How one "home workshopper" overcame the obstacle of having no place to work in a small modern apartment is shown in Fig. 9. Lumber from old boxes and crates was used; in fact, the only materials purchased were four hinges 2½ in. wide, four handles for drawers, four casters, five cents' worth of 2½-in. round-headed screws, and ½ lb- sixpenny nails, costing altogether sixty-nine cents.

The tools used were a hammer, crosscut and rip saws. try-square, plane, ruler, screw driver, and drill.

First the two sides ¾ by 11 ½ by 30 in. were cut, and a piece ¾ by 1¾ by 19 in. was nailed across the front end of these at the top, and a piece ¾ by 3½ by 19 in. across the bottom and extending ¾ in. lower than the ends of the sides - to allow for the thickness of the bottom. Two vertical pieces ¾ by 1¾ by 25½ in. were then nailed to the sides to complete the frame of the front.

The bottom, ¾ by 11 ½ by 19 in., was nailed under the sides, the ends of it being flush with the sides. The back, ½ by 19 by 30% in., was then nailed on. Before the slides for the drawers were attached, the depth of the drawers was figured out to suit exactly what was intended to be kept in each.

The top was made of ¾-in. stock. One piece 15 by 201/2 in. was cut to run from front to back, extending 2½ in. over the front and ¾ in. over each side. The other section or layer of the top was made 15 by 19 in., thereby allowing ¾ in. on each end for a piece of quarter-round molding 15 in. long. The first board was nailed to the sides, front, and back, and then the skeleton of the cabinet was inverted on the other board, the grain of which runs at right angles to the grain of the first one; after an allowance of ¾ in. had been made on each side for the molding, the first board was screwed to the second. When the cabinet was right end up, it had a smooth top without visible screws or nails. The molding at the ends of the top was next nailed with 1-in. brads.

Fig. 9. - The apartment-size cabinet workbench ready for use (above) and raised on casters (at left). It can be rolled away and stored in a closet.

Now for the most interesting part - the method of mounting the casters on pieces of wood 3 ½ by 12½ in. that are fastened to the bottom of the bench with hinges set ¾ in. from the ends. The width of these pieces is of great importance; it has to be exactly 3½ in. so that when the cabinet is tilted each will flip outward of its own momentum and not hit the floor. If they were too wide, the weight of the cabinet would fall on the hinges and, of course, break them very soon. At this width, the weight rests on the corner of the cabinet, allowing a needed ¼ in. before the hinges on the. tilted side are opened to capacity.

The casters are ball bearing and have flat tops or screw plates l¼ by 1¾ in. with four screw holes. They are set in 1 in. from each side and l½ in. from the end of the hinged pieces to which they are attached.

This simple device works perfectly. When filled with tools, including the heavy vise, it takes all the strength of two men to lift the cabinet, yet when the casters are set in place under it, the bench can be moved wherever desired with one finger.