I built the reloading bench that Art Alphin designed and provides the plans for in the A-Square reloading manual; "Any Shot You Want". Other than one of the measurements in the drawings in the manual being wrong and some of the bolt lengths that were given being wrong it is a good design. It turned out really well and I am quite pleased with it. It is very stout and solid. For the first time in 16 years I will be reloading in the comfort of the house instead of the dirty, cold, cramped garage. My better half is not as pleased as me but oh well, she'll get over it .

Cheers,
Andy

It looks good Andy!

I am about ready to tackle the project of building my reloading bench

I have this manual and looked at building my own bench also. Which dimension is wrong? A bunch of short 2x4's could be a real problem. Thanks

That's a very sturdy looking set up and looks great.

I'll just throw my two cents in since I've built probably 5 reloading benches and maybe 20 tables like that on work sites.

If someone wants to build a similar bench but save a few dollars, I would suggest the following:

Buy 8' long 2x4 or 4x4 legs and cut them into thirds. This will get you a good work height when finished.

Unless you need to disassemble the bench, use deck screws instead of bolts and save time and money.

Mount your press over a corner leg. This will transfer the force directly down through the leg into the floor and your press operation will be much better. I use long lag screws to attach the press. Make sure the handle will clear on the downstroke.

IF you can screw the back of the bench into a couple ow wall studs, it will be rock steady.

Some how that bench looks familar.....



rbinnm the purpose of the bolt construction is they are run through over sized off centered holes that allow the bench to "settle" a it is assembled. The bench will with a little shake while the bolts are stil loose level its self and when they are then tightened the work surface is a very level base for your scale objects don`t roll around on it if set down. It is a very steady, strong, flat design.

quote:

Originally posted by FC363:
I have this manual and looked at building my own bench also. Which dimension is wrong? A bunch of short 2x4's could be a real problem. Thanks

The drawing in the manual shows the sides being 17 1/4" up from the bottom, it should be 15 1/4" otherwise the over hang on the top will be 3" instead of 1". He also lists 18 7" or 8" bolts when actually you only need 6 of the 7" bolts for the top, you can use 6" bolts for everything else. Also, remember to build a right and a left hand side, I didn't and ended patching holes in the left side because I initially built 2 right sides.

Cheers,
Andy

I'd cut those bolts off that are protruding towards the chair. I just know I'd scrape my leg on them eventually.