BLACK+DECKERPortable Workbench, Project Center and Vise with IRWIN QUICK-GRIP Clamps, One-Handed, Mini Bar, 6-Inch, 4-Pack (WM425-A & 1964758)

I don’t have room for a typical shop table but the Workmate fills the need! It is a great area to assemble small projects and also wood very well that needs to be cut. It is also light but super sturdy so I can move it around the garage for larger work.

You won’t regret this purchase. My first work mate lasted me over30 years. I believe this one will also. The improvements sine my first one are very nice and useful

This offering of the Black+Decker Workmate is a far cry from the model 79-001 I purchased in the early 80s. The twin independent screws of the early models connected at both the front and rear of the top of the frame, distributing the torque from clamping throughout four points. The amount of clamping torque that could be applied was impressive. Unfortunately, over the past ten years I left it out in the elements, causing the thick plywood top to fall apart. In last year’s move I (stupidly) left it behind. After seeing how the current 425 model is constructed, I wish I had brought it with me, refurbished it to last another 25 years.The Workmate 425 has a notable share of Cons:The stamped steel frame is flimsy compared to the old model I owned—a thinner steel used with lots of sharp edges in the cutouts and ends.Where the old model had independent screws driving the clamping top piece, the 425 uses a thin plastic perforated belt to synchronize the crank screws. Each crank handle is attached to a pulley wheel on the shaft, under spring tension. A sheer pin through each screw shaft holds the pulley on, but will easily spin to the next indent when clamping down, causing the belt to skip at the other handle. Using both handles at the same time to clamp onto the work, as it was with the original independent handle design, allows for a decent amount of even clamping force. But make no mistake, the belt is there only to get both sides of the clamp jaw to the work at the same time. Both handles are needed to get a firm, even hold. Personally, I don’t find this feature necessary. I may end up removing the belt. My old model worked just fine for decades without it.The instructions need to be in a larger format, with some clarification added: larger images, stick-on labels for parts X2 and X4, which are so close in looks that it took me a while to figure out which was which. Old eyes, here.My old model had a thick plywood top that weathered through decades of rain, snow, sleet, cold, heat, pounding, clamping, and more. Time will tell how long the species of wood used in the 425 will last. Fortunately, as with the older models, one can replace the wood with whatever is on hand or desired.Assembly Tips:Adding washers to each of the bolts will allow you to tighten the bolts more than without, and the heads won’t cut into the wood. Washers, as is always the case, are left out due to cost savings, not a lack of necessity.The easiest and least frustrating way to attache X4 to the middle and final clamping boards is on a bench or table. Because there aren’t any threads to guide the bolts in, place an X4 under each side of a given board while on a table or bench. Insert the bolt and washer, then give a firm tap on the bolt head with a 12oz or large hammer to force the threads to jamb into the plastic. This is all that is needed to get the bolts to start cutting threads. DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN THESE. Remember: steel bolts forcing itself into soft, THREADLESSS plastic.Instead of using a hammer to drive the sheer pins into the shaft holes of each handle, large slip jaw pliers make this easy, avoiding possible damage to the handle or shaft.If you find the white plastic screw connectors are not equally spaced on their respective shafts (the top looks crooked in relation to the frame) you can flip the unit on its back side, remove one end of the spring that runs across the belt (to provide tension on it). Then slip off the belt of one pulley and crank the other until the top is even in relation to the frame. Slip the belt back onto the pulley teeth and hook up the tension spring when done.Improvements/Recommendations:The top clamping work boards should be packaged with their respective plastic X2 and X4 components attached.A small bolt or slip-on pinch pin clip would be the better choice for attaching the handles. Asking the purchaser to use a hammer to drive sheer pins though a plastic handle is just asking for service calls to be made and bad reviews to follow.Instructions seem to always be the Achilles's heel for every product needing assembly by the buyer. A larger paper format was needed here, with some labeling on X2 and X4 components a great help.Conclusion:Having had an early model of the 425 for many dependable years of use, I can’t help but look at this new model with disappointment. It is nowhere near the quality, sturdiness, and clamping power of the early models. Whether the 425 is worth the price (for me) is yet to be determined. Outside of the cons given, I look forward to using my new Workmate 425. The design format, for me, is still the best for what I want out of a folding workbench. I doubt this will last as long as its older sibling did, but then again, with the TLC that I had neglected to give to old model applied to the 425, maybe it will.

To all those who wrote comments on how difficult this was to assemble and how the directions were worthless… they should not be doing anything that requires a work bench. I do wood work part time and the assembly took 15 minutes and was super easy to follow. My shop is in the garage and don’t have a lot of space. This bench is perfect and very sturdy. Love that it folds up for quick storage. And the price is very reasonable. Very happy with this.

The direction aren't very good but works great

I wanted a metal work bench, and since the vast majority are now plastic, my choices were rather limited. The assembly instructions weren't exactly clear. Note that the plastic mounts that tie the top to the base are of two types. The ones missing the protrusions are for the fixed (first) top piece nearest the clamp handles. Also, note the split roll pins for the mounting the clamps handles have a beveled edge which should be inserted first.I used the bench once for planning down a couple of solid core doors. The bench was a little wobbly while holding a heavy door. Also, the clamping strength was lacking. The plastic clips which hold the top to the base are not going to last. The top is already scratched up and dinged from the one project which was pretty mild. So, the top is soft, way too thin and flimsy. I'm sure I'll replace the top with 1.5" thick hardwood. The plastic dogs are pretty worthless.The base is metal and pretty sound. I will add a thin plywood shelf to the base to add temporary tool storage. This workbench has quite the following with numerous websites dedicated to it. You can find a lot of good ideas for modifying it. If you're willing to do a little work, you could have a decent, portable workbench. Unfortunately, I could not find a something nice right out of the box. At least, it's relatively cheap.

I like this workbench so well, that I have two of them. I bought my first one about 30 years ago, and I'm still using it. Very sturdy and versatile. I love the clamping function and the removal top sections. The workbench can be a challenge to setup and take down, but it folds to a very compact size.

En el poco tiempo de uso esta mesa me ha servico como mil, excelente mesa y buen soporte, me ayuda mucho en los trabajos con madera y corte.

There are only 3 workmates widely available in the UK, and they are all basic or compact models. So I ordered 2 of these and had them shipped from the US (kinda expensive)Do yourself a favour and throw away the assembly instructions. They are the usual cryptic diagram nonsense with no text. Would it really be so much trouble to provide multi-lingual instructions with actual text, how many of these do B&D sell a year, yet cant be bothered to hire a one-off translator?Anyway, search youtube for "how to assemble your workmate 425" by "workmateguy" and this will help you lotsThe wooden surfaces are nice, made from compressed bamboo, kinda shiny and rigid like laminate floor boards. No warping for me, although other users have had this problem.The metal frame feels quite cheaply machined with lots of sharp edges, although seems sturdy enough. The rubber caps simply refuse to stay gripped onto the feet, so will either have to be glued on, or drilled and then bolted.The two vice handles are connected in tandem with a cheap plastic belt. It doesn't work very well and also removes the ability to close the vice at an angle. You can fix this by either cutting the belt, or digging around and trying to remove it altogether, but the workmate provides no easy way to just disengage it temporarily. People have been complaining for years about how stupid this design is, but B&D do nothing.Worst of all, the crank shafts and handles are attached by having to hammer a metal pin. For me the metal pin simply would not go into the hole no matter how gentle or hard I hammered. Not sure whether the pins I got were malformed, but I ended up having to use a nut and bolt to secure it.Overall, I'll get some good use of out these workmates, but I can't say I'm that impressed with the build quality, and even the design is not that clever, with obvious improvements even to a non-designer. Ultimately they've cheaped out on a lot of things which they shouldn't have

They sure don't make WorkMates they they used to. This unit is poorly manufactured, the jaws doesn't open and close parallel and everything is loose and wobbly. Will be returning.

Way too much money for what you get, and requires too much effort on the part of the purchaser to get it to work anywhere near correctly.Problems:1. The first board is the only board that moves when you turn the handle. This is to be screwed onto two nylon brackets that are on long screw threads attached to the turning handles. Unfortunately, one of these brackets was out of position on the screw thread and meant the board was not at the correct angle. This meant the board did not sit flush with the other board - and the result was you could not properly clamp anything in the jaws. It took me some time to figure out how to adjust it, and more time to adjust it. Something I should invoice Black and Decker for my labour.2. The boards are made of bamboo plywood, and one of them is warped and about half a centimetre below the other boards. Therefore, the overall surface is not flat. Others have had this problem. Time to go back to wooden plywood, Black & Decker!3. The frame is held together by rivets. This makes the frame less rigid than if it was held together by nuts and bolts, and it twists and moves... lot!4. Some of the holes on one of the boards are too small for the orange pegs. I had to file them to make them usable. Something else I should invoice B&D for my labour.If you already have an old Workmate and want one with a larger surface area like the 450, you are better off getting some plywood and making your own top pieces. It's what I should have done - 10% of the price and about the same time it takes to assemble this overpriced product.Summary: Made of cheap components and poorly manufactured, it is not worth the purchase price.

La descripción corta de este banco debiera ser: Sólido y Funcional.Muy útil para trabajar sin problemas con tablones de triplay de 19mm de 1m x 50cm, quizá con tablones de más de 1 metro pueda resultar pequeño, sobretodo si no cuentas con las herramientas de fijación adecuadas para el tamaño de tablas que utilices. Aún para material más grande puede ser útil si se complementa con un burro que permita dar soporte adicional al material trabajado.Hay cosas que se pueden trabajar muy rápido gracias a sus múltiples posiciones, que sirven a manera de prensas aunque la presión de estas no permita trabajar con material muy grande o muy pesado.En particular he podido trabajar sin dificultades con la cierra circular y utilizandolo como base para la mesa de un router. Es muy conveniente además el poderlo plegar cuando no es utilizado.Me parece una muy buena opción para quienes se inician en la carpintería de forma seria y que además no tienen mucho espacio para trabajar.