Workbench

Also called: bench, joiner's bench, cabinetmaker's bench

A workbench is a sturdy table that supports and holds wood while you saw, plane or join it.

A firm working base

The bench must stay steady while the work is pushed, pulled or struck. The piece should also be held so it cannot move, both for accurate work and for safety. A bench does not need an elaborate design to do this; it needs a solid top, a stable base and a way to suit the work and the person using it.

Holding the work

A bench stop is an iron or wooden block that rises from a hole in the bench top and catches the edge of a board. A vice is a screw-operated clamp; its cheeks, or jaws, close on the work. A bench hook is a small stop that keeps a board steady as a plane is pushed against it. For work such as mortising, a holdfast, also called a valet, is an iron clamp that presses the piece firmly down on the bench. A bench screw fastens boards between the cheeks of a vice.

Fit the bench to the job

Fixed dimensions are not necessary. Set the working height and holding points to suit your body and the tasks you carry out, keeping the work around waist height rather than up at the chest. The bench may be a full cabinetmaker's bench, or a simpler arrangement made from a pair of trestles, which are low supporting frames, when you need a low surface or support while sawing.