A wheely good workbench solution, Version 2, Now we're rolling!

[TomTrees]

Hello there all.
Me thinks it's time for a review on this mechanism, after using it for the last 5 years or so, in a one car garage...



At the time, I wasn't aware that I was making the proverbial oxymoron,
but in actuality, it's turned out to get me into trouble on a few occasions...
for a good few reasons, which I might as well mention.

Having a lever on ONLY one side, is just a recipe for disaster in a small workshop.
Take for example, a little offcut or whatnot getting trapped under the castors on the far side... is quite annoying.
Better not have something on the bench which could roll off, or perhaps what's weighty enough to tip the thing over,
when that happens!

Thankfully I've never experienced such, but for the unaware, certainly possible.


The fact that it's movable means that... yes you will be shoving it tight against something,
be it somewhere, sometime, it's gonna happen eventually, even if you think you've got ample space for it!.

Sometimes, if leaving it be...means you're going to wedge something in there, which fit before you moved it!
or lacking the necessary space to work on what might be a...small engine.. Grrr!,

What about not bothering to wheel the bench away from the machinery?...
Better not be dealing with something unwieldy, long and heavy...
Should that come crashing down on it!.

Monkeying around the back, to get access to that lever... is gonna get pretty annoying,
so you'll be thinking of making a cord for getting that lever down....

Nonsense!

Whilst in the meantime, you'll use what's become the easiest solution,
From the front of the bench.

And better hope that you don't sever a cable of some sort whilst doing so blindly!.

A good way to get a rap, even if you're only popping into the shed to take a piccy.
Very nearly cut through the insulation on my extension lead, which is now a fair bit shorter.

Well, that was the last bleedin straw!


Time for a rethink on the matter.
No going back now.


Here's some pickings for the job, plenty of stock this time round,
Though need to go rummaging for some springs, but that won't be for a while yet.


I'd like to use some of these hinges, but I only have the one, and can't seem to find them that easily.
They have 4 gudgeons? which is nice and strong looking compared to other ones I've come across,
and as you see, are about 40mm in whatever orientation that is.
"Back flap hinge" seems about the best term for hits what I've found, from a quickish look online.
Not been at the shops in town to see if I could find a similar match, and must doublecheck the likes of Screwfix,
as I was looking for something largely identical.

I'd be interested to know another term for these, if anyone knows.

I can crack on with a fair of work bit until then, but it would be good to know I can get some quick.

Cheers folks
All the best.
Tom

 

[Jonathan]

Projection hinge, or parliament hinge is similar

 

[TomTrees]

Thanks Jonathan, I did see those types whilst searching, but as the name would suggest....
they're rather expensive! (where's my coat?)

I did go back and had a look at the Screwfix offerings, and seen three which might be suitable,
(with the help of a hacksaw, that is)
though not very similar, they may be OK, as they have more gudgeons than other types I've seen,
though not expecting much for the price,

Perhaps the plate thickness of the more expensive ones, for 2 odd quid, may be a little thicker gauge of steel,
so might see...(if I'm allowed)
to get a feel of them before buying, as I guess they'll be in a bag.
Will be having a quick look around town first though.


Cheers
All the best
Tom

 

[TomTrees]

Hello all, after some procrastination, I got started by cutting the stuff to length, and grinding the beads off this auld box iron.

I figured I'd make the upper lever design shorter than before, as the last one was a bit awkward to place a foot on at times...
i.e, squeezed in-between the pedal and the upper strecher.
Such happens frequently when the swivel castors are at maximum swing, which can alter the height by a good few inches on something this long.

Whilst I've also decided (so far) on having no... pedals?, in favour of being able to slide ones foot up to the top of the lever,
(without heel and toe)
This was annoying on the last version, due to the 'pedal' being an inch or so higher off the pipe.
(Might make more sense to post a piccy of what I mean)



So instead of that, I've preferred to drag one end of the bench for an inch or two, what swings the castors round,
enough so the lever drops to an appropriate height, as seen above...

Which I might add, isn't as bad as it sounds, and without any levered assistance, the wheels help a lot,
yet the bench has gone nowhere without intention, in that time.
I won't be very displeased if this will still be the case, no bothers...
Even with this upper lever shortened, it's still probably on the limits of the design, in terms of it fouling the upper strecher...
but I think it may be more sensible and efficient to have a hand on the workbench trestles, saving a step every time.

It'd be nice to have this sorted out all the same, should it be... just about right now.




Sometimes being lazy is productive!
Here's a nice method for getting into tight spots, the other side, what's below where photographed,
needed doing on the far end of the wedge shaped trestle.


Very pleased that the wider hinges I have, actually look far more preferable.
I'm such an eegit!, spending a good hour looking for hinges, lol.





Now I can get on with figuring out the dimensions and shape for the other lever.

Just going to plonk ahead regarding the ergonomics of things, and figure out later if things will work nicely without
a pedal.
It may hinder sliding ones foot up the end, should that work well this time, for the aforementioned reason above.

I'll be doing a latch test whilst clamped beforehand though,
and decide whether having pedals might be a welcome addition, or not?...


Cheers
All the best
Tom

 

[TomTrees]

Hello all, got back to working on this last week as there was other stuff what needed doing first.
and might I say, very eagerly wanting to get the workshop back to a somewhat functional state after that!

Not started with the other lever yet, as I've mainly been mucking about with scrap for the latching system,
so things are only starting to resemble something now.

Just about got enough stock from that plate for the job, and welded up some strapping onto the hinges,
whilst cutting and welding some more wee bits.


Mocking up things to get an idea of ergonomics, seems sound, though I haven't fully decided that and drilled holes for the latch.
Will be repeating this soon for some more figuring out



Chamfering done on the upper lever, and a few other wee jobs, (I'll try taking better photos of things after painting)
Not much more with the latch needs doing now, currently making the spring mounting...


Once that little job is finished, and the other lever is made.... I can get working on drilling some holes,
and welding on the last of the 5mm plate for the latch stopping tab...
but not before the addition of another key component!




Cheerio folks

All the best
Tom

 

[Cabinetman]

Just to see if I’ve followed this correctly, you are building a mechanism to lift your bench up / drop the casters down, to move the bench?
The bench I’m building utilises the tow hook from my combination mc, I’ll use it to lift one end so that the wheels drop down and are locked, then lift the other end and tow the bench to wherever.
This is it but obviously it has a long shaft- not shown.

 

[TomTrees]

Just to see if I’ve followed this correctly, you are building a mechanism to lift your bench up / drop the casters down, to move the bench?

That's it in a nutshell Ian, though one could say I'm re-building the retractable castor system, in order to make it more sensible
for use in a small shed.
The older system below, didn't lend itself well for the extra component?, (what's paramount to the design) ...



Cheers

All the best
Tom

 

[TomTrees]

Hello all, thought I might as well give ye an update on things, as it seems I could have hit bit of a snag.
Not sure yet, so will have to do some testing now with things partially assembled.
Difficult to test otherwise, as too many things were clamped up with prior mock ups.

Whether or not this design can be made work should be interesting, though I'm not holding my breath.

A few snaps of some of the work might explain things better,
and perhaps you can spot where things are going wrong.

With the latch bracket clamped up, made a start on the second lever.


Some more mocking up for dimensions


Not welded on the 90 degree latch stop, though a bungee cord can do the same job for the minute.


Here's the trouble, though it likely won't make sense without seeing the next bit...


Featuring the extra component, that is!


I didn't weld the stop tap, as I wanted to line up the hinges with each other, though things may require a total re-design yet.


Irregardless of that, I did drill for some fixings, to see if this might be possible.



The issue being that the long lever is twisting, and as a consequence of this, it seems like the far latch won't be able to
catch/hook up o'er the top.

Going to do some tests now that everything won't keep disassembling, as plenty of clamps will be utilized,
in order to attempt making the upper lever more rigid...
and if that fails?

Then plan B will likely involve a test with just one latch in the centre instead, which if successful...
would require a strap spanning between the brackets to mount it on.
whilst the previous location of the latches, would be replaced by levers instead.
Not much different, but a PITA to have to do. (note to self, spot welds are enough you fool!)

The only plus being... even less chance of snagging a wire on.
Hopefully I'll not keep having to remind myself of this, and can make wheely good workbench solution V-2,
function as planned.

Cheerio for now folks.
All the best
Tom

 

[Cabinetman]

Bit difficult to see exactly what’s going on I’m afraid Tom, but you could maybe stiffen up the bendy bar with a steel tube inserted up it?

 

[TomTrees]

Bit difficult to see exactly what’s going on I’m afraid Tom, but you could maybe stiffen up the bendy bar with a steel tube inserted up it?

Aye Ian, 'tis very crusty lookin, though on the flip side, I won't be loosing any sleep if some of these auld gates actually do make it to the scrappy.

That might work, as might welding on as much extra material as possible, anywhere/everywhere , since there's no design constraints other than thereabouts the latch area.... well, other than the lever self engaging due to the weight,
though I could experiment with that beforehand.
That said, I can't say that would definitely fix things either.

I'll surely be taking some more terrible pics this evening, as it wouldn't be fair to the design otherwise.
Though worth noting, for anyone who wishes to do the same, the lesson learned is easier made,
that is... should it not present some unforeseen challenge as well!.

Hopefully be back soon with some progress on things.

All the best
Tom

 

[TomTrees]

Hello again folks, thought I'd post a wee update for ye.
Looking again at the... for want of a better word, upper frame section? (I can't use "lever" now)
It appeared like strengthening things wouldn't have mattered much, for multiple reasons,
Sorry I meant to take photos of this, but I was too sore to be on the ground to have enough patience with that...
so after a good day of procrastination, decided to get on with it.

Didn't want to do this, as it will no doubt obscure things, (like round handled tools rolling under the bench for example),
but the benefit outweighs the negatives in the general scheme of things.

A start made to join those mounting brackets together



Nearly back to where I thought I was now, though haven't worked on the upper frame section yet,
though that can wait until later on.


As promised, some lousy photos.
Did you ever get the feeling, you're designing something that already exists?


With most of the miserable grit over with, I can get onto mocking up the interesting bit...
that is, once I find the right stuff for the job first.
Seems I might have to make up some hinges of sorts for the disengagement levers,
though not sure on that yet.
Must have a good sweep up, and ponder some more about what bits would most readily be suitable.



Cheerio.

All the best
Tom

 

[TomTrees]

Not much more to do on this, so thought I'd show a little progress.

Needed to raise the hinge up some 10mm, to allow for the pins/bolts of the "disengagement levers",
(in order to line up with the hinge), and I wanted to have everything flush on the underside of the bench strechers.
Whilst I also had to install some keeper plates to stop them from unscrewing.




Might need to weld another length of flat onto the latch strut, as it seems it might be twisting.
Made the new chamfer profile in the upper frame section, to do some testing with...


Seems I got the length of the disengaging levers right, certainly not too long for sure!
Haven't bolted the latch together yet, as I've got some experimenting to do with ergonomics.





Mucking about with the clamped latch now, getting ready to mark out...
not sure if I want the upper frame section to depress any further than this,
and seems the higher it is, the easier to engage with the latch...
of course if by much further, it would require the disengagement levers to be longer than desired.


Still a wee list of things to do, but that's basically it.

All the best
Tom

 

[TrimTheKing]

I'll admit to struggling to fully follow, but I can see the outcome now. Can I request a video of it in action at the end please? I think that would nicely round off the project and make sure I ( and maybe others) who don't share the same imagination for these things) to properly understand. Cheers.

 

[TomTrees]

That's quite understandable Mark, as this ain't my first rodeo, so I've likely left loads out,
along with changing the terms for components, I can see why my posts have been confusing.
Seems a theme at this stage, that all my posting seems to be best read backwards, haha!

Indeed a video will be helpful to those who might be curious, either as to explain the want for the new design,
or to highlight some details I may have left out.
Though will have to get the last bit done first, and document some more gibberish for ye,
of what might only make sense.. thereafter, said video.

I do hope with some more lights involved, (and Claas green paint) will make things clearer,
as taking pics of rust&shine is rather difficult!.


Nothing left to do now, but some testing and fettling before assembly,
(been leaving off the last bit of welding, as I don't fancy any more surprises)
and done the last bit of significant work yesterday, making the latch strut more rigid.


This shot below may be the most useful, for highlighting some of the components.
One might see why I haven't welded on the threadbar for the disengagment levers,
which might have been a wise decision... as the mechanism seems to be very squeaky at the moment,
(not sure where from yet!)
so perhaps some mucking about with some plastic washers might do the trick, if that's where it's coming from.


Now I can get on with fettling the latch, which as you can see below... the upper frame section being prone to skewing a bit...
Whilst the height of it's engagement, still hasn't been decided yet either,
so will hopefully get some holes for the latch marked and drilled out today.

Be nice to get the mounting holes drilled for this thing, so could do away with the clamps,
but putting off such hasteful temptation until it's totally finished.




That's all to show for now, Cheerio.


All the best.
Tom

 

[duke]

Hi Tom, I do follow your WIP but find your images are almost mono colour which makes it hard to wrap my head around the details. Any way to change that?

 

[Cabinetman]

Hi Tom, I do follow your WIP but find your images are almost mono colour which makes it hard to wrap my head around the details. Any way to change that?

I was wondering what it was that was bugging me!

 

[TomTrees]

Hi again folks, I guess that's just the misery what's likely apparent in all my pictures...
"Tis hopefully only a temporary thing.

Sorry, not got a video for ye yet, as I've been painting lots of things in the meanwhile,
and much like near everything else of recent really... without any wheels for the bench in here..
it's making things much more difficult, so I'm eager to get this finished with.

I may need to do some more work on things, but that can be done without much bother now.

The brand is Tractol Claas green paint or seed green paint as I've heard it called,
and it seems a preferable shade to another brand I've used,
with a tad less green illuminosity/lime and more yellow it seems, though shades of this colour change tremendously
dependent on lighting etc.
It is much thinner than other paints I've used, and I thinned it a little with suitable stuff,
yet what a disaster that turned out, and if I'm ever gonna slather on this stuff again with a brush...(likely)
I won't ever thin this stuff again, if I can help it, not even a drop, and it'll be a bone dry brush too!

Have many touch ups to do yet, as things ran big time, as I needed to flood the surface in order to get any colour on.

Hopefully these pics might be better than the last, though I can't show the thing in action yet,
as I want the paint to harden a bit.


I decided to use bolts instead of short bits of threadbar, and it took a while to grind the nuts to the exact thickness,
as it's a bit tricky to fish the bolt and washers in-between the secondary components, i.e the disengagement levers/latch strut,
and the main section, (what needs to slide in, due to the 90 deg latch stops BTW)





The "keeper plates" what's there to stop the bolts undoing, needs to be installed from underneath,
(hence the stubby screwdriver)
and it looks like I need to tack a little washer on them, as they need to be a bit closer to the bolts...


That now making three examples of reasoning to change the design of this slightly.


I didn't mention I had to lengthen this twice with the welder!
and obviously...the below photo suggesting some proper faffery getting those holes drilled,
(shoulda used a custom punch for marking out, instead of pecking with a brad point)
Not to mention some knuckle skinning goodness!

For those who'd have one, no room for impact drivers here either.
Those are some reasons why I think it might be less faff if the main section/"strap" was dis-mountable.
and yes, I really could do with having a die grinder in here, haha!



One can see the above and below shot, showing the temperamental nature of this unforgiving shade of green,
sometimes giving the suggestion of a slight mint tone in photos, though in real life, the prior pictures are a more accurate representation of this colour.




As you may note, I haven't engaged the wheels, as I didn't wish to scuff the paint off,
and with more to paint, (again) not going to for a bit.

Another little job, which may or may not get done are stop pads mounted onto the main section/strap,
as going over a bump, the short/lower frame section clangs into it sometimes.
The height of stop pads will need some experimentation, as I'm not sure if it might interfere with things ergonomically
on the other upper/longer frame section?



Sorry no shot to explain, though I'll try to better, when I feel the paint is sound enough to make use of the thing.


That's all for now, gotta use up the rest of this thinned green paint, as no amount of neat stuff would thicken up,
two shot glasses worth of "middle isle" thinners (which I read are definitely compatible)
so most of the tin needed to go in to a big jar.

All the best
Tom

 

[TomTrees]

Thought I'd post a wee update, having used this for some time now,
and can report no niggles whatsoever and extremely pleased of the revision.
Absolutely no gripes at all about moving the bench now, even if it's just a few inches.
Such can make a big difference for the four legged helpers.

Some welcome things have been apparent in the time since, which are worth the mention,
simple as they are, didn't seem of much importance until having gotten used to them.
Here's one example of such what I hadn't considered, being able to level the bench with ease.
No walking round the bench to sort that out now.



Whilst another little noteworthy boon, being able to engage the mechanism irregardless of which end of the bench,
that one is facing towards.


Sorry, not got around to making a video yet, as I'd rather wait until another important project or two is completed first...
reason being, not wishing to give impressions of the shed being usable right now for woodworking.
i.e an exposed tablesaw blade, (which is currently being addressed)
whilst the shed is in an extremely cluttered state, and will be for some time.
Plenty of work nessecairy yet, in order to get back to doing any woodworking whatsoever, though things are progressing.
Cheerio.

All the best
Tom