Workbench shelf boards: Shiplap, T &G, or slatted?

[Jude Kenny]

Hi all,

I am working on a bench and nearing the end. Now it is time to put in a shelf going between the stretchers.

I have cut a number of boards to length and am debating on how they should be arranged. Most everyone's bench that I see, or read about, has a method of arranging the boards side to side with a shiplap joint or a tongue-and-groove.

I am wondering about just putting each board down with a space between each. Slats, if you will. The advantage being that I could sweep dust off them easily down to the floor below. With other methods, I can only see dust getting caught in the grooves between each board.

The bench by the way is a mish-mash of Bob Lang's 21st Century design with one by David Charlesworth. Made of old planks and what I had handy.

I have no need to make a full copy of anyone else's design, so if there is a reason for shiplapping or tongue-and-grooving a shelf for any reason other than looks, I'd like to hear it. T&G might warp a little less?

Thanks


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[ken hatch]

just one suggestion, have the boards even with the top of the stretchers. It is much easier to keep clean however you place the boards. Best I can tell it doesn't make a rat's patooty how you place 'em side by side.

ken

[Kent A Bathurst]

Yeah - what Ken said. Leave a small gap is cool - the bigger the gap, the easier for wood trash to fall thru to the floor.

[Steve Voigt]

I've often wished that I had left small gaps between the boards. The chips pile up pretty quickly and it would be nice to just brush them through the gaps.

[Jim Matthews]

I keep a large tote on a similar shelf.
No dust or shavings fall through.

[Frederick Skelly]

I wouldn't overdo it. I used particle board, placed above the stretchers so it'easy to sweep off. Doesn't hurt the aesthetics at all because it's a shelf, covered with tools etc.
Fred

[Jude Kenny]

Thanks guys. I'll leave some spacing in between them and call it done.

[Patrick Harper]

Jude, I just did a simple shiplap and left a bit of space between my boards. I had to fine-tune the last board to get the fit I was looking for.

http://bloodsweatsawdust.com/2015/05/19/roubo-workbench-shelf/

[Jeff Ranck]

The one problem with just sweeping them through the cracks is then they are under a very heavy bench and you need to figure out how to get them out from under the bench. If the boards are tight, at least the pile ends up outside the base of the bench. Easier to clean up that way.

[Augusto Orosco]

I don't know about gaps and shavings and dust, but I second the comment about leaving them flush with the stretchers. I agonized about how to do a tongue and grove for mine for awhile. Once I started cutting, I realized it really was not going to make much of a difference, so I simply arrange them side by side with just a very small gap to allow for expansion (i.e. no joinery). They look perfectly fine to my eye, and they function as they should. I think at this point, is just a matter of your personal preference. I went with the least effort route for this one.

[Andrae Covington]

Like the rest of my bench, my shelf boards were recycled wood from a local place that deals in that sort of thing. I crosscut them out of a long ~3/4" plank which was already shiplapped. It had thick paint on one side, which I figured was probably lead paint, so rather than mess with that, I jack-planed the opposite side and put that side up. Anyway I have never nailed or screwed them down, they just sit loose on little runners, so I can pull them up if I want to for cleaning.