Project Information
This worktable has retractable casters that allow it to be mobile when necessary, and completely immobile (and sturdy) at other times. It's based on a design I saw on the New Yankee Workshop but it has the following design modifications: it's taller (40"), it's longer (8 feet), it has a flip-up wing, so it's narrower when the wing is in the down position, and it has a lower shelf for extra storage. Also, since the method for lowering the casters into place involves lifting one end of the table, I made a simple lift jack. This thing is heavy on its own (especially for a 76-year-old guy with some health problems), but by the time you get some things stored on the lower shelf, and get a project or two up on the top, it could easily become to heavy for most people to lift one end.
The flip-up wing was chosen so this behemoth could take up a little less space. I wanted to make sure it was very sturdy so I built a pull-out support for the shelf. It kind of looks like a drawer with no bottom; it consists of four shop-made drawer glides with UHMW bearings. (see pictures 3 and 6 for details.) I put a lot of effort into ensuring that the pull-out support would slide out cleanly, without hanging up on the piano hinge… I routed out a long rectangular area so the hinge would sit flush with the bottom, and I mounted the hinge barrel up. Unfortunately, piano hinges are meant to be mounted ONE way - and the bevels for the screw heads are only cut into that side. So, as it stands, you have to give it a bit of a yank to get the support face past those screw heads. Over time, I'm sure it will wear grooves where it meets the screw heads.
There's more construction details in my blog series on this project, including a video demonstrating how the lift jack and retractable casters work. In the near future, I'll post a video showing how the flip-up wing (and the pull-out support) works. There's also a SketchUp model of it, though I need to update it with a few design changes.
The flip-up wing was chosen so this behemoth could take up a little less space. I wanted to make sure it was very sturdy so I built a pull-out support for the shelf. It kind of looks like a drawer with no bottom; it consists of four shop-made drawer glides with UHMW bearings. (see pictures 3 and 6 for details.) I put a lot of effort into ensuring that the pull-out support would slide out cleanly, without hanging up on the piano hinge… I routed out a long rectangular area so the hinge would sit flush with the bottom, and I mounted the hinge barrel up. Unfortunately, piano hinges are meant to be mounted ONE way - and the bevels for the screw heads are only cut into that side. So, as it stands, you have to give it a bit of a yank to get the support face past those screw heads. Over time, I'm sure it will wear grooves where it meets the screw heads.
There's more construction details in my blog series on this project, including a video demonstrating how the lift jack and retractable casters work. In the near future, I'll post a video showing how the flip-up wing (and the pull-out support) works. There's also a SketchUp model of it, though I need to update it with a few design changes.