Tinkering with your own mountain bike can be a source of happiness. Prerequisite: a well-organised hobby workshop. Its centrepiece: a stable workbench. With a little manual skill, you can easily build one yourself. We show you how to transform your basement chaos into a screwdriver's paradise on a budget and in no time at all. A sensible workstation and the right tools are the basis for successful wrenching sessions on the bike.
Do-it-yourself: Build your own workbench
To effectively carry out the most important maintenance and repair work on your bike, you don't need a professional workshop like those in large bike shops. This workbench costs just 100 euros and can be set up in two hours.
The instructions in the video
The material for workbench construction
10 bars
The base frame of the workbench consists of 68 x 68 millimetre thick wooden beams. The following lengths are required:
4 x 82 cm (legs),
4 x 44 cm (lateral cross struts),
2 x 121.5 cm (rear cross struts)
1 worktop
To save money, we used a normal kitchen worktop for our workbench. Of course, a solid wood worktop would also work. Dimensions: 135 x 60 cm. Important: The board should always be 40 millimetres thick!
2 OSB boards
It is best to use 22 millimetre thick OSB boards for the intermediate shelves of the workbench. Dimension: 135 x 58 cm
1 rear and 2 side panels
As with the Ikea shelf, the back panel provides the final stability. We have used 4 millimetre thick poplar wood in our workbench. Dimensions:
135 x 86 cm (back panel)
2 x 58 x 86 cm (side panels)
12 Iron angle
The beams for the base frame are connected with sturdy 90-degree iron angles (preferably 60 mm wide).
Screws and wooden dowels
The complete workbench is assembled using 8 mm wooden dowels and approx. 100 wood screws (4.5 x 40 mm).
When purchasing the wooden dowels, be sure to buy the corresponding dowel setters.
Done - The finished workbench
If you have the material cut to size at the DIY store, it shouldn't actually take more than two hours to build. Incidentally, the width and height can be customised to suit your own needs or basement niches. If the workbench can be set up more quickly, you might be able to go for a ride on your home trails afterwards.
The video is part one of our three-part screwdriver series in BIKE 2/19. In this issue, we also show which tools are useful in any workshop and which inexpensive alternatives can replace expensive special tools.
Part 2 of our series in BIKE 3/19 provides the most important steps for rectifying the most common bike faults. Finally, in the third part, you will learn everything about "Greasing, oiling, maintenance".
