Woodworking Bench on Welded Base

[Steve H Graham]

Let me commit blasphemy and say I'm thinking of building a new workbench that combines a welded steel rolling base with a fat wooden top with dog holes and a vise. Welding is fast and easy, and steel is much stronger for its volume than wood.

Anyone else trying this, or is it grounds for instant expulsion from the woodworking fraternity?

[johnny means]

We make welded bases for a lot of our furniture. Naturally, we end up doing the same for carts and work tables. I feel like pound for pound you lose some dampening.

[Alex Zeller]

The novice woodworker has no clue about wood movement and how to deal with it. The same is true for steel. Welding up a table that's square is not as simple as it sounds. If you are able to do it then there's nothing wrong with with what you are planning.

[Jim Becker]

I most of the cases, it would likely work just fine. Technically, my benches have metal bases because I use the Noden Adjust-A-Bench setup, actually. But for someone who does a lot of serious hand-tool woodworking, you kinda cannot beat the mass and damping that a stout and well made wood base brings to the table, pardon the expression.

And relax about the idea...plenty of woodworkers embrace using metal in their projects...wood and metal go together really nicely. I'd actually like to learn how to weld one of these days when I can make the investment in some gear, etc.

[Steve H Graham]

Fabrication with steel is a lot easier than woodworking, and it's one reason I'm not a better woodworker. The ease of throwing welded projects together discourages me from fooling with wood. If you can do woodworking, you will have no problems with fabrication.

Best way is to start with a stick welder, which is cheap and can provide very strong welds. Most people start with MIG, though, because it's so easy. If you start with stick, you'll be able to do things MIG people can't, you won't have to buy gas, and you'll be able to weld right through things like rust instead of cleaning your metal.

The current generation of welding machines doesn't suck as much power as the old ones, so you can do a lot without even installing a 220 socket.

It's nice to have tools for both wood and metal. I've used makeshift wooden braces, made on the band saw, to hold work in place while welding. The important thing is to remove them before they catch fire.

[Warren Lake]

welded legs 35 years ago simple and easy. Mig welder. Always blows me away to stick two things together and once cool thats it. Not waiting for hours or over night. Welding is an amazing thing. Benches work fine and had them till I got Ulmias. I made them so a tube in a tube and could change the height if wanted.

[Jack Frederick]

My current work table is steel base and I am just gearing up to make a split top bench with a steel base as well. 3” legs x 2” stretchers. The comments on dampening make me think I will sand fill the legs and may possibly add a mid-length leg as well. I just picked up the Benchcrafted Classic leg vise on classifieds. I will weld a 1.5” nipple through the leg to accommodate the screw and bolt a wooden leg to the face of the 3” steel to face up to the Classic. Best part of this may be that I bought some wood from a fellow ww. He offered to drop it by. When he saw my table he asked if I could build him a copy for a client. $1000! I’m no longer working and like to “create” funds for my “stuff.” “Yeah, I suppose I can do that” It is nice when the work comes to you.

[Jim Matthews]

My first bench was built this way.

The only caveat would be to put a non-marring finish or cladding where boards might contact steel.

[Tom Bussey]

I wouldn't want a bench with welded legs only because it wouldn't look right. But if you want to do it, then by all means build it with welded legs it is your bench. Benches with metal legs tend to slide on a floor more easily but if it happens I am sure you can figure out a way to make it stay put.

[Richard Coers]

Fabrication with steel is a lot easier than woodworking, and it's one reason I'm not a better woodworker. The ease of throwing welded projects together discourages me from fooling with wood. If you can do woodworking, you will have no problems with fabrication.

Best way is to start with a stick welder, which is cheap and can provide very strong welds. Most people start with MIG, though, because it's so easy. If you start with stick, you'll be able to do things MIG people can't, you won't have to buy gas, and you'll be able to weld right through things like rust instead of cleaning your metal.

The current generation of welding machines doesn't suck as much power as the old ones, so you can do a lot without even installing a 220 socket.

It's nice to have tools for both wood and metal. I've used makeshift wooden braces, made on the band saw, to hold work in place while welding. The important thing is to remove them before they catch fire.

I was a farm boy and did plenty of welding. It's my experience that you can get a twisted weldment just as easily as a twisted wood base. Improper welding procedures will pull the assembly. My biggest concern would be that rolling part. For my style of woodworking, wheels would be a constant source of frustration. Hand planes and wheels don't get along.

[Steve H Graham]

I was a farm boy and did plenty of welding. It's my experience that you can get a twisted weldment just as easily as a twisted wood base. Improper welding procedures will pull the assembly. My biggest concern would be that rolling part. For my style of woodworking, wheels would be a constant source of frustration. Hand planes and wheels don't get along.

If you've welded a lot, you must know that managing distortion is not hard, especially for big, simple projects. It's just part of the skill set. If a person can't created weldments that are sufficiently square, it just means he doesn't know what he's doing.

Wheels work fine if you have good ones with brakes, and you can also build a bench so the wheels only touch the ground when you move it. I put whatever I can on wheels. Beats dragging things and rupturing disks.

[Richard Coers]

If you've welded a lot, you must know that managing distortion is not hard, especially for big, simple projects. It's just part of the skill set. If a person can't created weldments that are sufficiently square, it just means he doesn't know what he's doing.

Wheels work fine if you have good ones with brakes, and you can also build a bench so the wheels only touch the ground when you move it. I put whatever I can on wheels. Beats dragging things and rupturing disks.

Brake casters don't work well enough for my work. I haven't moved my workbench in 25 years.

[Ed Mitchell]

Andy Klein did this 3+ years ago:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjkjiB_9b-E

You can check out his YT channel for all the details. He even built a copy for Adam Savage (also on his YT channel)

[Tom Trees]

If you've welded a lot, you must know that managing distortion is not hard, especially for big, simple projects. It's just part of the skill set. If a person can't created weldments that are sufficiently square, it just means he doesn't know what he's doing.

Wheels work fine if you have good ones with brakes, and you can also build a bench so the wheels only touch the ground when you move it. I put whatever I can on wheels. Beats dragging things and rupturing disks.

I haven't seen casters that will lock them from swinging, aswell as locking the wheels,
Sounds dangerous if you can't do that, whilst non swivelling casters kinda defeats the purpose of making the bench mobile in the first place.

Forget about breaks on the casters, and just make them retractable is what I would suggest.
And that goes for everything.
https://youtu.be/5IaGUw4KdaE

This design might not work if the bench isn't heavy enough though.
Sounds like it might be quite a noisy bench to work on, if its gonna be your only bench.
Curious to see how you might overcome that, likely possible with a bit of thought.
Love to see a wee youtube demonstration if you figure that out

More power to your elbow!
Tom

[Bobby Robbinett]

Why not just get some 2”x3” steel angle and cut it for your legs then using 2”x3” box tubing cut that for your aprons and stretchers and instead of welding it together just use a drill press to bore holes in it and bolt it all together. That is what I am doing since I am not a proficient welder. Then make a 4” to 8” thick torsion box style wood top. I like to do this for all of our outfeed tables, stands, benches, ect.

The steel aprons and stretchers tend to not bow over time if braced sufficiently and they never wear out. You can make some brackets that you could bolt your casters on to. I like doing it like this and use a melamine top.