My new working bench. Or what happens when 2 swedes meet. IKEA v.s Tormek

[WolfY]

As the bench has 2 wheels (in the origin) and is higher I had to cut of the legs to the height I like and replace the shelves.

[Ken S]

WolfY,

Nice Tormek bench! Most benches are too high for efficient use of the Tormek. Your bench looks right sized and light enough to easily move. It seems very practical to me.

Nice job!

Ken

[Jan]

Really nice IKEA table made of solid wood. 

If it is without surface treatment I recommend to impregnate the surface with suitable means to prevent water and dirt.

Jan

[Ken S]

I agree with Jan about the importance of a moisture resistant finish.

WolfY, as you are a Tormek importer/dealer, I would guess you might use your table as part of your sales program. (I certainly would!) Tormek's Rubber Mat, RM-533, is a well made, practical product. If it would fit on your table, it would add visual quality. It is made for heavy duty and will contain any spilled water. Giving your customers the chance to see one in use would be a very convincing sales tool. It complements the Tormek well.

I would place matching vertical slat boards on the inside of the side legs. In the US, we would call these 1 x 4s (approximately 20 x 90mm). A Tee nut with a bolt projecting will hold a Tormek grinding wheel. (I routinely remove my grinding wheel at the end of a sharpening session.)

Place one of these boards on each of the two sides. This will allow you to showcase the EZYlock feature and interchangeable grinding wheels. If you place the wheel bolts toward the front and have enough room to hang a universal support with a TT-50 Truing Tool mounted and preadjusted for distance, you can amaze your audience with how quick and easy truing the wheel can be.

The bolts work like the hooks on the Tormek work station. The grinding wheel slips over the bolt and is loosely held in place by a wider end of the hook (bolt).

If you wish, I will gladly provide more details. I believe you have chosen your Tormek - Ikea combination wisely.

Ken

[Herman Trivilino]

Ikea meets Tormek! Nice workshop, too. Mine doesn't have view anything like that. In fact, it has no view at all!

[WolfY]

Thanks guys. Glad you liked the bench.
I actually planned to add white Masonite board on 3 sides and a Tormek sticker. Nothing else. Mainly, caus it's below line of interest and to close it having the shelves unexposed.
On the 4th side near me I thought of door with hinges. Nothing heavy duty but still keeping things out of the hands.
Height is 66cm.
A Tormek rubber mat will add the chick and style and will be exposed as it's intended for.
As for surface treat: Mineral oil rubbed till surface get shiny.
The only problem with it for taking from one place to another is the volume and weight. It is stationary and stable.
Although I have some ideas of making one collapsable with wheel in the future. Or just add wheels and collapsible handle. We'll see.

[Ken S]

I purchased a set of these plansfrom Lee Valley. My original intent was to make tray tables or use them for writing or with a laptop.

In the US, the Tormek is usually placed on a Sjoborg workbench at woodworking shows. (The importer is also the importer for Sjoborg.) These are very nice workbenches, but too high for efficient use with the Tormek. I think one of these folding tables would be quite practical for a traveling Tormek salesman. The plans are designed to be modified if desired. My suggestions would be:

Make the height ideal for the Tormek in the vertical position. The handbook recommends 50 to 60 cm.

I would size the top to nicely match the Tormek rubber mat.

I would suggest building two. The second unit, also sized for a Tormek mat, would provide a place for jigs, practice tools, brochures, etc. If you built it slightly taller, say 10cm, it would be ideal for the horizontal position or to allow your customers to experience the difference in table height. Switching tables would only require switching the rubber mats, or moving the jigs.

I have not yet built this table. I don't think they are difficult to build. You might be able to do the job yourself or hire a local woodworker. (The woodworker might like to barter for a Tormek.) I would suggest emailing Lee Valley to see if the project requires any special hardware, and order that at the same time.

I think this table would be a very practical solution for you when you are on the road demonstrating the Tormek. It would be lightweight and compact to carry and you would not be at the mercy of whatever table happened to be at your destination.

Here is the link:

http://www.leevalley.com/US/Wood/page.aspx?p=32759&cat=1,46158,46161&ap=1

Ken

[Jan]

Wolfy, the advantage of the stable wooden table is that it is not prone to annoying resonance noise. On the other hand, as mentioned by Ken, it is not very suitable for demo roads.

IKEA offers also steel drawers but unfortunately they are a little bit narower (36 x 34 x 14 cm) than necessary for the Tormek accessory kits.

http://en.ikea-club.org/item/70304772.html

Jan

[Ken S]

I would not be too concerned about the dimensions of the foam trays. A set came with my work station. I tried using them for a while, and ended up putting them on a top shelf for storage. They are a clever marketing idea, and no doubt are useful for some users, however, I have not found them practical.

The problem may be way I work. I like to have duplicates of some of the jigs and accessories (ex. for my kenjig method of knife sharpening and wheel truing). I like to store the knife jigs preset.

I have also found that when the table is at a comfortable working height, storage below is uncomfortably low.

One drawer for home use might be convenient to keep the most used jigs and accessories nearby. I would keep the TT-50 and knife jigs in this drawer, along with my kenjig and various measuring tools. In my case, I would also include a square edge jig. Knife sharpeners probably do not need the square edge jig in the drawer. I would include a small notebook.

I agree with Jan about the value of stability with a stationary table. A folding table is always a balancing act between stability andpostability.

Ken

[WolfY]

This IKEA product is nice with wheels on. The Tormek foam fits exactly in it.
Sorry I linked to IKEA Sweden
http://www.ikea.com/se/sv/catalog/products/10192824/

When demonstrating I normally get 70cm high bench that is not that bad. I'm 183 so I can handle it
Or I use the boxes I'm packing the hole set.
Found a pict of the IKEA bench taken at IKEA Israel same as mine before reshaping.

[RobinW]

Far be it for me to copy another man's great idea!

I had been looking for something suitable and cost effective for a while. Haven't chopped the legs yet, as I want a few sessions to see how it goes. Couple of coats of wax-oil applied for sealing the wood.

[Ken S]

Robin,

I seem to recall a statement about imitation being the most sincere form of flattery. I can't speak for anyone else on the forim, however, I believe we post our ideas for the mutual benefit of the members.

I think WolfY has a great idea for a Tormek table, one very worthy on copying. I would offer one suggestion. Before shortening the legs, make a simple, temporary platform. Make the platform the same height as you are thinking of shortening the legs. Work for a while at this height. Try another if you wish. Once you develop a preference, get the saw out!

If you discover after the fact that you cut off too much, building a set of leg extenders is not a big deal, although, hopefully your first cuts will be correct.

Good luck, and do keep us posted.

Ken

[WolfY]

As Ken said.
I'm glad to give away ideas that can help and don't see it as imitation. On the contrary that is why I post it.
And again, Ken described the process of getting the ideal height for you. For me the TTL height was 65~66 cm, and I'm 183.

The top got also mineral oil treatment after pict. was taken. If you rub the oil with sponge with lots of oil it will built up a blank finnish almost like lack that will hold for years.

[Herman Trivilino]

I've never seen a good idea that I didn't steal. 

[WolfY]

Well Herman, If you would be in former USSR you would say I borrow