work space

[plugger]

What you like most in " designing " a functional work space ;

convience (? )

lots of room (?)

everything in one place (?) ie : refference material / tools / paint & painting area (?)

[Harry P.]

Yes.

[southpier]

it's nice to be able to grab the correct tool without rummaging.

light is important as is comfortable seating, although I don't mind getting up every 15 or 20 minutes - supplies out of reach a few feet away encourage that.

[Mike Kucaba]

Two work areas. One for the rough stuff, one for finer work.

[Ramfins59]

All of the above.

[Daddyfink]

[Art Anderson]

Ideally yes, but "practically"? Not really, at least for me. I still come from that old school where "the best cakes come from the messiest of kitchens." But then, being an apartment dweller, my work space cannot really be what I'd choose if it were my own house I guess.

Art

[Harry P.]

Ideally yes, but "practically"? Not really, at least for me. I still come from that old school where "the best cakes come from the messiest of kitchens." But then, being an apartment dweller, my work space cannot really be what I'd choose if it were my own house I guess.

Art

Don't feel bad. I own my house, yet I still don't have a dedicated work space. My "workbench" is the dining room table, so obviously I can't just leave it in "modeling mode" endlessly... I have to clean up every time I'm finished.

[Art Anderson]

Don't feel bad. I own my house, yet I still don't have a dedicated work space. My "workbench" is the dining room table, so obviously I can't just leave it in "modeling mode" endlessly... I have to clean up every time I'm finished.

Trust me, I don't worry about it! I just close the door on it!

Art

[CJ1971]

I'm lucky in that I have a good sized room for my hobby. Great light, good storage, good sized bench, seperate painting area/ventilation etc.

Obviously from time to time it gets a little messy/dirty but at the end of every bench session I clean up. I'm a believer in a clean environment leads to clean work ?? It's probably due to my upbringing. I've never been an untidy/slobby person.

[Tom Geiger]

light is important as is comfortable seating, although I don't mind getting up every 15 or 20 minutes - supplies out of reach a few feet away encourage that.

Professionally we call it "workplace ergonomics". There are standards for your work bench that will make life easier and less painful. First, as someone mentioned, get a good chair. A used office chair for a desk height bench, a drafting stool for a higher table. Not the Staples special $89 chair either. You're better off looking around for a sale of used professional office furniture. Brand names are Steelcase, Knoll, Herman Miller and Haworth. Don't be afraid to pay $100 for one of these, they listed out at near a grand new. Make sure your work surface is at the standard height for your chosen bench type.

The above comment about getting up to reach supplies every 15 to 20 minutes also falls into a workplace standard. It's not good to sit in one position for an hour or more, so people are encouraged to move around as part of their day.

My work bench is an old hollow core door that's wrapped in brown craft paper. It sits at proper desk height and I have a Knoll office chair that I got for free when a company was moving out of office space. Good lighting is very important. I have many bulbs aimed at my bench from different angles. My problem is that they are all standard bulbs and I could hatch chicks on my bench with that heat. If you are buying lights, get the cool kind!

Get a surface you can work on. Some folks like those self healing mats. I work on two surfaces that sit on top of my door / bench. One is a piece of wood that has a rounded corner, and holes of different sizes drilled into it that I can position parts into to work on them. I also have a thick piece of glass for my flat surface that I can cut against, or true up things.

I have shelves above my bench where I keep parts cabinets and my unfinished project collection. I have hooks on the edge of the shelves to keep tools. I also have one of those rotating tool carousels. The tough part is getting the discipline to put the tools back in their spots.

[southpier]

I had the same source of heat but used it to my advantage to set an acc joint or bend a piece of styrene. switched over to LED in the same lamp. I turn it on & off every 10 - 20 minutes, take off the optivisor, and do some far focus work to rest the eyes for a couple of minutes.

[Belugawrx]

I'm lucky in that I have a good sized room for my hobby. Great light, good storage, good sized bench, seperate painting area/ventilation etc.

Obviously from time to time it gets a little messy/dirty but at the end of every bench session I clean up. I'm a believer in a clean environment leads to clean work It's probably due to my upbringing. I've never been an untidy/slobby person.

I dont like your attitude mister..........

I resemble that remark

It's all good as long as you are having fun..

and build some cool stuff

Cheers

[Harry P.]

I like to see that bottle of "idea juice"...

[Belugawrx]

Enjoy your week in Canada

did ya Harry

[CJ1971]

I dont like your attitude mister..........

I resemble that remark

It's all good as long as you are having fun..

and build some cool stuff

Cheers

Me thinks you're not the only one ? Lol

[Pim]

personally, I have two work spaces one is to do bodywork and assembly and finer work where as the other is for painting and work with superglue it can get fumy

[charlie8575]

As I'm re-arranging (and finally moving back into) my bedroom, I've been considering how to set things up.

As of now, the plan is to go with an old Boston School Dept. desk that my great uncle, who was the locksmith for the school department, ended up with. That'll serve for a work area. I'm also looking at some kind of small cart to rig a paint booth of sorts on with, complete with one big blower.

The problem I have is space- I don't have much. I'm trying to figure out how to squeeze everything I need to into my bedroom- desk, bed, bookshelves, etc.

Like the others, I say decent lighting, things at least somewhat easily at hand, and good lighting are a must, with reasonably good ventilation.

Creativity will be what makes it all work.

Charlie Larkin

[wayne swayze]

I feel lucky with my workspace being a small extra bedroom in my apartment. I keep everything confined to that room, so if I have the rare or occasional guest, I just close the door to that room. Only have one friend that digs model cars, and I rarely see him. But the room is very bright and has lots of space for my stuff. I am often out of my chair for various reasons, so I don't tire of sitting. I have a card table in front of the window where I do some work and mock ups, and my "working" desk built by my deceased father-in-law, which I've used for many years. My painting (and supplies) are in a separate location away from the apartment building, so I "commute".

[disabled modeler]

Organization is a huge plus...I have several clear pullout drawer type parts bins from Wal-Mart there great to store parts in so there easier to find when needed. Tools are ether on the bench or hang from a pegboard with hooks for easy access. I also like to use the old 60s,70s kit boxes for storage and just to look at and dream.

[rmvw guy]

My best work space to date includes a mobile hobby case 12 by 7 by 6 inches. It holds most of my tools and can be taken anywhere, even on vacation. Like Harry, I use the dining room table a lot. A tray helps keep glue and paint off the table.

I find that any kind of work table I have just attracts piles of stuff. I become creative on how to stack things.

[DynoMight]

This is our hobby room. The desk on the ground is mine, then my brother is above and my dad is on the end.

This is my desk. I have everything I need here (except paint) I have a light, two places to put parts and stuff, a lot of space, I have all my tools either up on top of the white container or hanging to my left. For me, it's all I need. It's perfect.

This is all of our paints, enamel. The rack was made by my dad and it's pretty well built, doesn't rock etc.