Speaker 1: If you do any sort of work in the garage or around the house, you need a centipede portable workbench. This ingenious tool collapses down to almost nothing yet. It can support a huge amount of weight. Each of these cast iron engine blocks is around 190 pounds and I weigh well considerably less than that, but the centipede can support all of this plus a whole lot more
Speaker 1: [00:00:30] Manufactured by a company called boa tool. The centipede is offered in a variety of different sizes. This one happens to be four feet by two feet and 30 inches tall, right to there. But you can also get these in four by four, four by six and even a whopping four foot by eight foot variant. And for reference, that is the [00:01:00] size of a standard sheet of material like plywood or drywall, depending on the model, two centipede Heights are offered 30 inches like you see here. And 36 for added flexibility. Optional risers are offered. Adding six inches of height. Plenty of other accessories are available too, but more on those in a minute for more for on the centipede and its variations. And of course, to check the current price, make sure to hit the link in the description box below [00:01:30] the centipede is super light.
Speaker 1: This one clocks in at just 12 and a half pounds without any additional accessories, though, it is super strong, able to support up to 2,500 pounds more than twice. What you saw earlier, of course, larger centipedes can support even more 3500 4500, even 6,000 pounds. That's a full three tons for the four foot by eight foot model. And for reference that [00:02:00] is enough to support a Chevrolet Silverado 1500 crew cab trail boss pickup, and still have room for a couple passengers as tools go. The centipede couldn't be simpler. The whole thing deploys in about two seconds. I mean, you basically just slide it open the legs telescope as you unfurl or retract the work bench while thin metal links triangulate. These supports provide immense strength. Despite looking as flimsy as a box kite, this thing is seriously solid [00:02:30] and easy to use. The so-called P tops allow you to attach a range of accessories to the centipede from included quick clamps to non-slip pads that hold projects in place to those risers.
Speaker 1: I mentioned earlier, this top is an accessory too. And from Bora tools, it goes for about $79 though. Honestly, it should be standard now. Yes, you could make something similar out of plywood, but it's not gonna be as nice or as versatile. [00:03:00] Now, this tabletop connects to the centipede with six of these pins, they come up from the bottom, you turn 'em and it locks everything in place. So I've gotta say this design is a little bit GY. It's kind of hard to get 'em in place. It's a little bit difficult to turn them. And then one other issue. I noticed several of these two of these metal inserts in the fiberboard top, aren't set quite deep enough into the material. So when you come up with the pin and go to turn it, it won't go, you can't get it to twist and lock in place.
Speaker 1: So what I [00:03:30] had to do is just file the backside of the pin to relieve it a little bit. After I did that, they turn and lock in place as they should, not the best thing in the world, but it wasn't easy. Z fix the two by four centipede comes with four X cups and two quick clamps. Now these excus here are designed to work with two by fours. They can hold them either horizontally, or if you turn 'em 90 degrees vertically and they just slide into the tabletop like that. And these are handy for if you're sawing a piece of lumber or maybe drilling it [00:04:00] or something. No, they don't hold it in place quite like a proper clamp, but they're good enough for light duty work. These quick clamps also go right into the holes of the tabletop here, just like that. So what you do slide your project underneath there.
Speaker 1: Then you press down on the middle of the clamp pretty hard, and they'll actually do a decent job hold things in place. I was surprised though, again, they're not gonna hold things quite as tightly as a proper clamp, but again, for light duty work, they're more than adequate. [00:04:30] Non-slip pads are another useful accessory you can get for this portable work bench and predictably. They pop right into these holes in the working surface, which again should probably be standard. Anyway, these things are great for preventing projects or parts from sliding around while you're working on them. Very good for let's just say delicate things that you may not want to put a traditional clamp on, and I've gotta say in testing these things, they work really pretty well. One of the handiest [00:05:00] add-ons you can and get for the centipede are these risers. They elevate the working surface by about six inches to bring it to a much more comfortable height.
Speaker 1: Now to add these, what you have to do is remove the P top, swap the riser in, and then attach the P top to the top of the riser. You do that with a 19 millimeter or a three quarter inch socket. It's very easy to do though. A word of warning when you're attaching these, do not over tighten them. The threads are just plastic. It's very [00:05:30] easy to strip them out. Oh, but one quick thing, there was actually a small error in the instructions that came with those risers. The instructions show two different nuts for attaching the P top and the riser. It's actually one nut that goes with the P top. And then a little thumb screw that you use for the riser. I mean, if you tried to use the thumb screw on the P top, you'd never be able to get your fingers in there to tighten it.
Speaker 1: Finally, we have these accessory hooks, which unlike some of those other add-ons [00:06:00] attached directly to the P tops, basically they come up from the bottom. You give 'em a quarter to turn and then they lock into place. And they're a great spot to hang an extension cord or an air hose, or I don't know, cure sausages or something. You do, you, I'm not gonna judge consider its strength, versatility, and featherweight construction. You may expect this portable work bench to cost big bucks, but that is not the case in its base form. This one goes for just about $90 while the most expensive [00:06:30] centipede is a little bit more than 200 bucks. Also all of those accessories are very reasonable priced. And of course there are many more available than we showed you in this video. The Centere here is one of the most ingenious tools I have seen in a very long time. Now. No, it is not perfect. It could certainly be improved in several ways, but overall I'd say this thing is probably 95% there for more info on the centipede or to purchase one, [00:07:00] hit the link below. I think you'll really be impressed.
