Okay, I suck...

[Sharp Blade]

No really! I mean I suck! LOL I have been sick, out of work (again!) and it's been to danged cold in my garage/workshop to do much of anything. Soooooooo, I went to HFT today and bought a few little niceties that I needed...like a bench grinder...no honey, now I can sharpen all the blades I have in this shop! Yay! (She has flashbacks of meeting me at the ER after nearly cutting my right index finger off while sharpening a kitchen knife! :BangHead: ) I also made my way to Woodcrap and FINALLY purchased a 3/4" router bit for Playwood (real sz. 23/32).
Also, I am going to purchase the wood for a new bench, I have the plans for the one I want, but I have to get the wood...right? LOL

I want to make the top from maple, but I haven't any idea where the best place to go in Charlotte is for decent thick maple. My partner said to make it out of pine for now and when I can afford it, get the right maple for the job. I thnk I'll do that for now..I am only doing smaller projects now, I can always use the pine top for something else.

What do you guys think, should I stack up a bunch of good quality pine studs, glue them together (face to face) and whip out the old jointer plane for centuries of fun? :BangHead: :BangHead: :BangHead: :BangHead:

Anna-Catherine

 

[McRabbet]

If I were you, I'd go one step beyond kiln-dried pine studs (which can be pine, spruce or fir) and use Southern Yellow Pine. Costs a little more, but SYP is much tougher, usually straighter and much more stable and will last for a long time. There have been a number of WW magazine articles about using SYP for bench tops -- and it is lots cheaper than maple.

My $.02 - HTH

Rob

 

[DaveO]

Hey Anna, great to hear from you again. You could do much worse than the 2 x 4 lamination that you mention. But you might consider using sereval layers of MDF, topped with hardboard, and edged in the hardwood of your choice, as a functional, heavy, cheap bench with a replaceable top surface. If not, try to find some straight SYP studs and glue them up :-D

Dave

 

[Sharp Blade]

Thanks a great idea. Why didn't I think of that? Oh yeah, I forgot, I suck! LOL

Anna-Catherine

 

[DaveO]

You don't suck if you come here for advice...that's pretty smart in my book :-D :icon_thum

Dave

 

[sapwood]

Congrats on the new acquistions Anna :icon_thum
Buying new tools always makes me feel better :lol:

Hope it was the right medicine for you too :mrgreen:

Roger

 

[chris99z71]

I probably sound like a broken record with this, but if you're looking to go cheap for your benchtop, head to your nearest Habitat re-use center and pick up (carefully - they're heavy as heck!) a solid core, commercial interior door. They can usually be had for $5-$25 depending on how the stars are aligned on that particular day. They're dead flat, super heavy, they take a beating and there's no assembly required. If you're more particular about appearance, cover it with some sacrificial 3/4 MDF and throw some hardwood around the edges. I made a top like that last year for my Dad's Christmas gift and once assembled, it must have weighed in around 300lbs!

 

[Tarhead]

...and speaking of Habitat ReStore...
Last weekend I saw a pile of new 2" thick Oak veneer/solid core commercial doors at the store on Wendover in Charlotte for $25ea (I think). They're back in the area with the countertops and moldings not with the other doors. These are extremely heavy Hospital/School spec type doors. There is a narrow opening along one edge for a 4" X 24" window. You could get creative with this opening and use it as a tool tray or rip the door down and still have a big benchtop. They also had some offcuts of these doors ~30"X30" for $5.

 

[Sharp Blade]

I probably sound like a broken record with this, but if you're looking to go cheap for your benchtop, head to your nearest Habitat re-use center and pick up (carefully - they're heavy as heck!) a solid core, commercial interior door. They can usually be had for $5-$25 depending on how the stars are aligned on that particular day. They're dead flat, super heavy, they take a beating and there's no assembly required. If you're more particular about appearance, cover it with some sacrificial 3/4 MDF and throw some hardwood around the edges. I made a top like that last year for my Dad's Christmas gift and once assembled, it must have weighed in around 300lbs!

I actually am going to go over to the Habitate store in a few minutes. I will see what they have, but I'll be on my motorcycle! If I find anything I'll have to wait to get it until I have the truck...hopefully tomorrow! LOL

 

[cpowell]

Anna, glad to hear you're taking advantage of the cold weather days buying new toys! Works for me, too.

I'm going through the same thought process on building a bench. I'd be curious to hear what you go with and how it works out. You'll probably have yours built before I even start mine.. :lol:

Chuck