top coating for steel work bench

[SkinnyG]

I'm getting ready to finish making a steel work bench for my garage. I was planning on shooting the frame and legs with a simple coat of spray paint, but I would like to cover the top with something more durable. The top is a piece of 5/16" plate. The table will be used mostly for auto work- engine, trans, differential, etc, so I would need something that's oil/chemical resistant if I can find it. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks
-Skinny

 

[Buckgnarly]

I'd just keep the bare metal oiled. If you're tossing trans on there I'm not sure anything short of bedliner would hold up. I just hit my metal table with WD every now and then to keep the rust at bay....hell, if you use it enough you're prob gonna get oils on it anyway.

 

[Karnage]

I have a section of my steel top coated in POR 15 it seems to do the trick, I even weld on it.

 

[texasprd]

Subscribed - love the POR15 idea

 

[fomocoforrester]

I used hot rolled mild steel plate on my wooden bench 9 years ago and that millscale surface has proved to be, by far, the most durable work surface I have come across.

For aesthetics and a degree of rust resistance I give it a light sanding and wipe on a thin coating of old engine oil when required.

 

[GeorgiaHybrid]

Once you get it cleaned up, like above, a light coat of oil or if you are not planning on doing any welding on top of it, a coat of good old Johnson's paste wax.

 

[SkinnyG]

I've never used POR15. I went on their web site and it looks promising, for the legs and frame of the table, if nothing else. They had some pictures and such of applying it with a brush. I would prefer to spray it with a paint gun. Can this be done with POR15 (would I need to add a thinner or anything)? Where is the best place to get it? Thanks.

 

[Keep]

I am with the "Leave it natural" group, I used 1/4 hot holed plate for mine, here it is after 18 months of use, nothing but the occasional wipe with some light oil:

As for spraying POR15, you probably could as its really thin as it is, but man I would not want to clean it up, that stuff sticks to everything. If you get it on your skin, it has to grow off as nothing will take it off.

 

[ddawg16]

POR 15 is great stuff......but I'm with Buck on the bare metal/oiled finish.....

The problem is that the first time you smack it hard enough to chip the POR15, you are going to be upset....better to just keep it bare.......

5/16" plate? Like it.....

 

[Charles (in GA)]

POR15 will bond the lid on the can on if you get any in the grove the lid seals in. I would not dare use it in a spray gun, it comes out smooth and glossy when brushed on. Plan on throwing away everything that comes in contact with it other than what you are painting.

I used it on a tractor battery tray after I bead blasted all the rust and scale off of it, it looks great, hard as nails, but don't make a mess.

Me, I'd just leave the table top bare, and either oil or paste wax (which is what wood workers do to table saws and such)

Charles

 

[SkinnyG]

You guys are starting to convince me to leave it bare. It will need some cleaning though. It already has a fair amount of rust on it (it came from a metal yard "drop" pile), so I'll have to see if I can get it all cleaned up first. I was a bit excited about the POR15 stuff because, as the web site says at least, it's designed to be applied directly on top of rust. That would have made life a bit easier for me. I think I will still use POR15 on the rest.

5/16" plate? Like it.....

I had originally planned on using 1/4" plate, but a friend of mine got me all of the materials for free. He couldn't find 1/4" plate, so he got me 5/16" ... I didn't complain.

The top frame is 2x2, 1/8" wall box tube. The legs and base frame are 3x3, 1/4" thick angle. It's quite heavy. I'll make sure I post some pics when it's all done.

 

[crewchief888]

at the last (heavy equipment) dealership i worked at,i biult 5 or 6 new tables for our rebuild room.
left all the tops "as is"
wrestling heavy stuff around on the tables chips the paint, and those chips end up inside whatever you're working on, and in a week the top looks like hell.

 

[ddawg16]

Skinny......one easy way to clean it.......

If you have an orbital sander....get some 120g sand paper used for autobody....knock off the main layer of rust with that.....

Then...use a 3M scratch pad under that orbital sander for the final clean up.....or, if you have an oscilating one...use it....I have an old cheap Craftsman rectangular sander I use for things like that.

When done....I would soak it down with WD40.....let it dry....

Or, get it real clean and use wax.

 

[AdamH]

Well this is my first post but just to answer the question you can spray POR-15 and they sell a thinner on their website. I've sprayed the bottom of a steel flatbed I built and it was much better than brushing would have been.
For the table top though, I'm with the consensusa nd say leave it unfinished. Oil or wax will keep any rust off of it an doesnt chip.

 

[Kevin54]

If you spray POR15 with a spray gun, do not use a good gun. Go to HF and pick up a cheap gun. Reason being is that if you don't get everything spotless after shooting the POR15 thru it and it happens to dry, you will never get it out. The stuff dries like iron. I totally demolished on can of it (half a can left) as there was some on the lid when I sealed it up. The lid just doesn't pop back off. Almost had to take a cutting torch to it to get it off.

 

[Vicegrip]

If you spray POR15 with a spray gun, do not use a good gun. Go to HF and pick up a cheap gun. Reason being is that if you don't get everything spotless after shooting the POR15 thru it and it happens to dry, you will never get it out. The stuff dries like iron. I totally demolished on can of it (half a can left) as there was some on the lid when I sealed it up. The lid just doesn't pop back off. Almost had to take a cutting torch to it to get it off.

Never open the can. Poke a hole with a nail in the lid near an edge and pour it out through the hole. If you are in a hurry you can make a vent hole in the other side. Wipe the can clean and cover the hole(s) with metal foil tape. If the can has been sitting a long time shake the heck out of it for a few min then let it sit for 20 min before decanting. Never paint right from the can unless you know you will use it all and never put any back in the can. It will soak up some moisture from the air and go bad in the can.

Sand carbon steel smooth and rub in some oil wiping it clean. It will rust a bit but a foam sanding pad cleans it right up.

 

[Krokodil]

I've got a 1/2" mild steel plant on my workbench as a working surface and I only wipe it once in a while with light oil. I will not rust if you keep it clean and lightly oiled.

 

[Jack Olsen]

Never open the can. Poke a hole with a nail in the lid near an edge and pour it out through the hole. If you are in a hurry you can make a vent hole in the other side. Wipe the can clean and cover the hole(s) with metal foil tape.

Thanks for that idea! With my last can of POR-15, I made the mistake of trying to store half after using half -- it didn't work.

 

[Pneuking]

Make sure you paint the legs though. I'm doing a red oxide paint on the legs and a bare top.

 

[KrisKustomPaint]

Thanks for that idea! With my last can of POR-15, I made the mistake of trying to store half after using half -- it didn't work.

I usually put two holes in the can and put a body bolt in both holes for storage. Makes a good seal and is still relatively easy to get the bolts out when you need some more por-15.

 

[Zeke]

I have some screws made to attach polycarbonite panels that have a sealing washer. Can't beat those on a POR 15 can, I had one stay good for over a year.

 

[Deltarat]

If you have a frig. in the shop keep it there. It will last longer.

 

[rburke65]

Yes you can apply POR-15 over rust....Paint Over Rust....or POR.

 

[Zengineer]

I use this on my bare steel benches, and like it a lot. Really brings out the blue in the steel I find.

It seems to last forever on the bench top (no evaporation), and can be touched up in seconds.

 

[stephen4785]

Blanchard ground bare metal.

 

[AMCguy]

You really can't go wrong with bare steel. The best finish is one that will never give you a problem. This is one of my benches.

I built it for engine work as you can see here. It just wipes clean.

 

[kbkna]

Is that a solid steel top and backsplash?

 

[Scout Driver]

A quick spray of FluidFilm would keep rust at bay. Otherwise, any light surface rust that forms could be quickly removed with Scotchbrite and WD40.

My 10 gauge steel top on my bench has had nothing applied to it and has been fine for the past 6 or so months that I have had it.

Scott

 

[AMCguy]

kbkna, The top and back splash are a continuous piece of formed 10 ga hot rolled mild steel. It sits on a sheet of 3/4'' MDF for sound deadening. I closed in the ends with 2x1/8'' and 1x1/8'' flat bar tack welded on the inside for a clean look.

 

[kbkna]

Thanks! I sure do like that. How did you mount the steel to the MDF?

 

[AMCguy]

I didn't. It just sits there. Under the type of use it gets the top has never moved. I could move it if I wanted to though. I have another taller bench just like it with with a lower shelf and a vice attached. On that one the the vice is through bolted so the top can't move.