In the middle of trying to fix things up around the house, and I came across an old work bench. The top was shot, so I had to trash it. I'm in luck that the metal legs and bars are ok. It feels ridiculous how many things I've been told to use for a top, so I'm a bit stuck.

Any ideas what type of wood I should use? The previous top was some kind of 1" thick wood chip board, not sure what it's called. It needs to be about 2'x4' in length. Several sites have said it depends upon use, your tastes, and your $$$ since hardwoods can be expensive. The workbench would be mainly used for minor projects with a good 5-8lbs clamp/vice being attached to it with sturdy bolts.

My neighbor made a super heavy duty work bench with some standard 2x4s. He set them up on their side so that the edge of each board together makes the surface of the bench. You just have to screw each one together the right way. He also bound it with more 2x4s around each side. The advantage of this is that it can take a beating and if one board becomes too damaged you can simply unscrew everything and replace that board. It works really well for him, he has it on a sturdy metal cart that he fabricated with lockable wheels. Just an idea.

This isn't what his looks exactly like and it was nowhere near that big but it is the same idea. He didn't use any glue or do any mortise and tenon either.

http://i696.photobucket.com/albums/vv325/tdubnik/Projects/P1010062a.jpg