Finish for Shop Cabinets

Re: Finish for Shop Cabinets

Asher F.

>Good looking cabinet!

Well, my opinion is: it's not in your dining room, it's in the shop and you have to expect small spils, especially if you are mixing things.

Polyurothane is good and durable finish (I used about 4-5 coats on my work bench), but it's desolved by mineral spirits and other thinners. So if you do not clean it up quick it'll lift the finish.

P.S. Make sure you also finish the bottom with at least one coat. Otherwise expect it to warp.

Good luck and happy woodworking!

A.

Re: Finish for Shop Cabinets

Glenn

>The top is two sheets of MDF. Will this warp?

Re: Finish for Shop Cabinets

Asher F.

>Should not.

You know, I just thought of it: put a pice of hard board on top and don't bother with the finish. When it's all worn out - just replace it with a new piece.

This is how i did my aux. work area. The hard board is flat and you do not even need to fasten it to the top :)

Re: Finish for Shop Cabinets

Nicholas Carey

>Since you're talking about relatively messy operations on this table ("…clean saws, WD40 and mineral spirits, use water stones, etc. …"), I'd think about applying high-pressure laminate (aka Formica®) to it. Don't forget backer on the unseen surfaces.

Re: Finish for Shop Cabinets

Jack Guzman from Maine

>I have a utility bench on the opposite wall from my main bench. The top is an oak veneered solid wood door. From using water stones on it the surface started to turn black. I cleaned it up as good as I could and put a couple coats of water based poly on it.So far (6 months)it still looks the same. I use this bench for(among other things)sharpening,cleaning rusty tools,some painting and finishing,paint stripping and some minor metal working. I have spilled glue,water,oil,WD40 and various finishing products on it.---Jack

Re: Finish for Shop Cabinets

Charles Self

>Tempered hardboard works great. Fasten with BRASS screws, spaced well apart. Replace when ragged. I've currently got 32' of cabinet grade particleboard countertop in the shop, and when that shows signs of aging, it will get hardboard covering.