work bench top

[footprintsinconc]

i had a related thread about a month back, now i have thought some things out and need help deciding what direction to go, so give me advice please!

i am making a work bench. the size is 36" wide, 8ft long and 38" tall to match table saw height. i plan on making the table top about 2.5" thick. the support for the table top will be 8" in from both ends and the span will be about 6'-8". see attached picture for dimensions. i will be installing a couple of vices on the face and have bench dog holes in it.

now i am thinking of two options:
go with pine top, its a work bench and will get banged up. how will the bench dogs perform in soft wood - i guess they will perform poorly?

or i could put a 3/4" mdf board on top and remove it once it get badly damaged?

or the other thing would be to get birch or maple for top?

do you have any suggestions for a less expensive work bench top for that size of table?

well, thank you everyone in advance for your advice.

regards,

[IMG]file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/ADMINI%7E1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-1.jpg[/IMG]

[siliconbauhaus]

Try the top with 2 3/4 thick peices of mdf laminated and then put a hardwood trim around the perimeter. Set your trim to be 1/4 proud on the top and then use a sheet of 1/4 hardboard. When the hardboard has had enough just replace it.

[JR]

Some sort of build-up like siliconbauhaus suggested is probably called for. I do mine a little differently.

I build a ladder frame out of 2x4s. Screw on a layer of plywood, then use carpet tape to add either MDF or Masonite. Wrap, as you've already decided, with something nice, like clear pine or maple as you wish.

I've got one bench which I built with layers 3/4" ply and 1/4" masonite. On another one I used 1/2" ply and 1/2" MDF. The MDF makes for a sweet worksurface. I always feel like the masonite is impervious to pain, but it's a little to "plastic-y" to feel like I want to do fine work on it.

JR

[Knottscott]

Mine is hard maple and it's holding up great, but there is merit to the MDF idea and replacing the top periodically. I sand it down every 2-3 years and re-apply a clear coat. Not sure how well the MDF will hold a benchdog though.

Pine would certainly work but it'd be my third choice of these three options.

[big tim]

Like Siliconbauhaus recommends, that's what I did except I used three layers of 3/4" MDF and indeed with a layer of 1/4" hardboard on top.
Makes a good and relatively inexpensive solid bench top.

Tim

[Tom Miller]

I think bench dogs in a pine top will be just fine -- many folks out there have just such a benchtop.

Keep in mind your face vise dimensions when deciding how much overhang on either end; 8" sounds like it may not be enough for some vises.

I made a 3 layer lamination mdf top with solid edge banding. I chose against a 1/4" hardboard top, and instead I have a few pieces of 1/4" hardboard that I made bench hooks out of for when I'm chopping with a chisel/cutting/etc. directly on the bench top.

Incidentally, bench dogs are working very well in my mdf top, too.

Regards,
Tom

[Scottydont]

I would be remise if I didn't throw in my two bits. I make my benchtops out of 2 layers of 3/4 MDF, covered in laminate flooring and trimed in hardwood. The result is a dead flat, very durable surface and hold up to bench dog very well.

[Ken Massingale]

Mine is a solid exterior door with hardwood trim raised 1/4" above the top, with 1/4" hardboard inside the trim. I have no problems with the dog holes. (in the bench top. the ones in the yard are another matter!!!)

[footprintsinconc]

Thanks

thank you all for all the posts!

it looks like (2) 3/4" mdf laminated togather is the answer with wood trim that is 1/4" proud and then either masonite, hardboard or floor laminate. well i will now have to go and look at all three materials.

tom: i like your idea, make separate pieces of hardboard that can be removed when not in use. this means that i can still use pine at the bench top. you said that you made bench dogs of hardboard? and the hooks that you refer to are they the benchdog attached to the back side of the hardboard?
i will check out the vices to see what amount of overhang i need. thanks for the heads up.

scott: thanks for the picture, it really helps to see what you were saying! maybe one day my garage will look organized like yours.

concern: my only concern is that will (2) layers of 3/4 mdf span 6 ft? maybe i need to provide an extra support in between or run a piece of wood on edge under the mdf between the supports?

thanks once again, please keep posting.

regards,

[Tom Miller]

tom: i like your idea, make separate pieces of hardboard that can be removed when not in use. this means that i can still use pine at the bench top. you said that you made bench dogs of hardboard? and the hooks that you refer to are they the benchdog attached to the back side of the hardboard?

My bench dogs are made of hardwood. The bench hooks that I mentioned are the small pieces (~18" x 18") of hardboard that I put on the bench top temporarily for protection. The reason I call them bench hooks, is because they have a little lip attached to the bottom of the front edge to help keep them in place, like a bench hook used for sawing or planing on your bench top.

Hopefully I was a little more clear this time....

Regards,
Tom

[lrr]

Rather than two layers of MDF, you might try 3/4" ply, with 3/4" MDF, to give some additional strength. My local woodworking store had 1" MDF, and 1-1/4" as well. I bought the 1" for a new RAS table, but it was not a large span. It about killed my wife and I to lift a full sheet of the 1" stuff. I cannot imagine lifting the thicker. I edged it with thin oak strip, after applying a removable top layer of white coated hardboard (replacable).

The thicker pieces of MDF are not cheap, since they are lower volume items. I paid $38 for a full sheet of 1", and the 1-1/4" was ~ $70.

[hermit]

I used the mdf laminate method both with 2 layers for the garage workbench tops and the 3 layers for the true woodworking bench. 2 layers works fine (they are supported with a 2x4 frame around the perimeter) for the "against the wall" type workbench, but I do like the 3 layers for the freestanding workbench. I just gives a "heftier feel" My wwing bench is a trestle style frame, and I did have to add a support underneath (in the center, between the two leg assys) to prevent sagging. I had to add it after the fact. I can tell you the sucker is heavy!

good luck,
Todd

[BigguyZ]

I went the pine route. I think it offers a good quality top with a nice look and low price. It was a lot of work to flatten the sucker (glueup wasn't as good at it should have been), but it was worth it. I also haven't had any issues w/ dogs.

[Ken Massingale]

Omar,
I originally uses 2 3/4" MDF sheets spanning 52 inches, with 2 by 4's underneath on the 4 edges. It did sag, terribly, which is why I went the solid door route. I definitely suggest additional bracing underneath, both directions since you are going to 6 feet.

[Kristofor]

I also went the laminated pine route, but this was an "If I knew then what I know now" moment... While I'm sure it was a good learning experience construction lumber is a serious PITA to work with. Even the best dimensional lumber I could find in the store had a frequent tendancy to twist, cup, curl, bend, spindle, fold, and/or mutilate.

That just added some extra 'zest' to ripping ~480 linear feet (20 8' 2x4's, twice to take off the rounded edge, and a 3rd time after jointing one face and one edge straight and square.

On top of that, 8' of pretty un-square wood was a challenge for me and my newbie technique on the 6" Ridgid jointer. I used extra infeed/outfeed support but a longer bed would have been a TON easier. Each board took multiple trips across the jointer and through the planer, the milling alone was many hours of work, and easily the longest part of the project.

So, would I make another solid wood laminated workbench? Sure, but not until I am ready to make an uber-heirloom type bench with a 3" maple top, solid gold bench dogs (very soft so as not to mar the wood ), and the tricked out vises (visii?) with spinner rims and the like. In the meantime I'll be building another bench soon using the MDF lamination approach, and I would guess I'll be looking at maybe 25% of the construction time and it could be even less...

Kristofor.