Workbenches - show me yours!

Joined
Jun 13, 2024
Messages
397
Location
Peoples Republic of Vleuten
#1
It seems like I'm spending my life at the workbench these days after semi-retiring from industry and converting my lifelong hobby into a commercial activity and main source of income. It pays a lot less than what I've been doing for the past 30 years but it supports me just fine and there are 'quality of life' benefits which actually have exponentially more value; e.g. not having to sit in traffic jams on the way to/from the office, not having to sit in boring meetings for hours on end, not being subjected to uneccessary pressure from superiors, not being subjected to derision from subordinates, setting my own working hours, being able to work in my jimjams 'til 12pm when I (might) decide to get a shower/shave, freedom to just get out on the bike for a few hours if the sun comes out, that sort of thing. Wouldn't trade that corporate bs for any salary these days!

Anyway, the bench is my main abode for up to 10-12 hours a day these days. It's a pleasant place to be but I need to do a space-optimisation exercise at some point as materials/boxes/equipment etc are beginning to fill the space.
I use an old crap Ikea table that used to serve as a dining table until it was re-purposed as my workbench. It's sturdy and can accommodate a lot of gear and I may utilise the extension section soon to extend it from 2.5m to 3m which means I might be able to squeeze the scopes, signal generator and other bits of test equipment in at the back there somewhere.
I fear that I may eventually get to the point where I start emulating Mr Carlssons lab or Adam Savages chaotic workspace at some point. I hope not. lol

Show me your workspaces! Would be interesting/inspirational to see what you've got going on and how you have things set up etc.
Is it organised chaos or are you an OCD everything-in-order freak? I think I'm somewhere in the middle. lol :D

Organised chaos?
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Would be nice to get the scope and other items permanantly situated on the bench at some point, instead of hoiking them up there everytime I use them
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20tajk7

Chief Journeyman
Joined
Jul 26, 2011
Messages
843
Location
Absurdy, new name of France
Tagline
You never have too much tapedecks ^^
#4
How did I missed that thread !
My workbench in 2014, featuring Hameg HM203 scope, DIY function generator (with XR2206) found on a flea market, restored BST 1-15V/1A power supply, Metrix MX22 multimeter, Sansui 661 receiver, Philips CD-502 cd player, Onkyo TA-230 cassette deck, Sanyo (can't remember model #) speakers connected on the Sansui 661, JVC suicide speakers from a trashed BPC unit, Tektronix 7904 oscilloscope.
I was working on an Alpage AL-300 cassette deck.
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20tajk7

Chief Journeyman
Joined
Jul 26, 2011
Messages
843
Location
Absurdy, new name of France
Tagline
You never have too much tapedecks ^^
#5
The same workbench after ten years, more things, more mess !
The Hameg HM-203, Sansui 661, Philips CD-502, Sanyo speakers and JVC suicide speakers are still here.
Added units, Leader LFM-39A wow&flutter meter (thank you Lee), Schlumberger CRC-5043 oscilloscope, Schlumberger GBT-516A function generator, Aurex PC-X88AD cassette deck (with a 201 segment plasma meter, I use it as a poor man's Nakamichi T-100 !), HP3311A function generator, GW dual milivoltmeter, LEA EHD-50 distortion meter, Hexacon soldering station, Aoyue INT-474 desoldering station.
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Also have another CRC-5043 scope, more multimeters (including a DER-EE5000), a Metrix 0-30V 2.5A power supply.
The Tektronix 7904 is waiting in the basement with other dead units, I hope to find some time to fix it.
 

wattsabundant

Chief Journeyman
Joined
Apr 26, 2011
Messages
928
Location
Central Ohio
#7
Mine is nothing special except being blessed to have all the space I need.
4x8 sheet of plywood covered with a piece of vinyl roofing, test equipment on shelves above the bench.
Not quite OCD but clutter drives me crazy. View attachment 83243
I count 4 oscilloscopes. You can never have too many I don’t seem to be able to resist the urge to acquire oscilloscopes. Last account was nine or 10. Everything from a tube base Tek, 503 to a four channel Tek digital scope. In the mix are few USB scopes. my trusty Hitachi scope that has lived in the rack forever is approaching 40 years old
 
Joined
Apr 18, 2019
Messages
145
#8
I count 4 oscilloscopes. You can never have too many I don’t seem to be able to resist the urge to acquire oscilloscopes. Last account was nine or 10. Everything from a tube base Tek, 503 to a four channel Tek digital scope. In the mix are few USB scopes. my trusty Hitachi scope that has lived in the rack forever is approaching 40 years old
I find scopes locally on CL and somehow cant resist them. Usually a very simple and obvious issue as far as repairs. Hard to get rid of them:rolleyes:
 
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