Reloading bench plans

bratgirl

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Am looking for plans for a reloading bench. Everything that I've seen so far on the internet looks archaic and rather ugly. Does anyone know of any sites or can anyone offer any hints to building one (I plan on building it myself). Thanks.
 
i used a microwave cart and braced the top with 2x6- it just wheels around- it's got a dillon 550, 3 lee progressives, and aturret press on it- it's a little crowded, but serves my needs, and i got a nice little storage cabinet below
 
What are you looking for? aside from the ovbious . . . storage atop it, under it? what kind of space have you avalibul? i remember seeing a post on here about reloading rooms/benches and i though a few were quite nice looking myself, but thats all in the eye of the beholder or some crap like that lol

Joe

ok so i went and looked Here is the thread about it (not to dial up friendly)

my fave is the pictures of "556NATO"'s (post #52, page #6) room i like the wood toped bench thats just ###y :D not to mention it has tons of bench space
 
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The NRMA offers a set of plans for a pretty good reloading bench. You can purchase them from their web site. If you do decide to build one, I strongly advise going with as heavy lumber as you can, i.e, 4X4 or 5X5 for the legs, 2X6 or ideally 3X5 for the top or laminate several layers of 3/4" plywood together. Longer and wider is better too! You'll find that no matter how big you build it, you can never have too much desktop space or storage space if you build a hutch to go with it. The extra weight and strength of the lumber makes for a really solid bench that won't move or flex, even when resizing the biggest cases.
 
My work bench in the garage is a solid wooden door bolted down to a 4x4 base with 2x4's holding it together. 20 years ago I made it when I was going to university and had no money and i found the door in the garbage bin. You could literally put an engine on it it is so strong. I bolted it into the wall studs and when I reload I just bolt down the press and away I go, when I am done I put everything back into a cabinet so when I have the garage door open no one can see my reloading stuff.
 
If you live near any big city, check out the surplus office furniture stores. You can sometimes get used lab equipment, tables or desks with heavy tops. Or buy a couple of 3 drawer steel storage/file cabinets of the right height and put a top on them. A shallow bookshelf unit placed on the bench top against the wall gives you shelf space. It will look about like the NRMA plans. You can probably buy every thing for $150.00 to $200.00. Stack and play!
 
Were you thinking of something built in, or a portable piece? The quality of finish you are looking for will make a big difference as well. Are you looking for workshop grade cabinertry, custom kitchen or somewhere in between? My bench in my shop is multi-purpose, utilitary. It has a 2x6 and 2x4 frame and a 5/8 aspenite top and can hold several hundred pounds. I also built custom cabinets with raised panel doors for my kitchen and bathroom. If you can give some more details on what you are looking to build and maybe some dimensions, it would help a lot.
 
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also check out used home stuff. I know out here a lot of the places (like one called Bent Nail) often have nice kitchen cabinets taken out of soon to be demo'd homes, and they can be used to great effect as reloading benches.
 
Like Slavex said, check used furniture shops, I found a really heavy and sturdy wood table that I took as a starting point for my bench at the Salvation Army store, for less than the price of a sheet of 3/4" plywood... It's ugly, but this is just fine for a utility bench, and I do not feel sorry after drilling holes in it.
 
Bench

Canadian Tire has a nice metal bench with drawers and headboard for 89.95.
You can watch for it and buy it at $69.00 when it comes in promotion.
It is very easy to customize by bolting on some flatbar diagonals and replacing the top with a double thickness lamination made out of of plywood
Bolt on a 8x24" 1/8" steel plate on the front part of the table with holes for every accessory you have and put threaded T-nuts (3/8" and 1/4") under the plywood with bolts going through.
You'll never break this one!
For $100.00 you'll be in charge.
Don't forget to bolt the bench to the wall with lag bolts.
PP.:)
 
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