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It's me again, Margaret. Heh heh heh.
I have another hairbrained idea of a project to add to my list once I get the essential stuff out of the way.
Once everything is cleaned up better I want to start working on more crafts with my mother and she wanted to have a sewing space. I figured it would be nice to have a sewing table and after watching some Youtube videos, I liked the tables where the sewing machine's sewing area sat flush with the table. But, since machines can change and I might want to move it, I was thinking it would be cool to have an adjustable platform for it that could be moved up and down. Now, the ones designed specifically for that purpose are expensive as hell. Cheapest one I could find was about $180. Most are around $240+. The tables that come with them pre-built were $700+. So, I was searching the internet for ideas when I saw that someone used an automotive scissor jack and attached a little hand crank.
Because I like to make things complicated (and I hate bending down under desks/tables) I wanted to have the hand crank on the side of the desk/table so I could reach next to it and crank it. That would require a longer shaft. so, I'm trying to figure out the best way to do it. I found two different types of crank attachments on the jacks.
First is the standard one that requires a hook through the loop:
It's the cheaper version.
Other one has some little levers you can turn by hand but also has a nub that fits in a socket so it can be turned with the ratchet. I watched videos of it in use and sadly the ratchet part didn't work as smoothly as hand-cranking.
On either one I wold need some sort of rod (either wooden or metal) that extends out past the table on the right. (I don't plan to make it terribly wide).
Once I get the length I want + some sort of stabilizer to keep it straight, I could add a hand crank. I had all sorts of random ideas from trying to re-use the cranks from a fishing pole (probably too small), converting a bike pedal crank (not quite sure how), altering an existing hand crank (I saw a replacement one for a hose stand), or making my own. If I make my own I could have a rod to make it look more like the hose stand's crank, or I could have a wheel. I saw a video on how to make a crank wheel for a router table. I wouldn't even need to drill the decorative holes. Just a hole down the center that attaches to the rod and some sort of bolts inside a drilled out dowel rod for a handle.
I suppose I could buy one of the pre-made handles like in the images above-- the wheel one looks kinda cool. I'd have to figure out what hardware to use to attach it.
I found some nice building plans at Ana White's website Modern Craft Table | Ana White
I'd leave off the shelves on the right side though and make the table smaller.. I'd have a side panel that the rod/shank would go through to have the wheel. Need to figure out the best way to make sure it could spin freely in the hole but remain stabilized. I think I've seen little wheel thingies with ball bearings or whatever that allow bolts to spin in them.
I have another hairbrained idea of a project to add to my list once I get the essential stuff out of the way.
Once everything is cleaned up better I want to start working on more crafts with my mother and she wanted to have a sewing space. I figured it would be nice to have a sewing table and after watching some Youtube videos, I liked the tables where the sewing machine's sewing area sat flush with the table. But, since machines can change and I might want to move it, I was thinking it would be cool to have an adjustable platform for it that could be moved up and down. Now, the ones designed specifically for that purpose are expensive as hell. Cheapest one I could find was about $180. Most are around $240+. The tables that come with them pre-built were $700+. So, I was searching the internet for ideas when I saw that someone used an automotive scissor jack and attached a little hand crank.
Because I like to make things complicated (and I hate bending down under desks/tables) I wanted to have the hand crank on the side of the desk/table so I could reach next to it and crank it. That would require a longer shaft. so, I'm trying to figure out the best way to do it. I found two different types of crank attachments on the jacks.
First is the standard one that requires a hook through the loop:
It's the cheaper version.
Other one has some little levers you can turn by hand but also has a nub that fits in a socket so it can be turned with the ratchet. I watched videos of it in use and sadly the ratchet part didn't work as smoothly as hand-cranking.
On either one I wold need some sort of rod (either wooden or metal) that extends out past the table on the right. (I don't plan to make it terribly wide).
Once I get the length I want + some sort of stabilizer to keep it straight, I could add a hand crank. I had all sorts of random ideas from trying to re-use the cranks from a fishing pole (probably too small), converting a bike pedal crank (not quite sure how), altering an existing hand crank (I saw a replacement one for a hose stand), or making my own. If I make my own I could have a rod to make it look more like the hose stand's crank, or I could have a wheel. I saw a video on how to make a crank wheel for a router table. I wouldn't even need to drill the decorative holes. Just a hole down the center that attaches to the rod and some sort of bolts inside a drilled out dowel rod for a handle.
I suppose I could buy one of the pre-made handles like in the images above-- the wheel one looks kinda cool. I'd have to figure out what hardware to use to attach it.
I found some nice building plans at Ana White's website Modern Craft Table | Ana White
I'd leave off the shelves on the right side though and make the table smaller.. I'd have a side panel that the rod/shank would go through to have the wheel. Need to figure out the best way to make sure it could spin freely in the hole but remain stabilized. I think I've seen little wheel thingies with ball bearings or whatever that allow bolts to spin in them.