So I've made an outfeed table for my tablesaw. The top is made from a
recycled piece of 3/4" ply. I sanded it good and got a good flat surface.
My plan is to have a router insert at one end. Typically, a work table like
this would get no finish, or at most a few coats of wipe on poly. Since
this is recycled ply which was previously painted (flat black), I am going
to finish it, preferably white. I have 3 coats of Kilz on it now which has
been sanded between coats to give a good flat even surface. My initial
thought is to just slap 2 coats of semi-gloss latex (I have interior on
hand) and recoat when necessary. But, it never hurts to ask. What would
y'all topcoat it with? It there something that is (both cost effective) and
super tough? FWIW, it is in a covered but unheated space.

Thanks in advance.

Ed

Ed Edelenbos wrote:
So I've made an outfeed table for my tablesaw. The top is made from a
recycled piece of 3/4" ply. I sanded it good and got a good flat
surface. My plan is to have a router insert at one end. Typically, a
work table like this would get no finish, or at most a few coats of
wipe on poly. Since this is recycled ply which was previously
painted (flat black), I am going to finish it, preferably white. I
have 3 coats of Kilz on it now which has been sanded between coats to
give a good flat even surface. My initial thought is to just slap 2
coats of semi-gloss latex (I have interior on hand) and recoat when
necessary. But, it never hurts to ask. What would y'all topcoat it
with? It there something that is (both cost effective) and super
tough? FWIW, it is in a covered but unheated space.
Thanks in advance.

Ed

Poly. Or most anything except latex.

--

Ed Edelenbos wrote:
So I've made an outfeed table for my tablesaw. What would
y'all topcoat it with?

Laminate. I got some free scraps from a local custom counter shop.
Works great.

If you insist on brushing something, I'd use poly and then wax it to
make it slick.

Chris

Any raw paint is likely gona rub off on the wood occasionally. You
could poly over the paint or wax over the paint

On Nov 11, 1:52*pm, "Ed Edelenbos" wrote:
So I've made an outfeed table for my tablesaw. *The top is made from a
recycled piece of 3/4" ply. *I sanded it good and got a good flat surface.
My plan is to have a router insert at one end. *Typically, a work table like
this would get no finish, or at most a few coats of wipe on poly. *Since
this is recycled ply which was previously painted (flat black), I am going
to finish it, preferably white. *I have 3 coats of Kilz on it now which has
been sanded between coats to give a good flat even surface. *My initial
thought is to just slap 2 coats of semi-gloss latex (I have interior on
hand) and recoat when necessary. *But, it never hurts to ask. *What would
y'all topcoat it with? *It there something that is (both cost effective) and
super tough? *FWIW, it is in a covered but unheated space.

Thanks in advance.

Ed

I use hardboard for just about everything from outfeed tables, to
sacrificial table tops for the router or radial arm saw, to jigs and
fences, to patterns and prototypes.

The smooth side is very smooth and the stuff is dirt cheap.
It's the duct tape of sheet goods. :-)


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

"-MIKE-" wrote in message
...
I use hardboard for just about everything from outfeed tables, to
sacrificial table tops for the router or radial arm saw, to jigs and
fences, to patterns and prototypes.

The smooth side is very smooth and the stuff is dirt cheap.
It's the duct tape of sheet goods. :-)


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

Thanks all. Some decisions for me to make.

Ed

"Ed Edelenbos" wrote in message
...
So I've made an outfeed table for my tablesaw. The top is made from a
recycled piece of 3/4" ply. I sanded it good and got a good flat surface.
My plan is to have a router insert at one end. Typically, a work table
like this would get no finish, or at most a few coats of wipe on poly.
Since this is recycled ply which was previously painted (flat black), I am
going to finish it, preferably white. I have 3 coats of Kilz on it now
which has been sanded between coats to give a good flat even surface. My
initial thought is to just slap 2 coats of semi-gloss latex (I have
interior on hand) and recoat when necessary. But, it never hurts to ask.
What would y'all topcoat it with? It there something that is (both cost
effective) and super tough? FWIW, it is in a covered but unheated space.

Thanks in advance.

Ed

Mine is laminate. Never a problem, wipes off easily..

"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
...



Good suggestion!

"Chris Friesen" wrote in message
...
Ed Edelenbos wrote:
So I've made an outfeed table for my tablesaw. What would y'all topcoat it
with?

Laminate. I got some free scraps from a local custom counter shop. Works
great.


Ditto. I used iron on melamine laminate on mine. Didn't even screw up the
iron.



--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN
mschnerdatcarolina.rr.com

On Nov 11, 4:49*pm, -MIKE- wrote:
I use hardboard for just about everything from outfeed tables, to
sacrificial table tops for the router or radial arm saw, to jigs and
fences, to patterns and prototypes.

The smooth side is very smooth and the stuff is dirt cheap.
It's the duct tape of sheet goods. *:-)



I was using scrap pieces of laminate but as Mike said - hardboard
worked out great for me. I put the shiny side up, did about 3 coats
of Minwax paste wax, and buffed the heck out of it. I actually bought
an electric car buffer from Harbor Freight for $19.95 and used it only
for my shop. No residue and I had that same piece of hardwood over my
3/4" plywood top for over 5 years until I closed down my shop. I
attached the hardwood to the ply using Titebond II wood glue and
treated it like a laminate so I never had a nail or screw hole in it.
Can't go wrong and it is very inexpensive (dirt cheap is really the
right words.)

Jimmy Mac aka Jummy

I was using scrap pieces of laminate but as Mike said - hardboard
worked out great for me. I put the shiny side up, did about 3 coats
of Minwax paste wax, and buffed the heck out of it. I actually bought
an electric car buffer from Harbor Freight for $19.95 and used it only
for my shop. No residue and I had that same piece of hardwood over my
3/4" plywood top for over 5 years until I closed down my shop. I
attached the hardwood to the ply using Titebond II wood glue and
treated it like a laminate so I never had a nail or screw hole in it.
Can't go wrong and it is very inexpensive (dirt cheap is really the
right words.)

Jimmy Mac aka Jummy


I even think the wax is overkill.
Have you even A/B'd pieces with and without the wax?
(not ball-busting, I'm actually curious)


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

On Tue, 11 Nov 2008 16:52:15 -0500, "Ed Edelenbos"
wrote:

So I've made an outfeed table for my tablesaw. The top is made from a
recycled piece of 3/4" ply. I sanded it good and got a good flat surface.
My plan is to have a router insert at one end. Typically, a work table like
this would get no finish, or at most a few coats of wipe on poly. Since
this is recycled ply which was previously painted (flat black), I am going
to finish it, preferably white. I have 3 coats of Kilz on it now which has
been sanded between coats to give a good flat even surface. My initial
thought is to just slap 2 coats of semi-gloss latex (I have interior on
hand) and recoat when necessary. But, it never hurts to ask. What would
y'all topcoat it with? It there something that is (both cost effective) and
super tough? FWIW, it is in a covered but unheated space.

Thanks in advance.

Ed


I used plastic laminate on my large router table top and would
consider using it again on an outfeed table.

Thanks Mike and Jimmy, hardboard, what a great idea.

I am just getting ready to build a new 4 x 8 shp table. I figured I'd
put 3/4 MDF on top of a simple torsion box type frame. I thought maybe
a second sheet of 1/2 mdf as the sacrificial surface but they don't
last long the way I work. After scraping of glue a few times the flat
surface starts to suffer. Hardboard is a great idea.

I'll be posting another thread looking for folks work table design
ideas.


On Nov 12, 7:16*am, Jimmy Mac wrote:
On Nov 11, 4:49*pm, -MIKE- wrote:

I use hardboard for just about everything from outfeed tables, to
sacrificial table tops for the router or radial arm saw, to jigs and
fences, to patterns and prototypes.

The smooth side is very smooth and the stuff is dirt cheap.
It's the duct tape of sheet goods. *:-)

I was using scrap pieces of laminate but as Mike said - hardboard
worked out great for me. *I put the shiny side up, did about 3 coats
of Minwax paste wax, and buffed the heck out of it. *I actually bought
an electric car buffer from Harbor Freight for $19.95 and used it only
for my shop. *No residue and I had that same piece of hardwood over my
3/4" plywood top for over 5 years until I closed down my shop. *I
attached the hardwood to the ply using Titebond II wood glue and
treated it like a laminate so I never had a nail or screw hole in it.
Can't go wrong and it is very inexpensive (dirt cheap is really the
right words.)

Jimmy Mac aka Jummy

"SonomaProducts.com" wrote:
I am just getting ready to build a new 4 x 8 shp table. I figured I'd
put 3/4 MDF on top of a simple torsion box type frame. I thought maybe
a second sheet of 1/2 mdf as the sacrificial surface but they don't
last long the way I work. After scraping of glue a few times the flat
surface starts to suffer. Hardboard is a great idea.

Build your top as a torsion box /w/ 3/4 MDF top surface, (and as an
option, 1/4 ply bottom surface), then hold the 1/4 hardboard in place
with some double back tape at the corners and mid point on the 8 ft
edge.

Makes replacement a lot easier.

Lew

On Nov 12, 11:09*am, "Lew Hodgett" wrote:
"SonomaProducts.com" wrote:
I am just getting ready to build a new 4 x 8 shp table. I figured I'd

put 3/4 MDF on top of a simple torsion box type frame. I thought maybe
a second sheet of 1/2 mdf as the sacrificial surface but they don't
last long the way I work. After scraping of glue a few times the flat
surface starts to suffer. Hardboard is a great idea.

Build your top as a torsion box /w/ 3/4 MDF top surface, (and as an
option, 1/4 ply bottom surface), then hold the 1/4 hardboard in place
with some double back tape at the corners and mid point on the 8 ft
edge.

Makes replacement a lot easier.

Lew

Oh sure Lew - make it easy! LOL! Hope all is good in your camp
pardner . . . it's been a while!

Jummy

I used plastic laminate on my large router table top and would
consider using it again on an outfeed table.


Something else that I use for everything are 1/2" sheets of 2-sided
Melamine.
They are probably cheaper than plastic laminate, itself.

Whenever I go to the specialty plywood suppliers to get nice Baltic or
hardwood veneer sheets, I get a couple sheets of Melamine to sandwich
the nice plywood for travel in the minivan.

I lay one of the Melamines down on the van floor, and the nice plywood
slides on top very freely. Then another Melamine on top to protect the
nice sheets from whatever other materials I have to haul.

I end up using the Melamine sheets for assembly tables or outfeeds or
whatever, just like the hardboard, but with some structural strength.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

I am just getting ready to build a new 4 x 8 shp table. I figured I'd
put 3/4 MDF on top of a simple torsion box type frame. I thought maybe
a second sheet of 1/2 mdf as the sacrificial surface but they don't
last long the way I work. After scraping of glue a few times the flat
surface starts to suffer. Hardboard is a great idea.


See my follow-up about 4x8 sheets of Melamine.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

"Jimmy Mac" wrote:

Oh sure Lew - make it easy! LOL! Hope all is good in your camp
pardner . . . it's been a while!

You got that right.

It's "steady as she goes" around here.

Hope it is same on your end.

Lew

Chris Friesen wrote:
Ed Edelenbos wrote:
So I've made an outfeed table for my tablesaw. What would y'all
topcoat it with?

Laminate. I got some free scraps from a local custom counter shop.
Works great.

If you insist on brushing something, I'd use poly and then wax it to
make it slick.

Chris

Ditto (not on an outfeed table, but a built in router table). Used a
sheet of approximate size and contact cement to set it in place and
then a router with a flush trim bit to cleanup the excess. That was
version one. Version two ... I just used a piece of that prelaminated
shelving material. Never did do anything to the outfeed table other
than sand it smooth ... the sawdust seems to be an ample lubricant.
Pix at:

http://www.tundraware.com/Woodworking/TableSaw/



--
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tim Daneliuk
PGP Key: http://www.tundraware.com/PGP/

On Wed, 12 Nov 2008 13:27:46 -0600, -MIKE-
wrote:


I used plastic laminate on my large router table top and would
consider using it again on an outfeed table.


Something else that I use for everything are 1/2" sheets of 2-sided
Melamine.
They are probably cheaper than plastic laminate, itself.

....marginally...melamine is the same "plastic" material that composes
most laminates...it's just way thinner. You'll still pay a bit for
that sheet of melamine. You can pick up a sheet of vertical laminate
at Lowes for 35 or 40 bux and enjoy an almost bulletproof surface.
Still, the melamine would work well...

Whenever I go to the specialty plywood suppliers to get nice Baltic or
hardwood veneer sheets, I get a couple sheets of Melamine to sandwich
the nice plywood for travel in the minivan.

I lay one of the Melamines down on the van floor, and the nice plywood
slides on top very freely. Then another Melamine on top to protect the
nice sheets from whatever other materials I have to haul.

....you ever have to stop real quick? LOL...

I end up using the Melamine sheets for assembly tables or outfeeds or
whatever, just like the hardboard, but with some structural strength.


....stuff *is* a good solution. Mine, however, is the laminate option.

cg

On Nov 11, 4:52 pm, "Ed Edelenbos" wrote:
So I've made an outfeed table for my tablesaw. The top is made from a
recycled piece of 3/4" ply. I sanded it good and got a good flat surface.
My plan is to have a router insert at one end. Typically, a work table like
this would get no finish, or at most a few coats of wipe on poly. Since
this is recycled ply which was previously painted (flat black), I am going
to finish it, preferably white. I have 3 coats of Kilz on it now which has
been sanded between coats to give a good flat even surface. My initial
thought is to just slap 2 coats of semi-gloss latex (I have interior on
hand) and recoat when necessary. But, it never hurts to ask. What would
y'all topcoat it with? It there something that is (both cost effective) and
super tough? FWIW, it is in a covered but unheated space.

Thanks in advance.

Ed

I'm a little surprised that no one has mentioned this: Isn't 3/4 ply a
little light for a router table? Depending on the router, wouldn't it
sag over time (depending on the size of the table, of course


shelly

If you can find it, buy a sheet of melamine and make
your self a torsion box topped off with the melamine.

Your next choice is a torsion box covered with 1/2"
mdf and covered in laminate from the home center.

Here is a picture of that arrangement

http://home.att.net/~mboceanside/wsb...ID-638867.html

http://home.att.net/~mboceanside/wsb...ID-639331.html

That outfeed allows a FULL sheet of plywood to be on the table top after
the cut.

The torsion box is made from 3/4" shop grade birch plywood.
That is skinned over with 1/2" mdf and finished off with
generic white laminate.

I also made a drop down section with a piano hinge so the table
isn't so long for the entire time.

wrote in message
...
On Nov 11, 4:52 pm, "Ed Edelenbos" wrote:
So I've made an outfeed table for my tablesaw. The top is made from a
recycled piece of 3/4" ply. I sanded it good and got a good flat
surface.
My plan is to have a router insert at one end. Typically, a work table
like
this would get no finish, or at most a few coats of wipe on poly. Since
this is recycled ply which was previously painted (flat black), I am
going
to finish it, preferably white. I have 3 coats of Kilz on it now which
has
been sanded between coats to give a good flat even surface. My initial
thought is to just slap 2 coats of semi-gloss latex (I have interior on
hand) and recoat when necessary. But, it never hurts to ask. What would
y'all topcoat it with? It there something that is (both cost effective)
and
super tough? FWIW, it is in a covered but unheated space.

Thanks in advance.

Ed

I'm a little surprised that no one has mentioned this: Isn't 3/4 ply a
little light for a router table? Depending on the router, wouldn't it
sag over time (depending on the size of the table, of course


shelly

I have the underside supported pretty well. The table is 3'x4' and there is
2by support in the middle of each. If I remember correctly, where the
router is going is 20" by 14". I don't think it'll sag.

I have to say this is a danged neighborly group.

Ed

Charlie Groh wrote:
I used plastic laminate on my large router table top and would
consider using it again on an outfeed table.

Something else that I use for everything are 1/2" sheets of 2-sided
Melamine.
They are probably cheaper than plastic laminate, itself.

...marginally...melamine is the same "plastic" material that composes
most laminates...it's just way thinner. You'll still pay a bit for
that sheet of melamine. You can pick up a sheet of vertical laminate
at Lowes for 35 or 40 bux and enjoy an almost bulletproof surface.
Still, the melamine would work well...

Another reason I like it is that it's done, I don't have to glue it
down. I like to build stuff. I don't like to build other stuff, in
order to build stuff. (Actually, I do, but you get the point.)

I know what you mean about the thinness, but I consider it disposable.
I don't want to have to baby my work surfaces. I even built my new
router top out of the stuff. If I want to screw down something to the
top, I don't care... when it gets too dinged up, I cut out another piece
and replace it.


Whenever I go to the specialty plywood suppliers to get nice Baltic or
hardwood veneer sheets, I get a couple sheets of Melamine to sandwich
the nice plywood for travel in the minivan.

I lay one of the Melamines down on the van floor, and the nice plywood
slides on top very freely. Then another Melamine on top to protect the
nice sheets from whatever other materials I have to haul.

...you ever have to stop real quick? LOL...

Funny, when they were designing this Caravan, it's like someone actually
considered that one might use a van to do what a van is supposed to do.
It fits 4X8 perfectly with no wiggle room. You should see how much
lumber I've carried on the luggage rack. :-) That's another thing,
the rack it just high enough off the roof pads, to *sqeeze* 2x material
underneath, nice and tight. But that's not why you called.



--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

I'm a little surprised that no one has mentioned this: Isn't 3/4 ply a
little light for a router table? Depending on the router, wouldn't it
sag over time (depending on the size of the table, of course


shelly

On my last table, I used strongbacks, made from the same plywood.
Jointed straight and pocket screwed/glued to the bottom.
Strategically placed so as to not get in the way, they worked well.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

Pat Barber wrote:
http://home.att.net/~mboceanside/wsb...ID-639331.html


That outfeed allows a FULL sheet of plywood to be on the table top after
the cut.

The torsion box is made from 3/4" shop grade birch plywood.
That is skinned over with 1/2" mdf and finished off with
generic white laminate.

I also made a drop down section with a piano hinge so the table
isn't so long for the entire time.


I love the way that all folds up, Pat. Very nice!


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply