I started drafting up a design for a new workbench for my garage this evening. I didn’t want to half-ass it with a hand drawing and SWAG measurements, so I downloaded Google SketchUp. After a couple hours, I now have a 3D model of my new bench.
While SketchUp is no Autodesk Inventor, it is pretty awesome for being free!
The goals of this part of my workspace are:
- Large open workspace
- VERY sturdy
- Replaceable top surface (If I drill and cut up the top, I’d like to be able to replace it for cheap)
- Room for storage (the lower beams will have a sheet of wood laid over and cabinet walls build around the outside, in the future)
- Be standalone from the rest of my workspace.
The last bullet is critical, as I don’t have the money to build the entire workspace, but need an area now. Future expansions will include a built-in location for my radial arm saw, more storage, a fold down work surface, and peg boards for tools.
I plan to head to The Home Depot soon and get supplies for this project, so stay tuned for the construction phase!