I got a new bench belt sander for Christmas. It works great and does
the exact job I wanted it to do.
Once it was working and checked out, came the next big question, "Where
do I store it?"
I have a small shop and have maximized the space by placing all of the
work areas on wheels so I can move the need parts into the best position
to get a good work flow.
While there are a couple of bench tools like the drill press and Band
saw that have permanent space, all of my other similar bench tools are
on a base so they can be pulled off of the shelf clamped to the works
space when need.
The belt sander messes up the system in that I am looking for a place to
store it when not in use. I had thought of placing it on a base like
my other tools but it is 28"X14"X24" LWH and weighs about 40 Pounds so
is not as portable as my other tools.
I did some research and a flip top cabinet kept coming up. It looks
attractive in that you could put two bench tools in one space, flipping
it over as you need the different tools.
It seems there are draw backs.
It seems like there would be a problem flipping it especially if the
tools were not nearly the same weight.
It seems as if there would be a danger of loosing control during the
flip and damaging the tool or cabinet. There Could be nearly 80 pounds
on the table in the two tools. It just seems unwieldy.
Has any one had experience with a flip top cabinet for tool storage?
Are there any suggestion for storing bench tools in a small shop so they
are more or less always available?
On Saturday, December 21, 2019 at 6:33:51 PM UTC-5, [email protected] wrote:
> I got a new bench belt sander for Christmas. It works great and does
> the exact job I wanted it to do.
>
> Once it was working and checked out, came the next big question, "Where
> do I store it?"
>
> I have a small shop and have maximized the space by placing all of the
> work areas on wheels so I can move the need parts into the best position
> to get a good work flow.
>
> While there are a couple of bench tools like the drill press and Band
> saw that have permanent space, all of my other similar bench tools are
> on a base so they can be pulled off of the shelf clamped to the works
> space when need.
>
> The belt sander messes up the system in that I am looking for a place to
> store it when not in use. I had thought of placing it on a base like
> my other tools but it is 28"X14"X24" LWH and weighs about 40 Pounds so
> is not as portable as my other tools.
>
> I did some research and a flip top cabinet kept coming up. It looks
> attractive in that you could put two bench tools in one space, flipping
> it over as you need the different tools.
>
> It seems there are draw backs.
> It seems like there would be a problem flipping it especially if the
> tools were not nearly the same weight.
>
> It seems as if there would be a danger of loosing control during the
> flip and damaging the tool or cabinet. There Could be nearly 80 pounds
> on the table in the two tools. It just seems unwieldy.
I assume you've checked out YouTube for a plethora of videos on flip top tool
stands. It does not appear that your concerns are warranted.
Balancing is easy via both positioning and adding extra weight (e.g. thin
steel plates, etc.) although I'm not even sure that that is necessary.
This seems typical of the videos I've watched:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiDvT6_mcNI&feature=youtu.be&t=444
>
> Has any one had experience with a flip top cabinet for tool storage?
>
> Are there any suggestion for storing bench tools in a small shop so they
> are more or less always available?
Bolt them to 2 x whatever base and clamp them to your workbench when needed.
I've got a vice set up like that, my bench grinder has enough of it's own base
to fit a clamp, my sander doesn't need to be clamped, at least it hasn't
so far.
Both the grinder and the sander sit on an open bottom shelf of the workbench.
I have receptacles mounted across the front of the workbench. It's not unusual
for me the leave the tools where they are, plug them in and use them for
a quick grind or sand right while squatting down.
On Saturday, December 21, 2019 at 7:19:55 PM UTC-5, DerbyDad03 wrote:
> On Saturday, December 21, 2019 at 6:33:51 PM UTC-5, [email protected] wrote:
> > I got a new bench belt sander for Christmas. It works great and does
> > the exact job I wanted it to do.
> >
> > Once it was working and checked out, came the next big question, "Where
> > do I store it?"
> >
> > I have a small shop and have maximized the space by placing all of the
> > work areas on wheels so I can move the need parts into the best position
> > to get a good work flow.
> >
> > While there are a couple of bench tools like the drill press and Band
> > saw that have permanent space, all of my other similar bench tools are
> > on a base so they can be pulled off of the shelf clamped to the works
> > space when need.
> >
> > The belt sander messes up the system in that I am looking for a place to
> > store it when not in use. I had thought of placing it on a base like
> > my other tools but it is 28"X14"X24" LWH and weighs about 40 Pounds so
> > is not as portable as my other tools.
> >
> > I did some research and a flip top cabinet kept coming up. It looks
> > attractive in that you could put two bench tools in one space, flipping
> > it over as you need the different tools.
> >
> > It seems there are draw backs.
> > It seems like there would be a problem flipping it especially if the
> > tools were not nearly the same weight.
> >
> > It seems as if there would be a danger of loosing control during the
> > flip and damaging the tool or cabinet. There Could be nearly 80 pounds
> > on the table in the two tools. It just seems unwieldy.
>
> I assume you've checked out YouTube for a plethora of videos on flip top tool
> stands. It does not appear that your concerns are warranted.
>
> Balancing is easy via both positioning and adding extra weight (e.g. thin
> steel plates, etc.) although I'm not even sure that that is necessary.
>
> This seems typical of the videos I've watched:
>
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiDvT6_mcNI&feature=youtu.be&t=444
>
>
> >
> > Has any one had experience with a flip top cabinet for tool storage?
> >
> > Are there any suggestion for storing bench tools in a small shop so they
> > are more or less always available?
>
> Bolt them to 2 x whatever base and clamp them to your workbench when needed.
> I've got a vice set up like that, my bench grinder has enough of it's own base
> to fit a clamp, my sander doesn't need to be clamped, at least it hasn't
> so far.
>
> Both the grinder and the sander sit on an open bottom shelf of the workbench.
> I have receptacles mounted across the front of the workbench. It's not unusual
> for me the leave the tools where they are, plug them in and use them for
> a quick grind or sand right while squatting down.
Sorry, missed the part where you said you already use a base for some tools.
On Sun, 22 Dec 2019 07:41:12 +0000 (UTC), Eli the Bearded
<*@eli.users.panix.com> wrote:
>In rec.woodworking, knuttle <[email protected]> wrote:
>> I got a new bench belt sander for Christmas. It works great and does
>> the exact job I wanted it to do.
>
>Looking up I see:
>
>> Date: Sat Dec 21 18:33:46 EST 2019
>
>No patience, huh?
>
>> It seems there are draw backs.
>> It seems like there would be a problem flipping it especially if the
>> tools were not nearly the same weight.
>
>I'm sure that could be dealt with via additional weights.
Or distance from the pivot.
>
>> It seems as if there would be a danger of loosing control during the
>> flip and damaging the tool or cabinet. There Could be nearly 80 pounds
>> on the table in the two tools. It just seems unwieldy.
>
>You'd probably want a design that has the tools well attached to
>something that can spin freely without the tools hitting anything. And
>then you'd want some solid handles on that.
>
>(But no, I have no personal experience with flip-top tables.)
>
>Elijah
>------
>thinks 40lbs is still light enough to attach to a board to clamp down
I think that depends on one's age. ..and the age of one's back ;-)
(mine's been feeling pretty old for the last couple of weeks). :-(
On 12/21/2019 6:33 PM, knuttle wrote:
> I got a new bench belt sander for Christmas. It works great and does the
> exact job I wanted it to do.
>
> Once it was working and checked out, came the next big question, "Where do
> I store it?"
>
> I have a small shop and have maximized the space by placing all of the work
> areas on wheels so I can move the need parts into the best position to get
> a good work flow.
>
> While there are a couple of bench tools like the drill press and Band saw
> that have permanent space, all of my other similar bench tools are on a
> base so they can be pulled off of the shelf clamped to the works space when
> need.
>
> The belt sander messes up the system in that I am looking for a place to
> store it when not in use.  I had thought of placing it on a base like my
> other tools but it is 28"X14"X24" LWH and weighs about 40 Pounds so is not
> as portable as my other tools.
>
> I did some research and a flip top cabinet kept coming up.  It looks
> attractive in that you could put two bench tools in one space, flipping it
> over as you need the different tools.
>
> It seems there are draw backs.
> It seems like there would be a problem flipping it especially if the tools
> were not nearly the same weight.
>
> It seems as if there would be a danger of loosing control during the flip
> and damaging the tool or cabinet. There Could be nearly 80 pounds on the
> table in the two tools. It just seems unwieldy.
>
> Has any one had experience with a flip top cabinet for tool storage?
>
> Are there any suggestion for storing bench tools in a small shop so they
> are more or less always available?
I have a Delta belt/disk sander -- the old cast iron style. I didn't want
to permanently place it anywhere so I finally built a heavy-duty plywood
"T" big enough to hold it. When I want to use it I haul it out, dust it
off, and clamp the stem of the "T" in a bench vise and do what needs to be
done. Of course it is still not permanently housed but I can usually find
some cubby to stick it away between uses.
In rec.woodworking, knuttle <[email protected]> wrote:
> I got a new bench belt sander for Christmas. It works great and does
> the exact job I wanted it to do.
Looking up I see:
> Date: Sat Dec 21 18:33:46 EST 2019
No patience, huh?
> It seems there are draw backs.
> It seems like there would be a problem flipping it especially if the
> tools were not nearly the same weight.
I'm sure that could be dealt with via additional weights.
> It seems as if there would be a danger of loosing control during the
> flip and damaging the tool or cabinet. There Could be nearly 80 pounds
> on the table in the two tools. It just seems unwieldy.
You'd probably want a design that has the tools well attached to
something that can spin freely without the tools hitting anything. And
then you'd want some solid handles on that.
(But no, I have no personal experience with flip-top tables.)
Elijah
------
thinks 40lbs is still light enough to attach to a board to clamp down
On Sat, 21 Dec 2019 18:33:46 -0500, knuttle
<[email protected]> wrote:
>I got a new bench belt sander for Christmas. It works great and does
>the exact job I wanted it to do.
>
>Once it was working and checked out, came the next big question, "Where
>do I store it?"
>
>I have a small shop and have maximized the space by placing all of the
>work areas on wheels so I can move the need parts into the best position
>to get a good work flow.
>
>While there are a couple of bench tools like the drill press and Band
>saw that have permanent space, all of my other similar bench tools are
>on a base so they can be pulled off of the shelf clamped to the works
>space when need.
>
>The belt sander messes up the system in that I am looking for a place to
>store it when not in use. I had thought of placing it on a base like
>my other tools but it is 28"X14"X24" LWH and weighs about 40 Pounds so
>is not as portable as my other tools.
>
>I did some research and a flip top cabinet kept coming up. It looks
>attractive in that you could put two bench tools in one space, flipping
>it over as you need the different tools.
>
>It seems there are draw backs.
>It seems like there would be a problem flipping it especially if the
>tools were not nearly the same weight.
>
>It seems as if there would be a danger of loosing control during the
>flip and damaging the tool or cabinet. There Could be nearly 80 pounds
>on the table in the two tools. It just seems unwieldy.
>
>Has any one had experience with a flip top cabinet for tool storage?
>
>Are there any suggestion for storing bench tools in a small shop so they
>are more or less always available?
If you're near a Harbor Freight go down and take a look at their 500
pound capacity hydraulic lift table. Take the wheels off and block it
to the right height and you may be able to lift your sander to where
its table is even with your bench top but lower it completely below.
If you go that route I'd want to rig some kind of lock in the up
position so you aren't relying on Harbor Freight hydraulics.
Another couple of possibilities would be a sewing machine lift or a
mixer lift--again they have the height limitation and the ones in a
reasonable price range aren't rated for more than 50-60 pounds but
they're more compact. The mixer lift would put the sander out in
front of the bench, the sewing machine lift would raise it through the
bench.