Best Woods for Workbench Top

Dec 12, 2004 6 Replies
B

I am planning a large shop project of building a large, heavy dut



woodworker's bench. I am in the early planning stages and am currentl looking at different materials for the entire project. I have quite bit of 2" thick Padauk, and would like to use it for accents or vise and accessories. My question is: Would Padauk be hard enough to use fo the entire bench top or only for borders and accessories? Also, Wha other woods would make an excellent bench top other than th traditional maple and beech? Thank You


-- Bigdaddy


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R

My workbench is an old bowling alley. Oak works great. I do think that a light colored wood is desirable. It is often hard to get enough light in the shop and workbench color can help.

I'm not convinced that hardwood is essential for a workbench. Plywood makes a suitable workbench - a couple thicknesses are needed to be sufficiently solid.

Dick

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D

Bowling alleys are maple, not oak. Maple is hard, heavy and most of all, stabile.

Probably the best wood for a workbench is ipe. The downside is the weight. You have to carry this stuff around while you work on it. It's about 1/3 more in weight than oak.

I wouldn't use padauk myself: it's a bit too light, too red to look at all day long. I once had an ash workbench. My new one is maple, and I like the closed pore look. If you do a lot of hand work, then avoid the pine benches: not enough mass.

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R

Padauk is definitely hard enough. It's also brittle, which might be a problem.

--RC

Projects expand to fill the clamps available -- plus 20 percent

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