Originally Posted by
NavyVet1959
Sounds like it might be related to either high density fiberboard or tempered hardboard. Does it have a very slick surface like tempered hardboard?
I guess it kind of depends upon what sort of woodworking tools (and skills) you have and what you feel comfortable working with. My bench top started out over 20 years ago as a desktop for underneath a queen size loft bed. Thanks to various moves where I had to disassemble it, the body of the loft bed had been repurposed for various projects over the years, but I kept the desktop intact. Once I got into reloading, it just kind of made sense to use that desktop for a reloading bench. If I was building a reloading bench from scratch today, I would still go with the joined lumber approach, although I might make it a bit larger. It's nice knowing that any dents or scratches that you put in the surface can either be sanded out or just declared as part of the "character" of the piece. :)
I have a few thick pieces of glass that I put buy each press on the benchtop so that I have a smooth place to write notes. They also make for good places to write temporary information (e.g. what a press is set up for) in grease pencil.