Portable work surface?

[gd891]

I'd like to be able to work on projects without trudging downstairs to the workbench and hiding from the family. As you can imagine, my wife is not too keen about using the kitchen table and I’m not too keen about buying a new one if I ruin the finish.

I’ve thought of two solutions to the problem. One is to build some sort of transportable work surface that projects could rest on and would have the basic tools I need for small projects to be done such as assembling a plastic kit. Given that I work in HO, I’m thinking this “tray” needs to be at least three feet wide and two feet deep. My only concern would be transporting it back and forth to the basement – especially if a half finished kit is busy setting up on it.

The other solution I’ve thought of is having something like a roll-top desk which would permanently be in the family living area but looks nice on the outside and has a cover to hide the mess (and preferably a lock to keep out small children).

I’m sure that others have run into a similar quandary and I wonder what you’ve done.

[Anonymous]

I use a 2' x 2' sheet of plywood...available at lumber yard...wife is happy...after 30 minutes, walk slow and easy to let models finish setting up in basement...

[orsonroy]

I do most of my run-of-the-mill modeling on a TV dinner stand I picked up at Target for $16. I cut down the legs a bit so it's be comfortable working on it while sitting on the couch, but it's otherwise stock. With it being bought specifically for modeling, my wife doesn't mind me using it. To protect the surface from heavy-duty cutting projects, I've got a piece if 1/4" plexiglas I picked up somewhere. And when I'm painting, I use a banker's box lid over the top to catch any spills.

[Jetrock]

In order to ensure domestic tranquility, I devised a "system" for working on model railroad stuff in the living room.

Component 1 is an aesthetically pleasing box that was originally used to store a portable slide-viewer/record player (the 1950's equivalent of the laptop-based presentation) which I got in non-working condition and gutted. It's about 1'x1.5'x9", big enough to hold quite a few basic tools and raw materials and a couple of small kit boxes, but it is suitable in shape, size and color to sit pretty much permanently on a table in the living room.

Component 2 is a large kitchen cutting board, 24"x30", which I keep stashed behind a curtain when not in use. It is invaluable for protecting the tablecloth from random insults due to misplaced glue, X-Acto knife, or paint, and very strong and light.

Component 3 is a halogen table lamp that, like the box, matches my wife's ideas of something that would look good in the living room.

Rule 1 of use is that I don't do anything overly noxious (spraying paint, plastering, anything that produces lots of odor or dust) in the living room--that requires a trip to the garage.

Rule 2 is that absolutely everything gets put away in the box when I'm done, and the cutting board stashed behind the curtain. This prevents both comments from the wife about clutter, and scattered and lost and broken equipment from my cats attempting to reclaim their territory on top of the table!

All in all, though, it's really worth it--it lets me get a lot more done, since my garage is pretty toasty in the summer. It lets me share the hobby more with my wife, since she can see me working on stuff and ask questions and talk with me while I'm fiddling with stuff and she is studying or watching TV.

[MichaelWD]

What I use is an old printer stand that I got from work. It is 24"L X36"W X 30" H. It is wood and looks OK in the room. For storage I use the multi drawer plastic carts .
Mike Dickinson

[TexasEd]

I like the printer stand and drawer ideas. Since I work in O my models are a little bigger, but I use an old laminated calendar gathered up at work in January when the old ones go in the tra***o act as a liquid proof barrier for the table to protect it from glue or paint.

[cwclark]

I use a portable homemade desktop that "protects" the kitchen table....I built it out of scrap pieces of hardboard, plywood and 1/2" x 3/4" wood....it has built in slots to keep my tools and parts off of the kitchen table and a flat work area that has a retractable magnifing glass / lighting source built into it...it had to be a bit heavy so It would'nt slide around, when i applied pressure to the work top so i inserted a real steel track spike plate within it under the work table...all my work stays on this portable workbench and the miss'us doesn't complain about AC glue on the kitchen table finish since it only spills on the worktop rather than onto her kitchen table.....it is basically a box with 4 slots on the sides to keep tools and parts in and a tabletop in the center to perform work on...it measures about 18" by 3' enough to keep the work on the bench and not on the kitchen table...after i'm done with it i just carry it to a shelf for storage and put it back on the kitchen table when i want to work on railroad stuff again...Chuck[:D]

[Anonymous]

I do not have the problem with a stairway to a basement (would be nice though) but I bought a three shelf "tool" or "mail room" cart. I attached a strip outlet and filled the trays with stuff needed to work on the layout. I just roll the cart to the work area and have all tools close at hand. For kit building, I have a plywood deck that fits inside the top tray that creates a desk suitable for off layout modeling. I also use the 4 and 6 drawer plastic storage bins, one for paints and airbrush, another for scenic materials, another for electrical components, etc. All if these "carts" roll under the layout keeping the space uncluttered and ready for train operations.