On 29 Apr 2005 09:01:46 -0700, "lance" wrote:

I'm in the process of finishing the base of my first workbench. I have
decided to go with a laminated MDF top, with masonite on top of that.
I am trying to figure out how to attach an apron to the top and can't
come up with any good way

Do you really mean "apron" as the part under the top that the top is
attached to, or do you mean an edging around the MDF?

I built a table top for an oak kitchen table by gluing 2.5" x 3/4" oak
to the edges of the MDF, lined up with biscuits, but it could have
been splines. They were not mitered at the corners, but simply
butt-joined and double-dowelled at those places. Only the top had MDF
in case anyone's wondering, so "oak" is still appropriate. The hard
finish potected it from spills and light dents.

If I'd calculated right, I'd have been able to attach the table apron
[the part underneath] directly to the oak edging. However, I was
intent on appearances. I got around that by first starting to attach
as if to the MDF, but only to get initial screw marks. The top was
being attached with hardwood blocks screwed into the apron and the
top. Then I took the top off and used a plunge-router to drive 1"
holes partway into the MDF on those marks. These I filled with solid
hardwood dowel, glued into place. When ready, the top was attached by
re-drilling into these dowels and inserting the screws. It hasn't
budged, even lifting the entire table by the top.

Either way, the hardwood trim around the edge can be as wide as
necessary to allow attachment into the wood instead of the MDF.