metal work bench top

[LIVELY]

i am putting a metal bench top[1/4 " thick ] on a work bench. 30" deep x 60" wide
this is not stainless--too expensive for me

i want to have it bent down in front about 4 " and straight across the back[ no backsplash]---possible??

i also want to leave it unfinished on the top but would like to keep the new finish look on it ???

this is smooth metal--[already have a welding bench so this is mostly for fabbing and building]

what can be done to bare metal to keep it nice ?!?! looking

OTHER THEN NOT USING IT

 

[toolman1967]

I have a bare metal work bench top and I have a hard time keeping it from rusting. I use it for welding and dont want to coat it with something that might be flammable. Right now I keep a towel on it that it coated with WD40. It wipes off fine and doesnt flame up when I weld on it. Hopefully someone out there has a better idea.

 

[e-tek]

I don't have a metal top on mine, but work with metal all the time. If you're not going to paint it (clear at least)....then you'll have to oil it. How were you planning on bending the front lip? I'd call around to find a place with an 8' brake. Get a nice clean edge.


Edit - you could also wax it...

 

[LIVELY]

I have a couple of shops around here that have huge shears and breaks -THANKS --just gotta get them to get it done[ i might get the metal from them also]

 

[toolman1967]

1/4 inch might be hard to get bent, my buddy runs a machine shop and he could not bend a flange on that thick of plate, I just welded a front onto mine

 

[Ign]

The mill scale's gonna flake off at the broken edge, but you can probably blend it well enough w a wire wheel.

Funny, here you can leave bare metal indoors for years - probably decades - and not have any rust on it.

 

[larry_g]

We used to have a lot of bare tables in the last plant I worked at. We just used auto wax to prevent rusting. However these tables were not subject to a lot of harsh solvents and chemicals. YMMV.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[Zick]

Mine is a bare metal top and the only thing I've done to it was use a grinder w/ a wire wheel to clean off the rust and sprayed it down w/ WD-40. That was about five years ago and it still looks really good today. I've spray it down in spots where I got grease and such on it but that's been it.
Here it is after I put it on it's new workbench last year.

 

[gorilla]

Bending that bench top won't be a problem, the shop will need to have a 100 ton press brake and a bottom die with a 2" v width. you will end up with about a 1/2" radius on the bend. It would be best to buy the plate from the same place you have do the bending 1/4" plate is on the heavy side. In this area (norcal) that work would cost less than $100.00.

 

[rsanter]

you could also just get a piece of angle iron and either tack weld or bolt the angle to the front edge

bob

 

[jimbo-02]

Dont know if this will help , I recently made a bench across the end oy my shop which was about 14 feet nothing fancy brick ends with support in middle and 6 x 2 ( 2 x 6 ) across top . then covered half in galvanised metal sheet (it wont be welded on) with a 2 x 2 thin angle across front bolted through metal and wood . seems to work ok and holds sown metal ok .

 

[toolman1967]

We used to have a lot of bare tables in the last plant I worked at. We just used auto wax to prevent rusting. However these tables were not subject to a lot of harsh solvents and chemicals. YMMV.

lg
no neat sig line

(litebulb) WAX, why didnt I think of that!

 

[Riverfront]

I'd leave the front unbent and with 3" of overhang so its easier to clamp stuff down if needed.

 

[bobadame]

Let it rust, what's the big deal? Iron oxide is a pretty tough surface.

 

[VegasBruce]

I just throw my funnels on the bench to drain and wipe it down now and then, it keeps the rust at bay.

 

[Bare Bones Racing]

I dont do anything to mine. If I have a big project, maybe just wire wheel surface rust and keep going.

Bare Bones Racing

 

[Jack Olsen]

If you use it, you probably won't have any problems with rust. But any kind of light oil will protect it.

 

[Kevin54]

WD40 and a Scotch-brite pad

 

[LIVELY]

lots of GREAT ideas guys

 

[littletoes]

Are you supporting it underneath? If you are, don't worry about using 1/4" stuff, save some money, and use 10 gauge, it won't dent easy at all, and it will be easier to find someone to bend the lighter 1/8" stuff....but, yea you can find someone to bend it, just make sure you get a good crisp edge, so that your measurement will fit.

I don't like a bare metal front edge, if you fall against it, you will surely get cut on the thinner stuff.

 

[Thedroid]

I like to heat the table up with a rosebud, and then wipe it down with a light oil like a spindle oil. After I'm done the surface isn't oily, and it stays really nice.

 

[av8r]

I like to heat the table up with a rosebud, and then wipe it down with a light oil like a spindle oil. After I'm done the surface isn't oily, and it stays really nice.

That's how you season a Dutch oven as well.

I care for the cast iron work tops on my stationary tools by sanding with fine sand paper or steel wool and three coats of paste wax. The metal workbench top is mild steel and prone to more rusting than cast iron but the wax technique may work.

 

[PCO6]

My main bench has a 1/8" bare metal top. It's 10' long with a 4" lip at the front and a 4" backsplash. I have used it for about the last 30 to 35 years and really haven't had to do anything to keep it rust free. The scale has worn off in the centre part that gets the most use and it has no rust. I think that if you basically use it and try to keep it clean you should be OK.

 

[Busted Bolts]

try tool gaurd from crc. I use it on my tools to keep from rusting, and its not flamable in its dry state. Leaves a non greasy film that protects surface.