Reloading Table or Bench

My favorite bench (and most stable by far) is one I built. The legs and frame are made of oak 4x4's, then the top is a solid layer of 2x4's running length wise, then on top of that is a 3/4" sheet of plywood. It is about 6 foot long, 24" deep, and HEAVY....I would say around 250 lbs or more, mainly from the oak 4x4's. I know it was EVERYTHING I had to lift the stinkin thing up on it's legs by myself after building it. Then, I used lag bolts to bolt it to the studs in the wall. My RCBS rockchucker press will snap in half before the bench budges. I just hope to god I never move....I have sentimental connection to that bench, but it would be a royal B***H to move.

http://www.rifleshootermag.com/editorial/gun-loading-bench-strength/83543
Also look at this.

Pretty much anything will work. I loaded for years off a press screwed onto a tiny nightstand I pulled out of the trash. When that broke, I made a little sit-down bench from a half sheet of plywood and 2x4's. It's free standing so I can push it around if I need to. I also use the back to hang cleaning rods, dust pan and just stuff. Not to big but big enough. I'll get a pic later. Point being, you don't need much to load but the more you load the more room you'll need for ancillary things like powder, bullets, dies, cleaning stuff, manuals, trick little tools... For that you'll need shelves or cabinets.

Those old heavy duty metal desks work really well if you can find one cheap on Craigslist. I use custom fabricated metal workbench that came out of some manufacturing plant chair height and I have heavy duty maple topped workbench stool height in my reloading room also. I keep the press on one and powder throw on the other so my kids can resize/prime on one bench while I throw powder charges without them shaking my bench settling my powder between throws. We can process a lot of 223 rather quickly with our little assembly line.

Anything sturdy, stable, and strong will work, but make sure you allow plenty of room bc it is hard to make it bigger later. Shelves, drawers, etc are very helpful.

I had a guy build me this out of reclaimed wood...works great for me and looks cool in my reloading and gun room...

I am still building shelves etc., but the bench is in. The L shape is all one piece laminated pine boards. Everything is glued and screwed. Doesn't budge.

I went to Home Depot and bought a 25 x 48 inch piece of Butcher block and then bought folding legs for it. Sealed it with an oil and its worked well for me. Its big enough to hold all the vital gear and I can fold the legs and put it away when Im not using it.

https://m.samsclub.com/ip/ultra-heavy-duty-workbench/prod1490086?xid=plp_product_1_5 I've been using this for several years

Barrelnut said:

These Harbor Freight woodworking benches are very popular for reloading benches. Catch them on sale and then use the 20% off anything coupon they always have in their ads and you get the thing for darn near free!

https://www.harborfreight.com/tool-storage/workbench/60-in-4-drawer-hardwood-workbench-69054.html

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And, if you also screw it into studs in the wall, it is very solid and stable. Important measuring and weighing powder.

Number of years ago was helping my daughter move. She had an old oak desk. One like the teachers used back in the day. She said, dad put this in the truck that is going to the dump. Needless to say I took it home and it has made an excellent reloading table with storage for more than 20 years now. Or at least it works for me.

The Oregonian said:

Anything sturdy, stable, and strong will work, but make sure you allow plenty of room bc it is hard to make it bigger later. Shelves, drawers, etc are very helpful.

I had a guy build me this out of reclaimed wood...works great for me and looks cool in my reloading and gun room...


View attachment 113715

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Is that a casket standing up behind it?

Really nice bench! I love it when folks use reclaimed antique wood. We used a good bit of it in my buddy's house that we built last year. Spent a lot of hours running the planer.

MudRunner2005 said:

Is that a casket standing up behind it?

Really nice bench! I love it when folks use reclaimed antique wood. We used a good bit of it in my buddy's house that we built last year. Spent a lot of hours running the planer.

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I don't know what it is - he was sending a few pics throughout the build process. The wood was old truck decking and the legs were used as loose pallets to set whatever on in ships. Brazilian hardwood that is hell on saws.

I worked at a hospital and took home an old room door . it was a laminated 4ftx72 ln solid core. Set it on top of two old metal cabinets .woks great

I built one with these plans about 15 years ago, although I didn't put doors on the cabinets. Looks similar to the Oregonian's above...

https://shotgunsportsmagazine.com/sites/default/files/default_pdf/bench_plans.pdf