need to do some restoration on the vises. And it's about time to refinish the top again; I've done it once since I got it 12 years ago.

If I cut it off I could probably reuse the piece for a CMS table or something but it will be cut across the grain.

Question: Should I cut the table off or wait until the next move (probably in about a year) and see if I get a bigger shop area next time?

134682

134683

134684

[David DeCristoforo]

Well, it's kinda up to you. But if it was mine I definitely would not cut it down...

[Mike Cruz]

I would wait til the next move. You'll be down to a 10 x 10 prefab shed in the backyard...shared with the dog. You might end up wanting to cut it in half and have two long benches.

Seriously, no I wouldn't cut it. You can't put it back together with an end grain glue up. UnlBut you could cut it the other direction and save the piece. That way you could glue it back on if you ever wanted/needed to.