You don’t see many sawbenches around these days and that is a shame. My workbench might be the most valued fixture in my shop but my sawbench runs a close second. And just what is a sawbench? Well it is a short bench for sawing. Just think of a low sawhorse. Here is mine.
It is built from construction lumber. The top is 2x6s. I made it strong and stable. Here are some of the details.
And it sits about a foot off the floor. The precise measurement is determined by the body of the user. The most common use for a sawbench is to crosscut long lumber. The board is placed on the bench with the cut free of the end and is held in place by the user’s foot. So when you make your sawbench, you should stack lumber until you find that sweet spot of comfort. I am right handed, so I use my left foot.
One end of the bench has an inverted bird’s beak and is handy for coping saw work–if you are willing to crawl around on the floor. Well, if you get in a hurry and cut it up, it beats cutting up your good bench.
My bench has a few accessories. One is the “board Bud”. I guess that needs a little explanation. My dad rarely referred to us kids by our given names–he preferred his nicknames. Mine was, “Bud,” from the Father Knows Best iv show, I guess. Anyway, it was my name and was used quite frequently during projects when I was the drafted helper. Today’s children are a blessing and parents cater to their every whim. Back in the day, children were staff. Being the only boy around, I was the chore “Bud”. He was a veterinarian by profession, but carpentry was his avocation. He measured and cut while I stood downwind, blinking back sawdust and holding the cutoffs. One day I realized that I did not have a “Bud” around to help so I made one.
So my childhood job is now being done my a wood stand. Truthfully, this new “Bud 2.0” is probably just as helpful but without all the backtalk of the early 1.0 version. Here it quietly holds up a long piece of heavy 5/4 cherry.
Balance the cutoff well and “Bud” is your friend who will prevent that danged splintering at the end of the cut.
Another helpful accessory turns this lowly sawbench into a bodger’s bench. And what in the heck is a bodger’s bench? you ask. Well, let me tell you. Bodger’s of old Merry England went of into the forest and produced chair turnings. They would pack these into town and sell them to chairmakers. I guess the bodgers hung around woodcutters and scavenged the piles for wood to split. Some of the pieces were turned on a springpole lathe and some of them were worked with a drawknife. A skilled bodger could use his bench and knife to make a fine axhandle for bartering. So if you need to use a drawknife in your shop, the easiest way is to use a bodger’s bench. I made a ramp to hold the workpiece at the proper angle and then made a frame to fit it. To use, I put the workpiece on the ramp and clamp it in place with my foot on the frame.
I think the picture is worth 1000 words.
So put the sawbench, board Bud, and bodger’s accessories on your to do list. I keep my sawbench just under the end vise of my workbench, where it is close by but stays out of the way. It is a handy thing to have around the shop.