Waveform

Sounds like you're building a furniture grade bench. Should be a beauty - post a photo when you're done if you can. I really want to build this bench but I just don't have a place for it yet. I'm trying to move my business into some new warehouse space which should open up some room somewhere. Then the bench gets built!

Rodfac

Wave, Jazz, & Hungry, Those are good benches you've built guys...it's nice using good equipment and with firm support for your tools.

The four benches I built were based on that same set of plans, though I modified them considerably for my particular use. On three of the four benches I made, I used our kitchen counter tops for the work surface (replaced some years back when my wife had granite tops installed). These have worked out well for me, they're 1-1/2" thick, and that formica surface makes cleanup a breeze. I cut them on a table saw and worried every inch of the cut about screws and nails...never hit a one.

On all of my benches, I built in a back board, and side rails (that extend about 1/2" above the bench surface). These keep spilled primers (it's gunna happen sooner or later!) and powder off the floor but still allow the flush front that's necessary for press through bolting. The drawers slide on European guides, were easy to fit and keep a variety of supplies and tools out of sight and still easy to hand.

On the remaining moveable cleaning bench, I used finish grade birch ply for the top, a double thickness for stability, then put down five coats of poly to keep the cleaning fluids, oil and grease, from destroying the finished look. Too, that bench is on castors, the locking kind, to allow it to be pulled away from the wall, allowing full use of cleaning rods.

I built them 22" wide for space considerations...about the same actual work surface if you built the cabinet's as indicated in the original plans. My overhead cabinets are built from 3/4" finish grade birch ply, with one interior shelf...that ply's expensive but machines beautifully, and glues up dead square!

One add'l comment; bolting your powder measure, and case trimming tools to temporary plywood bases makes a lot of sense. If you find a good spot, convenient to your operations, you can through bolt them to the bench, or continue to use the C-clamp method. Either is satisfactory in my experience.

Best Regards, Rodfac

Waveform

Rodfac, great tips - thanks. I'm filing away all this stuff so when I build mine I can incorporate some of the best ideas. I like the finish grade birch ply - I've used it for other projects and I agree it is a pleasure to work with. Downside is price. (Cheaper than some of the marine grade imported panels I've bought in the past. Holy cow - $$$ ).

Wave

Sr40ken

Here's my humble bench

Waveform

Sr40ken, nice bench! Looks like you have re-purposed some furniture there - very clever. Does your wife realize she is missing a couple of tables?

Wave

Sr40ken

LMAO!!!! Thanks!!!

No we went to Furnature Row and bought a couple rocking chairs. They had this $600 dining table in the "scratch and dent" section that had been dropped. I got it for $35 and took a saw to it added some screws, one instant reloading bench.

Waveform

Brilliant! You'd have spent more than that on one sheet of good 3/4" plywood. Looks a whole lot better too. My wife might let me have a reloading bench inside the house if it looked like that.

Nah.....she wouldn't....

jlh820

Looking good, SR. Have you ever used it or are you always that neat?

Sr40ken

I try to keep things in order so the likelyhood of mistakes will be less.

novalty

Here are a couple pictures of my set up, recently added the Redding T7 and awaiting a case activated linkage kit & powder expanders for my Uniflow.

Sr40ken

Sweet! I think Redding will be my next addition.

krwada

OK. here is my bench.


It also doubles as a firearm work station. Of course, I do NOT clean and reload at the same time!!!


Here, you can see some of the primers in a drawer. Also notice that there is an ultrasonic cleaner in the background. I use this to clean my brass.

I have a lot more underneath this drawer. At last count, it was about 12000 primers.

Here is my reloading supply cabinet. This picture is pretty old. I have about twice as many components right now.

Crusty Deary Old Coot

Hey folks, note Novalty's RCBS primer tool.

Have used one of those for 10 - 15 years, and it is the best primer tool I have ever used.

All those cool tools everyone is showing would sure look good mounted in an underbench receiver system

Crusty Deary Ol'Coot

iusmc2002

You don't really reload on that bench, do you? It's way too clean

Maximumbob54

I kept hedging at the cost of the Patmarlins RockDock system since I have too much stuff that would need plate after plate. I kept thinking I could come up with a cheap alternative and I think I have at least for now. I added some 2x8's under the half inch plywood of the bench for extra support. I then drilled four holes in the bench. Each press is now mounted to a 2x8 that has four holes in it. Line the four holes up and I used 3/8" grade 8 bolts to bolt each wood plate down to the bench. It clamps down solid as a rock. Each press has 1/4" bolts on it so far but I may put larger bolts in if needed. I left the press bolts sticking up but will cut them short once I'm sure the press is in the right spot on the plate. I use a deep socket on a corded screw gun to pull the bolts for the plates. If I can find some cam or lever locking quick release type nuts for the bolts then I will swap that out but really the screw gun is pretty easy. This is a pic of the setup so far: