Just lay it on the bench and secure it with the molding. If you glue it, even spot glue, it will break and split when you pull it up. If you think it needs more attachment, use finish nails and a nail set. You'll hardly see them and they are easy to pull if you ever pull the hardboard off.Today I bought the 1/8" hardboard Masonite and a oc. of 1/4" MDF along with a nice pc of decorative molding to finish the front edge. I'm thinking of just spot gluing the Masonite so if it ever needs to be replaced I should be able to pull it up easily.
Have been under the weather fighting a cold this past week so not a lot has gotten finished.
While completely understanding your desire for a nicer bench top, I've gone back to simple A/C plywood with an oil finish. The reason is simple. My last bench was a professional piece of furniture with a beautiful Formica top, which sounded like the best idea ever. It was the exact opposite. Anything spilled on that hard, glassy surface went skittering off to Never Never Land.
Tools, primers, powder... any handling errors made over that bench top disappeared forever !
BC17A now I just have to ask, what is that you have your presses mounted to? Looks very interesting.
kmw1954 asked:
What would be your choice?
Once I had been trained in how to resist and transmit forces, the top of the bench became an irrelevancy. As far as I am concerned, the structure of a properly designed and built reloading bench should harness and transmit all the forces to the ground; the bench top should exist for no other reason than to keep reloading components off the floor.
The first reloading bench I built - at age 17 - used a 5/8 thick piece of plywood as a structural component of the bench. The second reloading bench I built - at age 27, after I had collected a sheaf of engineering degrees - used a 7/16 thick piece of waferboard. And this was only because I couldn't get anything thinner (cheaper). Once I had been trained in how to resist and transmit forces, the top of the bench became an irrelevancy. As far as I am concerned, the structure of a properly designed and built reloading bench should harness and transmit all the forces to the ground; the bench top should exist for no other reason than to keep reloading components off the floor.
YesThe first reloading bench I built - at age 17 - used a 5/8 thick piece of plywood as a structural component of the bench. The second reloading bench I built - at age 27, after I had collected a sheaf of engineering degrees - used a 7/16 thick piece of waferboard. And this was only because I couldn't get anything thinner (cheaper). Once I had been trained in how to resist and transmit forces, the top of the bench became an irrelevancy. As far as I am concerned, the structure of a properly designed and built reloading bench should harness and transmit all the forces to the ground; the bench top should exist for no other reason than to keep reloading components off the floor.