Assembly Mat

[Jeff Higgins]

Hi folks! I figure I'll ask my highly-respectable collegues here on CKD about their "final assembly" areas. What I am looking for is a nice workmat for my assembly bench. What do you all use? I know Peter Atwood uses a paper towel. I'd like some form of a semi-soft mat that I can work on. Leather? Rubber? What?

Please share your ideas here. I'd love to here what you guys use.

Thanks!

[Davis]

3'x2' piece of leftover drywall w/ duct taped edges.
handy for sticking things in, toss when nasty.

Trish

[DC KNIVES]

Jeff,I use indoor-outdoor carpeting. You can always get remnats for next to nothing and your set.Dave

[SharpByCoop]

I bought a black doormat carpet with a rolled-over plush for my kit assembly. The soft material doesn't scratch and because it's black it has great visibility on my work. Also the screws stay close by.

And you guys will laugh, but I use 'Hungry Man' dinner trays as my component tray for folders. Just right. Keep a little cherry pie residue in the center for a loctite substitute....

Coop

[Sweany]

I use old file folders. When I'm done I get a new one. nifty for mixing epoxy on also. Just fold the sucker together and into the trash.

[Frank J Warner]

I use an ordinary shop cloth spread out on my workbench. If I'm working on a folder with lots of small parts, I just roll them all up in the cloth, wrap a rubber band around it, and set it aside at the end of the day or when I move on to another project.

-Frank J Warner

[Raymond Richard]

I just work off the top of the pile. If the weather is decent I set up a table out side the shop. Right now its the top of the pile. I told myself that after this last show I pick things up but sofar myself isn't listening.

[Lane Ritter]

I use "drawer liner" from wal-mart, it has a spongy/tacky feel. I glue it to a flat board, and if i happen to drop a small part it won't bounce onto the floor.

Lane

[Raymond Richard]

I put a piece of wood over one of my drawers to give me more bench space. Its just one massive pile of crap.......

[John T Wylie Jr]

I found that for cleaning and when I am doing any work on customizing my folders that either the drawer liner ( mentioned above ) or a mouse pad I picked up a while back that is like 12 x 12 .

I also have a metal bowl with the magnet mounted underneath to keep all my driver bits and small screw####### from rolling around on the bench.

[Crex]

I've been using an old gym towel folded over. Been using it so long that I understand what Coop means by a "black" background enhancing visibility of the work (once I push all the other stuff out of the way).
Crex

[Jeff Higgins]

Cleaning out my garage this weekend, I came across one of those synthetic chamois clothes for the car. I tried it on my bench. It was kinda lame, so I canned that idea. I think I'll try the placemat/drawer-liner thing.

Anyone ever hear or seen of a jewler's mat, or watchmaker's mat? Something truly made for those appllications would be great.

[PeterAtwood]

I like the paper towel method (which I picked up from Tom Anderson ) because it makes a convenient scratch pad for jotting down numbers and also for getting the fine tipped Sharpie markers started. Stuff doesn't roll around too much and they last a surprisingly long time. Just use a little blue masking tape on each corner to hold it in place.

[Jeff Higgins]

I saw that, Peter. What I have actually settled on is a 18x24 piece of chipboard. It's readily available at work. It's thick enough so that I can cut stuff with a utility knife on it, and I can toss it when it gets dirty. And yes, writing on it for quick dimensions and such is good too.

[beebee58]

I use a mouse pad glued to a piece of plywood with small spaces cut in it for small bottles or containers, tools. This way if need be I can pick up the whole thing and move to a differant location in the shop. I saw Bob T's surface plate mounted this way (In his book) and thought that I could use that in differant setup. It also allows me to "clean" my workbench prior to doing assembly work, so I don't loose little stuff, since I work in the basement space is always of concern. This way I don't have to have a dedecated assembly area that is always "clean and neat".