Mobile Workbenches on Casters

[Mr__Bill]

I always thought it would be neat to have shop equipment on Pneumatic lifts.
Ever see how the Indy cars are lifted for tire changes? the jacks are built in and peumatic or hydraulic, they plug a hose into the car when it stops and all four corners are lifted by permanent jacks built into the car.

In a previous life we moved scenery with what we called air lift casters. Basically air springs meant to be installed in auto coil springs. We built telescoping tubes with the bladder inside, a caster on one end and a mounting plate on the other and a positive stop when extended. Ran the air connections to the back of the unit. A ball valve and pressure regulator meant for a spray gun and a quick connect completed the setup. Just connect an air hose and the unit was lifted up on the casters. The problem for us was the hissing sound when the air was released to lower the unit to the floor. A properly constructed scenery unit of several thousand pounds could be lifted and moved by two people. Back then it cost about $50 for the caster and air spring for a single lift point. Some of the larger units we mounted a portable air tank on the back and it provided enough air for several moves.

I expect that you could salvage the air springs from a junk yard and build the whole thing into hollow legs on a work bench, connect the air and you are rolling with hardly more than the cost of the casters for expense and not a great deal of space taken up with a lift mechanism. One additional advantage would be the opportunity to shim the legs as you let it down if the floor was not flat and level.

Bill
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Average rainfall for June is less than 2", thus far we have had about 6". Don't tell me the weather isn't screwed up...

[gsmittle]

+1 on what Mr. Bill said. Air lifts (or air casters) are the bee's knees for moving scenery. I've also used the flat plate type of caster (forget the company that markets them for moving stationary tools) for scenery, but you'd better have a perfectly clean stage floor when you lift, or you'll have a monster cloud of dust.

To cover the hissing, have the orchestra play louder.

Chochese, we used really heavy-duty linear toggles on rolling platforms. We called 'em "wagon brakes" and you can buy them from a theatrical supply company for about three times the price as a woodworking store.

I find for my high schoolers it's just as fast (and quieter) to use a couple of big wedges kicked underneath the upstage edge of the wagon.

Playing with air is WAY more fun, though.

g.

[corndog]

Casters on benches

I am a firm believer in having everything movable! All I use for benches are discarded kitchen base cabinets mounted on casters I get from Harbor Freight. The casters there are the cheapest I have ever found and they have a very large selection. I buy the rubber wheeled ones and use 4" rubber wheeled with two non swivel and 2 4" swivel locking on each cabinet.Just make sure you put the swiveled ones at one end and the non swiveled on the other end!
Of course you have to pick and choose the quality of cabinets and don't pick something up that has been out in the rain. I have 6 or 7 discarded cabinets and haven't paid one cent for any of them except the cost of making them look like I want. I do some sanding on them and spray then with spray bed liner for trucks and they come out like new.
Every now and then I drive around in older subdivisions and look for the cabinets just placed out at the curb for the trash man and load them in my van, heck, I even have one out on my covered patio with all the pool supplies in it.
I have used these cabinets for several years and wouldn't have it any other way, every thing is out of site behind nice doors and bearing mounted drawers.

[os1kne]

I'm curious to see someone do a bench with a pneumatic/hydraulic lift system like Loring described. I suspect that Tim's lift is probably the most practical/ cost-effective. (I've seen it a few times, but I'm impressed with it every time.)