Benchtop Tool Weight

[Charlie Self]

A couple new tools recently have added to my appreciation of lightweight, because they aren't.

My Ryobi 13" planer started the awakening, as this "portable" models weighs over 100 pounds. Last week, I got a benchtop Craftsman jointer with enough cast iron in it to bring it up to 105 pounds, assembled and face planing osage orange.

The thing is, with my current set-up, I have no space for individual stands, so these get swung up onto the workbench for use (the planer sometimes get used on the floor), which is a lot less fun than it used to be.

Both do a better job than any bench top tools I've had in the past, but somewhere there should be a dividing line, maybe 60 pounds, for TRUE bench toppers.

Charlie Self

"Man is a reasoning rather than a reasonable animal." Alexander Hamilton

[Groggy]

"Portable", as brought to you by the same people who redefined "horse power".

I don't envy you picking those things up to put them on a bench Charlie, can you rig up a small block and tackle to do the lift for you?

Greg

[Dan Parrell]

[mel]

My Dewalt 735 planer which is listed as "portable" has a sticker on it stating 2 people required for lifting. So apparently weight/people=portability.

[Charlie Self]

Several problems with that. First, there's no room to implement much of anything in this 1 car garage with almost no power. Second, I don't want to spend cent one on anything in this shop because we've got the house up for sale. Third, when I move back to Virginia, if I keep the benchtop tools I've got here, I'll have plenty of room: my shop there is freestanding 1200 sf.

So, for now, it's ugh and up and not as big an ug and down. Probably not as bad for me as the barbells and dumbbells I used to lift...and sometimes still do.

Charlie Self

"Man is a reasoning rather than a reasonable animal." Alexander Hamilton

[Charlie Self]

Larry Blanchard asks:

Heh. Yeah. My KayPro weighed about 23 pounds.

Charlie Self

"Man is a reasoning rather than a reasonable animal." Alexander Hamilton

[Larry Blanchard]

Remember the first "portable" computers?

[Phisherman]

[Swingman]

It's all age related, IME. At 60, I notice how much more difficult it is to add the riser to my "benchtop" mortiser these days, and to get it onto the bench at times ... in my case, it has nothing to do with back problems, of which I've never had any. This coming from someone who, when 17, thought nothing of carrying two tons of 100lb sacks of feed, TWO at a time, to the barn through ankle deep mud with rubber boots on ... rain and mud somehow ALWAYS conspired with the feed delivery truck, who was thus forced to drop it off at the gate, 400 yards from the barn.

[Howard]

The PDP-8 was considered portable, at about 60 lbs.

-- Howard Lee Harkness Texas Certified Concealed Handgun Instructor

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[Randy Chapman]

Yeah, that Ryobi planer is a bit heavy. I just moved mine around twice in the last week. Not too bad; but I'm only 29 :-)

However, you should see my "benchtop" drill press. 1978 1/2 horse 110/220 motor, cast iron base and table, metal cover on the pulleys. 12-speed 14" model. The planer I will move up and down off the floor myself without struggling much. The drill press, otoh -- I'm worried about moving it from it's current bench to it's new wheeled one that I'm building, even though they'll be right next to each other, and the wheeled one is lower.

I've seen a couple posts from people who used some sort of pulley system to raise and lower their tools to/from the workbench. Might you be able to do something like that?

Thanks,

--randy

[Silvan]

The PC Luggable? :)

[Bob Davis]

Something very sneaky is killing backs - too much time on the computer hunched over the keyboard. I have more pain and distress when I am on the computer. I can go out in the shop and do physical work and start feeling better.

Bob

[Greg G.]

Bob Davis thus spake:

Here, Here! Not to mention the cramped hands and headaches and blurry vision from staring at an X-Ray machine too long.

Greg G.

[David Babcock]

Yeah, Osborne and Compaq made them too.......but they were very portable.......as long as you had someone to help you........mine ran CPM, who needs DOS?

Dave

[Robert Bonomi]

*SNORT* That one was 'third generation', at least.

The first of the 'portables' predated the IBM PC, and even PC-/MS-DOS. The "Kaypro 1" was a CP/M machine. And it had competitors.

Then there was the Osborne I, and some competitors, in the PC-compatible world.

*Then* came the IBM "Portable PC". late to the market, as usual.

[Charlie Self]

Robert Bonomi recalls:

I loved my old KayPro (new at the time, 20+ years ago). But it cost a ton and weighed almost the same. I think I still have a photo of a desk I knocked together for a Georgia-Pacific booklet, with the KP sitting up top like the hottest thing on the block. It wasn't, but it also wasn't far behind. I didn't get as close to cutting edge again until earlier this year, and, in fact, this one was behind from the start...only gamers really keep up.

IIRC, the Osborne was on shaky legs about '82 or '83, then I had a fire (this is NOT a habit, but seems to happen every 19 years or so) in August of '84 and had to get a new KayPro...that was either the 1X or the 2X. Had 2 floppy drives instead of 1.

Amazing advance.

Charlie Self

"Man is a reasoning rather than a reasonable animal." Alexander Hamilton

[Silvan]

Only wealthy gamers really keep up. When I was a gamer, I was still always at least two steps behind.

Now I'm really behind. It's a sad day when the Wal-Mart blitz throwaway POS $500 computer is 270% faster than yours.

If I just wait a bit longer I'll get my dual 10 GHz SMP box for that price, with a 20" HDTV flat screen monitor and a coffee maker built in.