A small portable bench? Input please...

[Steve Wargo]

There is a possibilty that my day job will take me away from home for 10 weeks in the near future to Oklahoma City, OK. It will put a serious damper on my commission work, but appears that it can't be helped. Fortunately I'll be driving the 1000 miles and will be taking a good supply of Lumber, Veneer, Substraight material (That's my Q-Sawn MDF Alan:D), and of course a full array of Hand tools. But what I'd like to construct before I leave is a small sturdy bench, alas my workshop bench is completely out of the question. Probably only about a 18" x 36" top with a vice and a few dog holes. Debating on using MDF or just laminating up scraps ( I have quite a few. Would more than likely make the base about 20" tall and try to keep the size small, and the weight high. Anyone built anything like that. I plan to mostly build decorative boxes, and perhaps that writing desk I've had designed for about, oh 5 years now. One option is using my portable tool chest for a base, and simply using some dowels to hold the top in place. Any links, or ideas are greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[Jim Becker]

Steve, how about a nice "portable size" benchtop with a smaller vice, dog holes, etc. combined with a folding workmate type thing...which can also be used for sawing...?? The base on the workmate type things is "relatively" stable...it's just the top that's inappropriate for fine woodworking. For the top a couple layers of MDF layered will stay relatively flat (band with hardwood), be cheap and work fine with round dog holes for hold-downs and stops. (LV WonderPups can be helpful, too)

Of coures, you could us a Festool MFT...LOL!

[Chris Gregory]

You beat me to it Jim ;)

[Tyler Howell]

I attached a piece of 2x to 3/4 ply (18X24) and clamped it to the work mate. It's done everything (in WW) and been everywhere...... Including Oklahoma City.
PS May I inquire what your day job is??
I'm send new troops 10 weeks at a time to OKC. Is this a small world?
Never mind!!! I looked. It is a small world.

[Maurice Metzger]

Here's an article about a folding workbench, no connection to site or author:

http://www.woodworking.org/WC/Garchive01/3_27workbench.html

My first impression is that I would use beefier lumber, this bench looks "collapsible" in all the wrong ways.

[Pam Niedermayer]

There are some pretty cool portable knockdown workbenchs described in The Workbench Book by Scott Landis. And then there's always the Workmate.

Pam

[Doug Shepard]

I can't remember exactly what he was using, but at a WW show several years ago, one of the demonstrators was doing Japanese style WW. He was doing all the work in a kneeling position and his "bench" was just some sort of low table (maybe 6-8" high?). I'm not sure if it even had a vice, but I do remember some sort of bench dog setup. The guy got an amazing amount of work done for what looked like a pretty lo-tech setup.

[Pam Niedermayer]

You mean like this?

[Jerry White]

Steve,

I was going to suggest something along the lines of the WorkMate, but Tyler beat me to it.

Sent you a PM.

[Doug Shepard]

You mean like this?

Well the working position is the same but the guy I saw actually had a very low table - maybe something like 18"Wx40"Lx6 to 8"H. The top was maybe 1.5-2" thick. It might have had a vice but I can't recall for sure. There were a few holes in the top for "bench dogs" which really just looked like nothing more than scrap wood and I remember him using wedges of various sizes as well. Maybe your pic is the more traditional method and the table is something he used just to avoid working directly on a concrete floor at convention centers ??

[Steve Schoene]

Look at the folding bench at

www.garrettwade.com

for their folding workbench.

[Richard Neel]

Steve,

There's not many of us Okies on here but look me up if you come to town. I could at least show you the good places to eat. You'd be very unimpressed with my shop but it's always open too. What kind of work will you be doing here?

Richard

[Chris M Pyle]

I have to bump this post... anyone else have any links or good ideas for portable benches? Pam, do you have anymore information on how that small surface top was being used? I am interested/intrigued as to how anything would be clamped/held in place?

But I would be way more comfortable seated, than standing and it would be portable, allowing me to pack it up if I have to move, (college student)

[Andy Hsieh]

Some guy in Canada...maybe farfadet is his handle did a post about his bench - it looked solid as can be and was completely able to be broken down - I think he lived in an apartment - but bar none - one of the best portable benches I have seen - Mighty good ingenuity with regard to using pipe clamps as vise hardware too.

I wish I could link it but rules are rules.

[harry strasil]

One of the old school shop benches would work perfect, two vises, stable and smallish work top.

Or something like this with a thicker top, it comes completely apart in to 8 pcs. and is held together with tapered wedges.


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v81/irnsrgn/wood/worktable.jpg

[Chris M Pyle]

Thanks for the replies guys. Andy, what forum are you talking about? could ya pm with the details?

[Pam Niedermayer]

Chris, Inomoto-san makes dai, so this small bench and stump are dedicated to same. However, it could be adapted to other tasks as well. He uses several stops (look at the dark wood parts) and an opening the size of the end of a dai for wedging the actual dai for some tasks.

Pam

[Steven Wilson]

Steve, I would probably build a top (say 24x24, 18x30, 24x36, whatever) of 2x2 maple with an edge of 4x2 or 6x2 maple that would sit on top of a workmate or use it on the floor (which would be more sturdy for choping mortises and such. I would drill plenty of round dog holes and probably mount a Veritas vise on the end. Upon your return you could turn it into a carving bench or something for doing dovetails and such by building a proper base.

[Chris M Pyle]

so, my next question is, does anyone see any potential problems of bench either on the ground, or only elevated 6-12 inches? I am about to embark on a (semi)portable workbench set-up, and I fear finishing it, to find out, I've limited myself from a few operations.

I do use western style saws and planes (may try a japanese plane though).

[Pam Niedermayer]

Sure, Chris, lots of potential problems, probably the greatest of which is body flexibility that we westerners seem to lack vis a vis the easterners; although with practice, we'd get a lot better, may be very good for us all. Then there's getting up and down from the floor, but if you've got good knees there should be no problem; and the hard floors we often have, so hope for a wood floor with wood joists, etc. Of course, you may get very unlucky and have a carpet in your dorm room, probably plastic carpet, in which case take a great vacuum cleaner.

Pam

[Matt Chantry]

Chris,

In FWW #176, Jeff Miller wrote an article titled, "A Benchtop Bench". It is intended for using on top of an existing workbench, but it could possibly be used on the ground or modified appropriately. It's available online on the second page under the Workbenches category.

There's also a little feature entitled "Temporary Workbench Top" by Oscar Williams in FWW #101. It might not be sturdy enough for what you need, however.

Matt

[Michael Pilla]

The portable bench mentioned earlier in this thread is featured in a thread over on woodnet. Do a title search for the thread in the handtools forum "my portable workbench". It's quite an amazing bench.

Michael

[Don Middleton]

Hi Chris - Quite a few years ago my spouse was working on building a small cherry harp and I built her a small workbench for that purpose. Starting with a stock Workmate, I removed the plates and replaced them with 8/4 maple editions, drilled similarly, along with a few Veritas dogs. I'd post a picture but don't have one handy, and the bench is residing at my "vacation shop" quite a ways away.

The harp project fell by the wayside with kids and building another house, which happens to be where the bench is about now. But I've used that little bench a fair bit and it was really pretty nice overall.

cheers - don

[Chris M Pyle]

I appreciate all of the responses. I am working on designing a simple bench right now, and finally ran to the library and checked out all of the workbench books. And I have to admit, right now, Makoto Imai's bench looks the most appealing (with a few modifications). so i am going to go that route I believe...

But first, I will begin by building a couple of the sawbenches that Chris Schwartz posted in one of the mag articles, I believe it was Woodworking mag. So that will begin in the next day or two, I've got the borg lumber sitting at my house semi-acclimating. I can't wait to begin.....