Black & Decker Workmate

The Black & Decker Workmate is a strong, adaptable general purpose portable workbench and general carpentry tool manufactured under the brand Black & Decker. It is a folding table for portability, but when expanded stands about 3 feet (1 m) tall. The table top consists of two sturdy wooden jaws, one of which is fixed and the other able to be moved in and out on threaded rods operated by handles, so it can be used as a bench vice to hold wood, metal and other parts while working on them. The legs underneath are designed to be strong enough to support the weight of a human so that it can be used as a stool to reach high surfaces, and has holes for retaining tools while working, or for drilling. Its edges are printed with measures and angles, and although it cannot be used as a mitre saw the jaws are wide enough to hold one or take a mitre box.

When invented, the designer Ron Hickman had difficulty convincing anyone to market the Workmate, and sold them himself at trade shows. Black & Decker released their first model in 1974 and sold a million by the third year.. They have since sold thirty million Workmates. Ron Hickman received a royalty of about 50 pence(0.5Pound sterling|pound]] for each Workmate sold, and became a wealthy man.

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