Need advice for new tablesàw extension surface

[Raymond Fries]

I have a Jet cabinet saw and want to make a storage cabinet for the extension. I am planning on the top of the cabinet to be the extension table surface. Do you think MDF is OK? Or, should I make a laminated surface. It seems like laminate is not available in small pieces so I was wondering if just the MDF would hold up OK.

What do you think?

[Thomas Canfield]

I think that you would be happier in the long run to use the melamine or laminated MDF for the surface. I have used MDF with multiple coats of thin shellac for drill press table, router table, and other work areas, but the laminate is a much harder and easier surface to maintain. My saw extension (and most of table saw) ends up being a storage surface between usage for my wood turning pieces or as an assembly surface. Remember it is a long time investment.

[Judson Green]

I think that you would be happier in the long run to use the melamine or laminated MDF for the surface. I have used MDF with multiple coats of thin shellac for drill press table, router table, and other work areas, but the laminate is a much harder and easier surface to maintain. My saw extension (and most of table saw) ends up being a storage surface between usage for my wood turning pieces or as an assembly surface. Remember it is a long time investment.

Plus 1!

The MDF will hold up, but will add more friction. The melamine is available at most Borg stores and very inexpensive.

[Bruce Page]

I made my folding outfeed table out of 3/4" melamine sheet. It has held up better than I expected it to. It is better looking than MDF and very slick with a coat of wax on it.

[Tom M King]

I put Formica on mine I don't know how many years ago, and it still looks fine. Same on the outfeed table.

[Ray Newman]

My cut off table, which also doubles as an assembly table, has a 1/4" tempered Masonite top. It is getting a bit 'raggedy-arsed' and needs another replacement. Not difficult to unscrew the old one, rough cut the new top to size, screw in place, then trim to fit with a router pattern bit. Apply a good coat of past wax to reduce friction and prevent spills, glues, etc., from adhering to the surface.

[Janis Stipins]

I used phenolic coated 3/4" plywood. Tough, low-friction, looks nice, easy to work with. No lamination needed. (Save that for the top of your torsion box assembly table, which will be MDF, and which will be laminated.) :-)

Not easy to find phenolic plywood, though. I had to call around some building supply warehouses until I found some.

-JS3

[Raymond Fries]

Guess I have been using the wrong search term. Melamine sounds like a winner for my needs.

Thanks

[Larry Browning]

You mentioned that you cannot find laminate in a small quantity to purchase. I have learned that many places that sell laminate (not the big box stores) or even cabinet shops have an abundance of scrap pieces of the stuff that they will most likely gladly give to you or at the very least sell you for next to nothing. You just can't be too picky about color or doing a little dumpster diving. I have a router table with an baby poop green top and an outfeed table that is an almond color, but they work great.
Laminate is better than melamine due to it being thicker and much more durable, of course it will add a step to the build process, but I think it is worth it.

[Rich Engelhardt]

I sort of went all out and made my folding outfeed and an insert to the right of the saw out of 3/4" oak plywood.
I gave them a few coats of orange shellac and keep them waxed.
I have to say - they do add a lot in the appearance department.

[Raymond Fries]

I sort of went all out and made my folding outfeed and an insert to the right of the saw out of 3/4" oak plywood.
I gave them a few coats of orange shellac and keep them waxed.
I have to say - they do add a lot in the appearance department.


Hmmm

Oak plywood would go nice with that drill press upgrade I just finished.:rolleyes:

[Rich Engelhardt]

I had the better part of a half sheet (~4'x4') of red oak plywood left over from something I made. It was the $40.00 a 4'x8' sheet stuff that Menards sells.
It wasn't enough for much of anything and it was too much to call scrap.
It turned out real pretty!

[Jeff Duncan]

Melamine works pretty good, but if your out-feed sees a lot of use, especially as an assembly table, you'll wear it out. I've gone through a couple melamine out-feeds so when I recently moved my shop and had to make a new one I finally went the extra mile and picked up some laminate. Really not much extra effort or expense and makes for a much, MUCH, tougher surface.

Also as the others said local cab shops may have smaller off cuts they'll sell you for cheap. Unfortunately for me as much laminate scrap as I end up with it's mostly darker colors, so I ended up having to go out and buy a sheet anyway:o

good luck,
JeffD

[Lee Schierer]

My out feed table is regular A/C 3/4" plywood with 2-3 coat of polyurethane on it. It has held up quite well for over 15 years now.

[Rick Potter]

Formica is almost indestructible after it is glued on. Lowes will sell their sheets of formica that have been mulled over and have broken edges at a good discount.

[Bill Ryall]

Formica is almost indestructible after it is glued on. Lowes will sell their sheets of formica that have been mulled over and have broken edges at a good discount.

I use acres of Formica in the technical cabinetry I build, as well as on shop work surfaces. It holds up remarkably well if installed properly. Both the orange and blue BORGs offer significant discounts on chipped and cracked pieces.

[roger wiegand]

another vote for formica. Tough, wood slides on it, easy to scrape off drops of glue or finish. Scraps are cheap or free at your local cabinet shop, full sheets with chipped edges can be had at deep discount at the borg. You can put it on a plywood top and avoid particle board or MDF.

[Pete Janke]

302359302360I got an old unused drafting table for next to nothing. Its surface is slippery and glue drops scrape off easily. You could build storage beneath it.

[Brian Henderson]

Another vote here for melamine, I dropped a router table into the extension of one of my saws with a melamine top and it's been golden for a long time.

[Jim Becker]

Interestingly, I've used multiple materials for surfaces like this. For the extension table on the cabinet saw I used to own, I went the full laminate route. An old router table used Melamine. My miter saw stand table surface is just MDF that had BLO applied...over 12 years ago...and it's held up fine. The new, shorter right side table on my slider has a hard-board top. In all cases, these surfaces have performed well. I do believe that the laminate was the most durable, but in the end, it almost didn't matter.

I say this related back to the original question posed...if laminate isn't available MDF or Melamine will suffice. And if you make that top separate from the underlying cabinet, it can be replaceable in the future if need be. Don't over-think this!

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Raymond, I have an outfeed table on my assembly table as I type this. I bought Formica from a local laminate/tile/granite supply company. They ordered the size I wanted so I didn't have to buy a full sheet. They did have cutoffs from previous jobs but nothing big enough for the top I'm building.

[Alan Lightstone]

That's exactly what I did, but with Home Depot.

Only 1 HD in my area (out of about 6) sold laminate in large sheets, though. Might have to check around or do some driving.

[Rick Potter]

I got lucky one day. There used to be a hardware store chain called Eagle. Lowes came in and bought the store, consequently selling off a lot of stock they didn't want. I happened by one day and everything was outside in the parking lot. It had rained and a lot of boxes were wet, but over on the side was a small stack of Formica sheets. Most were 24 X 96 for cabinets, some were 36, a few were 48.

No one seemed to know how much they were. I finally got a manager and he told me to make an offer. Various colors, some chipped on the edges, but some were Delta grey, and I wanted a couple. I told him I would take the stack for $50 and he took it.

Turns out there were over 30 sheets there, mostly unchipped. At least 10 were Delta grey, some black, butcher block, and only a few in oddball colors. I still have about 20 sheets left after 15 years. I have half a dozen shop projects that I need to build....someday.

[Dave Cav]

I used phenolic coated 3/4" plywood. Tough, low-friction, looks nice, easy to work with. No lamination needed. (Save that for the top of your torsion box assembly table, which will be MDF, and which will be laminated.) :-)

Not easy to find phenolic plywood, though. I had to call around some building supply warehouses until I found some.

-JS3

Also known as MDO board or sign board. Very flat, slick and durable. I agree, it would make an excellent outfeed table. My current one is plastic laminate, though, and the one before that was varnished plywood. Just about anything will work as long as it is flat, and some sanding, varnish and wax will make it slick. Don't over analyze it.

[Tom Howarth]

On my old table saw, I made extensions from an old kitchen table. It was a dense particle board with a Formica laminate.
it looked pretty good as the pattern of the laminate was "Butcher Block"...
i had the leaf for the table for years, it made for an easy to clean glueing and painting surface.

[Christopher Cook]

I would hit up a cabinet shop in your area. I have done that and got several 40"x30" scraps. I also just picked up several bigger pieces of Corian to try and make some router plates with.