OT a little bit, don's work bench

[captden29]

don, i noticed in one of your responses, the picture of the engine also showed a little of your workbench. i am planning on building a workbench in my garage and was trying to figure out what kind of wood to use for the top. yours looks like it is several layers of plywood and that seems like a good idea to me. sturdy enough and the top layer can be replaced if damaged. was i seeing it correct? any other suggestions? i just moved to north carolina and i have one of my 54 chryslers here. i will bring the convertible down when the weather cools a little. it is a long trip from NY. thanks, dennis

[Allan Faust]

maple has long been used for tops of workbenches.... use strips, glued and clamped together.... then varnish.... and done.

Allan

[Young Ed]

Mine in the basement is made from HDFB. strong stuff but its not cheap. My pieces are dumpster finds from a buddy who builds office furniture. They used to be cubicle desktops.

[Don Coatney]

capden29;

I did indeed use plywood for the top. One sheet of 3/4"

topped by a aheet of 1/4" luan. My bench is 3' X 8' and

attached to the garage wall so it does not move.. When

I was done rebuilding my engine, transmission, and

differential I cleaned the top of the bench and applied

another coat of marine varnish. I have installed a custom

bent stainless steel sheet under the end where the vise is

mounted.

I installed a shelf above and below my bench. I allowed room

to store my air compressor under my bench.

[Ed Griffin]

Ed, yours looks like the same material and resource as mine. Even almost the same color. I did basically the same thing. Wife's office was moving and she told me they were going to dump the mail room shelves, table tops, etc.

I loaded a tandem trailer full of it and used it but gave some to friends who could use it too. Not only is that stuff expensive it is also very heavy. Especially when trying to get it on and off an elevator by yourself. It was worth it though

[Young Ed]

The 2 pieces I have were in a building where there was a support column. When it got moved they couldnt reuse those 2 pieces because of the notch for the column. So into the trash they went.

[Paul Beard]

If all else fails use two pieces of MDF glued together. Very heavy but very hard to dent or scratch.

[hkestes41]

Sister site to the HAMB covering garages/shops The Garage Journal http://www.garagejournal.com/

Some very interesting projects and discussions.

[Normspeed]

Don, your compressor, is that the sought-after Silver Mullet model?

[Ron k. 40 p10]

I like using old kitchen counter tops ....usually free (curb side ) and most are covered with formica....and made of 3/4 press board

[Don Coatney]

Don, your compressor, is that the sought-after Silver Mullet model?

It is the highly sought after "still runs after 20+ years" model. Like most of my stuff I souped it up a few years back. Usual stuff, lumpy reed plates, dual intakes, dual point pressure switch, gearing change, upgraded unloader, etc.

[captden29]

thanks for the replies and suggestions. i will peruse the local dumptsters for materials although i think i can get plywood leftovers from my nephews jobsites. i saw the outlet on the front of dons bench and i like that idea.i want to do mine right the first time. thanks again, dennis:)