An ironing board met a spindly manual-training workbench at a bar. Drinks were consumed. And nine months later, the Chandler & Barber patented “Handy Bench Cabinet” came into this world in 1902.
The “bench” is a testament to human will – that something so odd and ill-conceived could be patented and brought to market.
Observe the arrangement of the vise and the opening of the cabinet. A right-handed woodworker would pretty much slam his or her handplane into the rear of the cabinet with almost every stroke. There is an incredible amount of wasted space in the closed cabinet. And the lower shelves (12” x 18”) look sized for almost anything except woodworking tools. Where do the long planes go?
Other than that, very nice!
— Christopher Schwarz
Thanks to Jeff Burks for digging up this love child.
Would you really want to try to use a long plane on that thing? 😉
This looks a lot like my 40in long ‘plywood on a rolling toolbox’ workbench. I have slammed my No 7 into a pine shelf at the end of my planing runway.
Actually making a chimney cupboard for tools etc. isn’t such a bad idea. If you swapped the hinged bench with a Milkman’s bench, Then you could have a lot of tools in a little space if you lived in an apartment. long planes could be mounted vertically, and there would be room for long clamps etc.
But that would off course be a different system then..
Indeed. It might actually work!
I want a Roubo bench that folds into the wall like a Murphy Bed.
Is there a hardware kit available?
If you use a Japanese plane, you’ll avoid the issue of running into the back of the cabinet. Also, Japanese planes, even the longer ones, would fit nicely into that 12″ x 18″ storage space.
I would beg to differ. I think the kid is cute. It would not be difficult to make a right handed version, obviously. As for storage, I assume this is not meant for a patternmaker, but more for a hobbiest who lives in a one bedroom apartment. As such, the hobbiest may have a small kit that includes nothing large than a jack – I guess you could even fit a Stanley 6 try plane. It also looks like a 7 might find a home vertically in the top area. I assume that we are seeing the bare bones here, or that a woodworker could customize the interior – just as you do with your chests in the post below – to hold chisels and hang saws (or even planes) and so forth. Is it really so far from the milk-man’s bench?
Go for it. And let us know how to goes.
I think it’s quite different than the milkman’s bench, but that’s just opinion.
I don’t live in a one bedroom apartment … and already built a full size bench many years ago. I don’t love the cabinet, I just don’t think it’s as awful as you appear to. Cheers.
Reblogged this on larrymade.