Hi Gang,
Several people in recent days have endorsed the benchmate, but I
was picturing the roto-bench in my mind. Does anyone have any
experience/thoughts about that setup? It always seemed
overpriced to me… is it really that good?
Dave
Dave Sebaste
Sebaste Studio
Charlotte, NC (USA)
dave@sebaste.com
http://www.sebaste.com
Dave said,
Several people in recent days have endorsed the benchmate, but I was picturing the roto-bench in my mind. Does anyone have any experience/thoughts about that setup? It always seemed overpriced to me... is it really *that* good?
I agree, unless you’re a corp that has some production folks that
require the bells & whistles of the roto-bench, it’d take quite a
while to pay fo r it. I suppose a trade shop could probably make
good use of it also. One o f the roto-bench bells (or is it a
whistle) is a ring clamp similar to the bench mate. But why buy a
Mercedes when all you want to do is run down to the 7/11? The
benchmate is a great tool (a little high priced, but not as high
as roto-bench)!
One of the nice things about benchmate is it’s mounting bracket,
the one that’s mounted to your bench. I’ve made matching adapters
& have used it to quickly & firmly mount all kinds of things to
my bench. If you’re a tool junkie & got the $$ the roto-bench is
the way to go.
Dave
The benchmate accessory that is used more than anything else in
our studio is the holder for an engraver’s die ball.
The benchmate mounting plate makes a lot of sense, and GRS has
made a solid well thought out series of tools and accessories-
tungsten tips for platinum welding in their soldering tweezers
(one pair of their articulated tweezers are permanently mounted
to my bench, and it seems like almost everything that gets
soldered is held by them).
Somehow, in my mind, the roto-tool looks like it is trying to do
too many jobs (where is the CD player and the cup holder?). If
you notice the Rio Grande photos of the roto-bench, it is mounted
on a rather low bench, because of its hight. It is all in what
you get used to using, however- I use a wood ring clamp more than
the benchmate, probably because the ring clamp has been in my
tool tray for over 25 years.
Ever wonder what modern tools a jeweler from the 15th or 16th
century would desire? Rolling mill (they planished sheet metal to
thickness), sawframe, or a flexshaft and other power tools we
take for granted- (where to plug it in, water powered?) casting
machine, or a wide field microscope? Most of the hand tools would
look familiar to him. I have a friend (owns a local beadstore)
who was working with a young metalsmith during yearly trips to
Nepal- he wanted a flexshaft.
Rick
Richard D. Hamilton
Fabricated 14k, 18k, and platinum Jewelry
wax carving, modelmaking, jewelry photography