Shop On Wheels Has It All

Shop On Wheels Has It All FARM SHOP Handy Hints Glen Wasmuth takes his tools to the job whether in the shop or around the yard His shop on wheels is loaded with tools of all sizes from wrenches and bits to grinders cutting torches drill presses and welders not to mention parts and other supplies Even the bench top serves double duty     “The biggest challenge in building it was getting the 3/8-in steel for the top of the bench the way I wanted with one long edge square and the other rounded ” says Wasmuth “I took it to a local manufacturer of stock trailers He had a huge brake and rolled the front of the bench for me ”     The 2 edges work like a giant anvil for Wasmuth letting him hammer tin or light metal round on the front side He left the back edge square for hammering 90-degree angles     The bench is 10 ft long with a 30 by 72-in work area in the center with 2 shelves beneath it He used 1/4-in steel plate for the bottom shelf and 3/16-in plate for the middle shelf connecting all 3 surfaces by welding them to angle iron     “If I was doing it over I would have made the shelves adjustable ” says Wasmuth     The front end has a 6-ft tow bar with a caster wheel assembly using 8-in wheels salvaged from a combine pickup reel The drill press and cutting torch are mounted over it as are drill bits and a propane tank for the torch     The rear axle mounted under the back end of the work area rides on 12-in wheels from a Deere rod weeder     “The front wheels swivel more than 90 degrees which allows me to spin the bench in its own length ” says Wasmuth     The bench has its own breaker box with individual breakers for the welder 5 hp compressor and cut-off saw It is designed to plug into available circuits in the shop and out of it with a 50-ft heavy-duty cable In the shop Wasmuth uses a 30-amp welder plug on one wall Welder plugs at either end of the bench for his mobile MIG welder and 2 separate circuits add to versatility     “We can use the MIG and the AC welder at the same time ” says Wasmuth     A 20-drawer mechanics chest holding parts and tools sits at the rear end of the work area More storage drawers ride on the first shelf under the work surface An adjustable shop light mounted over the work surface ensures jobs are well lit while a rack over the mechanics chest carries welding helmets and angle grinders     The all-steel workbench weighs in at more than a ton It can be rolled around the shop floor by a single person or towed around the yard It can also serve as a dead weight when needed     “I can turn the front wheels sideways hook a come-along to it and straighten metal on an implement ” says Wasmuth     Although it appears that every square inch of space is dedicated to a tool or accessory Wasmuth admits that he had no plan to follow when building it     “I bought a kit of drawers and parts from a bolt company and set the height of the upper shelf to fit them ” he says “I knew I wanted room on the lower shelf for the air compressor and welder so I set the lower shelf for that Otherwise I just started building ”     Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Glen Wasmuth Box 454 Battleford Sask Canada S0M 0E0 ph 306 843-7357; g wasmuth@yourlink ca

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.