Workbench/work area

[ChillyWilly]

I'm just getting into the hobby and I don't have much space (or money...) to work with. I'm trying to figure out what space I need. What's important, what's not.
How do you folks have your work area set up? What kind of spaces do you have? I'm assuming you have shelves to put your crawlers on, or some way to hang them on the wall. How do you store your tools? Batteries? Do you have a dedicated charging station set up, or do you just have your charger on the corner of your desk?
I would like to have a dedicated worktop to work on my stuff and a dedicated toolbox for tools and a dedicated storage system for all my spare parts and misc stuff. But what I have, for right now, is a small rolling tool chest and a couple of bookshelves in my office. With so little "stuff" so far, that's fine. But I can see I'm going to get overrun quickly and I'd like to have an idea of a good way to setup a work area.
So what do you do for your work area? What are some of the cool things you've done to set things up so that it's convenient for you? Maybe post some pictures of your work area. Talk about that awesome charging station you built. The sweet wall rack setup you have to store all your chassis. Show me what you've got!

[NKlamerus]

Simply garage working here, unfortunately my workbenches are tall and cabinet based, so I work standing.

I have always preferred shelves over hanging rigs, placing them on a stand takes weight off the foams and if they are partially disassembled they don't hang too well, or parts fall out.

Biggest thing for me is dropping screws, putting a lip on the workbench and using a tackle box (Plano 3700 slim) for screws was a huge improvement.

I use DeWalt TStak boxes for long term storage and portability, same as Craftsman verstak, most rigs might actually fit In a Ridgid box, Milwaukee packout, or DeWalt ToughSystem though.


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[B-MOW71]

Here's a few pics of my "happy place"! It is not a very big room, I think maybe 8'x8' room, so it is packed full.

I'm using a Harbor Freight workbench. I believe it cost me about $80 bucks with coupon. I quickly ran out of workspace on top of the bench, so I then added an extension to the right of the bench made out of 2x4's and a piece of pylwood.

Above the bench I hung up book shelf brackets spaced out wide enough so the brackets fit between the tires.

To the right of the bench I bought a 5-tier shelf at Menards. I use it to display my scale garage and a place to park my rigs. Beside my scale garage, I mounted my benchtop drill press.

I took these pics about 6 months ago, so I'll have to get some updated pics and post them. I've made a few changes to the layout since then and added another bench/table for my 3D printer.

[Crawler Cads]

Light is one of the most important factors, and somewhere to put your beer. The rest falls together real well

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[MaX-D]

I use a small foldable 2 x 4 table work on , and I have a shelving unit on Wheels to hold all of my vehicles. I have a good LED light on the table as well as overhead lighting. Like someone else said, lighting is crucial. Bumblebee oversees all of my work.

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[MaX-D]

I have a Plano tackle box that has a lid that opens on the top, and has four different pull out storage units on the bottom. Each one of those I use for a specific vehicle to keep all of their screws and extra parts in. I think I paid about $40 for it.

What's nice is if I take one of my vehicles out for a good bash somewhere, take my race vehicles to the track, or the Crawlers to my local crawling course, the Plano box can come with me in case I need to make repairs.

https://www.planomolding.com/shop/fi...ay-rack-system

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[MaX-D]

Invest in good hex drivers. I like MIP and Dynamite machined. You won't strip screws out with these. They are worth the investment. I have both. Honestly the dynamites work just as well as the MIP's.

https://www.amazon.com/Moores-Ideal-...=msnsmartus-20

https://www.amainhobbies.com/dynamit...dyn2904/p38303

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[HugoBiermann]

Make sure you have some decent light. I just use an old table in an extra room (womans’ storeroom)we have. Get som plastic drawer organizer things and you’re on your way.

As for the rig, I do this:


The table:




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[MaX-D]

Originally Posted by HugoBiermann

Make sure you have some decent light. I just use an old table in an extra room (womans’ storeroom)we have. Get som plastic drawer organizer things and you’re on your way.

As for the rig, I do this:


The table:




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The shelving for your rigs is a great idea. I have a custom cut 4x4 piece of wood under each one of my vehicles on my shelves so they don't sit on the tires

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[HugoBiermann]

Originally Posted by MaX-D

The shelving for your rigs is a great idea. I have a custom cut 4x4 piece of wood under each one of my vehicles on my shelves so they don't sit on the tires

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Had to make a plan as I could not handle the flat spots, even on the Lunch Box’s tires. This was quick and cheap.


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[MaX-D]

Originally Posted by HugoBiermann

Had to make a plan as I could not handle the flat spots, even on the Lunch Box’s tires. This was quick and cheap.


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I like it! May have to borrow your idea cuz I don't have enough shelf space for all of the vehicles that I have

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[dezfan]

I use a Husky adjustable height Work bench and a Husky mechanic’s cart.

I move it from the garage to an extra bedroom when the weather gets cold.

[smog]

I am pretty fortunate to have a decent size area as a workspace in my basement. I am not always the best at keeping tidy and finishing projects quickly so Having several areas allows me to have several things on the go at once. I have different spots set up where I engage different aspects of the hobby. I have A standing bench where I paint and have my airbrush set up, a standing spot where I braze, a seated bench where I build and solder and yet another where I can sit and hand paint. Each spot has its own overhead light. As I have gotten deeper into the hobby it seems my hobby area has grown. I also have all kinds of storage bins, dishes to keep various bits and cups to put my tools in. Shelves are a must have to display your rig collection of course. Many do with just a single bench I am just really poor at always putting things away.

This is my space, it gets me through our bitter cold winters

[high plains drifter]

IMO it's all about organization... not that working in a mess isn't fine for some people but I've just found for me personally that having things organized helps to make any project go better/ less frustrating.

I've got a shelf for batteries/ charging so that I don't have lipos sitting next to soldering irons... Things like that. All my tools, hardware, parts bins, etc are separated and/ or labeled according to types, sizes, vehicles, etc.

The size or kind of work area that you have is not as important as just organizing what you have. And one of the most valuable assets to any RC guy is likely storage containers... everything from storage tubs to little tackle-sized boxes.

[kincer]

I'm not sure if anybody mentioned this or not but I use ammo boxes to store my lipos, as everyone else said things kinda just fall into place as you go, you will redo things as your collection of rigs, parts, and tools grow. I've been into R/C since about 2008 and I've changed things up a few times, in the process of rearranging at the moment now, waiting on a new 46in rolling workbench from Harbor Freight to continue.

[dezfan]

Originally Posted by kincer

I'm not sure if anybody mentioned this or not but I use ammo boxes to store my lipos, as everyone else said things kinda just fall into place as you go, you will redo things as your collection of rigs, parts, and tools grow. I've been into R/C since about 2008 and I've changed things up a few times, in the process of rearranging at the moment now, waiting on a new 46in rolling workbench from Harbor Freight to continue.

Great idea. 🤔


A 30cal ammo can goes for $5.00 around here. 👍🏼

[NKlamerus]

Definitely recommend a true spray paint rack, you can fit twice as many cans in the same amount of space.

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[svt923]

This is my corner where I make stuff:



It isn't a huge space, less than half of a 20' x 10' room, but it is indoors and temperature controlled. Indoor wrenching space was a requirement when we were looking for a new house a few years ago.

There is a cabinet next to the desk that holds (nearly) all my tires and radios.



The scale garage sits on top of that cabinet.



This is back when it was clean, currently it is a holding area full of crap while I clean and organize.

A larger cabinet holds all the parts and other stuff needed for building.



Dollar store plastic bins make me look organized but they are all crammed full of stuff with no order.

The final piece of the RC room puzzle is the car rack:



It is one of those Closetmaid shelf track systems so minimal effort goes into putting it up and adjusting it for various trucks.

There is also a second workbench for thing that can't be done in the house like metal fab, a shelving rack in the garage for holding more stuff, and a shelving unit in the attic for holding old parts that are less likely to be needed. Basically, tiny trucks have taken over my house at this point.

[HugoBiermann]

Originally Posted by smog

I am pretty fortunate to have a decent size area as a workspace in my basement. I am not always the best at keeping tidy and finishing projects quickly so Having several areas allows me to have several things on the go at once. I have different spots set up where I engage different aspects of the hobby. I have A standing bench where I paint and have my airbrush set up, a standing spot where I braze, a seated bench where I build and solder and yet another where I can sit and hand paint. Each spot has its own overhead light. As I have gotten deeper into the hobby it seems my hobby area has grown. I also have all kinds of storage bins, dishes to keep various bits and cups to put my tools in. Shelves are a must have to display your rig collection of course. Many do with just a single bench I am just really poor at always putting things away.

This is my space, it gets me through our bitter cold winters

And you can listen to some frisbees while you are at it!


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[ChillyWilly]

Awesome stuff! There are some great ideas there. Thanks, people.
Keep 'em coming. I think I'm not the only one getting ideas and inspiration from this post.