leatherwork table

[rickmoo]

i posted this on leather pros, would like to get more opinions. i'm thinking of making a table for leatherwork. my thoughts are to make a frame with two by fours and a thick plywood top... fill the 3 1/2" with concrete, then put a bottom under the concrete. - add suitable locking casters. would it bo solid enough for tooling leather work? i don't have any granite, sooooo what do you think? richardmoo

[dirtclod]

i posted this on leather pros, would like to get more opinions. i'm thinking of making a table for leatherwork. my thoughts are to make a frame with two by fours and a thick plywood top... fill the 3 1/2" with concrete, then put a bottom under the concrete. - add suitable locking casters. would it bo solid enough for tooling leather work? i don't have any granite, sooooo what do you think? richardmoo

The concrete by it's self will work better than concrete with plywood over it i think. The wood will still have some give and bounce.

I think you would be money ahead getting the granite to start with. You are going to have to get several 2x4 to brace your form with before and after rebar to put inside the top for strength. If you paln on using concrete that comes in the bags. It's going to ALOT of them. For instance if you dig a post hole 6 inches wide and 2 and half foot deep it will take one bag to fill the hole up with the post in it. If you order concrete i bet there will be a 2 or 3 yard price you have to pay even if you want 1 yard or a half a yard. Ot you can get the rock, sand and cement and mix it your self that's alot of work.

Have you though about going to a momument shop and seeing if they have a chipped stone or one that they have replaced with a new one. Another choice would be to get a babies tombstone. Their plenty thick enough and small enough you can move it by yourself.

My suggestion is bite the bullet and get a stone to start with.

[TigerPal]

Another suggestion would be to visit a place that does granite counter-tops - they often have pieces cut out for sinks, or slab remnants for fairly decent prices.

[UKRay]

I have worked on all kinds of hard surface including thick steel plate, so don't get hung up on the whole granite thing. One of the nicest rocks is a nice slab of surplus marble from a stonemason. Think funeral supply here.

A good friend of mine worked on a concrete paving slab for a couple of years before spending his money on a granite slab.

IMHO, you need to try lots of stuff and see what works best for you.

Ray

[MHolzer]

I can't find the post right now, but when I made mine, I used his table as an inspiration. He made a U shaped table with thee marble inlayed into the table so it was flush to the surface. I did the same basic thing and I love it.

[MHolzer]

Ahha! Here it is: http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=4905&view=findpost&p=67436

[Schno]

Ahha! Here it is: http://leatherworker...indpost&p=67436

Hey there, MH! Glad you like that design. I've been working on that table for a few months now and I really like it. The inlaid granite makes everything much easier to manage.

The table is just a big piece of 3/4" birch plywood with a cut-out for the granite. The granite is secured by another small piece of birch supported by a couple of 1 x 3's beneath and shimmed up to level. It's perfectly sturdy and yields no unnecessary bounce. Since those pictures were taken I've added a spray booth for air brushing on the left side.

... and I've added a couple of dye spots to the table top But, all in all, it's been a good layout for me.