Getting a little 'workstation' set up?

[Che]

looks like a bench you’d use for sand casting, filling moulds etc.

i think ideally, you’d have a bench top you could happily tack down to.

If I were to add a steel sheet on top, over this bench I got , would you leave a void under it (and maybe place some box section on the sides?) or would you go directly to the surface?

Note - there is a lip of about an inch around 3 of the 4 sides.

And then would i get away with say, 4mm thick due to fact It already has a fairly sturdy top already?

I'll post a couple more pics in a min if that helps

 

[Che]

As you can see the top has a lip - so I could go inside that and have it flat on existing top (and raise with box section?)
or just place it on top/around the lip.

Would either method make a difference to thickness needed ?

And would the bars ever come in handy? Should i leave some of that exposed?

Thanks in advance.

(ps I had a very academic career, and just retired , so I am new to this kind of thing, so forgive me if the answers are more obvious to experienced folk)

 

[8ob]

Looks ripe for an offcut of 50mm thick Formica kitchen worktop.

Bob

 

[Screwdriver]

Like I said earlier, I think that design is suited for powdered or granular material handling. My guess being a workstation for mould making. You might discover it has a LOT more value for that purpose so if it was me, I'd put out some feelers, see what someone might pay for it then sell it and buy a dedicated welding workbench.

PS, I don't mind if you send me the spare change...

 

[Hopefuldave]

My little Tigger's corner of the bench (excuse the mess, always like it) - has most of the essentials on a metre-square of 10mm stainless plate (yeah, took two of us to get it up there!) on top of 3/4" ply worktop, so it's possible to do a lot (on the small scale) in not much room? Anything really big can stay where it is, the torch and earth cables are 25 feet long...

1 - earth clamp where plate overhangs the bench beneath, 2 - Aldi grinder with 1mm disc, 3 - Vintage B&D with flapwheel, 4 - cast iron surface plate, knackered before I got it, drilled and tapped M6 for clamping awkward things down to (incredibly useful), 5 - selection of practice plates, 1mm to 5mm, 6 - ally blocks as heatsink behind Thin Stuff, 7 - little drill vice to hold stuff, 8 - toolmaker's clamp to pinch stuff together, 9 - selection of V-blocks to perch stuff on to align/check runout, 10 - Knipexes to cut rods into manageable halves, 11 - angle for scribing on tube and pipe, 12 - earmuffs for angry-grinding, 13 - metrology drawer, not really weld-related! 14 Mahatma Gloves.

The Posh Old TIG is hiding behind the argon regulator and gaffa tape, water cooler's under the next bench to the left (the Brute Force bench), extras clamps, consumables, spare gloves, in the little shelves straddling TIG and next bench - it's a mess, but everything in its place and I'm happy The Lidl plasma, freebie MIG and Dead Uncle's Oxford are elsewhere, sparks are made outdoors...

 

[Che]

Like I said earlier, I think that design is suited for powdered or granular material handling. My guess being a workstation for mould making. You might discover it has a LOT more value for that purpose so if it was me, I'd put out some feelers, see what someone might pay for it then sell it and buy a dedicated welding workbench.

PS, I don't mind if you send me the spare change...

Many thanks - do you think it's worth putting up on this forum, and see if anyone is interested in a swap?

 

[Screwdriver]

Many thanks - do you think it's worth putting up on this forum, and see if anyone is interested in a swap?

Don't see why not but the magpies will have already circled by now. You know, like me!

@doubleboost is the only chap on here I know who does a fair bit of casting.

Not sure if "bartering" is allowed though, ping @Wozzaaah to see if it's allowed in the for sale section.

I think you're better off discovering who made it, what it's for, what it's worth then bung it up for sale.

 

[Newlands]

As you can see the top has a lip - so I could go inside that and have it flat on existing top (and raise with box section?)
or just place it on top/around the lip.

Would either method make a difference to thickness needed ?

And would the bars ever come in handy? Should i leave some of that exposed?

Nothing wrong with that table that a piece of steel plate won’t fix, although It’s completely useable as it is, so just wait until something crops up locally. A few clamps (F-clamps are reasonably cheap), and you should be able to tack up most of the projects you mention.

 

[Che]

Don't see why not but the magpies will have already circled by now. You know, like me!

@doubleboost is the only chap on here I know who does a fair bit of casting.

Not sure if "bartering" is allowed though, ping @Wozzaaah to see if it's allowed in the for sale section.

I think you're better off discovering who made it, what it's for, what it's worth then bung it up for sale.

The bloke I got it from said he used to fix coffee machines on it...

It is nice and heavy though.

 

[Che]

Nothing wrong with that table that a piece of steel plate won’t fix, although It’s completely useable as it is, so just wait until something crops up locally. A few clamps (F-clamps are reasonably cheap), and you should be able to tack up most of the projects you mention.

Yeah, I think you might be right. I'm in no rush to get it set up exactly how I want. I like to hunt down things going in skips or at the side of roads

 

[northwest]

so I am new to this kind of thing, so forgive me if the answers are more obvious to experienced folk

If there is one thing that winds me up it is people who deride "newbies" or questions therefrom! There is no such thing as a daft question, only daft answers and thankfully most everyone here agrees with this. Ask away!