Some of the most useful tools you can have in your garage or home workshop are the tools that you mount in place - particularly if you’d like to do any sort of fabrication work. Whether powered or not, a good array of bench tools can transform your garage into a proper work station. Let’s have a look at some of the most useful bench tools you can equip your garage with in order to expand your capabilities at home.
Bench Vice
One of the most useful bench tools you can have at home is the simple vice. Used in a multitude of ways,vices can be a real help in many different projects. They are also available in a variety of sizes, so be sure to pick one that suits the kind of jobs you’ll likely need it for as well as your available space. Unlike some other bench tools, you’ll need to bolt your vice to your bench, so spare a thought to how you intend to do so, and remember that running fasteners through the frame of a table often provides a far sturdier mounting point than simply bolting it to the benchtop.
Bench Grinder
In any workshop, whether professional or DIY, a good bench grinder can make shaping metal, sharpening tools, and cleaning up material prior to welding much easier. Most grinders allow for the stones to be swapped out for wire brushes, polishers and other wheels in order to further increase their versatility.
Drill Press
If you need to drill a perfectly centered and completely straight hole in something then it pays not to do it with a hand held drill. Using a drill press can vastly improve the quality of your work, and will make drilling into tougher stuff far easier. Using a variety of clamps and attachments can allow you to hold your work in the exact right position, to allow for precise drilling every time.
Mitre Saw
A band saw is an important part of any woodworking workshop, providing the ability to make clean curved and straight cuts to lengths of wood, MDF or plastics. With an adjustable tilting base, the band saw can be set up to make a wide variety of accurate cuts.
Band Saw
When tightening fasteners on your car, the correct torque setting should always be used in order to prevent damage. A torque gauge is designed to allow you to check the settings on any fastener. You should use a torque wrench to tighten fasteners ideally, but if you don’t have a lot of room to work with, then an adapter for other wrenches or ratchets can be an ideal substitute.
Pipe Bender
Although you can use hand held benders on some jobs, if you need to make a radius on thicker or larger metal pipes, then you really can’t do it without a bench mounted pipe bender. Using a hydraulic ram and precision-cast metal dies, you can use a bench mounted pipe bender for exhaust pipes, bull bars, water pipes, and a wide variety of other, practical uses.
Hydraulic Press
If you’d like to be able to carry out work on things such as wheel bearings, suspension bushes, tie rods, and ball joints, you’ll need your own shop press. Using a hydraulic ram and a variety of metal dies, you can use a hydraulic shop press to carry out a wide range of tasks that would otherwise need to be taken in to a machine shop to do.
Sheet Metal Folder
Carrying out sheet metal work, such as panel repairs or fabrication at home can be incredibly rewarding, but it can also be incredibly frustrating if you don’t have the means to properly shape the metal. Instead of using your vice to bend sheet metal, you should use a dedicated sheet metal folder, as your bends will be crisp and you won’t run the risk of damaging the metal or your vice.
Sheet Metal Cutter
Along with a folder, you really can’t go past a dedicated bench-mounted sheet metal cutter if you want to carry out sheet metal fabrication work. It saves you time, frustration and cut off discs - and will ensure that your cuts are clean and straight every time.
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