# First Glue up advice



## Flatty (Sep 21, 2011)

I am planning out my work bench and plan to glue up my work bench top. My question is what wood and dimensions should I use for the counter top? also who should I plan out my bench dog holes?

Thanks 
Flatty

This will be my first glue up!!!!!


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## Wrangler02 (Apr 15, 2011)

I would need more information to answer your question directly. Do you use hand tools or power tools? Have you done an internet search into designs?

I would recommend a book on building work benches by Chris Swartz. He give a lot of information about tailoring a design to your needs.


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## jschaben (Apr 1, 2010)

Flatty said:


> I am planning out my work bench and plan to glue up my work bench top. My question is what wood and dimensions should I use for the counter top? also who should I plan out my bench dog holes?
> 
> Thanks
> Flatty
> ...


 
Hi - for the top I just used two 3/4" sheets of OSB and covered that with 1/4" tempered hardboard.


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## Flatty (Sep 21, 2011)

Wrangler said:


> I would need more information to answer your question directly. Do you use hand tools or power tools? Have you done an internet search into designs?
> 
> I would recommend a book on building work benches by Chris Swartz. He give a lot of information about tailoring a design to your needs.


Wagoner 
Thanks for the advice on the book I will look into it tonight. As for what my intentions are for my bench and the tools I will use are. I plan to use both hand and power tools, mostly dependent on the project and as my skills progress.


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## Chancewoodchuck (Sep 27, 2011)

*bench material*

In my shop we have several different benches and it depends what they are being used for as to what materials are used...the benches that are used for building and get a lot of glue spilled on them are made of osb or mdf covered with laminate so glue repeatedly wipes off... for benches used for machining we us a maple top that will with stand jigs being repeatedly screwed down to it ...for the final area we just have benches with a mdf top...


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## yeag6154 (Oct 14, 2011)

When I build my large work bench I used MDF for the surface. I chose MDF because it is strong enough for my application which is primarily the chop saw for cutting lengths of raw lumber.

My glue table is 1/2 ply. I use this because it's cheap and as glue builds up on the table I can remove it and replace with a new sheet quickly and easily.

For my smaller portable benches I used White Ash that I planed and jointed to build me a very strong and stable work surface. This is primarily where I lay out my lumber and mix and match grain patterns to suite my needs. This also serves as an area for me to clamp down projects to use the router, sanders, or for staining.

If your work bench is going to serve multiple purposes, I would consider multiple surfaces. Break down your needs and chose products based on your applications. Price to replace and strength required.


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