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Standards of a sort

A hackerspace log for Twin Cities Maker

10,000 sq ft of Awesomeness

jude-dornischJude Dornisch 06/02/2015 at 05:040 Comments

While the eclectic nature of our shop has a certain charm, several areas beg for a bit of standardization. So from now on all new cordless tools will be DeWalt 20v lithium, and all new shop vacs will be Ridgid 14gallons. Obviously interchangeability was the driving force.

Less obvious is the slow conversion of our flat surfaces. All of our new tables, benches, and desks will conform to a standard. There will be three heights that conform to standard North American desk (30"), counter (36"), and bar (42"). We have settled on a 24" standard square, so tables will be 2x2', 2x4', 4x4' etc. The vast majority of tables, desks, and counters will be 2'x4' and on casters.

The Idea is that by standardizing we will gain a lot of flexibility. These surfaces are designed to quickly bolt together. So if you need a 4'x8' layout table 4 of the standard 2'x4's can be put together. Many of the tools will be on 2'x2' castered tables that can slot into standard 2x4's to form cut tables. The chop saws and radial arm saws in particular can be moved into position quickly and locked in. The Saw Stop table saw is already at counter height and the other table saws will be set to that height so now the standard 2x4 counter height tables can serve as on and off feed tables.

Additionally these new tables will serve as very temporary in progress project storage. Glue ups and other overnight functions can be stored on the tables and moved in and out of member storage.

Plans, Cut lists, Jigs, and materials are available in the shop. Talk to Clara or Jude. The construction and preparation will be incorporated in to the classes and familiarization sessions. Therefore we expect that every welding class will be producing a new desk or table and that training sessions on the Iron Worker and chop saw will be preparing materials for later welding and assembly.

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