Old timer told me to ditch my leveling feet and use shims under my workbench legs - what's your take?

I spent $40 on those fancy leveling feet and they kept loosening up, then a guy at the lumber yard said just use asphalt shingle scraps and it's been rock solid for 6 months. Do you bolt your bench down or let it float on shims like this?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_finley17d ago

You hit the nail on the head. I went the leveling foot route on my first bench and those things drove me crazy. They would vibrate loose any time I used a plane or a hammer, and I was always crawling under there to tighten them up. A buddy who's been building furniture for forty years told me the same thing, just use shims. I grabbed a pack of asphalt shingles from the hardware store for like four bucks and stacked them under the legs until it was perfectly level. That was three years ago and I haven't touched it since. I let mine just sit on the floor, no bolts. The weight of the bench and the grip of the shingles keeps it planted just fine. Plus if I ever move shops I can just pull the shims out and reset it, no holes to patch in the floor.

aliceg6117d agoTop Commenter

I went with leveling feet on mine and they haven't budged in five years. Just ran a drop of blue Loctite on the threads and never had to touch them again.

jessicajohnson15d ago

You know, I was all in on leveling feet for years. Thought shims were just a shortcut. But I finally tried it on a small assembly table I threw together and honestly, it's way more stable. No more chasing loose feet or fighting with a wrench every few months. I use a stack of old roofing shingles under one leg that's on a tiny low spot and it hasn't budged once. Your mileage may vary but mine have been solid too.