SEAWOLF'S WORKSHOP

Building Cabinets

Building Work BeNCH Tool Cabinets

DUST FREE WINDOW BLIND BOXES

CABINET & DRAWER STORAGE DIVIDERS

HARDWARE SUPPLY CABINET

ROLLING WOOD RACK

SHOP COMPRESSED AIR

TILTING ASSEMBLY TABLE

WORK BENCH & TOOL CABINET

The over crowded workshop

The shortage of floor space required that most of my work be done on the driveway, which is less than ideal due to weather conditions.   After watching a couple of episodes of "The New Yankee Workshop" on building new work benches, I decided it was time to act.  I was also tired of tripping over tools and bumping into things.

I sat down and developed a plan for an efficient shop with central saw dust collection and dust free storage.  Since we expect to move in a couple of years and materials are expensive, I also need to be able to move my shop to the new house and be free standing and weather resistant.  Our dream house will be built in the Florida Keys and so it will be up on stilts.  Due to building codes, my future shop will be under the house, but exposed to the salt air.  I also need to be able to break down the bench modules quickly and move them up stairs in case of flooding. Armed with a plan, I began a multi-phase project to meet the aforementioned goals.  Since I have no where to store the shop contents during "urban renewal", I decided to free up as much space as possible starting with the storage issue. Phase I was torecover the wasted space around the air conditioner and water heater, buy constructing  Built-in Wall Cabinets.  Phase II was the construction of a rolling wood rack to store my scrap materials and allow their movement away from my "precious" shop real estate. Rolling Wood Rack. Phase III was the development of a workable design for bench modules that incorporated tool lifts and storage drawers and cabinets. Knockdown Work Bench and Tool Cabinets

Cabinet Foundation Frame

I started Phase I, by designing custom cabinets that took advantage of this wasted space and protected the existing duct work.  The  major considerations for this job were: (1) the cabinets had to be removable in case servicing of the air handler and water heater were required; (2) ease of air filter replacement; (3) no framing impediments to draining the water heater; (4) restricted height and access due to interference by the garage door track above; (5) protection of the duct work which impinged on a high traffic area of the house entry door.

I first began, buy framing in the "modules" using pressure treated lumber as the foundation against the concrete garage floor. I also took care to only use rust resistant outdoor fasteners in case moisture reached this area.   Next I framed in around the water heater and attached 2" x 4"s to the wall as anchors for the cabinets and support for the shelf cabinet top.  I decided the water heater would be enclosed with false door matching the other cabinets.  I also decided the gap around the air conditioner coolant lines was too big to waste, so I added a small door to allow that gap to be used as a broom closet.  

Framed in Cabinet Modules

I designed the cabinets to be built out of 3/4" birch plywood for strength and to allow for adjustable pin mounted shelves.  The backs were 1/4" plywood.  The cabinet in front of the air handler had limited usable space and so I made fixed shelves.  Hindsight being 20/20 I probably should have made the upper shelf in this module removable for easier access to the fan motor. The structural support was probably not required with the module "sandwiched" by the other cabinets.

Once the cabinets were built I installed them with anchors to the rear wall and screwed them to each other on the front edges.  All the screws that must be removed for disassembly are marked.  On the duct side I attached a 1/4" plywood panel to the lower cabinet frame and door frame, hiding the screws with trim. Since the was nothing to hold the upper trip piece, it was attached with glue to avoid damage to the duct.  All bottom floor panels were left unattached  to allow for drying in case of a water leak.

The doors were built with a rail and stile design with 1/4" plywood panels.  I bought a three bit raised panel cabinet router bit set to make the doors, planning to use the rail and stile bits alone, as the doors were very tall.  First I discovered that the dado panel groove was not as wide as my plywood, but I figured I'd just enlarge it with the 1/4" rabbeting bit.  Unfortunately, my birch rails had some warping which cause some "blow outs".  Since this also occurred when I tried to do the same thing with my table saw, I gave up on this joinery idea and ripped all the routing off.  Next I decided to use mortise and tenon joinery on the remaining stock, snatching victory from the jaw of defeat.

The fact that today's plywood thickness does not match standard cutting tool sizes is a major annoyance.  I have found a rail and stile set at Rockler Hardware that addresses this issue, so we'll see how it works on the next cabinets.

The face of each cabinet was finished off with 1" x 2" poplar frame to cover the plywood edges. The doors were attached with standard cabinet hinges made for this design and required no mortising.  The edge of each shelf was finished with a  piece of trim made from the same wood.  The trim was made by routing the both edges with a round over bit and then ripping 1/2" pieces off until enough trim was made.

Shelving Installed

The center door was a little different due to its size and the fact that the cabinets "stepped down" in width due to the garage door frame.  On this door I used a set of bi-fold door corner hinge pivots which worked great.  I was pleasantly surprised at how easily the installation was.  The false door covering the water heater was hung by attaching a piece of 1 1/4" aluminum angle to the top.  I drilled two holes in the angle and drilled two corresponding holes in the upper edge the panel's framing.  Two shelf pins where stuck in these holes, so the panel merely lifts off when access to the water heater is required.  I also set a piece of 1/4" plywood behind the panel as a footer to keep dust and "dropped" screws from collecting under the water heater.

After the main doors were installed I found the two double door cabinet doors overlapped.  This was rather annoying and after checking the cabinet frames and carcasses for square (they were), I drew a line along the overlap.  Much to my surprise the line was not straight, so the problem must have been due to that warping.  After consideration of various "fixes", I decided to just trim the excess off one side.  The remaining good edge would fool the eye of all but the most critical observer.

The cabinets were finished with Behr Ultra exterior paint.   Since this paint includes the primer, it saves some effort, but it did require two coats.  All in all the cabinets came out quite well.  They will definitely increased the dust free storage area and have opened up more floor space.  The total cost was around $550.00 which was much less than if I could have ordered custom cabinets.

Finished Cabinets

The next phase of the workshop renovation will be to build an rolling wood rack to replace my scrap bin.  Once this cluttered area is "tamed", I'll have a better idea if more storage will be needed or if I can begin building the work benches.

-to be continued

Part of the work shop renovation project required the removal of my fastener bins from the garage wall.   Now that they were removed, I had to come up with a solution for long term storage.  My neighbor is also a woodworker and had built a "rolling wall" of open parts bins he had acquired.  It was a lot larger than I needed, but the concept had possibilities.  Taking this idea,  I modified it to my own needs and designed a rolling parts cabinet that fit into my modular workshop program .  I had already invested in several parts bin cabinets, so incorporating them with a few add-ons would save a little money.  This information and projected future needs, determined the size of the cabinet.

Construction of the cabinet was straight forward and utilized the same techniques as the other cabinets I had built.  Since the cabinet would be quite heavy and moved frequently, I decided to mount the cabinet on a sturdy base made of 2" x 4"s .  Since I am really space limited in the garage, I wanted to minimize the size of the cabinet.  The center wall of the cabinet was offset to so that the parts bins would just fit, with the open bin side a little deeper .  Finally I added bi-fold  doors, to each side, reducing the space needed for opening .  The installation of some large handles on either end of the cabinet, made moving it around the shop easier.  This project turned out to be a great success and now holds volumes of well organized fasteners, electrical connectors, furniture parts, etc.  I can move it near where I am working and everything I need readily at hand.  Another benefit is the large top surface doubles as additional table top for various chores.  Best of all, the cabinet keeps all my parts dust free.

The Old Scrap Bin       The New Wood Rack

Utilizing scraps from other projects is made much easier if you can find them.  My old scrap bin was not only a mess and unworkable, but it was also taking up a lot of "real estate" in my cramped garage shop.  I found an interesting solution in a book Workshop Projects  (available Rockler Hardware) that showed a mobile wood rack.  Making a few modifications to meet my own needs, I decided to build one. The project was not a difficult one, with the only problems caused by my forgetting to adjust one measurement, based on my changes-OOPS!.

Actually the most difficult part of the project was to find some heavy duty casters.  I finally located some at Tractor Supply that had a 550lb. rating. I used four swivel casters on the corners and two fixed ones in the middle. The center casters were shimmed up on 1/4" plywood to allow for pivoting the rack as it is moved. (I always wondered why the carts rocked at Home Depot?)  (Note ensure the total height of your rack will clear the opening in your garage with the door open.)

The other material that took some searching was the UHMW plastic (ultra high molecular weight polyethylene) that the plywood sheets slide on in the center of the rack.  Most suppliers had pre-cut pieces at a high price. I found some big sheets of 3/4" at  Interstate Plastics which I cut to size and counter sunk SS deck screws to fasten to the cross braces. UHMW also makes good sliding surfaces for jig and tables, etc.

Since I was unable to find a load rating on the planned shelf racks, I decided to use two racks specifically designed for wood storage. Woodcraft had a 50% off sale on the TRITON Wood Rack (#144756),  so that seemed to be the best way to go.  A good feature of this rack, it that the "fingers" are pre-set with an upward tilt to keep the lumber from falling off.  The smaller pieces can be stored on the shelf on the top of the rack.

One of the two modifications I made was to increase the sheet goods section to 12" as to hold more plywood.  4' x 8' sheets of plywood are the most unwieldy material I have to deal with and are hard to maneuver in garage with and 8' ceiling and a garage door that cuts out another 12"+  when opened.

The other change was to add two shelves on the base of the rack to hold bucket bins of small, but usable scraps of plastic, PVC, dowels, etc.  Since we have an in-exhaustible supply of cat litter plastic buckets (and the fact they were rectangular) made recycling a win-win.  I made the shelves of 5/8" plywood with a 1' x 2" edge to keep the buckets from falling off.  I also added a 1/4" plywood back to keep the buckets from falling off the back of the shelves and a PVC tube on one of the end uprights for holding long dowels. 

Once I got the rack loaded it was apparent that it was holding a lot of weight.  Still it is easy to move and maneuver.  The only modifications I think would be advantageous would be to put more cross piece supports in the center section to support smaller pieces of plywood sheet.  If you have a lot of plywood to store a larger center section is advisable.  I did find that you could put full sheets in one end of the rack and smaller sheets in the other end  for more capacity and ease of finding.  Having ease of access to large sheets of plywood is a major improvement (Ever try an handle an 8' plywood sheet in a room with an 8' ceiling?).

This project turned out to be a winner.  I was able to store all of my materials in a much more organized manner and it is much easier to find and access small pieces than before (I actually found stuff I forgot I had).  Further I can now recover and huge amount of "real estate" on the shop floor, by moving the rack out of the way when I'm working.  If it looks like rain, I'll just cover it with a tarp. The rack is also handy for storing my saw guides, etc. while working.  I may add some eyelet screws near the wood rack frames for bungee chords if I have problem with wood falling off, but so far it hasn't been needed.

Total cost of this project was around $300 with two thirds of the cost being dedicated to the heavy duty casters and wood storage rack and hardware.

Wood Rack Cover

Since the wood rack must sit in my driveway to allow me to work in the garage, eventually it was going to get rained on.  At first I just threw a tarp over it which worked fine for several months, but this wasn't a perfect solution as had to be fastened all the time making access difficult.  The rack sat outside for several months, while I was renovating the garage, and eventually the plastic tarp started to deteriorate from the sun and get pin holes from the wind abrading it on the corners of the wood.  Naturally the day before I was going to do this project, a storm went through ripped holes in the tarp's weak areas and some of the wood got wet, leaving food for the fireplace. 

I got a new tarp and decided to build and upper frame to secure the tarp in place and keep it away from the sharp wood corners.  The frame was made of common 3/4" PVC fittings, electrical PVC conduit attached with metal conduit clips from the the local Home Center.  The only reason for using electrical PVC conduit over plumbing pipe was price.   The frame was simply a box type construction made large enough to clear the corners of all the wood.  The fittings were pressure fit vs gluing. to allow for future changes.  I was limited by the height I could set the "peak water break" because of the garage door.  HINT!HINT!. 

Next I threw the new tarp over the rack and adjusted to fall equally on each side.  I always seem to do these things on windy days, so the tarp  was always shifting.  Fortunately I had found these clever PVC tarp clips on the internet  at FlexPVC .  The clips are sized for various sizes of PVC pipe and are designed to hold tarps or screen in place.  They are the perfect low cost solution to this problem.  I secured the tarp to the frame with the clips and the wind was no longer a problem.  At the bottom of each side of the tarp, I used another piece of PVC, the length of the rack, and secured it with same clips.  The PVC provided weight to keep the tarp down and made it easy to roll up when not needed.  I did the same thing with smaller pieces of pipe and secured the excess areas of tarp to itself with cable ties in the tarp's grommets.

Having seen what the wind could do I decided to secure bottom of the tarp to the rack with bungee chords and screw in rings.    I attached the bungees to another clever idea, the EZ Grabbit Tarp Clamp .  Now the tarp could be stowed on top of the rack and quickly lowered and secured when needed.

The design requirements needed for this phase of the project turned out be quite complex.  Each cabinet module had to meet the following requirements:

Work Bench and Tool Cabinet

   The cabinets had to not only be modular but accept a standard tool lift, so I decided to make a universal design I could apply to all the cabinets that formed the work bench.  The cabinet carcass was standard 3/4" cabinet grade plywood, rabbeted along the joining surfaces and screwed and glued.  The top frame of the cabinet carcass formed a 24" x 24" opening and was made out of lap joined 2" x 4"s with a 3/4" rabbet along the plywood areas.  This gave a fastening surface on the cabinet frame and made a large sturdy overhang ledge on the cabinet front for clamping. The cabinet would have casters mounted on the bottom and serve as the frame work to attached the tool lift, upper cabinets and drawers.  More on this later.

Tool Lift

The the heart of this project was the tool lift module so the first thing I had to do was design a universal tool lift that could be dropped into the standardized cabinet carcass.  This turned out to be a real challenge not only in design, but in finding the correct parts.  The first prototype turned out to be workable, but not sturdy enough. So, without further modifications, that would affect other design requirements, it wasn't a viable design. Additionally, it would have been time consuming and costly to build, but I would have gotten to use lots of tools.

.

                    Prototype Tool Lift Insert

The second option was a commercial tool lift that was perfect, but cost prohibitive  at $500.00 a unit.  I thought about building my own version of this lift, but decided a more simple, less expensive solution had to be possible.  That's when it dawned on me that some kind of scissors or RV jack might work.  All I had to do was find one with sufficient extension distance.    I found a reasonably priced RV jack, at Harbor Freight Tools that would do the job.    This 5000 lb. jack was nearly perfect to raise all my bench tools to the proper

 height.  Hook up a drill and the tool is quickly raised or lowered.  The only problem with this solution, was that the Acme screw would not stay on center when fully raised.  Since the tool base had to lock into the table top at the same position, every time, the jack had to stay in a fixed position.  Since the cabinet was not large enough to hold the width of the jack when fully extended, the ACME screw would have to penetrate the rear of the cabinet.   Rather than spend big $$$$ on another solution, I decided I could find a way to seal the cabinet, when the bench tool was stowed in the cabinet.  I designed a "flap gap seal" out of a piece of plastic lap molding and a door bottom seal.  The cabinet would be sealed enough to allow a camphor block prevent tool corrosion during stowage.  So a $20.00 RV jack, beat a $500 Lift Tool any day.  Another problem arose since my strip/disk sander was taller than the jack's lift distance, but a mod of the base would still allow it to function as planned.  All the other bench mounted tools fit perfectly.  Since I would have to set all the cabinets away from my garage wall, to accommodate my sliding miter saw and vacuum lines, having the jack Acme screw protrude out of the back of the cabinet was no problem.    The jack and lift base was mounted on a "U" plywood base that could be removed from the cabinet carcass and custom adjusted to the height needed to bring the bench tool flush with the table top.  It also served as the frame for a removable drawer or sliding platform.  Now the cabinet set up could be changed in the future, whereas a dado shelf base would be fixed permanently. The inside of the base could also be modified to support a drawer or sliding tray for more storage. 

Since the tool lift would be lift and stabilizing some heavy tools, more support would be required than just the jack itself.  I attached some "wings" on the tool platform and added some 3/8" stove bolts

  that would penetrate the cabinet top and secure the table in the full extend position, with some threaded knobs.    The stove bolts were held in place

 with 3/8" nuts that seated into counter bores on the bottom of the cabinet top frame.   Now the tool platform would be securely seated in the upright position.

When the bench tool is lowered a  false bottom is inserted under the table top   that will support a table level insert.   This insert was supported by making two angle brackets of 1/8" x 1"aluminum angle stock mounted to the cabinet carcass with counter sunk wood screws. 

The cabinet that was to contain my strip sander needed a few other mods due to the sander's size and weight.  First, the false bottom insert had to have a cut out to allow for the height of the sander . Due to the size of the gap, I also added another piece of the angle aluminum across the back to support the table insert.    Also, even though the jack had a 5000 lb. capacity, it was not designed to have a large, poorly balanced load on top.  When raised, the table had to be guided into place, but the through bolts made for a stable platform.  However when fully lowered, the table that mounted the sander, still wobbled on the jack, so I added a couple of blocks of wood to act a bedding chocks in the lower position.     Finally doors were added to this version of the cabinet with European hinges.  Other versions would have drawers or a combination of both.

Cabinet Base

The next requirement I needed to design was making the cabinets both moveable, when required, and stable when set up.  Putting casters on the bottom of each cabinet module was easy, but keeping from moving was not going to be possible with a locking caster.  I decided to set each cabinet on ACQ 2" x 4" wood base, designed so I could insert the individual cabinet from the front.  Since a 2" x 4" is 3.5" wide, a 3" caster was perfect.  I could tilt the cabinet up and then slide it on top of the base, making stable and keeping the casters clear of the floor.  When making the module bases I made use of pocket screw technology.   Since the bases were made of ACQ lumber, I had to use 2 1/2" #8  coarse thread stainless steel pocket screws and a Kreg MKJ Mini Jig

(available from Kreg through Amazon.com).  Unfortunately the lumber was very soft and the recommended offset of 1 1/4" for the pocket jig was inadequate.  The screws pulled through the pocket and came out the other side.  I moved the jig back to 1 5/8" and solved the problem.  The addition of polyurethane glue made an extremely solid joint.

Each base would be bolted in line to the next one, as would the cabinet modules.  To keep the cabinets from tilting forward I added a half-lap cleat on the rear of the cabinet and a threaded block on the front to hold it down. Once the cabinets were all positioned I added the front 2" x 4" ACQ base and secured it into each of the threaded blocks.   The front base was created from two boards joined with a half lap joint in an area, about half the length of the bench, that would not interfere with the any of the threaded blocks.  One little idea that dawned on me, was to coat the "sliding surfaces" of the bases with furniture wax to ease positioning.  This was a major improvement and made the cabinets very easy to position on their respective bases.  The other problem that became apparent was that lifting a full cabinet the 1/4" needed to get it onto the base was not going to be easy.  Rather than injure myself or break something I made a little lever lift I could raise the cabinet with my foot, while I pulled it onto the base.   This idea made lifting the cabinet a snap and much safer.   The lever lift was made with two laminated 2" x 4" blocks that were cut in a semi-circle on the band saw.  The pivot was then glued/screwed to another section of 2" x 4" to complete the lift.  Cheap, simple and effective!

   Open Cleat      Base in mounted position

The current installation of these cabinets is in my garage, so I needed to get them as close to the wall as possible, yet allow for the upper cabinets, tool lift jack screw and vacuum hoses.  This made getting behind the cabinets problematic so I cut some 15" ACQ 2" x 4" spacers and placed them at each joint of the base modules.  .  This kept everything aligned and prevented the bases from moving when the cabinets were slid into "battery".  Remember to account for the blind boxes when planning the length of your spacers.  It could be ugly if you put an upper cabinet or Acme screw through your window.  This is also a good time to lay out any additional electrical outlets you plan on installing.

Upper Cabinets

Since I was looking to maximize my storage space, I decided to add several upper level cabinets.    These cabinets needed to remain clear of the bench tools below and not interfere with moving large

project materials around. These cabinets are supported by 2" x 4" stanchions mounted to the back side of the cabinet with 3/8" bolts. Unfortunately the prototype cabinet made it readily apparent that reaching the cabinets was going to be difficult if mounted as planned, so I decided to mount them with cabinet slides (100 lb. capacity) and make a large moving upper cabinet.  Now the cabinets would be conveniently located forward, but could be pushed out of the way when needed.

Upper Cabinet Stowed (L)  Pulled Forward (R)

Since the 2" x 4" stanchions were not wide enough to support the cabinet slides, I mounted them in dados cut in plywood board (cabinet slide assembly) that would mimic the side of a cabinet.  . 

The dados would add support to the cabinet slides, when pulled forward, and the board would make a secure area to attach the cabinet assembly to the stanchion . I inserted the slides in each dado and screwed them in.  Then to allow for cabinet movement, I sat each cabinet box on a 1/4" piece of plywood and then set the cabinet slide assemblies, on either side of the cabinet and used them to aid in the aligning and attachment of the "drawer" side of the slides. Naturally, no one was around when it came time mount the cabinet box, so aligning four cabinet slides was problematic.  However, not to be deterred,  I mounted a small piece of plywood (with a towel on top to ease sliding) on one of the tool lift jacks I had yet to install.  This made a snap to raise the cabinet box into position.  It took a little "jockeying"  to slide the cabinet back the first time, but once all the slides were seated, cabinet moved effortlessly.  Be careful while moving the cabinet with the lower box empty, as it will tip over backwards unless the upper cabinet is pulled forward.

Once all the cabinet modules are built, they were set on their individual base frames.  All the base frames have been previously bolted together and each cabinet was then bolted to its neighbor at the top stanchions; carcass side; bottom base rail and a finish strip attached to the clamping edge of the row of cabinets work benches. . 

Also of note is the fact that I also sprayed all the cabinet surfaces with at least one coat of clear urethane to protect the wood. This sealed all the bare wood and covered the scratches in the surplus pre-finished cabinet plywood I used.  The use of a paint gun was much faster, in view of the volume of work required, but it probably used double the paint volume.  Even though this wood was "cosmetically challenged" the savings was more than worth while for a garage work bench that will soon be dust covered.

When the modules were completed and mounted, I placed a masonite layer on top of the CDX plywood counter top for a replaceable work surface that was secured with 1" screws.   I then ripped some 1 1/2" x 3/4" birch trim pieces to attach to the forward clamping edge of each bench module to finish off the cabinets.  All of these were just screwed (not glued) to the bench tops so they could be replaced if damaged in the future.  However, on the two sections that covered the saw dust down draft table, the trim was mounted to the removable table top surface to act as a handle for removal.

Insert Screws to hold down two table top covers over down draft table

I next cut 1/2" plywood sections for each module and mounted them to the cabinet uprights as a "back splash" to keep things from falling off the back of the bench .                          These also served as a good place to mount some electrical power strips and magnetic tool holders . 

My next step was to run a central sawdust collection line to each bench tool. .  These had to be mounted so that the bench modules could be separated without any dismantling of the saw dust duct hose sections.  Fortunately a quick disconnect (QDC) is readily available for just this purpose. The line for each tool is mounted to its respective bench module and connected to the duct via the QDC.  A valve was put in the split to each tool so that maximum vacuum pressure could be achieved at the tool currently in use.  I also made a dust catcher behind my miter saw to catch as must saw dust as possible. 

Now that the miter bench was completed, it was time to equip it to be a miter bench.  Normally a ramp system such as this, would be mounted at the back of the bench and the saw have a cut out in from of it, for access.  Unfortunately the brick wall behind my saw and the shortage of  floor space prevented this.  Also since the ramps would interfere with the tool lifts/bench tools they would have to be removable. (Note: the modular system accounts for this and can be setup in the traditional way when installed without a wall behind it.)  I routed in two T-track sections on either side of the miter saw, being careful to allow a space at either end to enable the insertion of the track nuts .  Since the tracks were longer than the modules, I had to cut them to allow separation also. The tracks serve a dual purpose, securing both the miter bench ramps and my various jigs, etc.  (More on this later) .  I then built two miter bench feed ramps for either side of the saw and equipped them with Kreg  Top Trak Fence & Flip Stops, to speed repeatable cuts on the miter saw.  Since the ramps are removable, keeping the Trak stop measuring tape correct calibrated was going to be important.  I placed a stop nut on the end of each miter bench ramp to do this.     The nut and bolt butt up against the end of the T-slot track to set the ramp's distance from the saw.   The other advantage of these removable ramps, is that they can both be set on the same side of the saw to support longer boards. 

It was now time to build some drawers and trays in the remaining cabinet module carcasses.

The miter bench project was now complete.  There will be some "tweaking" of the cabinets and drawers with mounts and dividers to arrange my tools.  I decided to take advantage the space under the tool lifts, so each tool storage module was fitted with a tray for additional pull out tray.   I also made some permanent mounts for my dove tail and pocket screw jigs that allowed them to be attached via a T-track.  Now that the bench portion of the "Garage Renovation Project" was complete, the next phase was to build some locker style cabinets to store my saw fences and Shopsmith accessory tools. 

Special Purpose Tools (SPT) Storage Cabinets

  The next phase of my cabinet project was to build some cabinet to hold my Shopsmith SPTs, accessories, jigs and long items.  The carcass and base of these cabinets is exactly the same as the miter bench cabinets, with the exception of the dimensions.  Basically just a big box.  However, inside I made fixtures to support pullout tool trays and store long saw guides.   This was done by building an "inverted L" insert that fittted into the carcass like a mini-cabinet.  The insert provided support for the SPT trays and since it did not fully extend across the entire cabinet, formed a full length slot for saw guides, sliding tables, levels etc.  I decided not to rabbet the mounting of the insert, in case changes were needed, but did add a 3/4" plywood support to the horizontal part to help support the SPT weight.  The insert was butt jointed against the cabinet bottom and side and fastened with 3" deck screws.

I mounted a single tray in one cabinet and two trays in the other,  mounted on full extension 100 lb. cabinet slides. I placed them about waist height to ease lifting each SPT from the side. and placed the taller items on the upper tray.  All tools were mounted via Shopsmith tool stand holders .   The doors were hung on 170 degree Euro hinges to facilitate tool access.  Unfortunately the size limitations of my shop caused the strip sander bench location to interfere with the opening of one of the doors.   Since I couldn't relocate the cabinet I decided to split the cabinet door with solved the problem full opening of the door. .  Inside I cabinets I added various fixtures to support the various accessories.  I used 3/4" galvanized pipe an mounting flanges for leg and saw guide holders .  I also used them to fabricate some racks for my sliding tables . Since I had some old tool bench hardware around, I used it to make places to store the sliding table tubes .  Finally I built a base mount to hold my sliding table. .  Unfortunately my "Nick Engler" mod of the table, meant it could only stow one way and "Murphy" showed up when I discovered the 170 degree Euro hinges closed in a bigger arc than the ones I had planned on using.  Hence the table was in the way  The only solution I could find for this problem,  was to notch the table . Not pretty but it worked.  Finally I just stowed all my jigs and accessories in the bottom of each cabinet.   Once I'm satisfied, I may add some pull out trays or drawers for these items.

Media Cabinets

No self respecting "man cave" is complete without a media center.  There's nothing like a TV or radio in the shop during football season and a cabinet keeps the saw dust out when not in use.   Besides I had just enough plywood left over from the rest of the cabinets.

This was a simple project making the carcass boxes with the same techniques used on the other cabinets.  The cabinets are bolted together to maintain alignment of the cable holes that allow for a power strip to power both cabinets .  Another cable hole to plug the power strip into the receptacle. 

The cabinets also rest on furniture tips, used as shim so the doors can open.   

Right now they are not fastened to the cabinets below them, but can be.  The doors open vertically to allow for unobstructed viewing and utilize a piano hinge.  I looked at various door supports, but most of them were too expensive, so I fabricated my own.  The supports are mode from a eyebolt, threaded bolt, coupler, cable clamp, battery lug and cup hook . The cable clamp and eyebolt allow the support to pivot for storage, the coupler allows for height adjustment, the battery lug hold the support up and the cup hooks holds for storage.  The only real work required in fabricating this support was to cut the head off the bolt so that it would fit in the battery lug.  All materials came from the local home center. (Frankly it took me longer to figure this out than make it.)  Make sure you allow for the height of the handle and door pivot area if your cabinets will be very close to the ceiling.  I just made it.

The old TV I had will require a digital converter next year when ATSC becomes the broadcast standard.  Amazingly the converter I bought converts this old TV to operate with a remote control, that even adjusts the volume.  WOOOHOOO!  I don't have a cable in garage yet, so I just put a small "rabbit ear" antennae in the cabinet. In the future I may add a SlingCatcher to allow me to access the satellite system feed via the home Wifi signal.  This will also require a Wifi access point, but I'll be able to access all channels and recording on the DVR.  YEEESSSS!!!  Although more expensive than adding a cable, it would be much easier than running a cable and I'd still have to get box for the satellite or cable anyway.

My garage workshop has two large windows in it that are of no real use other than "curb appeal" from the street.  When Mrs. SeaWolf  learned that the windows would be blocked by my new miter bench project, she wanted to replace the old blinds with new ones that matched the other windows on the house.  The problem with this was that the old blinds quickly got dirty with saw dust, were a "Bug Collector"   and future cleaning would be difficult.  Since the windows were new, captured blind windows were not an option, I decided to capture the new blinds my self with a dust free box.  The concept was pretty simple; frame the windows in 2" x 4'" lumber making a box and blind mount, then seal the box.  However, even though the windows would be blocked by my benches, some light would be nice so I decided to seal in the blinds with Lexan panels, that were more break resistant than glass or plexiglass.

Construction was basic with the four sides of the box cut to length, 45 deg miters on the corners and joined with deck screws from the top and bottom.  Since the frame was to be attached to brick, I need to counter bore holes in the frame face, because I couldn't find any 4" TAPCON fasteners.  However, before I drilled the holes, I ripped a 1/4" piece off the each face of the to make a piece of trim to cover up the holes later.   I also cut a 1/8" x 1/4" dado in each face to contain the Lexan panels.  This dado was cut to a 1/2" depth on the top frame piece to allow the Lexan to slid up enough to install the central cross rib and support the Lexan on all four sides.

Once painted and caulked, to keep the dust out, I installed the blinds. .  I also decided that retracting the blind might be problematic if it got caught in the box, but it would be nice to be able to still open the slats.  I couldn't get an extended opening rod made so I inserted a 1/4" dowel in the bottom of the old rod and fastened it with a screw.  Then I glued a piece of 1/2 PEX tubing to it with polyurethane glue, so the extension looked like the original rod. Next I lined up the extended opener rod and drilled a 1/2" hole in the casing for the rod to go through. Now the slats could be opened with the blind still sealed.  Last but not least I inserted the Lexan panels and stapled the trim back on to cover the holes.  The finished project has served it's purpose of keeping the windows and blinds clean and even provides a little additional storm and security protection with the back up window.

Notes: The Lexan was the highest cost item in this project, but being a shop I felt it would be more break resistant if something ever hit it.  Remember to put the UV side of the Lexan towards the sunlight.  All materials were available from a local home center.

Any well outfitted shop has an air compressor for running pneumatic tools, nail guns, cleaning off saw dust, etc.  How that system is arranged can be important to work flow and decide if you will be constantly tripping over hoses.  Many shops have large compressors that are not easily moved, so they run air to several work stations via a manifold system using galvanized pipe.  This works well, but can get expensive with the cost of pipe and mounts.  It also limits changes and is usually permanent.  Another way to accomplish this task in a cheaper and less permanent manner is to use regular pneumatic air hose.  To illustrate one such method I'll explain my own shop setup.

I located my compressor in one corner of my shop where I planned to leave it most of the time.  I attached a QDC manifold to my outlet port that allowed for connection of a hose reel, extra air line and shop air lines.  The hose reel is a Craftsman hand crank design, chosen for the length of hose needed to cover most of my work area.  The retractable version would have been nice, but didn't hold enough air line.  The reel is designed to be either wall/bench mounted or free standing.  Naturally the setup for either mode required different brackets that would have been difficult to exchange in the future.  I decided to use the ground brackets and enlarge the stake holes to allow for a 5/16" bolt.  The bolts were simply inserted in two pieces of 2" x 4" lumber secured to the shop wall as threaded studs.  The hose reel is secured on the studs via a wing nut for easy removal of the entire reel for field use.  The best of both worlds.

I then made some bench drop-down QDC fittings to deliver air to key points on my benches.    These were made out of 1/2" galvanized pipe and fittings.  1/4" pipe would do fine, but I couldn't find a good source for long lengths.  I could readily find 1/2" to 1/4" reducers and 1/2" galvanized pipe. Each drop down consisted of a 1/2" "T", Elbow, 2-1/2" to 1/4" reducer, 2-male QDC and a male nipple. .  These corresponded to each air hose which had a female nipple/QDC on either end.   The drop down was mounted on a 2" x 4" attached to one of the bench module uprights. . The dropdown was hooked in to the compressor manifold via an inexpensive coil line.   that is easily strung wherever necessary .  This drop-down system can be repeated as often as necessary, throughout the shop.  The QDC/Nipple combo lends itself to easy modification and the QDCs allow for quick changes without tools.  I added another coil line at the far end of my bench to blow sawdust off my machines and run pneumatic tools around the assembly table.

Once I finished the work bench, that was located on the other side of the garage, it was time to run an air line extension over there.  This was relatively easy by attaching a "T" fitting to the end of another section of coil air line.   Over the bench I attached another section of 1/2" pipe fitted to reducers for the 1/4" pneumatic air fittings. The pipe was secured to a section of 2" x 4" lumber and attached to a ceiling joist with a couple of angle irons.   I then ran the extension air line across the garage ceiling and I had air at the work bench.  The nice feature of using this method is that more air line extensions can be easily added where ever you have a need for them.

One of the things I have always needed in my shop, was a table large enough to assemble large projects, such as cabinets, etc.  The only problem was a lack of floor space for a fixed or even moveable table.  It dawned on me that a table that could tilt vertically or fold up like a card table would be the way to go.  The table had to be even with the bench top and could not interfere with opening the cabinet drawers.

I first tried the card table idea, using some folding leg brackets , hoping that it would give me the option using the table in a free standing mode when necessary.  The table ended up being 48" square in order to allow for the legs to stow inside the base.  However, the 3/4" plywood table base and masonite table surface made the table just too heavy for the legs or me to easily set up.  That's when I went back to my original tilting table idea.

Modifying the table to do this was relatively easy as I just added a couple of 2" x 4" blocks centered on the table sides to secure the pivot bolts . I drilled holes in these blocks where they mated with table base for maximum strength.  The pivot axles would be 1/2" hex bolts.

The base was relatively straight forward and made of 2" x 4"s glued and attached with deck screws. I made the feet by rabbeting two 2" x 4"s to make a notch for the upright stanchion.  I attached the same size casters I used on the cabinets, but added the type with brakes.  The cross brace was off set to allow the able to stow between the stanchions and not over rotate.   I also added a second cross brace for more support and to function as a horizontal stop for the table top .

I always intended to secure one end of the table to my miter bench to effectively give me nearly 7' of assembly area, so I would only need to support the other end of the table .              I attached these to the fixed bench and tilt table with threaded inserts     I intended to put several repeating sets of holes in the fixed bench to allow the table to be repositioned at various location, using a previous set of holes.  Unfortunately I didn't realize the bracket hole patterns didn't come in left and right versions. before I drilled the holes in the bench.  I did find a smaller bracket that would have allowed this, but realistically I'll only use the table in two locations.   at the end of the bench and about 2 feet from the end.. (pic)  (pic)  I couldn't find a straight bracket with a hole pattern that matched my angle bracket, so took another angle bracket and straightened it in the vice.

Next I had to come up with support legs.  I decided to use the bases I had leftover from the roller stands I had taken the roller from Infeed Table. These worked great and miraculously easily stowed on the back of the table when upright. I also decided to counter sink some washers into base as mounting points for some Shopsmith telescoping support legs. 

Once the table was complete I installed some T-track and Kreg Clamp base hardware.  The tilt table has quickly proven to be a useful projects that greatly adds to my shop while taking up no additional storage space. Table support legs, brackets and bolts all conveniently stow in the back of the table .