Sphere Products Work Station

Sphere Products is a division of Progressive Engineering Solutions based in Ipswich and owned by Jon Page and Fraser Hale. Progressive Engineering Solutions are an engineering company and it was Jon Page’s interest in modelling that led to the development of Sphere Products. Sphere Products produce a number of work stations, paint racks and a number of other hobby related products. I first came across Sphere Products on this very website but it was not until visiting the IPMS Nationals at Telford 2011 that I picked up one of the workstations and the figure painter’s vice.

The majority of Sphere Products are manufactured out of 4mm MDF and are laser cut this results in a burnt wood smell that soon dissipates after a short length of time. The stands assemble easily following the supplied instructions, all of the stands are held together using Allen screws and nuts the small Allen key is supplied so no ferreting in the toolbox.

Standard Workstation

The workstation comes complete with an A4 cutting mat and a glass jar. The Standard Workstation comes with a number of options and the buyer can specify a paint rack if required with the holes cut for the buyer’s favourite paint. There is also an option to have a tile and MDF insert that can be swapped with the cutting mat.

Figure Painter’s Vice

This vice is intended to be used by figure painters but since buying it has been used for painting more than just figures. The idea is that the item is clamped in the jaws at the top and these are held closed by a screw and spring type affair. This works very well as the pressure of the clamp is easily adjustable. The long shaft enables the vice to be held comfortably in your hand and the tripod base is very stable.

Other Products

Sphere also produce paint stands in various styles and these can be ordered to be compatible with your favourite brand of paint. There are also painters work stations designed to be used with oil paints and come with a plain ceramic tile, there is a travel workstation and whilst visiting a recent model show there where quite a few in use.  Sphere can also produce transit boxes for moving and storing models and there is also a an acrylic stand complete with a mirror suitable for car models.

Conclusion

Following a long search and a lot of trial and error I bought the Standard Workstation, previously I had been using a number of stands, a sheet of plastic, an A5 cutting mat and then having tools loose on my table. I use a small folding ‘TV Table’ and it fits right on top and I find that it really does do the job. I use the Painters Vice on a regular basis and generally it lives in my spray booth.  I highly recommend these products, yes they do seem expensive but these are quality British made items. If you like the look of an item and it is not quite what you want drop Jon or Fraser a line and I am sure that you will get the product that you want. There are not many companies that offer this level of service.

My thanks go to Jon Page for supplying the additional photographs.

Sphere Products are available direct via their website.