Newb (but specific) questions about workbench build

I searched but only found vague threads about workbenches in general. In most cases when the OP was asked what, specifically, the bench would be used for, there was no response.

One other thing to keep in mind: I'm an idiot (in general according to SWMBO) but specifically about wood. Wood anything. I build everything from steel.

Disclaimers now complete, I'm building a workbench to be used when working at my Bridgeport. In general terms I guess you could call it a "machining bench."

The frame is 1" square tube, and that part's a breeze for me. But my idiocy comes when trying to decide what wood or wood-esque product to use for the top and shelves. The bench will see mostly small machined parts and everything related to using a vertical mill - - examples might include 1-2-3 blocks, 2-4-6 blocks, calipers, angle plates, collets, cutting tools (often dripping cutting oil), stops, loose toe clamps, etc etc. The lower shelves will store some of these items, but the top could see any combination while in the middle of a project.

There will be no vise and I don't plan on doing a lot of hammering on this bench, but it's always possible I could accidentally drop a 2-4-6 or angle plate.

So, for the top, I'm considering basic particle board, MDF, or melamine.

Particle board: inexpensive, seems ok?

MDF: also fairly inexpensive, I read a lot about HAVING to seal it, which I can tell ya I'm unlikely to do given my hatred for wood or maintaining wood. Plus I live in a VERY dry area - humidity is only something we read about in books.

Melamine: sounds great in theory, but I'm concerned about how it'll hold up if the corner of a dropped angle plate hits it, even from 2 or 3" away. Also while I understand white theoretically allows you to spot small fasteners more easily, I'm really not that worried about that.

Also, I'm really not concerned about any surface absorbing cutting oils unless it'll be so detrimental that the top will warp or buckle. I read one mention of an oil soaked top catching fire, but I'm also not worried about that. If I stop posting suddenly, you can assume I died a fiery death because of my oil-soaked workbench top.

So, what would you recommend for my intended purpose? And, assuming a bench 17" deep, how often would you put crossmembers for support underneath of your chosen material (assume 3/4" thick top).

PART TWO: how to anchor the top (assume 3/4" thick) to 1" sq tube? If I use 1.5" wood screws will that 1/2" engagement be enough? I could (and have in the past) also use carriage bolts and just snug 'em down enough to be mostly flush with the working surface. The metal guy in me wants to use trailer decking screws, I guess I could fill the torx head with silicone to mitigate little pockets that will attract dust and small chips.

I would do the top out of Doug Fir 2x4s or 2x6s glued together and planed flat. Kinda like a butcher block. Doug Fir is the normal stuff at HD.

Doug fir is soft enough that if you drop or bang precision instruments the wood will dent and ding, or at least absorb impact.

Oak, maple, hardwoods, would be terrible for this top.

I'd run some angle upside down, stitch welded flush to the interior of the top frame and drill/bolt through that. If you end up using 2x4 on edge, get some 1/4" x 2.5" lags, pre drill and set. That sucker won't go anywhere.

Also, the surface absorbing cutting oils will be a good thing for the wood. dry wood is bad wood.

DON'T USE MELAMINE.

Also, if and when you need to replane the surface, you can in a couple of minutes. That's why old work benches for carpenters were built like this. And doug fir is light enough in color to see small parts.

You could buy the 2x4s in the morning, have them glued and clamped by lunchtime, and the next morning you caould plane or belt sand and mount by lunchtime again.

I was lucky and bought a bunch of bowling alley. Some say it *****, but mine has worked out GREAT. I guess some is better than others. That being said, it's kind of pain in the **** to find. I literally fell into my pile. You are a metal guy. Is a metal top out of the question? On the surface, it seems like a good material for your situation. I am sure others will chime in.

Ok listen up pull up a chair and sit down... If you can dream up a bench Simpson strong ties will make it happen.

(1) You are going to build a bench in only a few short hours only using 2 x 4's and and one 4 x 8 plywood sheet. (HD will cut the 4 x 8 sheet to your dimensions).

(2) supplies will include a box of special strong tie screws and 8 strong tie 2 x 4 hangers.

Any Home Depot will carry the plans and the Simpson strong ties:

http://diydoneright.com/?source=topnav

Cut four legs and 8 cross pieces to any length and height you can dream up, then make a bottom shelve with a square sheet of plywood and put the other piece on the top and you are done.

Oh and before I forget that workbench can take any weight you got in mind and then some more to boot...

woody 73 said:

Ok listen up pull up a chair and sit down... If you can dream up a bench Simpson strong ties will make it happen.

(1) You are going to build a bench in only a few short hours only using 2 x 4's and and one 4 x 8 plywood sheet. (HD will cut the 4 x 8 sheet to your dimensions).

(2) supplies will include a box of special strong tie screws and 8 strong tie 2 x 4 hangers.

Any Home Depot will carry the plans and the Simpson strong ties:

http://diydoneright.com/?source=topnav

Cut four legs and 8 cross pieces to any length and height you can dream up, then make a bottom shelve with a square sheet of plywood and put the other piece on the top and you are done.

Click to expand...

Oh no, Hobart makes it happen. The frame is 60% built right now. In your link they seem to just show plywood for a top, that could also be an option.

Flattie, for a machining bench a steel top is not my choice. Actually I would do aluminum if it weren't cost-prohibitive

I've built benches using up to 2 solid wood desk tops laminated together. To protect the finish, I keep a sheet of 1/8" Masonite on top.

Ign said:

Oh no, Hobart makes it happen. The frame is 60% built right now. In your link they seem to just show plywood for a top, that could also be an option.

Flattie, for a machining bench a steel top is not my choice. Actually I would do aluminum if it weren't cost-prohibitive

Click to expand...

Gotcha. Honestly didn't mean to sound stupid. AL is crazy expensive. Selling for 70 cents a pound for aluminum cans here right now.

I have the table you want;



This is a rolling table that I have had for years. It is a square tube frame with a Formica top on the pressboard underlayment. In the picture I have it holding the mill table. This table has had engines on it and presently has a counterweight from an excavator on it plus all the tools and such to do the injection pump.




So I can say that Formica will work. I also have this material on my main bench in the shop and it takes a beating. Simple green and it looks like new. If your a machinist then your not going to hurt it. If your the kind that could bust an anvil then maybe you should keep looking.

I would suggest that you look for commercial counter top, as that is what this is.

lg
no neat sig line

I can't help but think that for what you're doing a piece of kitchen counter top with the molded back splash and a Formica covering wouldn't be ideal. Smooth, easy to clean, strong, and needs no finishing or maintenance. Others mentioned a butcher block type top, doesn't sound to me like what you want, but if it is, I'm told IKEA sells it pretty reasonable, never been there myself.
HTH, Jim

How about 3/4 plywood covered with regular tongue and groove hardwood flooring. If you don't like oak you could probably find a softer wood like maple or pine. Lumber liquidators would be a good source.

IGN if you will share a vague location the reason for the location is the system requires it to look stuff up. I will share something I just found , that might get you a butcher block top for cheap. That said Rolling is great if you need it to, if not make sure your legs are not directly on the floor to soak up liquids oil not really bad water yeah bad. Make sure if you want it rolling it is the height you need IE to be able to slide heavy stuff on to etc.

Cypher

I'd go MDF with countersunk screws and then use vinyl plank flooring (floating click together type) as an expendable top layer. A couple dabs of contact cement to keep the vinyl from moving around.

Ok, well I didn't get exactly what I was looking for from this thread. I was hoping to see a compare and contrast of particle board, MDF, and melamine as laid out in post #1. No worry, I know everyone was really trying to help, and this is the internet after all.

I was able to get some information from a friend locally, who said this:
"Have you considered using a pre-fabricated Laminate countertop (formica)?You can sometimes pick these up for pretty cheap if you get "seconds"... as you don't care what color you use. Cleans great, doesn't absorb, pretty solid surface, can mount to it, but not as durable as plain OSB/plywood for surfaces you might be "beating on"

I have gone with OSB (a different fabrication than plywood), for my usual workbenches. Plywood can be nice, but you need to spend a little more to get something that isn't warped at all, as I find OSB usually to be straighter, but again... just get better plywood.

MDF... NO... great for shelving (smooth, so we used for our countertops, but painted with countertop paint)... nice and straight, cuts, mills nicely...but just NOT tough enough and VERY water absorbent.

Melanine... yes.. has a formica-like top to it, but it's particle board underneath, and I wouldn't expect this to hold up as well. The edges will flake unless you were to put a metal edge on.

Particle board... no... too flimsly.

So... I'd go with 1)OSB, or 2)Plywood for workbenches that can take a beating, and the surface isn't slick, so tools will stay put. or a 3)Formica countertop (also great for cleaning). Slick surface, but you can always mount most tools directly to the bench.

Really might depend on what the primary tasks are between 1..2.. and 3...

But I wouldn't use MDF, or melamine, or particle board."

Note the above in quotes is merely the opinion of a friend. I am not saying it is correct or incorrect.

I began thinking plywood might be my choice, but when I got to looking at plywood at HD I began to see what he was saying about finding something not warped. And that made it easy for me to decide that buying wood just isn't my style I hate wood, and more than that I hate spending money on wood. So plan B was devised, as described in the next post, coming soon....

Ok, first here is the cluster I was looking to straighten up. I don't know how I've down so much work over the years with this. Actually, I mostly worked off a gray service cart I'd roll near the mill (visible far right)



I realized I had some 7/16" OSB laying around from some long forgotten project. It was in my carport so the side facing out was a tiny bit weathered, but it was already here and paid for.

I then decided I was going to use a UHMW top. I found some 1/8" sheet on ebay 96x22". As my bench is 80.5x17" this was, of course, plenty. I paid $55 for the UHMW shipped so in the end I clearly spent more than common wood or wood-based sheet goods, but I felt I was getting a better product.

Advantages of UHMW as I see it: incredibly difficult to gouge, dent, ding, virtually impossible to tear. Will not soak up or absorb any oils, easily wiped down. Most slider blocks in 2 post lifts are UHMW.

Weaknesses of UHMW: will sag, needs support. No good for hot works, will melt. May wind up with too many chips from machining melted into it, but it's behind the operator in this case. I'm not yet sure which solvents will hurt it, need to research and speak w my FIL who is a plastics engineer. Slick, no friction to help things stay put.

Here's the frame complete, for the top I flushed the old OSB and anchored with a few self-drilling sheetmetal screws. You can see the UHMW in the background, right.



Here's the new setup, considerably better than the first pic


The lower shelves are also just 7/16" OSB with 2 thick coats of Rustoleum (I told you I'm a metal guy!) Professional rolled on. It's a little weird with black top and white shelves, but the shelves will look like the walls of a chain smoker's house in no time.

I know everyone will have their opinion but I just finished a huge job and I love the bench and the UHMW top thus far.

That looks great. Does its job.

So my FIL turned me onto this link for different plastics and chemical resistance:
http://www.mossrubber.com/pdfs/chem_res.pdf

The abbreviated version is that it looks to me like UHMW has good to excellent resistance to the bulk of chemicals in both chlorinated (yes, we know not to use it on weldments) and non-chlorinated brake cleaners.

Non-chlorinated appears to have mostly methanol, toluene, heptane and acetone, for all of which UHMW rates well in resistance.

Chlorinated appears to have Tetrachloroethylene aka Perchloroethylene which UHMW also resists well.

Quite a turn from wood products to plastics chemical resistance, but I still consider it useful tech.

Ign said:

So my FIL turned me onto this link for different plastics and chemical resistance:
http://www.mossrubber.com/pdfs/chem_res.pdf

The abbreviated version is that it looks to me like UHMW has good to excellent resistance to the bulk of chemicals in both chlorinated (yes, we know not to use it on weldments) and non-chlorinated brake cleaners.

Non-chlorinated appears to have mostly methanol, toluene, heptane and acetone, for all of which UHMW rates well in resistance.

Chlorinated appears to have Tetrachloroethylene aka Perchloroethylene which UHMW also resists well.

Quite a turn from wood products to plastics chemical resistance, but I still consider it useful tech.

Click to expand...

UHMW is a versatile material for sure and also resistant to friction!