I have a dumb question I want to clear my mind of. I want to put some casters on a small work bench with drawers to make it mobile.
The question is which casters to you get and where to put them. If I get swivel casters do you need 4 or 2 with 2 stationary and where do they go? ( one in the back, both in the back, one in the front?) Do you need only one brake or two? I know they go in the front. Do you get 4 swivels or all stationary. I am going to get 4 or 5 inch by the way.
Thanks,
The Sicilian
Replies
Hi Sicilian, it depends on how you want the bench to behave in transit. If you want it to track straight behind you down an aisle or across a large open space, then you would need two fixed and two swivel, the two fixed should be on one of the narrow ends of the bench that you would want to the rear in transit. Get brakes on the fixed casters.
If you have a small space and want to do 360*'s and be highly manueverable, get 4 swivels, all with brakes.
Personal preference mostly. 2 and 2 is fine, or all 4 swivel. Any that swivel should have a lock. If you only have 2, it won't rotate as easy but it tends to move in straight lines better. I usually put 2 fixed on one end and 2 swivel on the other end. That way it goes easier through doorways.
I've built a couple of roll-around toolboxes over the years, and favor the 2 + 2 approach.
I like to put handles on the end with the swivels, so I can just grab the thing and go.
No way would I swivel all four. That would be tough to control, unless you had a guy on each end.
Tactically aggressive (loves a fight), strength of character, steadiness of purpose, acceptance of responsibility, energy, and good health and strength. [Patton's six necessary qualities of a good general]
Personally I prefer 4 swivels for moving my large tool bench around my workshop. It will depend on what sort of movements you anticipate. I've found the brakes to be not much good. If I really needed it to stay still I would make some wedges and tap them in to slightly lift the whole bench off the wheels
John
Depends upon the size of the unit. A 2x2 unit with drawers, I'd use 4 swivel. Why? They come in pairs. You could get 4 locking, just like you would for a scaffold, but you'll probably only ever lock two.
Check the shopping carts at the store next time you go in. About half the carts use three swivels, and track just fine. This can be a convenient solution for benchwork, as that third swivel lets you "cut" that corner into a tighter space than two non-swivels.
What's really cool is the swivel casters where both the wheel AND the swivel mechanism itself locks. No so common, but they are out there.