Adam Rahberg Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 So I am considering making one of those awesome workbenches with all the stuff on it, dog holes, clamps, speakers, outlets, massage chair. etc... The material of choice is Hard Maple. I don't want to go and buy all the maple, because it's damn expensive and I have a hook up to get wood cut to whatever thickness I want whenever I want. And it's pennies on the dollar. I have a couple choices of different species from my "guy" and was curious if any of you had done benches out of any of these before. Hickory Ash American Elm If you could choose from any of these three, what would you choose? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan S Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 I have a couple choices of different species from my "guy" and was curious if any of you had done benches out of any of these before. Hickory Ash American Elm If you could choose from any of these three, what would you choose? Ash all the way, it's easy to work with, and has almost no moment with changes in humidity. Shannon Rogers workbench is all ash if memory serves! http://www.renaissancewoodworker.com/category/projects/roubo/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treeslayer Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 Definitely ash, with hickory accents 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodger. Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 I use ash all the time. Nice and hard - watch the reversing grain whe you work it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janello Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 I was going to say Ash as well, prior to reading the comments. We have some flat warehouse carts at work with ash planks and they hold up great to abuse around the shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardA Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 Make sure any tools that you sharpen regularly are sharp, but if you choose hickory, have your stones or sharpener within reach... Hickory will remove any edge in just a few passes. If it were me, I'd use ash, and use hickory for smoking a pork butt or a brisket, That's what it's best used for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post wdwerker Posted February 21, 2015 Popular Post Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 And you can tell people your bench is a nice piece of ash ! 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted February 21, 2015 Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 And you can tell people your bench is a nice piece of ash ! Everyone likes a nice piece of ash 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted February 21, 2015 Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 Ash is still pretty hard. But it's still easy to work with? It's cheap and was thinking of using it a lot when I finally build my shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted February 21, 2015 Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 Ash also looks great if you dye it black then clear coat it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted February 21, 2015 Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 I know Hickory is good for axe handles, hammer handles, and cooking meat. I can't think of any other good use. King's Barbecue (no relation) in Petersburg, Va. cooks the best pork barbecue I know of anywhere. They've cooked it over a Hickory wood fire for over 50 years. They always have a big stack of Hickory firewood out back. I have a hard time passing there without stopping to eat, or at least to take some home. They're probably less than a mile off I95. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted February 21, 2015 Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 Agreed, hickory smoke is the ONLY way to make truly good barbeque. And cow ain't barbeque, its roast beef. Whole hog or nothin', baby! Back to discussing wood, I think hickory looks nice, it just eats steel cutters fur lunch. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted February 21, 2015 Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 Of the three options, ash for sure...however... I have a hook up to get wood cut to whatever thickness I want whenever I want. And it's pennies on the dollar. Comments like this always concern me. You better be sure it's kiln dried and kiln dried properly...unless you wanna flatten your bench once a month until there's nothing left of the top. I'd be skeptical of sawmill lumber. But that's me. Ash is pretty cheap...I might look at a reputable hardwood dealer before you pull the trigger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Rahberg Posted February 21, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 I agree with hickory for smoking. I use a ton of alder for furniture and smoking. Pecan is my other favorite for smoking. And smoke your coarse salt. The wood will all be cut by the same guy I bought my walnut and sycamore from. I'll air dry it for a while and then kiln it. I'll probably use some walnut accents. So ash it is. It's also gaining popularity for floors. So when I finish this bench it's gonna look pretty bad ash!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted February 21, 2015 Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 So I am considering making one of those awesome workbenches with all the stuff on it, dog holes, clamps, speakers, outlets, massage chair. etc... The material of choice is Hard Maple. I don't want to go and buy all the maple, because it's damn expensive and I have a hook up to get wood cut to whatever thickness I want whenever I want. And it's pennies on the dollar. I have a couple choices of different species from my "guy" and was curious if any of you had done benches out of any of these before. Hickory Ash American Elm If you could choose from any of these three, what would you choose? You fOrgOt the most important built in for a bench. .. BEER HOLDERS 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ellis Posted February 23, 2015 Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 Man all you guys are smoking wood...must be a good trip. Thanks for all the Ash love. I was wondering the same myself, and now I have an alternative to Maple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RenaissanceWW Posted February 27, 2015 Report Share Posted February 27, 2015 The wood will all be cut by the same guy I bought my walnut and sycamore from. I'll air dry it for a while and then kiln it. I'll probably use some walnut accents. Just be aware that there is a pretty nasty Emerald Ash Borer blight going on right now. Verify when the logs were felled and hopefully it was in the Winter or fall when the sap wasn't rising. Remove the sap wood before stickering it for dry too since this is bug candy. Finally, store the boards vertically for a few days to quickly shed the free water. This can drop your moisture content 20-30% in a few days. Then sticker it, band it, and let it sit for a few months. Also recognize that right now there is not a lot of drying going on because the air is so cold that its not sucking up much moisture as it circulates over the boards. You may not get any appreciable drying until Spring. Ah Castle Rock, the little town that I often miss on early morning drives between the Springs and Denver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FtrPilot Posted March 23, 2015 Report Share Posted March 23, 2015 Add one more vote for Ash. .......And cow ain't barbeque, its roast beef. Whole hog or nothin', baby! ........ While you guys are pontificating on what is or is not barbeque, I am taking advantage of a sunny day in Georgia. On my Green Egg, I am smoking 2 flank steaks for 7 hours. Smoking chips are Cherry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted March 24, 2015 Report Share Posted March 24, 2015 Add one more vote for Ash. While you guys are pontificating on what is or is not barbeque, I am taking advantage of a sunny day in Georgia. On my Green Egg, I am smoking 2 flank steaks for 7 hours. Smoking chips are Cherry. Hey, nobody said beef was BAD..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Staehling Posted March 24, 2015 Report Share Posted March 24, 2015 Of the three options, ash for sure...however... Comments like this always concern me. You better be sure it's kiln dried and kiln dried properly...unless you wanna flatten your bench once a month until there's nothing left of the top. I'd be skeptical of sawmill lumber. But that's me. Ash is pretty cheap...I might look at a reputable hardwood dealer before you pull the trigger. I agree that ash makes the most sense. I am a little puzzled by the sawmill comment though. Most of the sawmills I have dealt with are very good about moisture content. The ones I have used mostly kiln dry and when they don't they tend to specifically mention that, then check and disclose the moisture content if there is any doubt if it is suitable for your purposes. Personally I would be happy with well air dried lumber, especially ash since it seems to me to be especially stable during moisture changes as compared to most species. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPCV_Woodworker Posted March 24, 2015 Report Share Posted March 24, 2015 Just be aware that there is a pretty nasty Emerald Ash Borer blight going on right now. Verify when the logs were felled and hopefully it was in the Winter or fall when the sap wasn't rising. Remove the sap wood before stickering it for dry too since this is bug candy. Even more important than keeping bugs out of your shop: hauling diseased logs or boards from an endemic area to a clean area is basically sentencing giving the borers a free ride... Emerald ash borers aren't true borers, they'll only go as far as the outermost sapwood in most cases, usually stopping in the cambium, so make sure that the boards are edged before you take them anywhere. About half of the states have websites tracking these little buggers... http://www.emeraldashborer.info/surveyinfo.cfm#sthash.q2alVgNG.dpbs http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/ag_Plants/CBON/1251646251641 I get antsy about EAB, PA even has a federal firewood quarantine imposed. No more puns I swear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted March 24, 2015 Report Share Posted March 24, 2015 I agree that ash makes the most sense. I am a little puzzled by the sawmill comment though. Most of the sawmills I have dealt with are very good about moisture content. The ones I have used mostly kiln dry and when they don't they tend to specifically mention that, then check and disclose the moisture content if there is any doubt if it is suitable for your purposes. Personally I would be happy with well air dried lumber, especially ash since it seems to me to be especially stable during moisture changes as compared to most species. I would be especially skeptical of using air dried ash...unless you wanna see your work eaten from the inside out. Bugs are a problem in ash these days...don't risk it. Maybe you deal with some decent mills. We don't have any around here. My limited experiences with them have been poor ones. Generally trashy stock to begin with, then it's either in some state of green or improperly kiln dried. If you have large mills that do distribution with experienced kiln operators, then you're golden. What we have around here is Bubba owns some big saws, the tree companies drop off logs, and he hacks them to bits then either stacks them up willy nilly or cooks them into unusable garbage. Worthless, twisted garbage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted March 24, 2015 Report Share Posted March 24, 2015 I haven't heard of any ash borer issues around me. I'm in southern California and ash is not quite native here but it is often planted by developers and the city to bring some green. I'll ask an arborist friend of mine that works on the cities committee for tree planting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4square Posted April 2, 2015 Report Share Posted April 2, 2015 Wood fresh sawed from the mill is usually much cheaper than buying from the lumber yard provided you are willing to sticker and stack it 1 foot off the ground and covered for at least a year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan S Posted April 2, 2015 Report Share Posted April 2, 2015 Even if someone else has stacked and stickered the lumber for the appropriate amount of time, it's usually cheaper. The other main benefit of air dried lumber, is that it usually has less stress in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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