Bora Portamate Mobile Base Kit PM-1100 - Heavy Duty, Universal, Customizable, Adjustable Rolling Set, Dolly Roller Frame and Casters for Moving Equipment, Tools, Machines - 400 lb Capacity

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.

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.

It was easy to assemble and after assembly it didn't require any adjustment or futzing around. It just worked without issue. It's sad to say, but that's kind of rare with the cheap stuff that's available for sale nowadays. It's fairly well engineered. One design feature that really caught my attention is the hole pattern for attaching the wheels to the board is symmetrical on all of the parts. This means that if you set it up with the lift wheels in front but find they are getting in the way, you can move them to the sides without having to re-drill holes or cut a new board. I have come across way too many products lately where the parts seem to have been designed separately with slightly different hole patterns so you can't reconfigure without a lot of hassle. This product gets high marks in that regard. I was also surprised to find this product was built fairly sturdily. It seems like most of the products of this type coming from Amazon are made with pot metal that is just barely thick enough not to immediately fall apart. That is not the case with this. I have been upgrading my shop on a budget recently and this is one of the few "upgrades" I've bought that I know I won't have to replace in the next few years. I only have 2 concerns with this product. 1. The rear non-turning wheels don't have bearings and instead just have a bolt through a hole in a plastic wheel. I worry that over time the hole will oval out with a heavy load sitting on it. However, it shouldn't be too difficult to find a replacement. 2. There is no bushing material between the lever and the wheel mount, just paint-on-paint contact. Eventually the paint is going to wear and expose the metal which could lead to rust, sticking of the mechanism, or other issues. Overall, I'm very happy with it, especially at this price point.

READ ALL THE ONE AND TWO STAR REVIEWS BEFORE BUYING THIS PRODUCT. THEY TELL THE STORY. I purchased three of these units; two from AMAZON and one from Rockler. Rockler's was $10 more but in this case YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR. The Amazon units were clearly Quality Control REJECTS. There were parts missing from the parts bag, caster brackets did not fit together and the box, as received, looked like it have been dropped from a helicopter. The issue with the foot pedal mentioned in other reviews have workarounds and these render the product useful, but the design isn't perfect. The instructions include parts mentioned that are NOT in the parts kit. The mounting bolts protrude below the base as other reviews mention and drag on the floor. THEY MUST BE CUT DOWN FLUSH WITH THE MOUNTING BRACKET if you use this on a carpeted surface. But again, you get what you pay for. There are other product alternatives that work better but are three times the cost. If you are ok with the minor design issues and want one, DO NOT BUY IT FROM AMAZON. The one I got from Rockler had NONE of the Quality Control issues that the two I got from AMAZON had, assembled and installed easier and work just fine.

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.

Most of my wood shop equipment is mobile. I've used several brands of mobile bases over the years including my own builds. Recently I wanted one for my disc/belt combo sander. Scrap 3/4 ply is aplenty for me and for the relatively low price of this unit I didn't think I could go wrong. I didn't go wrong. Super quality materials and easy build. In fact I'm purchasing another, as my experience over the years has been when decent items like this come along they seem to disappear eventually and something similar of lower quality becomes available. Hint: there are 2 tiny neoprene spacers (washers) for each caster wheel. Apply a tiny drop of CA glue to each one, line the hole up in the spacer with the hole in the caster as you stick it on the caster - let them dry a few minutes. That way they're already in place when you slide the axle bolts thru the casters and you won't have to try to squeeze your finger into a 1/4" space to hold a loose spacer in place. Trust me you'll see why this helps when you build it.

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.