work bench top material?

[sunnybob]

I'm just about to fit my new record 52 1/2 vice.
I've seen the archive links here, very helpful.
But my workbench top isnt up to the job, its only 22mm flooring grade chip board on a 25mm square iron frame work.

The framework is staying, but i think its time to put a solid wood top on it.
I'm planning on buying planks (correct term?) around 2 metres by whatever square.

What depth? 25mm ok?
Whats the best types of wood, bearing in mind cost? Dont particularly want to spend more on the top than the rest of the workshop combined.

 

[dzj]

The '25mm square iron frame work' might be a bit light for a heavy bench top suitable for hand tool work.
I guess an inexpensive solution would be some 19mm mdf over the chipboard you have now.
(You can turn it over when the first side gets damaged)
Some people make a benchtop from an IKEA-type beech kitchen countertop. (Also inexpensive)

 

[sunnybob]

the iron is pretty strong, all welded with a centre shelf made the same way. I can walk up and down on top if it need be, and i'm a 100 kg., so I have no fears on that score.

Hadnt considered mdf, would that not need sealing and painting due to dust?

 

[Roughcut]

I would also consider mdf.
Cheap, flat, stable and easily available, also won't need surface planing to flatten as timber would.
You can add a few coats of Danish Oil to the surface if you are inclined to do so.

 

[Steve Maskery]

Good advice above.
Don't use oak. It has a high tannin content and it reacts with iron. Your iron vice will go rusty, as will any steel tools left in contact with it, quite quickly, too, for example overnight.

 

[paulm]

Yep, a sheet or two of mdf would be my choice, maybe the moisture resistant variety if you can get it as it may be better quality than the cheap stuff from the sheds, but that may be overkill. You could also have a top layer of thin ply laid on top so that it's easier and cheaper still to replace now and again (or flip over in the first instance when too dinged and covered in paint etc !).

So some combination of your existing chipboard and mdf and maybe thin ply.

Could be worth lipping it all round with something else too, solid timber of some sort, it would keep a thin ply top in place and make the edge a bit stronger for clamping, but again probably not really necessary.

Cheers, Paul

 

[sunnybob]

well, I've decided.
Just come back from my favourite woodyard. I've bought 20mm T&G flooring boards, and will lay them over the existing flooring chipboard. Got a good deal I think.
10 off 85 x 20 x 4.2 metre pieces for 35 euro delivered (£24.74). Cut to 2.8 metre which is my bench length, cut half in half again and job done.
Now I have to make a steel plate for the vice, I've decided to build the back plate to the bench edge, so I need to cut a section of the box frame and replace it with a hefty plate with bolt holes. Then I can tack weld the bolts to the plate, so the threads hang down nicely for the nuts.