Author Topic: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.  (Read 2284573 times)

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Offline Hydrawerk

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1100 on: April 11, 2015, 05:49:22 pm »
Another day, another Keithley 2001 under repair...


That's some cool test gear.
Amazing machines. https://www.youtube.com/user/denha (It is not me...)
 

Online AlfBaz

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1101 on: April 12, 2015, 12:04:53 am »
Another day, another Keithley 2001 under repair...
An excellent set of close up photos, thanks for posting :-+
 

Offline george graves

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1102 on: April 12, 2015, 02:53:07 am »
Uh, no, it doesn't block my legs.
Quote

Do your legs backwards?   :) Cause - there's no way to sit at that desk with out being hunched over.

Offline xrunner

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1103 on: April 12, 2015, 03:12:40 am »
Do your legs backwards?   :) Cause - there's no way to sit at that desk with out being hunched over.

Oh for crying out loud ... Don't worry about me find your own desk.  :-//
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Offline rolycat

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1104 on: April 12, 2015, 09:52:39 am »
Do your legs backwards?   :) Cause - there's no way to sit at that desk with out being hunched over.

Oh for crying out loud ... Don't worry about me find your own desk.  :-//
Enquiring minds want to knowTM  :)

It's actually a woodworking bench - you can see some of the dog holes drilled into the top. I'd guess the height means you would normally use it standing or perched on a stool, so you don't need a lot of knee room underneath.

It's a good looking bench for the money - shame you can't get them in the UK.

I like the tool rack - looks like a neat storage solution for cutters and pliers.
 

Offline smjcuk

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1105 on: April 12, 2015, 10:18:22 am »
Do your legs backwards?   :) Cause - there's no way to sit at that desk with out being hunched over.

Oh for crying out loud ... Don't worry about me find your own desk.  :-//
Enquiring minds want to knowTM  :)

It's actually a woodworking bench - you can see some of the dog holes drilled into the top. I'd guess the height means you would normally use it standing or perched on a stool, so you don't need a lot of knee room underneath.

It's a good looking bench for the money - shame you can't get them in the UK.

I like the tool rack - looks like a neat storage solution for cutters and pliers.

A guy round the corner from me in the UK has one like that. He does picture framing in his garage. I asked him where he got it from and he said he made it so you might be right there :(
 

Offline xrunner

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1106 on: April 12, 2015, 12:40:47 pm »
It's actually a woodworking bench - you can see some of the dog holes drilled into the top. I'd guess the height means you would normally use it standing or perched on a stool, so you don't need a lot of knee room underneath.

Exactly - it's a woodworking bench that Harbor Freight sells, and it's surprisingly high quality - it ain't made out of particle board it's quality hardwood. I actually use one of the top holes for my bench light now because its way stronger than the cheap plastic holder/clamp that come with the lights. The four drawers underneath are the best, there's so much in there it would be hard to make it more convenient any other way. There's also a nice clamp / vise built-into the side but most of that is stored away because I don't need to clamp test equipment in the jaws of a vise  ;)

The tool holder was sold by Micro Mark, but I've modified that to suit my own needs. It suits my needs just fine for now. Maybe I'll outgrow it in the future but to each his own, get what suits your needs and body, that's all that needs to be said.

Matter of fact I just upgraded it the bench yesterday by adding a 12 outlet strip because I'm running out of outlets.







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Offline smjcuk

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1107 on: April 12, 2015, 03:14:15 pm »
That's nice.

Starting to think I live in the wrong country :)
 

Offline Rupunzell

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1108 on: April 12, 2015, 04:33:30 pm »
Home lab of Barrie Gilbert (Gilbert Cell):
http://io9.com/5862419/this-might-be-the-coolest-home-lab-youve-ever-seen/


Home lab of Paul Rako (EDN editor, now retired and moved):
http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/designing-ideas/4311838/The-home-lab-of-Paul-Rako


Home Lab of Bo Lojek (professor at Colorado Uni):
http://blog.atmel.com/2013/11/08/the-home-lab-of-bo-lojek/
"It does not disturb me that Lojek has a stack of early Tektronix mainframe scopes. What bothers me is I have several friends that have the same sort of stack."


Bernice
« Last Edit: April 12, 2015, 04:36:31 pm by Rupunzell »
 

Online G0HZU

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1109 on: April 14, 2015, 12:40:15 am »
Even when I look at the workrooms of those old professionals I'm left wondering how those guys coped with having so little remaining bench space for any actual project work. 

There seems to be a common theme for home workrooms (labs?) where everybody loads up their work area with loads of exotic test gear and leaves just a 30cm wide strip (or less!) on the bench for any work.

All the shelves are 'full' and there is little room left for the most important thing in the room to function efficiently. The operator!
 

Offline Smokey

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1110 on: April 14, 2015, 01:17:05 am »
The more room on your bench for projects ...
...The more projects you will start....
.......and the more time it will take before you ever finish one....


The mess is a productivity enhancer in that it make you focus on one project at a time since there isn't any room for anything else :)
 

Offline xrunner

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1111 on: April 14, 2015, 01:37:01 pm »
Got an idea browsing Ebay for lighting. I ran across these car running lights. Of course they run off 12V so I ordered a pair just to see what they looked like. I'm pretty pleased with the results.

I used an old 12V brick and they pull about an amp. They are SUPER bright and really thin. I mounted them under the wire shelving (haven't finalized the way way they will be mounted though) and when they are off you can't even tell any lights are up there. When on they provide a lot of light and yet because they are so thin they don't glare into your eyes because they are blocked forward by the front shelf wire. So you have lots of light with essentially no footprint at all.

There are the ones -

http://www.ebay.com/itm/291161780706?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2648&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT



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Offline Rigby

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1112 on: April 15, 2015, 12:53:29 pm »
it's getting really easy to get enough light nowadays.  this is a trend that I can get behind.
 

Offline Srbel

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1113 on: April 15, 2015, 03:56:29 pm »
LOL. Since I moved to a different apartment, I don't have any room for a table for my electronics equipment. My workbench is a floor, now.
 

Offline Rupunzell

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1114 on: April 15, 2015, 05:01:14 pm »
Incentive to make designs and packaging smaller ?

Packed bench tops are very common among design folks, IMO really a reflection of their personality and work habits. Many years ago, a friend who worked in a Cal-Lab dealing with larger sized test gear had clean and large work spaces on their bench tops out of necessity. That kind of work is very different than building circuits from scratch using various construction techniques. My own lab bench space is equally small with a pile-O-parts and bits & soldering devices to one side and all the test gear on the other. Turns out, this is the most ergonomically efficient bench top configuration. The pile-O-parts becomes easy access inventory of commonly needed bits, with the test gear at the opposite end. If one lives with what appears to be a mess on a daily basis, the location of where the need bits are is not a problem.

IMO, winner for pile-O-stuff goes to Bob Pease.
 

Bernice

Even when I look at the workrooms of those old professionals I'm left wondering how those guys coped with having so little remaining bench space for any actual project work. 

There seems to be a common theme for home workrooms (labs?) where everybody loads up their work area with loads of exotic test gear and leaves just a 30cm wide strip (or less!) on the bench for any work.

All the shelves are 'full' and there is little room left for the most important thing in the room to function efficiently. The operator!
 

Online G0HZU

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1115 on: April 15, 2015, 07:22:48 pm »
Quote
Packed bench tops are very common among design folks, IMO really a reflection of their personality and work habits.
I agree but it's a poor way to work because frustration is never far away if you need to introduce something into the work area and there's nowhere to put it.

At my place of work we briefly 'got it right' a few years ago where engineers were encouraged to only use what test gear they needed for a particular task. Obviously some types of test gear remained on the bench full time but stuff like parts and most tools were not stored on the benck or the shelves. The work area and potential space should be 'owned' by the designer and the stuff being worked on and not the test gear and parts and tools.

Sadly, the bean counters and health and safety people went too far in recent times and lots of things were banned from workbenches. They got too heavily into '5S' making it very impractical to do creative stuff because the beancounters wanted the labs to look like something from a catalogue in order to impress important visitors.

Basically, what I am suggesting is that if you leave engineers to their own devices they will end up working in a cramped and frustrating and stifled work area. Apply the basics of 5S and you can really make a positive difference. But overdo the 5S principles and it quickly becomes very bad.

For years I used to do the same as everyone on here. I'd plan my work bench to try and accommodate all my test gear and parts and tools leaving sod all space for me or the projects or for any flexibility. But I found out a number of years ago that there's a better way to work than this.
« Last Edit: April 15, 2015, 08:17:05 pm by G0HZU »
 
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Offline Galenbo

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1116 on: April 16, 2015, 01:40:41 pm »
Got an idea browsing Ebay for lighting. I ran across these car running lights. Of course they run off 12V so I ordered a pair just to see what they looked like. I'm pretty pleased with the results.... they don't glare into your eyes because they are blocked forward by the front shelf wire. So you have lots of light with essentially no footprint at all.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/291161780706?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2648&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT


Nice tip. I just did the 4 clicks to get them delivered.
If you try and take a cat apart to see how it works, the first thing you have on your hands is a nonworking cat.
 

Offline Rupunzell

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1117 on: April 16, 2015, 04:32:48 pm »
Bench work habits are often developed early on in the learning process with the first bench set up. Over the course of time, projects worked on, problems developed by the bench set up and problems solved these conventions become habit and ways of working. For me, the bench has a number of basic bits of test gear and other test gear that is required get's wheeled in as required. Having related test gear and other stuff on wheeled carts goes a ways to reducing bench top clutter and allows speciality bits to be used as required. Exceptions to this would be BIG test systems that required a dedicated space to support them. Beyond test gear there are always tools, parts and all the bits required to make it all go. These days, it often involves a microscope too.

Working for small companies limits the interference from bean counters and industrial safety bureaucrats who believe they could and should impose their ideology on all they can which tends to affect designer's work areas and widgets designed.

As for stacking test gear. hewlett packard test gear from the Bill & Dave era had feet and enclosure extrusions that were specifically designed to be stacked and piled on top of each other. The enclosure dimensions were fractional to allow good space utilization of available space by stacking to placing test gear side by side. This tradition of logical-rational packaging is mostly gone and forgotten. The fashion stylist have replaced good and proper ergonomic design with injection moulded wonder blobs of plastic... which becomes another dis-incentive to purchase unless there is no other choice.


Bernice


At my place of work we briefly 'got it right' a few years ago where engineers were encouraged to only use what test gear they needed for a particular task. Obviously some types of test gear remained on the bench full time but stuff like parts and most tools were not stored on the benck or the shelves. The work area and potential space should be 'owned' by the designer and the stuff being worked on and not the test gear and parts and tools.

Sadly, the bean counters and health and safety people went too far in recent times and lots of things were banned from workbenches. They got too heavily into '5S' making it very impractical to do creative stuff because the beancounters wanted the labs to look like something from a catalogue in order to impress important visitors.

Basically, what I am suggesting is that if you leave engineers to their own devices they will end up working in a cramped and frustrating and stifled work area. Apply the basics of 5S and you can really make a positive difference. But overdo the 5S principles and it quickly becomes very bad.

For years I used to do the same as everyone on here. I'd plan my work bench to try and accommodate all my test gear and parts and tools leaving sod all space for me or the projects or for any flexibility. But I found out a number of years ago that there's a better way to work than this.
 

Offline RoboTechEd

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1118 on: April 17, 2015, 12:06:09 am »
Hi Everyone!

Long time lurker but finally got my lab to a point where I think I can post. I'm a recent-grad so it's still ramping up, but the images are below. A lot of it was motivated by posts I saw here and picking and choosing which I liked best. I also have a disadvantage of renting so I cant do any on-wall shelving like I want :(. Just got the scope/PSU/etc from an auction :)   :-DMM Scored pretty hard. Anyone have any advice on what else I should try to get my hands on? Just ordered a DMMCheck to calibrate everything.
 

Offline xrunner

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1119 on: April 17, 2015, 12:12:57 am »
Hi Everyone!

Good pics. I see you got a Tek CMC251 - I got one the other day from Ebay. Glad to see you posted.
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Offline Stupid Beard

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1120 on: April 17, 2015, 12:26:26 am »
Anyone have any advice on what else I should try to get my hands on?

You look well enough set that anything else you seek out should probably be guided by you thinking "this would be so much easier if I had an <insert thing>," lest you fall prey to Gear Acquisition Syndrome ;)
 

Offline RoboTechEd

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1121 on: April 17, 2015, 01:01:49 am »
lest you fall prey to Gear Acquisition Syndrome ;)

I already am falling for it! I cant get myself off Ebay or Craigslist to find more tools. I have a whole bunch more (less impressive) tools in my closet. I can always find a project to justify the purchase...even if I don't go through with the project  :palm:
 

Offline xrunner

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1122 on: April 17, 2015, 01:04:33 am »
I already am falling for it! I cant get myself off Ebay or Craigslist to find more tools. I have a whole bunch more (less impressive) tools in my closet. I can always find a project to justify the purchase...even if I don't go through with the project  :palm:

Man, you are going to fit right in here.  :clap:
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Offline c4757p

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1123 on: April 18, 2015, 03:59:50 pm »
Got an idea browsing Ebay for lighting. I ran across these car running lights. Of course they run off 12V so I ordered a pair just to see what they looked like. I'm pretty pleased with the results.

I used an old 12V brick and they pull about an amp. They are SUPER bright and really thin. I mounted them under the wire shelving (haven't finalized the way way they will be mounted though) and when they are off you can't even tell any lights are up there. When on they provide a lot of light and yet because they are so thin they don't glare into your eyes because they are blocked forward by the front shelf wire. So you have lots of light with essentially no footprint at all.

There are the ones -

http://www.ebay.com/itm/291161780706?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2648&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

I just received four ^-^
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Offline xrunner

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Re: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.
« Reply #1124 on: April 18, 2015, 09:19:36 pm »
I just received four ^-^

PICS AFTER INSTALL.  :-/O
I told my friends I could teach them to be funny, but they all just laughed at me.
 


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