Noden Adjust-A-Bench with MDF top

[Dan Case LR]

I've done something completely out-of-character. Well, mostly out of character might be more accurate. I bought a Noden Adjust-A-Bench leg and caster set. I showed my wife the demo and she said, "That's cool! You ought to get one for your shop. Then you can buy a second one and make me an adjustable table for my sewing room." I couldn't bring my self to refuse. :) It arrived today!

I have an MDF bench top built that I want to use with the AAB hardware. It's three layers of 3/4" MDF laminated, about 30 x 60, and when I'm done it will be banded in maple. I was looking at the leg positioning tonight. deciding how long I want to make the stretchers, and the niggling little voice of my inner engineer kept saying, "You're not really going to attach these to that MDF top with lags, are you?" The stresses of adjusting it will help the lags fail. You need to break down and bolt through the top."

Now, my inner engineer loves to overbuild stuff--but I can see his point. What's your opinion, AAB owners? Will lags be sufficient if I pre-drill and don't over-tighten, or should I through-bolt?

Thanks!

D.

[ed vitanovec]

I bought the same leg set 2 years ago and really enjoy the bench, the top on mine is Maple. My top is secured to the leg set with lag bolts, in your case I would bolt through. You can try the lag bolts and make sure your drilled hole is the proper diameter for the thread, drill through at least 2 thicknesses of the MDF. If it fails you can drill through and countersink the bolt heads from the top side. Post a picture of you benches when you are done.

Regards!
Ed

[Dan Case LR]

I bought the same leg set 2 years ago and really enjoy the bench, the top on mine is Maple. My top is secured to the leg set with lag bolts, in your case I would bolt through. You can try the lag bolts and make sure your drilled hole is the proper diameter for the thread, drill through at least 2 thicknesses of the MDF. If it fails you can drill through and countersink the bolt heads from the top side. Post a picture of you benches when you are done.

Regards!
Ed

Thanks, Ed. I'm very impressed with the build quality of the Noden leg set. I also like that if I outgrow the bench I can rebuild it on the same foundation to virtually any size or style, making the Adjust-A-Bench a long-term investment.

And I think my inner engineer will win the battle. Better to have countersunk bolt heads than be standing there with a heavy slab of MDF in my hands when the lags decide to give up.

D.

[Van Huskey]

This is a case where building it better doesn't take much time or money, just bolt it!

[Jim Matthews]

Why not drop in some dowels where the lags attach?

Alternately, route a channel to fit hardwood cross members from underneath.
This would resist racking forces as you lift or lower the bench top.

[Jim Becker]

I see no issues with an MDF top as long as it's multi-layered for strength and properly supported to insure it stays flat. MDF doesn't have the "span" that solid hardwoods tend to have. For bolting, lags can be used if you bury a piece of solid hardwood in the layers to provide extra grip. If they are not there, then through bolting with nice big washers is a good idea. IMHO, of course.

[ed vitanovec]

Your welcome Dan! The Noden leg set is a nice design and the quality it top notch, plus its "Made in the USA. :)

[Dan Case LR]

If this were a "showpiece" bench, I'd drop in dowels or a hardwood cross member. Since it's more about practical than pretty, I think I'll just countersink through-bolts and put it to work.

One of the things I like about the Noden adjustable legs is that I can always put a prettier bench top on it if I get the urge.

D.

[Jim Matthews]

Gotcha -

"Honey, I dropped the skanky MDF top and it broke... can I go buy the 300bf of Bubinga and curly maple now?"
"Who's Bubby Inga?"

[John Coloccia]

If this were a "showpiece" bench, I'd drop in dowels or a hardwood cross member. Since it's more about practical than pretty, I think I'll just countersink through-bolts and put it to work.

One of the things I like about the Noden adjustable legs is that I can always put a prettier bench top on it if I get the urge.

D.

Your back will thank you. On my list of tasks for the week is to lift my workbench about 10 inches. I'm actually considering getting a pair and fitting it to my Sjobergs bench/cabinet.

[Dan Case LR]

Gotcha -

"Honey, I dropped the skanky MDF top and it broke... can I go buy the 300bf of Bubinga and curly maple now?"
"Who's Bubby Inga?"

Actually, her reply would be, "Sure. Can I buy that free-arm quilter now?" (around $12k)

:)

D.

[Dan Case LR]

On a somewhat related note, I've spent the past several weeks cleaning up and rearranging my shop, putting in DC ductwork, and working with an awful lot of MDF. I made the stretchers for the AAB last night out of a lovely piece of soft maple I acquired yesterday, and realized just how much I've missed working with real hardwood. The smell of it, the feel of it, the sound of it sliding over the jointer--MDF certainly has a place in this world (and in my shop), but if I didn't already have all that MDF out there that I want to use up (and the bench top already put together) I'd be really tempted to roll down to my hardwood dealer, plunk down my credit card, and buy enough 8/4 maple to make a "pretty" bench top. It's a good think that I'm not, because I've already spent too much--but it's tempting.

D.

[Curt Harms]

Dan, as you already pointed out, the top is replaceable. When you get tired of the MDF top, accidentally on purpose spill about half a pint of a paint color that your wife HATES on it.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

I am curious..... Will you have holes in the bench for dogs or hold-downs? I am wondering how the MDF will hold up to that sort of thing... Loves those Noden Adjust-A-Benches. If I had more room, I might own one. The ability to raise or lower the top to fit your current use is a very attractive. I think that you will LOVE your bench.

[Dan Case LR]

I am curious..... Will you have holes in the bench for dogs or hold-downs? I am wondering how the MDF will hold up to that sort of thing... Loves those Noden Adjust-A-Benches. If I had more room, I might own one. The ability to raise or lower the top to fit your current use is a very attractive. I think that you will LOVE your bench.

I'll have dog holes. I've researched the durability of dog holes in MDF and have received comments ranging from "I've used mine for years without any problems" to "Rout out the dog hole area and drop in a piece of hardwood" and several things to strengthen the holes (like filling them with West System epoxy and letting it soak into the fibers). Haven't quite decided yet--I might just go with plain MDF and see if I can wear it out. :)


Interesting note about the Adjust-a-bench. After assembling the base last night and marking the mounting holes on the underside of the bench top, I put the AAB legset on the floor so I could drill and countersink the mounting holes in the top. While flipping the slab to get to the top side (for counterbores) I realized that there was no way in perdition I was going to be able to lift that 30x60x2.25 slab of MDF and place it on the legset by myself, and the cats weren't interested in helping. Then an idea hit me. I set the height of the legset to the approximate height of the table saw (the only flat surface where I could work on the slab) and slid the bench top sideways onto the legset. Almost too easy! :)

223315

I still have a lot to do--skirts, vise, dog holes--but so far I'm thrilled with my Adjust-A-Bench!

D.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Looking good! If you are thinking about cutting an area out and then adding a hardwood insert, you can do that after you have a problem and then you will know that your usage requires it.

[Anthony Zezza]

Really nice job, I can imagine it is quite heavy with the MDF. Should you ever need to replace the top you may want to consider what I have done in my shop. I
built several benches and used solid core birch doors for the top. You can buy them in any standard door widths, relatively inexpensive, and they finish up quite nicely. I have had mine for several years and they only require a wipe down with some wipe on poly finish to keep them looking nice.