Torsion Box material

[Lori Kleinberg]

I hope this makes sense.....:( Woodworking has turned me into a scavenger, you never know when you might need that thing you just threw away :p.
Anyway, I have the base from a workbench drill press that I have been saving for a rainy day (I like that I can raise and lower the surface depending on need).
I also have some pieces of laminated press board (I think that's what it is called).

141693 141694 141696

Can I use the press board as a skin for a torsion box work station sitting on the round drill press table.
I haven't decided if I want this for my Rigid spindle sander or my Dewalt scroll saw.

[Scott Rollins]

I would not use the board you have for the skin of the torsion box unless you dado the melamine skin off the board shown in the picture. The glue will not stick to the white melamine.
I have used the 3/4 melamine on top of a torsion box (with 1/2 inch plywood skin) and it works great as an assembly surface because glue, finish, stain will not adhere to it.

I have the ridgid spindle sander also (great tool) you should be able to simply attach a 3/4 piece of plywood to the stand you have and screw the sander down to it. Its pretty light. i cannot speak to the dewalt scroll saw-i have a POS harbour freight scroll saw which I never use(lesson learned never buy cheap tools) - I use a jig saw for scroll cuts.

[Alan Schaffter]

As Scott said, melamine covered particle is not a good choice. A torsion box doesn't need thick skins, but the skins need to bond well with the web, and melamine doesn't bond well. The strength of the skins in the horizontal plane and the height of the web determine the strength of a torsion box, not the thickness of the individual parts.

Here is one I made from 3/16" hardboard and yellow glue. It is 8' long and 16" wide, and in the photo is supporting over 300# of bricks in the middle and only sagging 1/2"

http://www.ncwoodworker.net/pp/data/500/medium/IMG_2579.jpg

There is an article with good info on torsion boxes in the Dec/Jan 2010 issue of American Woodworker Mag. I hear it is a great article (I wrote it :D ).

If you are a good scavenger you should be able to come up with some 1/4" or 1/2" MDF for the web and skins. If you want to cover the table with laminate to protect it, go to a counter fabricator. You can usually get laminate scraps for free. Any adhesive is easily removed with a little acetone.

[Lori Kleinberg]

Thank you Scott, that was a good point you brought up about not being able to glue anything to the melamine surface. I knew that, just didn't remember it :(.
Well Alan, I tried to find articles on torsion boxes but couldn't find anything about the melamine. I guess I know why now (see above sentence), but always
enjoy a good article from a fellow SMC member, especially a published one. I will see if I can find that magazine this week-end.

I think I can still use the drill press base as a base for the torsion box. I do have 1/2" mdf for the skins. Then I could add a small cabinet underneath and
maybe make the whole set up mobile.
Now, I have to think :confused:of something else to do with those laminated particle boards (I think I have 2 from the HD scrap heap).

[Alan Schaffter]

Thank you Scott, that was a good point you brought up about not being able to glue anything to the melamine surface. I knew that, just didn't remember it :(.
Well Alan, I tried to find articles on torsion boxes but couldn't find anything about the melamine. I guess I know why now (see above sentence), but always
enjoy a good article from a fellow SMC member, especially a published one. I will see if I can find that magazine this week-end.

I think I can still use the drill press base as a base for the torsion box. I do have 1/2" mdf for the skins. Then I could add a small cabinet underneath and
maybe make the whole set up mobile.
Now, I have to think :confused:of something else to do with those laminated particle boards (I think I have 2 from the HD scrap heap).

I use whatever I have handy- scrap melamine particle or laminate over ply or mdf, for jigs.