Benchtops & Shelving

Blueskies wrote:

How about some of those new plastic deck 'boards'.

I used those on the last deck I built. It's like working with spaghetti. You'd
need lots of reinforcement, and it won't take any punishment.

George Patterson
A diplomat is a person who can tell you to go to hell in such a way that
you look forward to the trip.

On Fri, 05 Mar 2004 03:27:40 GMT, "G.R. Patterson III"
wrote:



Blueskies wrote:

How about some of those new plastic deck 'boards'.

I used those on the last deck I built. It's like working with spaghetti. You'd
need lots of reinforcement, and it won't take any punishment.

Trek? I'd have said it's like working with slippery iron and you need
a truss (for the hernia you'll get from lifting it). DO NOT BUILD
AIRPLANES OUT OF THIS STUFF. (ObContent)

Don

Don Tuite wrote:

On Fri, 05 Mar 2004 03:27:40 GMT, "G.R. Patterson III"
wrote:



Blueskies wrote:

How about some of those new plastic deck 'boards'.

I used those on the last deck I built. It's like working with spaghetti. You'd
need lots of reinforcement, and it won't take any punishment.

Trek? I'd have said it's like working with slippery iron and you need
a truss (for the hernia you'll get from lifting it). DO NOT BUILD
AIRPLANES OUT OF THIS STUFF. (ObContent)

Don

I'm building some walls in the shop using steel studs.

Light steel sections (maybe .020 thick?) rolled into the most
beautiful beams, channels, other odd shapes...

All three times too heavy.


Richard

http://www.roscoemoss.com/specs.html

--
Dan D.



..
"Blueskies" wrote in message .com...
Cast some concrete in a 2" form?

How about some of those new plastic deck 'boards'.



--
Dan D.



.
"Jim Weir" wrote in message ...
Oooookay, let me try again.

What NONLUMBER bench tops have you ever seen or considered that might work?

I'm not making 747s, fellers, nor am I building spars. The worst I might want
to do is bend up a 4" x 6" bracket out of 5052H32 and drill it with a Harbor
Freight benchtop drill press.

Jim



Jim Weir
shared these priceless pearls of wisdom:

-However, since I'm going to a new method of framing, I'd like thoughts on what
-you have used as workbench/shelving materials. The benches will be about 2'
-wide and 6' long. Yes, I know, solid moulded Teflon would be best, but quick
-and cheap is high on the list of attributes I'm looking for.
-
-Thoughts appreciated.


Jim Weir (A&P/IA, CFI, & other good alphabet soup)
VP Eng RST Pres. Cyberchapter EAA Tech. Counselor
http://www.rst-engr.com

Jim Weir wrote in message . ..
Oooookay, let me try again.

What NONLUMBER bench tops have you ever seen or considered that might work?


What are your operating parameters? How sturdy? Chemical resistance?
Impact resistance? Easy to clean? Non static? Humidity resistant
(no rot or rust)?

My favorite work bench is part of an old restaurant. 1" galvanized
steel structure, 14 ga stainless top with a nice rounded lip on the
back to keep things from rolling off. The only thing that I could
never clean off was some oil from a MB diesel. Nasty stuff. The oil
not the Merc.

Jim Weir wrote:

I'm about to start building the "furniture" for the hangar.

Well, if the stuff is rotting on you, I would go to pressure-treated pine and
stick with the construction you usually use.

I've also found it impossible to get decent hollow-core doors these days. They
used to make the inexpensive ones out of luan plywood, but the stuff we get on
the dirty side is all masonite with a woodgrain finish these days. I've got
nothing against masonite, but the glue doesn't hold and they're way too flimsy
to use for tables.

That said, the last bench I built was put together from a set of plastic legs
that HD was discontinuing (on sale at $25) and a sheet of 3/4" particle board.
My lathe is on it now.

George Patterson
A diplomat is a person who can tell you to go to hell in such a way that
you look forward to the trip.

Has anybody mentioned prefabbed kitchen countertops?

I know, particleboard underneath. But if they don't rot out around
your sink, they must be pretty rot-proof.

Don

Don Tuite wrote:

I know, particleboard underneath. But if they don't rot out around
your sink, they must be pretty rot-proof.

They don't rot, but they will swell and disintegrate if they stay wet. They
stay together because the installer uses various tricks to make sure the water
stays where it's supposed to be.

George Patterson
A diplomat is a person who can tell you to go to hell in such a way that
you look forward to the trip.

1/4" steel plate works pretty good, you can glue down a thin short-nap outdoor
carpet,(or indoor for that matter)---that keeps screws etc from bouncing off onto
the floor--Kinda makes it hard to drive nails in, but It ain't wood!!

Jim Weir wrote:

I'm about to start building the "furniture" for the hangar. After a lifetime of
building "manly" workbenches out of DF 4x4s milled to take 2x4 crossmembers, and
having the concomitant rot and deterioration of wood, I'm considering making the
framing out of 1¼ PVC Schedule 40 pipe and fittings. The problem is what to use
for the bench tops and shelving underneath.

So far, all my "heavy duty" workbenches have been made out of 3/4" plywood with
a 2" doubler plate along the front and back, and my electronic workbenches have
been either solid core or hollow core doors with an appropriate varnish or Deft
coating on them.

However, since I'm going to a new method of framing, I'd like thoughts on what
you have used as workbench/shelving materials. The benches will be about 2'
wide and 6' long. Yes, I know, solid moulded Teflon would be best, but quick
and cheap is high on the list of attributes I'm looking for.

Thoughts appreciated.

Jim
Jim Weir (A&P/IA, CFI, & other good alphabet soup)
VP Eng RST Pres. Cyberchapter EAA Tech. Counselor
http://www.rst-engr.com

On Wed, 03 Mar 2004 12:06:03 -0800, Jim Weir wrote:

I'm considering making the
framing out of 1¼ PVC Schedule 40 pipe and fittings.

Since you left "cosidering" in here, I'd give some thought to using
EMT ... inexpensive, and stiffer, and fittings are easily obtained to
do lots of what youwould need.

The problem is what to use
for the bench tops and shelving underneath.

Thickness gives stiffness .... your hollow core door blanks sound
good. I've seen rolls and sheets of polyethylene that is fairly
thick, maybe .050 to .125 inch that would make a good waterproof
covering.