Are the locking hinges out there that would work well for a garage work table?

Question

I'm making a 'temporary' work table for the garage. It's going to be hinged to the wall. It'll hang flat against the wall when not in use and fold up when I need it. What are some good ways of tackling the leg situation. I thought of possibly attaching the legs to hinges on the bottom where they would fold out when the table is in use, but would need some sort of locking hinge to make sure they didn't slip when I was using the table. Or is there another way...possibly a quick way to put on the legs and remove them. Screw them in, pop them in? What kind of hardware/fixtures are out there that might help?

There will be a 2x4 across the wall where the table will be attached to the wall via 4 hinges. So there would be a 2 inch gap when not in use while hanging against the wall. Perhaps legs could tuck behind the table when not in use. I hope this isn't too confusing. Thanks!

Answer 1

There are some locking leg braces that are really just small strips of pressed metal that are hinged in the center with a small tab to lock them in place and keep them from overextending. You attache teh legs to the table top using a basic hinge and attache these pieces to the side to provide stability and a locking mechanism. When you want to fold the table up you simply disengague the lock and as the table folds up the legs fold down to rest flat against the bottom.



An alternative would be to attache a bolt to the bottom and a threaded nut countersunk into the legs. This would work, but you would have to unscrew the legs each time you wanted to raise the table and the legs would be loose and easy to loose.

Answer 2

the hinge pin on most doors are located on the inside, so removing them is unlikely and even if you could , it would be very difficult to remove the door if you can at all. If there is no deadbolt , just a lockset (locking doorknob) you can try to pry the jamb away from the door where the lock is. All you need is to move it enough for the latch to clear. How hard that will be depends on how solid the jamb is. Good luck.

Answer 3

just use ordinary hinges on the legs they will stay in position with the weight of worktop but put them on the underside to fold back offset from each other. Another couple hinges on bat-ton fastened to wall

Answer 4

you might use the folding leg kit for banquet tables. available at most building suppliers