In lieu of Maple, which is better for a workbench Bur Oak or Ash?

[Chad Johnson]

I may not be able to find maple for my workbench at a measurable price. If I do not use Maple would ash or bur oak be a better choice for a workbench? Bur oak is practically a weed where I am from so the cost is virtually the same for the material.

[Bill Bukovec]

I think they will both work.

Mine is pine because it was free and if I screwed something up, no problem.

Make sure you post a picture.

Bill

[Danny Hamsley]

Burr oak is much denser than ash.

[Loren Woirhaye]

The reason maple works well is it tends to be pale and it has small pores. My main bench is a mishmash of maple and cherry and it works find but in terms of light reflection the maple is preferable. Porous woods like oak and ash tear out in a somewhat more ugly way than maple when the bench is flattened. It is an aesthetic issue only and grime may lodge in the torn-out oak or ash grain. My bench looks beat up anyway and I don't care but some people want a very clean looking bench top and for this maple is a good choice.

[Chad Johnson]

The reason maple works well is it tends to be pale and it has small pores. My main bench is a mishmash of maple and cherry and it works find but in terms of light reflection the maple is preferable. Porous woods like oak and ash tear out in a somewhat more ugly way than maple when the bench is flattened. It is an aesthetic issue only and grime may lodge in the torn-out oak or ash grain. My bench looks beat up anyway and I don't care but some people want a very clean looking bench top and for this maple is a good choice.

So do you have advice on which is better between burr oak and ash?

[Chris Padilla]

Chad,

I'd go with whichever is cheaper and that you can get in reasonable time and supply. Ash will tend to tear out a ~tad~ less. I know many fuss over the optimum material for a workbench but let's face it, that beautiful when new perfectly flat perfectly clean glistening shiny bench top will be dinged up, gouged, discolored, dirty and less shiny in 3 months and you won't care what wood is there.

[Prashun Patel]

I have both a maple and an ash bench. Both tops are fine. I find the negatives about ash's open pores on a bench to be a myth for me. I can write on it fine. It flattened about as well as the maple bench. I'd go with the wood you like the look of better.

[Loren Woirhaye]

I don't know anything about burr oak but I do think ash is a nice wood.

[Jim Matthews]

It's not just hardness of the wood to be prized in making a bench,
elasticity is important, too.

Maple Janka hardness 1450 Modulus of elasticity 12.62 GPa (Gigo pascals, a measure of Young's modulus of elasticity - higher is more elastic)
Ash Janka rating 1320 Modulus of elasticity 12.00 GPa
Burr Oak Janka rating 1360 Modulus of elasticity 7.17 GPa

If I'm interpreting this correctly (and I'm no expert) - Oak is harder, but more brittly than Ash.
There's a reason baseball bats are made of Ash and Maple, I suppose this shows why.

Were I to search out an alternative to Maple, I would consider Hickory.

[peter gagliardi]

Well, if I remember correctly, bur oak is not very stable, has plenty of stress and wants to move. Not ideal if your gluing it up. Having made many benches, maple is best IMO, but the Ash would be my second choice for sure given your options.

[Dave Zellers]

Quality ash is extremely stable.

[Don Huffer]

I have a bench made with maple as the main deck and oak as the skirt. It's made with expansion built in. Tails are dovetailed and the bench can move as it expands and contracts. I used oak because I had a ton of it and don't really like making furniture out of it.

image-949922852.jpg

If I build another one I won't use oak. This one is going on 30 years.

Don

[Jim Andrew]

I built my bench from Burr Oak, have had no trouble with moving or cracking whatsoever. Very stout bench. The top was very heavy, I glued it up in 2 pieces, then ran them each through the planer before gluing the two pieces together. Drilled it and used threaded rods, countersunk, and plugs on top. Have to watch the dog holes so you don't hit a rod. I used 2" thick pieces, both for the top and the legs, glued the legs up for 4" square legs, and flat ways for a 3 1/2" thick top. Went with the 3 1/2" top to make the available wood make the top. Would have rather made the top thicker, but it is very good as is. Think the main thing is to make sure your wood is dry.

[bob cohen]

The problem with Ash is that it is hard to find any that is free from bore holes from the Emrald Ash borer. My current bench is about half Ash, and there are many bore holes. If you have the chance to inspect the wood thoroughly before purchasing then this might not be a problem. Other than the bore holes, Ash is a very hard and heavy wood, quite suitable for a sturdy and long-lasting bench. Good luck.

[Ed Labadie]

The problem with Ash is that it is hard to find any that is free from bore holes from the Emrald Ash borer. My current bench is about half Ash, and there are many bore holes. If you have the chance to inspect the wood thoroughly before purchasing then this might not be a problem. Other than the bore holes, Ash is a very hard and heavy wood, quite suitable for a sturdy and long-lasting bench. Good luck.

The Emerald Ash borer does not bore into the wood, it lives in the cambium layer and kills the tree by disrupting the flow of nutrients. There are other borers that will penetrate into the tree itself, what you've experienced isn't EAB.

The attached picture shows the extent of what EAB does to an Ash tree.

Ed