PM-1100 Custom Mobile Base Kit

I originally bought the HTC2000 Adjustible Mobil Base kit and extra extender kit to make a base for my compound miter saw which is on a stand that is 28” wide by 63” long. The HTC2000 and extender kit went together fine and moved the saw around great. The problem I had with that arrangement was every time I went to use the saw I tripped over the mobile base frame because it was a giant rectangle frame. The stand that the saw sits on has upside down V-shaped flared out legs. Between the legs the saw sits on a pair of parallel bars that connect to the top of the Upside down V - so they are more centered than the full width of the legs at the floor level. I kept trying to figure out how to modify that mobile base unit so the front part of the frame wouldn’t be right where you need to stand to use the saw. I started looking around on Amazon again at mobile bases and discovered the Portamate PM-1100 so decided to give it a try. Glad I did! I just finished assembling it and it works great. I used some 1x6 pressure treated boards for the 28” short ends and a 63” piece of 2x4 down the center forming large “H” configuration. I connected the boards into the “H” using some carriage bolts. Plopped the saw on top of the big “H” and it works perfectly! Rolls around very nicely and no more tripping over the frame. A few suggestions for assembly...when you are assembling the corner pieces, drill the holes a little bigger than the size of the bolt. If you have a drill press use that. I didn’t get some of my holes straight at first and had trouble lining up the holes for the top/bottom plates until I reamed out the holes I drilled crooked. Also it would have been great to have a second set of hands available especially when I was fighting the crooked holes but I eventually used the bench vice and that helped. Plan out and then double check your plan where you want the swivel wheels to be - both on the short end or on the lon end. I thought I had it figured out until it was all together and I realized for such a long piece it would be better to have the swivel wheels on the short end. So After struggling with all my crooked holes, I had to take it all apart and put it together again with the wheels in different corners. Went together easier the second time! Lastly, be aware that there isn’t much clearance under the bottom plate, only about a half inch, so if your floor isn’t level or you are moving a long piece down a signtly sloped floor, you will scrape bottom. I plan to buy another Portamate PM-1100 for my lathe and configure it like I did for the miter saw, just not sure what to do with the HTC2000 now but I’m sure in time I will find a tool that needs wheels. Good luck - this was a good project for me, a novice just setting up a shop.

I have other mobile bases for my table saw and bandsaw that work well; one from the mfr of the Table saw and another one universal mfr. but you have to verify that the rails will configure to the correct width and depth. I bought the Bora base for my jointer (which has a homemade frame) because it is completely flexible to the size you need. If I had to do over again, I would definitely have purchased for my bandsaw because the one I have is really too narrow but I made it work by not doubling up the bolts on the rail. It does bow due to that and I have to keep "jacking it back up." With the Bora system, you do have to supply your own plywood base, but the construction is solid and the adaptability to odd sizes is perfect. For my jointer, I actually used two 20" x 8" pieces of plywood and then attached them with a 2" x 4" to make 41" length. I saw this application by researching this on the internet before I bought it. Cheap and simple. I will be using this system for all my other tools. And this system was the cheapest out there.

A good solution for masking stationary power tools mobile. Using your own plywood allows you to easily customize the size and also gives a space for extra storage. It was easy to assemble and seems sturdy. I took off 2 stars because of the bolt length problem that other reviewers have mentioned. My kit included two sets of bolts: one for 3/4” plywood and one for 1/2”. Both sets were too long and will scrape the ground unless cut off. An odd oversight for the manufacturer. Edited: I bought a second kit because I liked the basic design. But on this kit neither foot lever would engage the wheels and lock in place. The same issue other reviewers are having. To avoid the Amazon return hassle, I shimmed the levers with duct tape until they engaged the wheels. I’ll do something more permanent later. It’s a shame Bora has such poor quality control, this is a nice mobile base design. I would stay away from Bora products until they correct the issue.

I already use two previously purchased PM2500 rolling bases and they have worked great. I just purchased 3 of these models for other machines and I had none of the issues mentioned in prior reviews. All of the pieces fit together properly. The screw holes in the bottom plates appeared to have been threaded after they were painted/ powder coated, so I had no issues with inserting bolts. I used 3/4” plywood, so the short screws were the proper length. The footpad brackets were properly welded and support my machines very well, when lowered and prevent them from moving around. Stepping on the lift lever effortlessly raises the machine adequately to easily roll around. I think the quality of the fit and finish is excellent. The only issue I had was rushing assembly and installing several top plates upside down. That results in the countersink is on the incorrect side, so I had to redo. I also didn’t orient the roller plates on the long side of my bandsaw base, so had to redo that as well. There are lots of pieces, but take your time and follow the directions and you’ll have no problems.

This kit does work and functions well for my application. It seems to be well made and solid. Assembly was pretty straightforward. The instructions were good though higher resolution photos would help, and an edit is needed because there are no lock washers in the kit though they are clearly listed in the instructions. Overall a good kit at a fair price.

This rolling base kit is a great solution and is sturdy and solidly built, but it has some issues with quality control. The few issues I encountered are, 1) the instructions are difficult to read. 2) The top plates, although they have tabs to align with the bottom plates, don’t align perfectly. This doesn’t seem to matter once it’s assembled but you would think someone in QC would fix this. 3) Lastly, (and most importantly) the foot levers that raise and lower the front wheels did not work as designed on my unit. The good news is, I was able to shim beneath the levers with thick plastic held in place with adhesive to give the levers enough “lift” to raise the wheels. I kind of wondered if maybe there were lever shims that somehow didn’t make it into the package but after reading other reviews, it seems to be a common issue. Assembly of this base was straightforward once I got familiar with the system. Again, the instructions were marginally helpful. There was a fair amount of wobbling this thing around my workbench as I wrestled it together. Careful drilling into your wood base is an essential part of the assembly. I would suggest initially drilling two of the three holes for each corner piece, then assemble it and mark/drill the third hole for each corner. Then disassemble it, finish drilling those last four holes all the way through, and reassemble. Also, the holes you drill can be somewhat forgiving since the bolts that hold it all together screw into a threaded hole in the bottom piece (in 12 places) to firmly secure it. This is a lot of little negatives but I think overall, this is an excellent rolling base. After reading many other reviews of this product, it seems the resourceful type of person who might buy this stand would also be clever enough to work around some of the small issues they may encounter. This was certainly the case with me. This would be an outstanding product if the company would address some of the common issues people are having. But I’m a detail person so I can only give it three stars.

First off, he will be required to create a base plate for this mobile tool base. Being an avid home woodworker, I had no problem in creating a base out of three-quarter inch plywood. I would imagine that if you were planning to buy this then you should have no problem in creating the necessary plywood base plate. With that said, once constructed, the mobile base is very solid. It has good clearance, easy to move with a load on it and once adjusted, it provides a very solid foundation for your tool, stand and tool. Mine was used to provide mobility for a bench grinder on a small stand. Having a one car garage and a small apartment requires flexibility and ingenuity in use of and storage of tools. The location where I store the bench grinder is not where I want to use the bench grinder so I have to have a method to move it. I had been dragging it from the storage location to where I use it, but that was not the best solution. Haven’t seen these mobile base plates, I thought that would be a very is viable solution. Now that it has been installed it’s very easy to move the grinder around the garage once the car is out. The mobile base plate is very easy to use. Simply step down on the levers for lifting the solid feet off of the floor, roll to where you need to have it, and then reset the feet back onto the floor. One feature that would make the operation immensely more simple would be to have a crossbar mechanism and a single lever to lift the feet vice using separate levers for both sides. It works, but it’s slightly clumsy, of course doing so would increase the cost so it’s a trade-off. All in all I’m very satisfied with the capabilities in the construction of the mobile tool base. If you were like me with limited space and need to move things around a lot. I highly recommend this device.

My first review was right after I built these units - I bought 3- but I have to add that I'm not entirely happy with now they function. Every one has an issue of some sort. I used 3/4" ply for the base and it seems none of them lift properly or require a kick of one wheel to roll even remotely straight. I'd get something different now if I had the chance. First review : Decent unit. Pretty easy to assemble. The finish is good, but the fit is a little wonky in places, I discovered. Maybe I got one that was over painted? Made some of the bolts and screws tough to tighten, plus I got 7 short bolts (and odd number) and the rest were long for fastening plates through the 3/4" plywood I used which made them drag the floor. Had to break out the grinder. But! Still the whole thing works well and I'd reccomend it. *** update, I ordered another unit and it went together like clockwork. Great for moving stuff around the shop.

Well built smart solution for moving machines etc. Nice that there are multiple options to place the wheels so that the levers can be placed where they aren't too much in the way. A bit pricy and needs some adjustments when mounting on thick base sheets.

Solid construction and makes it easy to move around heavy woodworking equipment.

Primeras impresiones, exelente muy practico y facil dea minipular, la use para una sierra de banco Knova de 12" y 3½ HP con un peso aprox. de 160 kl. ay que esperar con el tiempo si sigue funcionando igual, sies asi comprare otro set para mi canteadora

Vy innovative. Price can be lower.

The PM 1100 is a high quality, well designed mobile base with great flexibility to fit any size tool up to the weight limit. It was relatively easy to assemble using normal shop tools and I had no issues with alignment of the holes. I used the corner assembly clamped to the bottom as a template and marked the holes with a brad point drill bit slightly smaller than the hole. Depending on how accurate you are with this process, you can either do the final drilling to exact fit the screws, or drill one size larger to accommodate any minor misalignment. The holes in the corner assembly are threaded and will benefit from having the screws run part way through to remove paint in the threads, prior to assembly. I installed this base under a Rigid TS3650 table saw that weighs 280 lbs and it works perfectly. I mounted the front assembly with casters and levers pointing sideways so there is no tripping hazard and once the floor stops were adjusted the saw is very solid. I like that the levers to raise and lower are metal and move easily with a toe push. Check the BoraTools.com website for help selecting the correct base for your application. Highly recommend and will be ordering a second base for my bandsaw.