Gary roebuck Posted April 17, 2021 Report Share Posted April 17, 2021 My shop should really should have a splash zone warning label as I tend to be a messy when dealing with glue and oil. I tried melamine tops and they would get scratched up easily and then those areas swell when soaked. For years I have used Formica For its ease of cleaning and durability. When I built my current bench I discovered that my local big box store no longer carried It in 4 x 8 sheets. They said I could order a sheet and it would take about two weeks to come in and being The patient person I am I started grumbling and walking back towards the front of the store to find an alternative somewhere else. It just so happened that I was walking thru flooring and noticed that they had peel and stick vinyl plank on sale and thought why couldn’t I use that for work top. It is great glue doesn’t stick Epoxy doesn’t it stick, wax and latex wipes off cleanly and oil and solvents won’t penetrate it. There is just enough texture things don’t slide around. Since it’s flooring it’s designed to be durable so no problems with wearing so far. When I have a brain fart and drill a hole through it or Cut too deeply with a razor knife I can simply pull up that piece and replace it with a New piece. One box covered the majority of the 4 by 8 workbench so I had to purchase a second box. I got the clearance stuff so it was $20 a box and I now have enough to replace a third of the worktable if needed. Single sheet of Formica to cover the same area was going to be $74. I understand this may not be optimal for a dedicated woodworking Bench or be as pretty as a laminated top. But since mine Is an all purpose workbench it works excellent. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardA Posted April 17, 2021 Report Share Posted April 17, 2021 What works for you should ba all that matters. Every woodworker is different in their use and need in a bench. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chet Posted April 17, 2021 Report Share Posted April 17, 2021 ^^^ What he said. ^^^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 18, 2021 Report Share Posted April 18, 2021 That is an interesting solution to your particular problem, Gary. Glad to hear it works for you. I have that type of flooring in the shed I currently use as a shop, and temperature swings caused it to buckle in summer, and draw apart in winter. I take it you don't see that issue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary roebuck Posted April 18, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2021 No but mine is heated in winter and installed it in the summer so that maybr the reason I havent 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyJack Posted April 24, 2021 Report Share Posted April 24, 2021 I've worked on about every shop bench there is. We had Carbo ard that was pretty thick. It worked feat but probably hard to find. Next best top I've used other than a sold top was plywood with masonite top... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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