Talking with a neighbor about his 30-year-old workbench changed my whole setup

He said he never used plywood for the top, just solid core door slabs, and now I'm pissed about the $150 I wasted on cabinet-grade birch last spring.

2 comments

2 Comments

barnes.kai1h ago

I get what the neighbor is saying about solid core doors, but I think the plywood route has its own advantages. Solid core doors can warp over time if they pick up moisture from the air, especially in a garage or basement shop. Cabinet-grade birch plywood is way more stable and won't twist or cup on you. Plus you can screw into plywood edges without worrying about splitting the core. I've seen a lot of old workbenches with door slab tops that ended up with a hump in the middle after a few humid summers. Plywood just seems like the smarter long term bet to me.

eric_morgan591h ago

You say warping but I've seen plenty of hollow core doors and cheap plywood both get wrecked by moisture, a solid core door is like 1.5 inches thick, you can flatten it and it will stay flat way better than a thin sheet of plywood if you build a frame under it.