This is my work bench. Lets see yours.

Those benches are not messy, cause I can either see the surface or I can estimate where the surface probably is.  

Mine is embarrassingly messy, I will admit.  It gets cleaned up when I lose a tool or lose a total project in the pile on my bench.  I clean until I find what I'm looking for.

The bench is the area to the left of the Mt Dew Code Red fire extinguisher.

On the front panel there are two 0-30 volt isolated power supplies.  Two 0-140 volt variacs are on the bottom with a switchable AC meter.  All the panel mounted meters are analog and the multimeters are digital.

Four Fluke meters on the left and the workhorse generic meters on the right.  The test track is barely visible to the left of the PCB vises and in front of the white bucket.  Some cleanup is needed to be able to use the test track without some shorts between the rails

Computer, chemicals, and test leads to the left

Glues, epoxies, oils, lubes, files, fuses, crimp terminals, glue guns above.

Soldering stations, solder guns, variacs, fused master power distribution to the right

Parts and small tool storage bins

Below the bench are some large electrical component storage cabinets that i put on casters.  Thats where i store the resistiors/capacitors, ICs/Darlingtons, Transistors/diodes/bridge rectifiers, Switches/LEDs/Reed Switches/Pots/Triacs/Lamps, 7400 Logic/TO220s, Opto devices/4000 series cmos/LEDS/PCB carbide drill bits, and the Teflon wire storage in the bags.

More tools are stored in this childhood desk my dad hand made for me at 10 years old.  And the HP dual tracking power supply if substantial wattage is needed. 

A small desk chair barely fits in there so everything needs to be close at hand once you sit down.

Not used for train repair much anymore cause I run postwar stuff.  Just circuit projects and whatever catches my attention.   Which right now is converting a 3.6 volt B&D scissor tool from a 3 cell factory ni-cad battery to a Westinghouse lithium cell.  Not much room inside there.

Whoa!  We juuust might have a winner...     

J Daddy posted:

I am jealous, you guys have it made... I set up on a temporary card table to do my work.

And I say "any which way you can, just do it!"

 

J Daddy- I'll trade you my bench for your awesome layout !  I'd work in a stack of milk crates to make room for more trains.

Bob

TedW posted:

Whoa!  We juuust might have a winner...     

Agreed, TedW! The very fact Aussteve can name all that stuff tells you his organization is in his noggin, not his bench! Love the added touch of the Mountain dew, and I thought at first glance the 4 Flukes were 4 freebie burnouts from Harbor Freight!

Here's my hobby room in the house. To me it's messy in this photo. I like to keep my whole room Very clean and organized. I use to build my trains in my 24x24 shop but have since dedicated it to my 30+ giant scale RC airplanes.

Can't post a picture of my workbench  'cause I can't find it.

You gentlemen shamed me into cleaning my work table, and putting a new pad on the top. My wife gives me her fatigue mats when they get a bit shabby, good enough to slop oil and grease on. Found little projects I forgot I had, fortunately they were all mine. 

Miggy,

The radio rigs are on another bench.  A modern Icom 746Pro, and then 3 older Heath's.  I also like SWL.  I have lots of vintage radio rigs, all fully electrically restored and with good cosmetics.  I have a National NC-190 that almost looks new.  I really enjoy building and "playing" with regenerative radios.  Going to build a tube rig soon, with type 49 tubes from the 1930's.  They run with ONLY 9 volts on the plate!!!!!!  Also, notice the other stuff in my main picture.  That was the bench before I moved and had to shrink things.

Regards, my alter "ego" KB2NFQ

My work bench.  Its built over an old kitchen cabinet that I painted in Lionel colors, and a pair of cheap set of drawers.   Over the work bench, I have a display shelf, that has several vintage and new operating accessories.  The top shelf is my 2037 set that I got from my dad in 1959 or 1960 for Christmas.  

#DONHRADIO Sweet! Just seemed like there was a HAM connection to that workbench.

--===wb0smh===-- " hey good buddy, I bet you can get channel 14 real good with THAT beam, huh,!.?

I can identify with the rule that if its not messy,  you're not getting anything done. Thank goodness I have my slide out small shelf as an emergency square foot of space. Seems  everything I do now gets done on that shelf. 

If anyone has some extra passenger car storage you can send me I would appreciate it. LOL!!

Until I get my track laid (some turn-outs on order) this is where the 'work' is being done. The other two 'work stations' are snowed under with house-hold projects or under a heap of boxes!

The state of my bench today, abandoned!

The dynamic test stand is packed in it's traveling case.  The Z4000 is here on the floor, the modelers drill press packed up.  The soldering stations include a resistant one also packed.  The handheld silly-scope packed in it's case, etc.etc.etc.!

For now just work off a piece of 1/4" ply sealed on one side laid on dinning room table or on bed.

Like surgery here on the Jawn Henry.

Yesterday I took and posted the pic above of my abandoned and forlorn work bench up in the unfinished second floor.  I kept looking at this photo and obsessing. 

See the story behind this desk and top was a labor of love.  I got, salvaged these pieces from a friend.  The desk was loose, wobbly, and all but falling apart.  The now top was used as a headboard and at least 6-8-inches wider than the desk top.

Took the desk completely apart re-gluing  with yellow carpenter's glue and some epoxies.  Added all new screws and some ball casters.  The top I had to carefully design and cut away the three shelves left side so could re-cut  tongues on the ends and chisel out the original groves.  And adjust the framing.

So I have a lot of me in this.  Cleaned and straighten it up today.

I feel better now! 

Hello Friends,

I really am enjoying this thread.  It took me awhile to respond because I needed to take some current photos of my workshop/"train room" and then had to try to find out how to post photos on the forum. The room was an unfinished fourth bedroom in the lower level of our home.  The typical closet was roughed in, so we dry walled it, too.  I put my work bench in and added a book shelf.  The work bench becomes the resting place for not only hobby projects but also small household repair projects.  It looks about ready for my semi-annual clean-up.  Until then, I usually end up actual doing the specific project on a TV tray in the family room next door.  To put the work bench into perspective and to get some idea of the "train room" in which it resides, I have attached a couple of pictures of the rest of area.  I had a couple more pictures to post, but they came through sideways, and I don't know how to rotate them back upright on the forum.

Cheers!

Alan