Description
Price: $149.98
(as of Oct 31, 2024 22:03:12 UTC – Details)
From the manufacturer
About Us
Since our earliest days as a small Baltimore machine shop, BLACK+DECKER has remained steadfastly focused on customer needs. From a modest machine shop in Baltimore to the surface of the moon, we’ve proudly provided innovative solutions for over a century. Two young entrepreneurs—S. Duncan Black and Alonzo G. Decker—launch a machine shop in Baltimore. Early products include machines for making milk bottle caps and candy dipping.
Workmate transforms into a roomy workbench or bench tool stand
Heavyweight steel design holds up to 550-pound
One-Handed clamp system allows for independent jaw adjustment
NON-MARRING PADS: Grip firmly and protect your workpiece from scratches and scuffs
QUICK-GRIP DESIGN: One-handed triggers release the clamps instantly
STURDY: Resin construction with hardened steel bars to prevent flexing and bending
Customers say
Customers like the functionality and portability of the workbench. They mention it’s a great kitchen worktop, compact, and light enough to carry comfortably. Customers are also satisfied with its foldability and value for money. However, some customers have reported issues with the assembly instructions and quality. They mention the original instructions left out critical pieces and are not always self-explanatory. Customers also have issues with the board warping and disagree on the build quality.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Duncan –
Well designed!
I donât 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.
Louie –
Best of the best
I do a lot of work around the house and need several tables and saw horses to do it. Not knowing which portable work bench was really the best, I bought the WorkX Pegasus, Ketter folding table and this Black & Decker workbench. I am impressed with the Black & Decker workbench the most. It will require assembly but it is worth it. It is by far the strongest of them all and won’t move around like the plastic-based workbenches. Its wood-based table works well with my work material especially wood. It folds well and is heavy but you need to expect that since it is constructed with the most steel. By the way, the WorkX is the hardest to carry and can pinch your fingers when closing. The Ketter closes quickly without the danger and stores nicely. For any workbench that will need to take a pounding or needs to be the flatest, my go-to workbench is the Black & Decker!
Michelangelo –
The product is great… the directions are horrible!
I had a lower-level B&D workbench for years and loved it. The top got damaged in the rain so I decided to buy a new and upgraded one. The instructions were poor especially where they had you install the handles for opening and closing the top table. It says to hammer in the pins to the posts. They did not go in easy and it bent both ends of the frame. Afterward, I saw a video on YouTube that said to use a large pair of channel locks to squeeze them in. There were other unclear things in the directions. So what I learned from this… check with YouTube before you trust supplied directions for any product. Otherwise the workmate great and I’ve used it several times already.
Dawn Mendow –
Built well
Was looking for a table to do some home projects with this is the perfect size not too heavy to lift and set up and easy to put together.
Sherry Butler –
Christmas
Delivery as expected
John Rutigliano –
Defiantly from China
This product was disappointing. Not the old Black & Decker quality. I expected better quality metal and heavier gauge for the price. One of the pieces of the top is warped so the work won’t sit level. when the front is turned up it is not 90° from the bench and is loose so it will not be good for a right angle jig. The assembly instructions are very bad. Even the Chinese would have trouble reading them. There are2 washers that are not shown in the directions that I figured out later was suppose to go on the cranks. But at this point the spit pis holding the handles on won’t come back out to put the washers on. I almost sent it back but with some work and modification I can make it work as it is suppose to. It makes agood bench but it”s clamping ability has much to be desired. Black & Decker used to be the tool peoplewanted.Now they are just a cheaper brand from Chiner.
julliette a denton –
step up
we have two other workbenches and this one offers a vertical position also. Great product.
LynDel Long –
Shipped *BROKEN!!!*
So…I’ve been trying to get outside in my back yard and do some stain/varnishing work, but the people directly behind us have been having their pool remodeled and it’s taking for-e-ver (seriously, how long does it take to remodel a pool?!), and everytime I’ve pulled out all of my stuff to work, they’ve fired up the table saw and sent saw dust flying directly over the fence and all over everything in our backyard. So I decided to set up in my garage and do small pieces at a time until it’s done, but at least it would be out of the wind and sawdust. I had already ordered this workbench – thinking that this would be the answer to my problem.Whelp……This item was shipped BROKEN!! To say that I am seriously disappointed in Black & Decker is an understatement. My friend’s husband had one of these (smaller version) that I loved, so I looked for 2 months before I found this one and bought it. Yes, I read the reviews. But it’s a Black & Decker product, so I was willing to take a chance. I wanted it for 4 reasons: 1.) I could fold it up and hang it on the garage wall out of the way, 2.) It was metal and wood (though parts of it are plastic, keep reading), 3.) It had a step, 4.) the top was adjustable so that I could make it wider or narrower. So, first of all, there is assembly required. Not a large deal, but it does require assembly. Almost everything you need is included (Except a hammer). Directions are just pictures, no explanations. Just pictures, and some of the angles of the pictures were questionable about where exactly the little doodads went into the frame. However, I got it assembled, and right away, I knew something was wrong. The first board was uneven (not level), and the pulley system that moves the boards on top wasn’t moving right, so I watched a youtube video on how to assemble it. I had done everything correctly, so I turned it over, and upon closer inspection, the plastic pulley system was BROKEN and the spring was COMPLETELY BROKEN and fell off as soon as I turned it over for inspection. I was so mad. I mean, really really mad. WHY, OH WHY?!?!!?! Would ANYONE make a pulley system with PLASTIC?!?! and a cheap little thin spring that would have a very short shelf life anyway (just a matter of time!)?! WHY WOULD ANYONE MAKE ANYTHING that is used as a tool/workbench with ANYTHING plastic? And MOVING PARTS OUT OF PLASTIC?!? Just….WHY?!?! Who does that? Who thought that would be a good idea?? Who’s making these decisions?! I expected more from Black & Decker. Seriously. Things just aren’t made like they used to. Black & Decker used to be my go-to brand. Never again. I’m so mad that I will never buy a Black & Decker item again. I couldn’t push the buttons on my phone fast enough to go through the return process. Because the HANDLES WILL NEVER EVER COME OFF (!!!) (just another fun FYI), I shoved it back in the box as-is – hauled it to UPS and told them to get this piece of s@#t as far away from me and as quickly as possible.Now for the heads up – NO ONE CARRIES THIS ANYWHERE LOCALLY. No one. Not Home Depot, not Lowes, not Ace Hardware, not Harbor Freight. No one. The guys at Home Depot told me why – So….apparently, Black & Decker must have a pretty air-tight patent on it, because no one will even make a generic version of it. No one. It. Is. Nowhere. To. Be. Found. Home Depot doesn’t carry ANY Black & Decker products anymore. So the hunt was on to try to find something similar that is usable for me.I have the greatest husband in the world….he took me straight out and told me to throw money at it to make the problem go away. I had already been to Home Depot and I knew they didn’t carry ANYTHING close to it. So not having high hopes, Hubby took me to Lowes and we walked out with a Worx Pegasus – for $20 more – yup, it’s plastic, but it has slammin’ reviews, and no moving parts. So, I figured if this doesn’t work I can return it locally.It is worth noting, that my friends’ husband has had his B&D workbench for over10 years – never had any problems with it. It was clearly made during the years that things were built better.So do yourselves a HUGE favor and skip this. It’s a huge disappointment and an even bigger waste of time.
Frank Tovar –
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.
Bellevoir –
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
Simon J Harris –
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.
Buyer Beware –
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.
Alvaro Hernandez –
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 carpinterÃa de forma seria y que además no tienen mucho espacio para trabajar.