Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Build a Reloading Bench in a Super Tight Space?

Can't find my pictures, but I had a bitty closet filled with reloading crap and two presses.
The trick was that I framed from corner to corner across two cleats/rim joists, with straight, flat 2x6's for a top. The working edge was 45 degrees, corner to corner, which gives the longest edge for the space. That SOB was strong, strong, strong, no need for legs, meaning more room for shelves and other junkola.
I liked the corner idea so much that my new bench setup has the same inside 45 on a 90 setup.

Good looking portable bench Steve.

Of course what else would you expect from a jeweler/gun writer?

I will try and dig up a link I had on sniper's hide for a bench made on the black and decker workmate. I modified IIRC to have a spacer under the bench with two boards under the spacer to apply leverage when you cinch up the workmate. It worked great in a pinch and you can take it to the range.

http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2010/12/portable-bd-workmate-reloading-bench/

Sniper's hide had deleted or lost the thread from a few years back. This is what I found in a search. It is very similar to what I built. You can bolt it right to a workmate or do what I did and create a 3-4" spacer that runs across the bench that the workmate halves grip against and below that or screwed to the spacer is two supports that run opposite of the spacer towards the handles on the workmate. These supports are trimmed to just less than the max distance you can open the top boards on the workmate to.

An old maple dresser with a 1.25" thick top makes a good compact loading bench and provides a lot of storage.

Interesting use of space - and neat too! I usually end up cluttering up every available square inch of space on my bench(es)

Google "reloading bench" pictures and you will be inundated with ideas.

After looking at lots of such pictures, it becomes apparent that many reloaders use the worktop of their benches for storage or to put it another way, many benches are messy in the extreme and covered in "junk"..

As shown in some of the pics in this thread, if you are willing to be organised and had adequate seperate storage (ie draws or shelves) you don't need a bench with a big worktop...

I built a top out of a flush exterior solid core dunnage door, picked up cheap from a supplier. I skinned it with plywood, built a frame, added wheels. I can move it around the room however I want or as necessary.

I added power outlets at the ends to run lights etc and a cord to plug it in.

I work off one side to do reloading, the other to do cleaning etc. It has a vice mounted at one end and a shelf under where I store tools, supplies, and Dillon quick change setups. When not in use I can push it against the wall out of the way.

Similar in concept to one previously mentioned, it could be any size.

Works for me.

I would start by claiming the middle half of the closet. Instantly gaining twice as much bench

woofer

I can't find pictures, but once mounted press and powder measure to an old bar stool when things were a little tight. Worked well for the couple of years I needed that set up, although the by the end the bar stool was getting a little worn out.

After Northern Dave's post I would have a hard time wasting a bar stool like that.

I really like how you've utilized the (under side of) stairs for storage. Gives me some ideas. Thanks.