What could u make a workbench out of for little £?

[Paul Chapman]

Q: for the guys that have used MDF, is it Moisture resistant, and do you put a finish on it (yours looks shiny Paul-oeeer missus)?

Mine was just ordinary MDF. Three sheets of 18mm lipped with soft wood then glued together with a few biscuits for alignment.

That photograph that I posted was when the bench was about 10 years old and had been used regularly, so it's about 12 years old now and still looks as good as new. All I do is wax it now and then.

When I built it I intended it to be a temporary bench until I had the time and money to build something better but it's been so good, I've stuck with it. I did worry that the dog holes wouldn't stand up to much use but they've been fine and I use them all the time with the various Veritas dogs.

What I think is more important than what the bench is made from, are the various work-holding features. The dog holes have been a real boon. I use two Record vices with dogs but I've recently bought a Veritas twin-screw vice which I'll be fitting to the front. I also plan to buy the new Veritas tail vice http://www.brimarc.com/products/Veritas ... 830293.htm So the two Records will be replaced in due course and the bench modified.

I think it is important to decide how you want to use the bench. I use predominantly hand tools but someone who is more into power tools might prefer a slightly different style of bench.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[Shane]

I use my bench for both hand tool and power tool work, also for a lot of assembly work, so I prefer to use full 8x4 sheets of mdf on a slightly lower bench so I can easily reach over it

 

[Phil Sewell]

I spent some time on my "dream bench" a couple of years ago, I've recently added it to my website. It's made from workshop off-cuts so is a mix of timbers. The top is ex 4" at the front where I'll be pounding with a hammer but the back part is sacrificial mdf. The adjustable bench dogs work really well.

Heres the link if anybody is interested.

http://www.finehandmadeboxes.co.uk/the% ... 0bench.htm
Phil.

 

[LuptonM]

I spent some time on my "dream bench" a couple of years ago, I've recently added it to my website. It's made from workshop off-cuts so is a mix of timbers. The top is ex 4" at the front where I'll be pounding with a hammer but the back part is sacrificial mdf. The adjustable bench dogs work really well.

Heres the link if anybody is interested.

http://www.finehandmadeboxes.co.uk/the% ... 0bench.htm
Phil.

Not bad at all. Def one of the better posted ones

My workbenches is going to be mainly for hand tools as the only power tools I'll be using is a thickness planer and a router. No point in sanding if you've got a scraper. I'd like to add a bandsaw to that but I'll have to wait

I reckon I'll be doing allot of planing ( stock prep), maybe a bit of dovetailing, M and T'ing and a bit of routing now and again. I'd quite like to make electric guitars and high end furniture on my workbench once I learn the skills to do so (just as a hobby mind u)

 

[mickthetree]

whats your location LuptonM?

 

[LuptonM]

Home- Ringwood (near Bournemouth)

term time- Oxford

Your not going to send Ninja's are u?

 

[mickthetree]

hiyar! karate chop!

There is probably a wood reclaimation centre near by. My bench is made of an old roof rafter £15 from a local reclaimation yard. At 11" x 3.5" I got 2 x 120cm lengths, jointed and glued them together. Its been very useful and sturdy.

Record 52 1/2 vice and robert is your mothers brother as they say.

The base is made from some 3 x 2s from an old door frame.

I like the old pine top, Its forgiving on your tools yet hard enough to take a pounding and easy to tidy up with a hand plane.

I'll try and take some photos tomorrow.

 

[mtt.tr]

To be honest i dont think it matters what Mr Schwartz so long as it works for you. Might not work for him but might be ok for somebody else.

Whats wrong with it being unattractive so long as it works i would personally use mdf possible hardboard on top so it can be easily replaced

 

[GazPal]

A cheap work bench can readily be made, with the worktop from 4x2 joist on edge (Faced using hardwood or ply and nosed with hardwood quadrant), with frame and legs from 4x2 joist and 4x4 posts.

MDF is fine for surfaces, but resists flattening if it wanders from true and tends not to hold up to well to moisture/spills (Delamination and particle separation) unless well sealed and wears pretty quickly if you're using hold fasts on a regular basis. Also be sure to solidly frame out areas where vise are fitted.

 

[bugbear]

Anyway whats the recommendation on fair priced vices in the uk?

Car boot sale. You should be able to get Record #52 or similar for around 5-20 depending on luck and persistence, or your ability to get up as early as jimi43.

Tip: when buying a quick release vice, check that the vice can be closed hard up without the thread slipping. Plain screw vices seem to last pretty much for ever.

BugBear

 

[bugbear]

I think it is important to decide how you want to use the bench. I use predominantly hand tools but someone who is more into power tools might prefer a slightly different style of bench.

The key thing with a hand tool bench (read: planing bench) is a rigid frame to resist racking, and a flat(ish) top if you intend to work thin stuff.

One can easily make an (ugly) rack resistant frame by adding either sheet goods or diagonal laths to the faces of a simple rectilinear frame.

Making a rack resistant frame in the "classic" way using M&T joints requires skill and good materials.

BugBear

 

[dr.nick]

I stripped down and beefed up an old work bench that actually came with my house. I based my new bench top on Paul Chapman's design. 3 layers of mdf and lipped w/ 2-1/2" maple. I put and old columbian vise on there and got some bench dogs. The veritas end vise looks awesome but a bit out of my price range. I have a smaller vise i will put on the front eventually.
It's very heavy and would be really hard to get it to move.
I made a 12' bench and didn't break the bank.

 

[baldpate]

If your workshop layout permits, one of the best ways to make a bench resistant to racking is to tie it at the back to a wall.

The M&T joints in the under-frame of my bench (made long ago, when I was starting out) are pretty poor and the bench was quite floppy until I bolted the back of the frame to a brick wall. It's now solid as a rock.

 

[Elapid]

My bench is just made from pine 2x4. I just made 2 strong frames front and back of double thickness then screwed and glued 2x4 across the top and bottom making sure the top is perfectly flat then topped it off with MDF with a bit of planking around that can be replaced when needed for very little. I've used far too much wood building it to make sure it is strong but at least I will never have to worry about it. It's also screwed to the wall and the floor to stop any movement.

 

[o0dunk0o]

The cheapest way to make a sturdy bench top is to build a torsion box.

I built this one with a piece of 18mm MDF for the top and some 12mm MDF for the honeycomb and bottom

this is my portable bench and even with the abuse it can get on site and being loaded in and out of the van the top has shown no sign of moving.