As I get older I succumb more and more to labor saving devices.  And since a car accident a few years ago I've really longed for this little back saving device so today I finally got a lift for the shop.  Its a small one, mostly good for brake and suspension work, but it fits well within my space and mostly all I lift a car for is brakes and suspension anyway.  Its got a few years on it but its a Rotary brand so it should hold up well. It will be moved over to the "working" side of the garage which is wider as soon as I can get the studebaker on its wheels so I can roll it out of the way.

Ugly but cheap I've been on the lookout for some cheap storage solutions for the shop. I spotted an auction on govdeals.com for some cabinets the local high school was selling from their wood shop. The pictures were poor and the description worse but for a $25 bid I figured they were worth a shot. Well, it ended up as 3 cabinets, a 4ft low cabinet, a 6ft low cabinet and a 3ft by 7ft tall cabinet. All very solid heavy steel construction. Well worth the investment. Of course as the photo here shows they were in pretty rough shape, 30+ years of woodshop duty and they were caked with layers of paint, spilled stain, varnish and woodglue.

6 footer cleaned up I decided to paint the carcases in semi gloss black and then I stripped the top down to bare metal. I liked it so much I did the same with the doors. For the top I just polished it with some automotive wax to stave off the rust as any paint or clear would just get destroyed by the work being done. The doors were coated with rustoleum clear enamel

Tall cabinet Here is the tall cabinet all finished. For a work surface here I decided to cut an MDF work surface. The cabinet doors received the same treatment as above. There were alot of layers of old paint to get through but it was worth it. The upper cabinet is perfect for storing the collection of chiltons, haynes, and factory shop manuals Ive accumulated throughout the years. The wife was happy to see them leave the office bookshelves.