Thread: Laminated kitchen benchtop as idea for work bench top?

Originally Posted by sleepy1963

I made a workbench using a solid top cut down from a 50mm thick macrocarpa slab that i bought at auction in southern TAS. It has 6 legs made from 90x90 fineline treated pine with rails made from 90 x45 fineline treated pine.
The dimensions of the top are 1920 x600. The whole thing cost around $110 and is solid as a rock.

Sounds great, can you post a photo?

phone 065.jpgHere is a pic. It is living outside at the moment as i my son and i built it for him to use in a house we are having built it is still a couple of months away from being finished. The metal cupboard is an old printer one from the local tip shop. After we move it into place i will fit some flooring sheets to the back of it for a shadow board. I haven't done it yet as it is quite heavy and we will have to carry it out to my ute.

I made a bench top with recycled hardwood flooring glued to 20mm mdf. It has never moved at all.
The apron I put around the edge was 150 by 50mm hardwood and this was way too much.
It is better for the apron to be the same thickness as the bench top

Originally Posted by bsrlee

As for the bench tops, Chris Schwarz, something of a bench guru, has used Ikea laminated benchtops for some of his more recent project workbenches. Longer is better, however you may be constrained by the size of your work area (like I am) - you could get two benchtops, cut them to rough length (1800mm??) and then re-purpose the offcuts as nice cutting/chopping boards to sell or give as presents to friends & family. No waste except sawdust there.

As for the under works, I would also recommend solid hardwood, though you may have to go to a more traditional timber yard to get it. Around my part of the world several of the yards have stopped stocking unseasoned hardwood and now only stock kiln dried partly dressed hardwoods - less work to finish, a bit more expensive than unseasoned (and not what I wanted for an outdoor bench).

Thanks bsrlee, I have been looking at a video of Chris Schwarz building a workbench (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyt4a_1G9zk) and it has given me some food for thought. I had borrowed one of his books from the library previously and liked his style of workbench with the apron and legs in the same plane. I think you're right about the solid hardwood for the legs, etc. so I'm looking into sourcing that now.
Thanks for your help.
Catherine

Originally Posted by sleepy1963

phone 065.jpgHere is a pic. It is living outside at the moment as i my son and i built it for him to use in a house we are having built it is still a couple of months away from being finished. The metal cupboard is an old printer one from the local tip shop. After we move it into place i will fit some flooring sheets to the back of it for a shadow board. I haven't done it yet as it is quite heavy and we will have to carry it out to my ute.

Thanks Sleepy, that's a very nice top and the bench looks sturdy.

Originally Posted by alwyn

I made a bench top with recycled hardwood flooring glued to 20mm mdf. It has never moved at all.

Do you mean tongue and groove flooring? I have a big piece of mdf that someone gave me. It's thicker than 20mm but I'm not sure how thick, but it's flayed on the edges due to moisture and I think it's probably bowed from leaning on edge for a couple of years. Not game to use it for a workbench top, although I've thought about it, maybe with masonite on top.

Originally Posted by alwyn

The apron I put around the edge was 150 by 50mm hardwood and this was way too much.
It is better for the apron to be the same thickness as the bench top

When you say "same thickness as the bench top" do you mean height-wise? That is, the apron should not extend down below the benchtop? Because I was thinking of a 140mm apron against a ~50mm benchtop, to allow the vice to attach under the benchtop and through the apron, and have a reasonable clamping height above the screws (although my vice is the type with only the hardware provided and you add your own wooden jaws, not the tall metal kind like yours).
Thanks for the photo of your bench, which looks great.
Catherine

Hi Cath,

I have been following your thread with interest to see the ideas developing. Which one of Christopher Schwarz books did you borrow from the library? I am in the process of reading his second book, The Workbench Design Book, The Art and Philosophy of Building Better Benches. If you have read that one - I am only halfway through - it becomes very clear that Schwarz is opposed to the use of aprons, though the book includes bench designs other than Schwarz's favourites.

I purchased the book from Book Depository: Millions of books with free delivery worldwide - They are great because the prices are low and you get free, fairly fast postage from the UK.

In case you can't get hold of the book I have summarised and to some extent paraphrased Schwarz' principles of bench design (below). Reading the book is much better than just seeing these though.

If you are still looking for a reasonably priced, ready-made benchtop to use then one other thought that I have for you is to look at solid core external doors. These are made from laminated solid timber pieces with plywood (preferable) or hardboard on both sides and, from memory, can be purchased at least 40 mm thick, possibly even 50 mm. Many woodworkers started out with one of these, even just screwed onto a couple of high sawhorses, though you could easily do better than that.

Principles of woodwork bench design
by C Schwarz (with a few comments and some paraphrasing by me)

· Always overbuild your workbench (make it solid and heavy)
· Question unusual designs (stick to a fairly standard design)
· Your bench cannot be too heavy or too long but it can easily be too wide or too tall. Max 600 mm wide recommended. Choose the height for the person’s height (approx. 50 mm below wrist height for hand work not so critical for machine use) {I - David - prefer much higher than that for machine use so that I don't hurt my back bending over}
· Choose the right height – lower is better (for hand tool use such as planing in particular, not so critical for machine use.) Adjustable height benches need to be solid.
· Place your bench with plenty of natural light, preferably indirect light (south facing in S hemisphere)
· You should be able to move your bench but not too easily
· Your bench is a 3D clamping surface. Anything that interferes with clamping work to your benchtop (aprons, a drawer, doors, supports etc. will frustrate you.
· All benches should be able to grip the wood so that you can easily work on all faces, the ends and the edges. Aprons and skirts are not necessary
· Keep the edges of the top in line with the legs and with the stretcher to enhance clamping options
· Flat surface all across no tool tray
· Select the best material that you can – heavy, massive, thick, solid less boards is better.
· Don’t let showy features interfere with function.
· Place vises to maximise usefulness. If right handed keep the front vise at the left hand end, front, and place a tail vise on the right hand end.
· Dog holes – place close to front of top – usually within 50 mm – and round dog holes are easier to drill where you want them than square dog holes, which must be inserted during the initial build.
· Storage. Workbenches are for working, not storage so do not let storage interfere with usefulness.
· Do not polish the timber so an oil finish is better than a shiny finish – linseed oil or a variation that will withstand spills is ideal.

I hope that this helps.
David