Time for a dedicated bench!

[Mr_Sheesh]

If you will have to haul in concrete I wonder if you could use soil cement plus local dirt for the building? Might not be ideal as it is brittle & likes to be tumbled...

[GregLaROCHE]

I would consider something besides plywood unless you are planning on very expensive without voids, OSB with a sanded side might be better and cheaper. 3/4” will work for most of it, but double up around the area where you plan to have your press (maybe 24”x24”) and a leg(support) under it. Preferably attached to the floor. Don’t forget to seal the surface with something, you’ll be glad you did.

I like an “L” shape at one end, especially if you plan to be sitting down a lot of the time. I find it easier to quickly reach things I want. Unless you have something else planned, you could put a lot of shallow shelves in between those studs you talked about.

Don’t forget about planning for electrical sockets.

[sharps4590]

Curious, why not tie flies and cast in the same area? I would not be doing both at the same time. And I tend to keep my fly tying stuff well organized (as opposed to literally everything else in my life)

You can tie your fly's on the same bench just fine. I've been doing it for 20+ years and my bench for casting, cleaning firearms, tying fly's AND building arrows is just 10 ft. long...but it is 3 ft. deep. I don't keep any fly tying gear or materials out unless I'm actually tying. When finished they all go back into their respective baxes.

[Three44s]

I have not tried it yet but been eyeing the T-track systems. They make a filler strip to fill the track when you want the bench top completely filled and nothing fastened there.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0mJmPFd69bs

Not pushing any brand and I have even thought about using a smaller size of unistrut material instead of those aluminum track systems.

Three44s

[fredj338]

I have a 10ft reloading bench & then a 4' casting bench, makes an L shape. The casting bench is a craftsman work bench with drawers & shelves, handy for storing molds & such.

[bangerjim]

Bracing and more cross-bracing! A triangle is the strongest geometric shape you can build, so include good cross-bracing on the legs. I have "X" cross-bracing on all my benches (4 of them!) and none wobble even under heavy loads and actions. They all have 4x4 legs and 2¼" thick tops (3 MDF sheets glued together and a sacrificial removable Masonite top. Only one bench (in my 12x14 "boolit shack") is used for reloading. The others are dedicated to metalworking and woodworking in my BIG shop. I NEVER cast indoors. Always on the flagstone patio in front of my shack using a dedicated WorkMate as the foundation (top jaw pieces have been replaced with 3" thick sold oak!).

[oldhenry]

You've received some good advice from the preceding posts.

I have always separated my casting from my reloading for safety reasons. Up until recently I'd cast on the tailgate of my PU truck. This would require that everything I needed had to be assembled & then stored separately after the casting session. Recently I bought a portable tray from HF to house everything I needed. I store the tray in my shop & when in use position it in the doorway of the roll-up door with a fan (low speed) blowing from my back toward the door opening.

This works for me because I do my casting from a standing position. This set-up allowed me to position the Pro Melt @ a height that was easy on my neck.

I even made some storage space under the covering for small items & store some alloy on the lower tray. After the casting session it all stays on the tray.

[oley55]

I have not tried it yet but been eyeing the T-track systems. They make a filler strip to fill the track when you want the bench top completely filled and nothing fastened there.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0mJmPFd69bs

Not pushing any brand and I have even thought about using a smaller size of unistrut material instead of those aluminum track systems.

Three44s

I may have missed something but on the T track type systems it seemed like the tee bolts had to be slid in from the end. I could see myself having to unbolt a press and playing leapfrog if I needed to bring out a new press and need it on the other side of what I had out. for me only one end of the bench is open. it all comes down to our individual setup and needs.

[Wm Cook]

I’m kind of surprised no one mentioned counter tops. Easy cleanup after casting and user friendly for mounting plates holding presses. The counter top is held up with a 2x4 frame braced with a 45 degree angle to let you sit on a stool with your knees under the top. Can’t think of anything wrong about it after 30 years of doing it that way. I converted to that Lee press plate design on all of my presses. Mounting the home plate on top of the countertop and into the 2x4’s makes it solid enough. Only been a few months with the Lee design. The jury is still out on that one.

[Wm Cook]

Oh yeah......I’m kinda banged up so my only option is sitting. Bill.

[GregLaROCHE]

If at all possible, I believe it’s best to cast outside. Good ventilation and there’s always a little bit of splatter, at least with a bottom pour pot. Also, there’s always the chance of the unexpected visit of the Tinsel Fairy.

[OS OK]

Draw yourself a floor plan, scale it and use that as an idea tester before you build or dedicate space to whatever.
Draw the walls above and below the bench, looking at it from the front...lay that out for shelving or whatever you think you need...
things will change as you get better ideas about how to handle the allotted space for all you want to put into it.

It is not so much the linear space across the bench you have allotted....it is how you utilize that limited space.





Things collect over the years and the shop is in a constant state of morphing . . .
I always had a problem trying to use the bench space without that area against the wall on the back of the bench collecting crap...I am my worst enemy for clutter & partially done jobs I'll get to later.

I have only part of the front end of a 2 car garage for the casting, handloading & I have too many presses but I can't part with any of them so I tried something new...a dedicated space for all the presses...if this were spread out linearly, I'd need a whole wall.
I do it all from an adjustable height stool, the back won't let me stand too long...



There are a lot of parts & pieces associated with our hobby so they need organization to some extent...I am not only out of floor space, I am out of wall space also...



My shop has to share with a wood shop and welding, it is organized chaos at best...but it seems that 'our types' are happiest in that environment.

Good Luck!
Show us some pictures as you build...it would make this thread a fun one to follow!

[WestKentucky]

I’m kind of surprised no one mentioned counter tops. Easy cleanup after casting and user friendly for mounting plates holding presses. The counter top is held up with a 2x4 frame braced with a 45 degree angle to let you sit on a stool with your knees under the top. Can’t think of anything wrong about it after 30 years of doing it that way. I converted to that Lee press plate design on all of my presses. Mounting the home plate on top of the countertop and into the 2x4’s makes it solid enough. Only been a few months with the Lee design. The jury is still out on that one.

I hear lots of positive things about countertops. I can’t say that my experience is positive. Seems I always manage to bust the countertop in one way or another and if I don’t physically break it, it seems to soak up moisture from the bottom and begins to crumble. Personally, I will not use countertop for anything serious in the future, and since I’m liable to use any space available for any task at hand then there’s a good change it’s going to be used pretty hard. I have been accused of being the guy who can break an anvil with a warm stick of butter.

[Jack Stanley]

Since my shotgun loader doesn't get used a lot . It stores underneath the bench in a closed cabinet . When needed it's clamped to the bench .

Jack

[charlie b]

You can tie your fly's on the same bench just fine. I've been doing it for 20+ years and my bench for casting, cleaning firearms, tying fly's AND building arrows is just 10 ft. long...but it is 3 ft. deep. I don't keep any fly tying gear or materials out unless I'm actually tying. When finished they all go back into their respective baxes.

My reloading closet started out as a fly tying bench. Made an oak tool caddy that fits across the back and a set of shelves on one end that hold those plastic lure boxes (or craft boxes depending on where you buy them ).

Then I figured what the heck and mounted my press in there. Only about 3ft wide opening but has been plenty for my reloading and fly tying.

So I have one set of boxes/shelves for fly tying materials and another set for reloading.

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[popper]

Fish don't like barbecue flavor. Casting creates flux smoke. Smoke gets everywhere, dust on everything. Feathers are great for trapping dust. Same with chenille.

[John Guedry]

As one poster above pointed out, don't scrimp on electrical outlets.

[charlie b]

Yep, I don't cast near the fly tying stuff, only reload. I guess they like the taste of powder

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[charlie b]

As one poster above pointed out, don't scrimp on electrical outlets.

And don't forget to put them on different circuits. A casting pot and hot plate can overload a std outlet. It can be really irritating when casting to find out the power shut off

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[WestKentucky]

I may have missed something but on the T track type systems it seemed like the tee bolts had to be slid in from the end. I could see myself having to unbolt a press and playing leapfrog if I needed to bring out a new press and need it on the other side of what I had out. for me only one end of the bench is open. it all comes down to our individual setup and needs.

I won tee slot bingo at work a few years back. I am the safety guy, so generally not considered to be mechanical but flu went through the maintenance dept and I had keys to a few of the guys boxes. I found out quickly that if you lose a tee nut (or forget to put one in in my case) you can drill the slot in an area that your not going to use, or that will be blocked anyway, and broach it manually to allow a nut to be inserted mid channel. After that escapade got found by maintenance manager he called all the guys in to ask who did it and why, so when I dropped in a new nut and gave the operator a cup to put their tools in in about 30 seconds it became standard process to drill and broach tee slots for afterthought additions.