Walnut trim in workbench?
Kelby
>I have been dutifully building my workbench over the past couple of weeks, and have a question. The base is completed and I am working on the top.
The top is laminated 6/4 hard maple (3-1/8" thick). To complete the top, I still need to (1) put on another 5" lamination on the front side of the top (the section with the dog holes in it), (2) install the endcaps, and (3) install the face vice and tail vice.
My question relates to using a bit of walnut to add some contrast. I have prepared some Walnut to use (a) for the endcaps, (b) for a 3/4" stripe down the front of the bench (i.e., next to the dogholes), and (c) for the business side of the tail vice. But before actually putting this on the bench, I noticed some website or other that showed where Walnut stands on the "hardness" index. Ouch. Now I know why people use Purpleheart for trim on workbenches. ;)
So my question is, is the walnut too soft to use as trim under these circumstances, or am I worrying too much? If it's an issue, I would rather go buy a few pieces of purpleheart now than spend the rest of my years wishing I had. If it's not an issue, I like the way Walnut looks a lot better than Purpleheart.
