Adjustable Bumper-Mounted Workstation
This adjustable-height work support with a rotating design is convenient and portable.
In my work as a coppersmith and restoration carpenter, I often need a small bench vise, or an adjustable-height work support. The drawing shows the rig that fills this need. It’s a 30-in. length of 3/4-in.-dia. black pipe clamped to the tongue that holds the ball hitch on my van’s rear bumper.
The height adjustment comes from a 30-in. length of 1-in. pipe that slides over the smaller-diameter pipe. I gave the 3/4-in. pipe a few passes with a flap disk in my angle grinder to get it to fit inside the larger pipe; then I drilled a hole in the pipe and welded a nut over it for attaching a handle to clamp the pipe at the desired height.
A pipe flange at the top secures a plywood base for whatever tool I want to attach to it. The height is easy to adjust, and the pipe rotates 360° for various angles of attack. It’s also easy to break down for travel: Just unscrew the pipe clamp from the hitch.
— Duane Kriebel; Waco, KY
From Fine Homebuilding #238
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Better for many things compared to the tailgate