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What about putting a pull out "work surface" under the desktop. I did it with my desk on a much larger scale and it works great. I used to drawer slides and the pull out work surface is stable enough to do just about anything I want to on it including rod building.
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i1...gDesk006-1.jpg
Jim Smith
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That's what I originally envisioned, Jim, and if I can figure a way to place the drawer slides that might work. Thanks
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You can't see it in the photo, but I actually raised the desktop hieght by about 2 inches to accomodate the pull out work surface. I find that the slightly higher desk for tying is must less tiring and I no longer have upper back and neck aches after a tying session. I got the idea of the raised height by researching what the old timey jewelers used and they worked off of surfaces that are 34-34 inches high whereas most desk tops are around 31 1/2 inches high. Then rather than "wasting" the space I created in raising the surface, I installed the pull-out work surface. Worked great for me.
Jim Smith
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Did you lift the top part of the desk off the bottom?
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James My Desk is almost just like yours but is older....Yours is much nicer...I have really enjoyed mine.
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My desk is actually a combination of two desks aka "Frankendesk". I got the roll top section of the desk at the local Goodwill store for $75 and then picked up the bottom part of the desk off of Craig's list for $35. The bottom desk is an old 1930s "Bankers" desk that has the very old spring-loaded elevating shelf on the left side of the desk intended for storing a typewriter. I use it now for my powered dubbing twister and it works perfectly. To elevate the top, I mounted 2x4 along the sides and back on the top of the old desk. Then I attached the drawer slides to the 2x4 along the sides of the desk and mounted the pull-out work surface which is an oak stair tread that is 1.25" thick. Then I mounted the roll-top portion on top. The whole thing is made out of solid oak including the drawers and it weighs a ton. Well, maybe not a ton but it sure was heavy to move into the house and down the hall into my man cave by myself. I've added a photo of the dubbing twister that sits on the old typewriter shelf so you can get an idea of how I used the space.
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i1...20Desk/080.jpg
I've tied flies on everything from the kitchen table to a board setting on top of two chairs and I promised myself that when I had the space I would make myself a nice desk just for tying flies. I've had this for about four years and it is fantastic. Well worth the money and the time to rework and refinish the desk. Having a good place to tie really makes tying more enjoyable.
Jim Smith
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Very nice - would like to find one of those popup typewriter shelves - guess I'll have to start haunting the Goodwill store.
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Probably the easiest thing to do, is to move to the kitchen table when not in use. If you are dead set on tying on that little table, then perhaps buying an Oasis fly table will give you the needed height. Your vise can clamp on to both tables to hold them in palce. It sounds to me, like you are really giving yourself a tight place though. Will your materials be nearby?
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I am amazed by the number and variety of interesting replies to your initial question.
I should have mentioned earlier, but DaveMac's comment about moving to the table is exactly where I do my tying in our RV. Of course that doesn't always make my wife too happy, especially since we live in our RV 4-5 months a year and I do quite a bit of tying and frequently have a lot of materials spread all over. However, she does a lot of beading and has her materials spread around elsewhere, so our messes kinda offset each other.
If you are looking for more suggestions, you could also post your question on the Escapees forum. Escapees are fulltime RVers for the most part, and many of them have all kinds of craft hobbies, including some fly tyers. It wouldn't surprise me at all if a number of them have already been there, done that, and figured out unique solutions to your small desk space issue. The website is: http://www.rvnetwork.com/index.php?h...rvnetwork.com/
Not long ago, a guy asked a question on the Excapees forum about how he could heat the cap on the back of his truck so he could sleep in it in the winter while on skiing trips. He wasn't staying where there was electricity to plug a heater in, and he didn't want to run a noisy generator. I used to spend many winter nights in the back of my truck on fishing trips, gettting pretty cold I might add, and I was amazed at the number and depth of the suggestions people on the Escapees forum made. For example, one of these was to get a "bunk heater" something that truck drivers use for overnight stays, and run it on an auxiliary 12V battery. I wish now that I had known about that years ago.
John
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Jim,
Would you please explain how you elevate the platform and how your set screw knob works. You may have posted this some time ago but I can't remember.