Replies

1. 
   flairwoodworks | Oct 30, 2009 04:48am | #1

   Suitable woods to make a workbench top should be stiff. That is of primary importance. Hardness is another factor. Obviously, a harder wood will receive less dings. But it will also require more effort to flatten by hand. Oaks would be fine.

   As an aside, some woodworkers make their benches out of not-so-stiff materials like MDF and add bracing to stiffen the top.

   Chris @ www.flairwoodworks.com
   and www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com)

    - Success is not the key to happiness.  Happiness is the key to success.  If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer

2. 
   kellyanderson | Oct 30, 2009 06:01am | #2

   My first bench top was made of red oak. My current bench top is made of fir. The oak top may have taken a little more of a beating but it also was just as likely to ding what I was working on. The fir top may take a ding but what I am working on dose not get hurt. I like the fir top better.

3. 
   old saw | Oct 30, 2009 06:47am | #3

   White oak is easier to glue than hard maple and is somewhat harder, stronger, and heavier than red oak.  In my experience red oak splits and cracks more easily.  My own bench is hard maple, but I think I'd be just as happy with white oak.   On the other hand you might find more honeycomb checks in thick white oak.

   I don't know what's available where you live, but southern yellow pine makes a pretty decent bench.  You would want pine that is relatively slow growth with more annual rings to the inch - heartwood or boards from large trees.  Some #1 and #2 framing lumber can be suitable, but stay away from studs - use 2x6s or 2x8s and larger, and rip them narrower - you'll get less of the tree's juvenile wood, pith and knots.  Yellow pine can become pretty hard after it's been inside for several years and dried out more.  One thing about a bench made of  inexpensive lumber:  one is more likely to actually use the thing, because it isn't so "pretty."

4. 
   ring | Oct 30, 2009 08:06am | #4

   You can make a serviceable bench out of any of those, and others as well. I've currently got 2, one European beech and one maple, but I've had others in the past and it depends a lot on what's available for you. Aside from its physical strength, the nice things about maple are that it's very light in color, which I find kinder on the eyes, and it's heavy. All other things being equal I wouldn't go with red oak just because of its color, although structurally it would make a fine bench.

   David Ring

   http://www.touchwood.co.il/?lang=e&id=1

5. 
   roc | Oct 30, 2009 08:12am | #5

   I couldn't be happier with my purple heart. Maple may be good but I think it is a bit slick. See the stuff in this post at "oozes" . I didn't limit myself in any way on materials. If I thought there was a better more expensive wood to make my bench out of I would have bought it:

   http://forums.taunton.com/fw-knots/messages?msg=47488.8

   This book has strength, hardness and stiffness info on most of the main types of wood and oak is strong but purple heart and bubinga etc. blows oak out of the water so I use those to make my wood working tools from.

   http://www.amazon.com/Nick-englers-woodworking-wisdom-Engler/dp/0762101792/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256877970&sr=1-1

   The Krenov saw horses in pics are bubinga. Stronger than purple heart/didn't need the non slick surface ooz on my saw horses.

   roc

   Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe. Abraham Lincoln ( 54° shaves )

   Edited 10/30/2009 1:14 am by roc <!-- ROC2013 -->

   
   

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   Edited 10/30/2009 1:15 am by roc

   
6. 
   blewcrowe | Oct 30, 2009 06:45pm | #6

   Also, I think Beech is a good one.

    

   Denny

1. 
   flairwoodworks | Oct 30, 2009 10:35pm | #7

   Denny! You're back! I don't mean to hijack this fascinating thread, but how and where have you been?Chris @ http://www.flairwoodworks.com and http://www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com)

    - Success is not the key to happiness.  Happiness is the key to success.  If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer

1. 
   blewcrowe | Nov 05, 2009 03:53pm | #12

   Had switched over to my art (painting) and away from wood for awhile; with success, too; I've won four awards this year. Plus I've been running a motorcycle club and we put on events weekly. Recently, for personal needs, I got back into my woodshop and started doing some things again. 

   Denny

1. 
   KiddervilleAcres | Nov 06, 2009 04:54am | #13

   Hey Denny,

   Good to see you posting agin.  Hope all is well with you.

   Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres

   A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!

1. 
   blewcrowe | Nov 09, 2009 08:02pm | #16

   Hello, Robert. Good to talk to you again. I got swamped by other things and have been away for awhile. How are things in the north country? 

   Denny

2. 
   KiddervilleAcres | Nov 10, 2009 05:16am | #17

   Denny,

   Who's Robert?  :-)

   It was almost 70 degrees here today!  It's no wonder the flu is getting outa control around here.  Been pretty much hangin tight to the woodshop lately as there's lots to do.

   Tomorrow I'll be getting the treadle posts set for the new shave-hossy.  Then its give it a road test.   After that I'll be working on a new design I came up with for a table. 

   If ye git a chance check out the How do you design discussion.

   Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres

   A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!

7. 
   Rob Brown | Oct 30, 2009 11:33pm | #8

   Although many benches are made from Beech I stay away from it because it moves so much from summer to winter.

   I used White Ash. It's strong, I could obtain lots of clear boards and was very reasonably priced. I added some Canary wood for contrast.

   Rob Brown
   http://www.equinoxinteriors.ca

   
   

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   Edited 10/30/2009 4:34 pm ET by Rob Brown

   
1. 
   KiddervilleAcres | Oct 31, 2009 06:42am | #10

   Rob,

   Nice bench. 

   I like the contrasting woods and grain matching on the base.  Are those drawers under?  Do you use the holes for supporting long boards or are they finger holes for the drawers?  Maybe both?

   Regards,

    Bob @ Kidderville Acres

   A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!

1. 
   Rob Brown | Oct 31, 2009 04:34pm | #11

   Thanks Bob.They are drawers. And the holes are "handles" to open them. The small ones to store hardware and the two large ones to store tools. I do this wood thing professionally so I don't go overboard with hand tools. I don't think clients would appreciate the extra labour to hand plane planks when we have these things called jointers and planers. Don't get me wrong, I use a mix of hand and power tools. The reason I bring this up is because the design of the bench and the location of the vises is different than most, but it suits the type of work I do._______________________
   Rob Brown
   http://www.equinoxinteriors.ca

   Edited 10/31/2009 9:42 am ET by Rob Brown

2. 
   Samm90 | Nov 08, 2009 08:37am | #15

   Wow !! That is a very nice bench. So nice that I could put it in my living room.

   Quang

8. 
   DonStephan | Oct 31, 2009 02:59am | #9

   I priced both white ash and maple last spring, and ash was I think about half the cost.  The drawback of the ash was that the thickest available was only 8/4.  Maple was available up to at least 12/4 and maybe 16/6.  I built the Klaus bench in Taunton's "The Workbench" book and has to laminate for many of the pieces.  Saved $ but spent perhaps 20 hours making laminations.

9. 
   GregoryPaolini | Nov 07, 2009 02:49pm | #14

   I'm in the process of making a new scandinavian bench for myself, and I was wondering the same thing - After all, I'm kind of partial to Quarter sawn white oak -

   Anyway, besides the whole stregth and stability issue, most of the woodworkers I spoke with cited brightness as a consideration - A hard maple workbench top will reflect a lot more light than an oak one will 

   I'm still working on the base of my bench - So I havn't had to make a top dicision yet.  You know, the shoemakers kids.....

   Gregory Paolini

   http://www.GregoryPaolini.com

   Custom Furniture, Cabinetry, and Woodworking Instruction

10. 
    spotcheck | Nov 10, 2009 07:30pm | #18

    My very first project was making the workbench.  I used RO floor joists (2" x 8") from a neighbors renovation project  (125 year old house, framed in RO) for the 3" thick top.  Bought the RO for the frame-trestles-cabinets.

    My yield was well under 50% from the framing grade wood, but the bench works great for me.  I have no intention of replacing it.  If I did, I'd likely use hard maple - that is what I used for my 28" x 12' back bench along the wall.  That doesn't mean the other woods mentioned here aren't good - this is just what I used.

    Of course, after 10+ years, my bench looks like the original 125 yr old RO wood.  There are black stains and black rectangular holes from the spikes used in framing.  I finished with BLO when I built it, and from time to time I wll sand or scrape the top or part of the top, but that's it  - I don't spend time refurbing the workbench.

    Punch line - the soon-to-be-ex-wife of the neighbor saw the bench after I was finally done and said "We shouldn't have given that wood away -look how nice it is."  I laughed, and told her "Knowing what I know now, after all I've been through, I should have paid you to not let me have it."