Material Study: Testing Baltic Birch Plywood for a Mechanic’s Work Surface
At Richard James Joinery, we’re always curious about how materials hold up in real-world conditions. Recently, we put together a simple work surface for mechanic and performance car builder, Anthony Scott, to see how 22mm Baltic Birch plywood would perform under the demands of a busy workshop.
A Quick Experiment with Baltic Birch
We had some high-quality 22mm Baltic Birch plywood in the workshop and thought it’d be interesting to test its durability in a more demanding environment. Anthony needed a surface to fit onto his Milwaukee workstation, so we put something together quickly, finishing it with a water-based spray lacquer to see how well it would stand up to oil, grease, and general wear and tear.
Fixed in Place with Oak Dowels
Rather than using screws, we decided to position it down with oak dowels—a simple but effective way to keep it in place while keeping things neat and allowing for easy removal if needed.
Seeing How It Holds Up
This wasn’t a big commission, more of a side project to see how Baltic Birch and our spray lacquer fare in a workshop environment. So far, it’s handling the day-to-day work well, and we’ll be keeping an eye on how it ages over time.
Small Experiments, Big Insights
We love taking on small projects like this—whether it’s for our own interest or to help out local tradespeople. It’s always good to see how materials behave in different settings, and who knows? It might shape how we approach future furniture and workshop builds.
If you’re looking for bespoke furniture or fitted solutions in Hexham, feel free to get in touch—we’re always up for an interesting project!
Plan your kitchen
If you have any questions or you would like to discuss your project in more detail, then we’d love to hear from you. To help us start the process, and to provide you with an idea of cost, we just ask that you provide us with some details of your project.
