We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs. Learn More \u203a<\/span><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Inline Fabrication has been a lifesaver for my reloading room and workshop. The plates, mounts, and storage solutions allow me to quickly swap reloading presses, reloading accessories, bench vices, and other mission-critical items while keeping everything organized.<\/p>\n It saves time and space and is useful for the person trying to set up an effective reloading operation in a confined area as well as the hardcore enthusiast who has more reloading gear than common sense. I won\u2019t comment on which category I fall under.<\/p>\n The Inline Fabrication product line covers a lot of turf, but the company\u2019s main claim to fame is the Quick Change Press Mounting System<\/a>\u2014and it is this that drew me to them in the first place. The system has two pieces \u2014 a base that mounts to your bench, and plates that mount on specific tools. The plates \u2014 called top plates \u2014 have a substantial tongue that fits into a slot in the base and when the two pieces are screwed together they create a rock solid connection.<\/p>\n The bases come in a few different flavors, defined by their height. You can get bases that sit 4 inches, 7 \u00bd inches, or 9 \u00be inches above the mounting surface, or opt for a flush mounted base, which is what I prefer.<\/p>\n The raised bases are very easy to install \u2014 just drill four holes and bolt them to your bench with the included hardware \u2014 while the flush-mount base requires a router<\/a> to inlet the work surface to the appropriate depth. The advantage of the flush mount is that it looks clean and leaves more usable space on your workbench, though it is certainly more labor intensive.<\/p>\n While the flush-mount system requires more time and effort, don\u2019t be intimidated by the process. Anyone with a modicum of skill with hand tools can pull this off. If it required a special level of talent, I wouldn\u2019t have been able to do it.<\/p>\n I started by tracing an outline of the base plate where I wanted it on the bench and then clamping some guides in place to cut a clean edge. I used 1\u00d73 firing strips I had laying around for this.<\/p>\n I set the bit on my handheld router to the appropriate depth (7\/16 inch) and hogged out the footprint of the plate. To date, I\u2019ve installed four of these base plates and don\u2019t think I\u2019ve done it the same way twice. Point is, it is a forgiving process. The main thing is not to cut the inlet larger than the plate. It\u2019s better for the dimensions to be too small and remove a small bit of material at the end than have a sloppy fit with unsightly gaps.<\/p>\n Some of my edges weren\u2019t laser straight. I used chisels to shave away wavy spots and make the lines, well, more linear. I did the same thing to get rid of the radius in the corners, which was an inevitable byproduct from the round router bits. One thing that helped was to do the main cuts with a wider bit, while using a thinner bit (with a smaller radius) at the corners. Regardless, you\u2019ll need to touch up the corners with a chisel.<\/p>\n While the main cut for the flush-mount base is 7\/16 inches deep, you need to remove extra material where the tongue on the top plate slips into the slot on the base. The directions call for an extra 1\/8-inch depth there for proper clearance.<\/p>\n The first couple times I installed base plates, I cleaned up the bottom of my cut with a sander and with chisels to even it out. It was a bit of extra work, but it made it look nicer.<\/p>\n That said, that surface is covered by the flush-mount base and will never be seen, so I skipped this step the last couple times I\u2019ve done it. As long as the base plate makes good firm contact with the work bench it doesn\u2019t make a difference.<\/p>\n This is the easy part. The base plate has four holes for mounting. I just held the plate in place and drilled through the bench top with a quarter-inch bit. The plates come with hardware\u2014long bolts with heads that sit flush in the plate, along with washers and nylon locking nuts. After securing the base, I trimmed the bolts with my Dremel<\/a> using a cut-off wheel<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n I\u2019m not sure how many tools Inline Fabrication makes plates for, but it is a pile<\/a>. Each plate has a bolt pattern that matches what\u2019s on the press, case primer, vice, or other tool, and comes with the hardware to match.<\/p>\n Dan Clausen, who owns Inline Fabrication with his wife, Jennifer, is also happy to work with customers to make custom plates for items he hasn\u2019t worked with before. Among the many things that are great about this small company is that it is hands-on, American-made, reasonably priced, and responsive. From the standpoint of customer service and product quality I can\u2019t recommend them enough.<\/p>\n With some presses and tools, having them mounted directly on the flush-base can be awkward. This is particularly the case with some of my progressive and co-ax reloading presses<\/a>. To deal with that, I purchased two Elevated QC bases<\/a>, one that raises the base 4 inches above the work bench and another that lifts it 7.5 inches above the bench.<\/p>\n The ability to tune the ergonomics of a press or tool this way while still having the advantages of the flush-mount system is a real benefit.You can use equipment with the flush-fitting plates, but easily add these raised plates when appropriate.\u00a0<\/p>\n Even with something as cumbersome as my Dillion XL750 progressive press this system is tight and stable. Though you do need to be aware that the weight of a press like that, in conjunction with being raised up and cantilevered off the work surface can unbalance a free-standing bench. You might need to add weight to the base or back of the bench to counteract that or, better yet, bolt it securely to your wall.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve built a bunch of reloading benches by hand over the years, but I\u2019ve come to appreciate the simplicity, value and aesthetics of a good pre-made bench.\u00a0 One go-to bench of mine is the Seville Classics Ultra HD<\/a>. I\u2019ve purchased three over the years (sadly, they\u2019ve become a bit more expensive since the pandemic, but I still think they are worth it) and I love how they work. The last one I got was this version with an adjustable height top<\/a> that I dedicated to a couple progressive presses.<\/p>\n I also use the Inline Fabrication system on the worktop that goes with my NewAge work bench<\/a>. Mine doesn\u2019t look exactly like the one in the link \u2014 I have a worktop<\/a> that sits on two tool drawers<\/a> at either end with a multi-function cabinet<\/a> in the middle \u2014 but it gets the idea across.<\/p>\n Clausen has come up with numerous products that help store tools when not in use. He has several types of brackets that mount to different surfaces \u2014 walls, the edge of workbenches, etc. \u2014 that work with his top plates to hold items.<\/p>\n For instance, I use both his single-storage<\/a> and double-storage<\/a> docks which I have mounted on the sides of my work bench to hold different presses and priming tools.<\/p>\n Inline Fabrication also has wall-mounted rails<\/a> that accept different fittings to store reloading press shell plates, dies, tool heads, and all the other bits and pieces<\/a> that float around a typical reloading room.<\/p>\n Since I got my Inline Fabrication setup, Clausen has introduced this snazzy wall organizer panel<\/a>, which I think is going to be my next purchase. My reloading room will never look as sharp as it does in his pictures, but like his other stuff this will go a long way towards taming my mess.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve touched on this a bit, but beyond the organizational benefits of Inline Fabrication\u2019s products, the company has a wide range of items that make good reloading products better. Clausen makes replacement levers<\/a> for a bunch of presses that come with roller handles and are shaped for greater comfort. When running a press \u2014 particularly a progressive where you might process hundreds of pieces of brass an hour \u2014 small improvements to ergonomics make a big difference.<\/p>\n Similarly, Inline Fabrication makes case ejector systems<\/a>, reloading press LED light fixtures<\/a>, and other accessories<\/a> to improve your work flow.<\/p>\n It\u2019s never easy to know where to spend money when it comes to things like reloading. Some of us presumably got into the hobby to save money on our ammunition. For someone like me, who focuses on reloading high-volume precision rifle ammunition, that\u2019s a pipe dream.<\/p>\n That said, I don\u2019t like to toss around dollars willy-nilly, even though some of my early reloading purchases are now gathering dust.<\/p>\n With that in mind, I can\u2019t recommend Inline Fabrication\u2019s system highly enough. For anyone who wants to mix and match tools while keeping their stuff organized and their workspace clean \u2014 or at least reasonably clean \u2014 Inline Fabrication is a great solution.<\/p>\n The quality is high, the prices are reasonable, the customer service is top-notch, and it is easy to install and use. What\u2019s not to like?<\/p>\n<\/div>\nInstalling the Inline Fabrication Flush-Mount Base<\/h2>\n
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Cleaning up the Corners and Edges<\/h3>\n
Deeper Cut Under the Tongue<\/h3>\n
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Cleaning Up The Base<\/h3>\n
Bolting the Base Plate In Place<\/h3>\n
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Inline Fabrication Top Plates<\/h2>\n
Height Adjustments<\/h3>\n
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Bench Options<\/h3>\n
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Inline Fabrication Organizational Products<\/h2>\n
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Ergonomic and Efficiency Solutions<\/h2>\n
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Final Thoughts on Inline Fabrication<\/h2>\n