BLACK+DECKER Workmate 301 Workbench, WM301-XJ

Great work bench. I chose the Black & Decker mainly for the name as I knew I could trust it. Cheaper options were available but I felt this would be good quality and it is.Great height, nice and sturdy and folds up to store away in the shed.

For the price these are really good benches, my dad has had some for decades and they still work well. My only issue is the assembly. There are pins that have to be hammered into the handles, this is not easy at all and due to how the bench is built, it is very easy to hit the bench / wood whilst trying to hammer the pins in. I had to buy a small vice to squeeze them in instead after smacking the metal / wood a few times.The rest of the assembly was no problem at all.

I'm really pleased with this little bench. For years, I've been "making do" with chairs, tables, volunteers, even a precariously placed foot to hold things steady, so I finally decided to get something better.ASSEMBLY - after looking at other reviews (thanks, everyone), I didn't even bother to read the instructions - I went straight to YouTube and found this excellent 6 minute video: http://youtu.be/CUPPYknO5Lk, posted by "green stripey paint". I can highly recommend it, it's so easy to follow. I kept my tablet beside me and played the video in stages until I had completed the bench. It took me about twenty-five minutes. (Thank you, Mr GSP)One minor gripe - the plastic feet tend to fall off in normal use. I kept having to look for the odd one, until I glued them all with Araldite, and they've been fine since.USE - All right, it's very basic and quite light, however, as I've said, it's a lot better and safer than my previous improvisations, and it's fine for my limited skills/use, such as holding curtain poles for sawing, clamping stuff for drilling, sanding, polishing, etc.I suspect that Norm wouldn't have it in his New Yankee Workshop, but then again, I don't have Norm's space, so for me, this is ideal - it folds up and stores easily in the shed between uses.[UPDATE (Oct 2015): In fact, it's so easy to store, that I've bought another one - they are a bargain, and it's handy to have two - eg one with the mitre saw set up, and one for clamping/gluing/sanding. Both together for tackling those extra long planks - you get the idea.]So, if you're a serious joiner/handyman, this is probably not for you, however if you want to upgrade from the table/chair/anyone handy improvisation, this is a great little bench. I like it.

Everything went together well, instructions pretty clear. It’s more robust than my old B&D workbench and folds slightly differently, but all is good and worth the money I think for the occasional DIYer like me.

After my old cheap workmate clone finally fell apart on me after 5 years, I was surprised to see a proper Black & Decker branded Workmate for less than 20 quid. And while it's not exactly the heavy duty beast a professional or serious DIY'er would use, it's solid, well made and a real bargain for the price.Unlike cheap workmate clones which usually suffer the fault of the bench jaws levering up when tightened, the WM301 grips objects tightly and stays dead level. Another plus point is that the bench jaws on the WM301 are actually made of wood, not laminated MDF which over time becomes soft and looses grip, (the MDF bench jaws on my old workbench broke in half after getting wet one too many times).The only negatives for the WM301 is that it's a self-assembly job and the included picture only assembly instructions aren't the clearest, that said I'm no expert and it only took me 15-20 minutes to put together. Also, when folding the bench up after use the top jaw section flips down flat and could be easy to catch your fingers if you're not careful.Those faults aside, the WM301 is great value for money and and well deserves a 5 star rating. I bought mine from the marketplace seller Toolbank and was delivered within 48 hours.

I went for the Black & Decker Workmate to replace a Black & Decker similar product i'd been using for the last 30 years. What a mistake. The package arrived, unassembled? I didn't expect this. It was described in all of the Amazon literature I read as ONE PIECE? In fact it came as lots of pieces, in a box, which is what the ONE PIECE meant. That mislead me. Does that contravene trade descriptions legislation? I will look in to this further. So I was destined to try and assemble the parts. Having spent over 50 years working as a successful graphic designer I could not believe the terrible standard of the drawn and sparsity of assembly instructions. Produced in China by a 5 year old seemingly. So I gave up and am in the process of returning the product. I bought a similar product from a local Tool Station operation for over £5 less. I assembled the product in 30-45 minutes with the aid of some splendidly produced instructions, and well produced design & parts. Black & Decker are now off my list of trusted tool manufactures as is Amazon are when it comes to tool purchasing. Tool Station seen to provide better products.

Not that sturdy. Alright for small jobs. Awful build instructions. Another reviewer found a YouTube person who shows a 6 minute build. I used as well. Wish I would have spent more money on a better one.

I bought this workmate to replace one that I’ve relied on for 20-odd years but managed to break. This one feels just a bit flimsier than the original one. There was a crossbar on the original (which wasn’t supplied with this one) which strengthened it a bit and was generally very useful, but fortunately I’d kept that. It suits my purposes fine, and if I hadn’t known what the old one was like, I’d probably have given 5 stars.