Thread: Kat's Solid Door Version Work Bench WIP

Hi all.

Well I have rung most of the timber suppliers in the Perth Eastern area, Most do not supply 12mm ply, at least half do not supply standard pine (ie non treated) I do not want a bench made from treated pine. I am going to go to the second hand shop to buy pine only $1 lm, I am thinking of building my base as I planed.

For a top I am looking at laminate up pine 70x 35mm pine to 700x 1800 (pine 70mm face vertical) with 70x 35mm end caps (screwed onto end)

Nearly worked all the little voices in my head out lol. This is seeming the best option to me It is the cheapest and solidest

TIA

Kat.

Originally Posted by Geekgirl

Hi all.

Well I have rung most of the timber suppliers in the Perth Eastern area, Most do not supply 12mm ply, at least half do not supply standard pine (ie non treated) I do not want a bench made from treated pine. I am going to go to the second hand shop to buy pine only $1 lm, I am thinking of building my base as I planed.

For a top I am looking at laminate up pine 70x 35mm pine to 700x 1800 (pine 70mm face vertical) with 70x 35mm end caps (screwed onto end)

Nearly worked all the little voices in my head out lol. This is seeming the best option to me It is the cheapest and solidest

TIA

Kat.

I'm pulling up a chair, Kat, to see how this develops. Sounds like you're getting the plan together.

I'm surprised that you can't get 1/2" ply. I would have thought it would be common.

I was lucky and got my solid-core door as a second for $50. Two of them would have been great.

You mentioned the weight of a (solid-core) door. I weighed mine during assembly - it's 2040mm x 920mm x 32mm and weighs 37.7kg.

Sounds like you have a better plan now anyway. You'll definitely get out of it a lot cheaper than I did. My hardwood 4 x 2s alone cost $13.50/metre and the 3/4" ply was about $70 a sheet, from memory.

Originally Posted by Hermit

I'm surprised that you can't get 1/2" ply. I would have thought it would be common.

I think it is due to WA building style, we build most houses double brick, internal brick, tile roof. If there is false flooring it is usually chip board.

I can get form ply (which is mainly BLACK) plus around 19mm thick

I am loving this design, lots of great ideas are helping me mould a decent bench

Kat.

If they are selling their Jarrah for $1.75/m then they are probably giving away their pine...

You should ask them if they have the solid core doors too. You should be able to pick those up second hand from somewhere for a lot less than the $110 you were talking about earlier. I would not get your hopes up on them being light though... If you are thinking of what I am thinking then the solid core is made from bits of pine off cuts glued together, so putting two of those doors together would weigh the same as a chunk of timber that's 70x820x1800.

INTERIOR doors are very light, but the core in those is made from a honey comb of cardboard. I made a shelf out of one of those, but I don't think they would be very good as a work bench top.

Jorge

Originally Posted by Geekgirl

I think it is due to WA building style, we build most houses double brick, internal brick, tile roof. If there is false flooring it is usually chip board.

I can get form ply (which is mainly BLACK) plus around 19mm thick

I am loving this design, lots of great ideas are helping me mould a decent bench

Kat.

I'm sure it will turn out well.

While I think of it, I found that the size of the pocket-holes in the plans was a bit small and wouldn't allow spanner access, so I went up to 30mm pocket-holes, so I could just get a ring spanner on the nuts.
If I'd done it according to the plans, I would have never got the bolts tight because the nuts just keep turning without a spanner.

The other major point with those plans is to make sure that the top rails cannot drop at all, or they'll pull a bow into the top over time. (Thanks Bret, for that one.) After assembly, I hammered mine down as low as they'd go, then re-sanded the top of the end-frames to suit. I had to take about 2mm off, so over time the top would have bowed by up to 2mm if I hadn't done this.

Originally Posted by GarciaJ

If they are selling their Jarrah for $1.75/m then they are probably giving away their pine...

$1/m

Originally Posted by GarciaJ

You should ask them if they have the solid core doors too. You should be able to pick those up second hand from somewhere for a lot less than the $110 you were talking about earlier. I would not get your hopes up on them being light though... If you are thinking of what I am thinking then the solid core is made from bits of pine off cuts glued together, so putting two of those doors together would weigh the same as a chunk of timber that's 70x820x1800.

Most of the solid core ones brand new are not suitable to cut down I have found out, have to look for block built ones, the others are called solid core, but contain things not stable internally when the outer frame is removed. Hence laminating up my top out of 70x35's

Originally Posted by GarciaJ

INTERIOR doors are very light, but the core in those is made from a honey comb of cardboard. I made a shelf out of one of those, but I don't think they would be very good as a work bench top.

Jorge

Yeah you can punch holes in them very easily

Now I am thinking I have it all good, just have to go pick all the timber and hardware up tomorrow, then I can get on with building (May also buy a bigger plane or electric one tomorrow

Kat.

Originally Posted by Hermit

I'm sure it will turn out well.

While I think of it, I found that the size of the pocket-holes in the plans was a bit small and wouldn't allow spanner access, so I went up to 30mm pocket-holes, so I could just get a ring spanner on the nuts.
If I'd done it according to the plans, I would have never got the bolts tight because the nuts just keep turning without a spanner.

I will do that May be slightly bigger as I think my closes spade bit is 32mm

Originally Posted by Hermit

The other major point with those plans is to make sure that the top rails cannot drop at all, or they'll pull a bow into the top over time. (Thanks Bret, for that one.) After assembly, I hammered mine down as low as they'd go, then re-sanded the top of the end-frames to suit. I had to take about 2mm off, so over time the top would have bowed by up to 2mm if I hadn't done this.

Definitely I usually push / hammer EVERYTHING in the direction of gravity as that is a nasty force over time.

Kat.

Originally Posted by Geekgirl

I will do that May be slightly bigger as I think my closes spade bit is 32mm

If you have a local cheap tools store, you might be able to get a 30mm Forstner bit pretty cheaply. Mine cost all of $4. Otherwise you could get one online for not much more. (eBay)

Definitely I usually push / hammer EVERYTHING in the direction of gravity as that is a nasty force over time.

Kat.

Yep. Good one. I learned this just in time.

Out of interest, what will you be making on the bench?

Originally Posted by Hermit

If you have a local cheap tools store, you might be able to get a 30mm Forstner bit pretty cheaply. Mine cost all of $4. Otherwise you could get one online for not much more. (eBay)




Yep. Good one. I learned this just in time.

Out of interest, what will you be making on the bench?

I do not buy online, I buy from Beyond tools in Malaga WA (I am not associated with the company, just a very happy customer) They may cost a bit more than Bunnings, but they have a BIG difference, they have experts, the people who sell you the tools USE the tools both for demos and at home. They are more than happy to draw you a little diagram for a jig that will SAVE you time and make things more accurate.

On the bench I will do everything from playing and practising joints, to building picture frames, boxes etc for friends and family. Sometimes for work I need things that can be made at home (I have made things like projector plates and brackets at home (hanging a pull down screen in some old buildings is hard as the fixings are close together on the bracket, the walls are soft crumbly bricks, so I make backing boards (2x4's) that I can then chemically set into the wall and then screw the brackets to the board)

Plus we sometimes have to take cables for AV / Projectors / Network around columns at floor level, I build circular multi channel duct out of ply (everything has to be seperated ie power from phones, phones and power from AV) So I make these things. None of my customers have woodworking experience so I build most of the stuff for them

Kat.

Originally Posted by Geekgirl

I do not buy online, I buy from Beyond tools in Malaga WA (I am not associated with the company, just a very happy customer) They may cost a bit more than Bunnings, but they have a BIG difference, they have experts, the people who sell you the tools USE the tools both for demos and at home. They are more than happy to draw you a little diagram for a jig that will SAVE you time and make things more accurate.

On the bench I will do everything from playing and practising joints, to building picture frames, boxes etc for friends and family. Sometimes for work I need things that can be made at home (I have made things like projector plates and brackets at home (hanging a pull down screen in some old buildings is hard as the fixings are close together on the bracket, the walls are soft crumbly bricks, so I make backing boards (2x4's) that I can then chemically set into the wall and then screw the brackets to the board)

Plus we sometimes have to take cables for AV / Projectors / Network around columns at floor level, I build circular multi channel duct out of ply (everything has to be seperated ie power from phones, phones and power from AV) So I make these things. None of my customers have woodworking experience so I build most of the stuff for them

Kat.

A wide range of interests.

The circular multi-channel duct sounds interesting. How do you make it. Ply bending?

Originally Posted by Hermit

A wide range of interests.

The circular multi-channel duct sounds interesting. How do you make it. Ply bending?

Noooo Takes way to long. I do multiple cuts on 5mm centres 3/4 way through 16mm MDF, then I can bend it nicely,temporarily fix it to the base with some glad wrap in between and fill all the voids with as much glue as it will hold (glue is mixed with some fine MDF dust to make it less viscose.)

Once dry, I fix the covers over the ends and a support in the middle behind the bent front cover. I t can then be fixed to the wall and the cover removed and replaced as necessary. These are usually painted Matte Black (I use spray as primer and other coats) these look great and do not chip to badly when the cleaner vacuums

It can take about 5 hours over about 4 days to do the making, drying and painting (plus sanding

Kat.

Originally Posted by Geekgirl

Noooo Takes way to long. I do multiple cuts on 5mm centres 3/4 way through 16mm MDF, then I can bend it nicely,temporarily fix it to the base with some glad wrap in between and fill all the voids with as much glue as it will hold (glue is mixed with some fine MDF dust to make it less viscose.)

Once dry, I fix the covers over the ends and a support in the middle behind the bent front cover. I t can then be fixed to the wall and the cover removed and replaced as necessary. These are usually painted Matte Black (I use spray as primer and other coats) these look great and do not chip to badly when the cleaner vacuums

It can take about 5 hours over about 4 days to do the making, drying and painting (plus sanding

Kat.

That makes more sense. I was picturing a jig and steam bending.

Originally Posted by Hermit

That makes more sense. I was picturing a jig and steam bending.

For complex bends (lots in a short distance) or if it will get a LOT of damage (eg School Gym) I make the bend by hand, I make a face former, then a rear former ( Usually just have to clean up the jigsaw cuts) Use a heap of clamps. I lay a sheet of veneer down, Glue, Veneer, Glue clamp and dry, this gives me a nice front face. I then glue up and lay 3 ply wood over this, the outer grains orientated for the vertical (this is the shortest side) then keep adding 3 ply with glue until I get "20mm" thick. This method gives a nice smooth front face, strength behind.

I have tried steaming.

If I have time, I use a slow bending idea using the above formers, I put 4 or so sheets of 3 ply with no glue between and clamp till it just bends, leave a few days to settle. I then slowly add pressure till the form is closed. I then leave a week to stabilise. take apart, glue between all layers, clamp up (usually requires a bit more pressure as they spring apart when out) let dray a good 4 day, then trim to final size. sand and paint

Kat.

I would still buy some of that Jarrah... not for your workbench but for your first project using your workbench