Face Laminating 2x12 SYP for Nicholson Bench...Bad idea?

[Ricky]

Been using a 2 x 10 for the top of my bench.....it will be 7 yrs old this coming September. Used just a single layer.    I use dog holes and dogs.   No issues.    2x 10 was from an old waterbed frame.

My son had an old waterbed frame from the 70 or 80's a friend gave him.  He moved out and scraped off the finish.  Good stuff!

[bloggstein]

I used SYP 2x for my top.  I had to order them, but they were pretty reasonably priced.  I think I got 2"x12x14' if I remember right.  They had told me that the larger beams tended to not bend and warp as much and at least in my case I was very happy with them.  I let everything acclimate for a few weeks and then ripped them into I think 3.5" strips, glued them up in sections and flattened them.  I think I probably built it 5-6 years ago now, and the only issues I have had with it were due to my own shoddy workmanship, not the wood.

[MauleSkinner]

This is an excerpt from the new Anarchist’s Workbench book...it’s dealing with 8/4, but I would assume the answer would be similar for 2x material...
“ 18. Can I glue 8/4 material face-to-face to make a thick benchtop?
Yes. You also can laminate a large quantity of toothpicks to make a benchtop. The trade-off is you need the equipment to do a seamless job. Or you need to be OK with a few gaps. There is a lot of surface area that needs to be glued when you laminate boards face-to-face.”