Veneer Edge Banding and Homebrew Varnish Finish for DIY Workbench

We have drawers and a laminated maple top, and now we need to apply a finish to the bench and put some edge banding on, then we can start using it.

I sanded the top, the cabinet and the drawer fronts with 120, 180 and then 220 grit paper.

I got this crazy idea to put some maple veneer edge banding on the top to cover up where the ply sheets and the maple top were laminated together.

The banding is a thin veneer of hardwood with a heat-sensitive adhesive on the back. You can buy it in various widths and lengths. I got a roll 3 inches wide by 25 feet long.

I'm going to try and do the whole top in one shot. So I figured I should do a test on a piece of scrap first.

If you look carefully, you'll notice the 'scrap' is actually my down-and-dirty router table! I had used it to make the drawer pulls, it was right at hand so I used it for my test.

You can see I cut a suitable piece of the veneer, and got my trusty Black and Decker iron heated up. I used the next-to-highest heat setting.

Just iron over the veneer at a slow speed. The adhesive will melt and bond to the wood.

I had used a razor veneer trimmer tool last time I worked with this stuff, on my DIY Fostex 126En speakers. 

Since I have a large amount of veneer to trim, this time I did some research and saw a mention on Lumberjocks about using a chisel. So I tried it, and it worked great. Lots of control and with a sharp chisel, the veneer cuts very easily - and straight.

Mission accomplished, test completed. Not too bad.

Now to move on to the Real Thing.

Right.

This is a lot bigger than that small piece on a wood scrap.

I unrolled the veneer and taped it around the table top as you see here.

Same process as the test. Just on a larger scale.

Move the iron along slowly to get the adhesive hot. I made two or three passes and worked on about a foot or so at a time.

And then immediately went over each section with a wood block to ensure it was flat.

I made a seam at the finish end. Didn't get a picture, but it's just a butt joint. Came out fine.

Then I turned the table top on its side on the floor to trim the edges with the chisel. As I finished each side, I turned the top to get access to each side.

It's HEAVY, so this took some doing.

Using a chisel worked out perfectly. I found that once I made a cut, I was able to trim away a couple of feet in one shot. I had been concerned about controlling a razor blade trimmer; this was much better.

Then I used 220 grit paper to knock down and places where the banding sat a bit proud of the surface.

Now to apply a finish.

I wanted something sort of natural that would go into the wood and show the grain. You may recall I picked boards that had some nice flame, so I wanted to highlight it.

Did a lot of reading online and decided on a homebrew wiping varnish consisting of 1/3 naptha, 1/3 boiled linseed oil, and 1/3 spar varnish.

I discovered that the "varnish" you get in your local paint store is poly. I have an aversion to poly, so I ordered some real spar varnish online.

Also found out about boiled linseed oil (aka BLO). Seems the stuff you can get in the Despot (of which I have a can in The Dungeon) has all sorts of chemicals to aid in its drying. More chemicals, in fact, than actual BLO. So I also procured some of the real thing.

Part of the reason for finishing the top was not just to protect the wood, but to experiment a bit with varnish as a wood finish. With a eye toward potentially using it on an instrument.

I needed to apply the finish in a ventilated area, so I lugged the table top up to the sunroom, where I could open the windows. No way could I do this in The Dungeon.

Here's the wiping varnish mix. I wanted an amber-y finish. In the jar it looks good, but it wasn't quite what I was after, so I put a few drops of ColorTone stain into the mix. I used vintage amber and medium brown.

(In looking at the stains, it seems Stew-Mac has expanded its color selection to include Nazareth brown and Kalamazoo brown...like Martin and Gibson vintage colors. Interesting!)

The varnish went on easily with a clean cloth rag. I changed the rag frequently.

My finishing schedule was 2 to 3 light coats a day. I wound up with 12 coats on the top. I could have done a few more, but I figured the top is going to get scratched up, so I wasn't going for a super perfect finish.

While the varnish on the top was in process, I also used a different type of varnish on the cabinet.

While searching for the spar varnish online, I discovered Ecos finishes. These are paints and varnishes that have low VOC (volatile organic compounds).  I procured some of their varnish and put that on the cabinet, tinted with ColorTone also.

I also built in some shelves on both ends and the side of the bench opposite to the drawers. I put some cork on the shelves as an anti-slip covering. They're also angled backward about 1 degree or so to help prevent things from falling off!

In the shot above, you can see one end, with shelves finished (note the can of Ecos on the second shelf). The Ecos is very easy to work with, goes on easily and does not smell at all!

Note also that I decided to put a power strip on the bench - this is a convenient spot.

After the varnish on the top was applied, I let it dry in the sunroom for a couple weeks. (Gave me plenty of time for those shelves and finishing the cabinet).

Then I brought the top down to The Dungeon, put it back on the table, and let it dry about another week - until I couldn't smell any varnish smell.

Then I wet sanded it with 400, 600, 800 and 1200 grit paper and then machine polished it with fine compound.  Then I waxed it with bowling alley wax.

Here's the finished top.

I'm pretty happy with it. It doesn't have a super high gloss, but as I said earlier, it's going to get scuffed up anyway, and I didn't want it to be so slick that workpieces or tools would just slide around.

And now I have some experience with varnish. It's a thin finish, and I want to try it on a guitar or ukulele at some point.

The shelves on the far side opposite the drawers. Already getting filled up.

This is the only good place I found for my early 1920s Stanley No. 7 plane - that thing is long!

The Ecos finish on the frame looks good I think. Better than the bare pine in any event.

Here's the drawer side of the bench.

One thing I learned about the banding: it will follow the surface very closely. Which means, if your underlying surface is lumpy, you will have lumps in the veneer. There are places where my veneer is not smooth, because it went over plywood. Oh well, live and learn. As I once heard Billy Bragg say "You gotta take the lumpy with the smooth."

If I get really tired of looking at it, I might put some PVC T-molding on. Maybe. (Keep telling myself: "self, it's just a workbench").

Close up of the maple grain on the top.

Came out pretty good for Despot wood, huh? And the joints are not bad for a total rookie.

Now to do some work.

I sprung for a new National Public Seating stool too. I had a lot of fun looking at their web site.

When you're in school, you don't think "where do they get this furniture?" Now I know!