Supplied with four clamps, it’s an attractive and practical design finished with water-repellent materials, making it great for outdoor work in harsh conditions. The maximum widths we tested ranged from 384mm on the Keter to 850mm on Stanley’s FatMax, with the latter more than sufficient for most jobs. Of the products we tested, WORX’s reinforced-steel chassis and Keter’s 3D design were particularly impressive tools of the trade. If the Keter resembles a Transformers robot, the PWB 600’s emerald paint colour and the bamboo top could only have come from Bosch. Any workbench will be between 800mm and 900mm high once assembled, though taller patrons, in particular, should look for products approaching the latter height to avoid stooping.

Mac Allister seem to have reinvented the wheel with this workbench. Unlike the others in the test, it doesn’t follow the ‘replica Workmate’ formula, instead using a mainly plastic construction and a clever folding mechanism. Our shortlisted benches all have grippy (if compact) feet, reducing their propensity to slip on anything other than polished surfaces. That saving is almost enough to buy the third-placed Minotaur. It’s flawed in many ways, but we loved the ability to tilt the jaws to work on awkward items. Even the Wolfcraft, whose 180kg max payload is the lowest we recorded, shouldn’t be stretched by internal doors or cabinets.The work boards themselves are larger too, with handy measurements for length and angles which could make fabricating parts easier. Once you’ve finished working, the Draper collapses easily and folds almost flat to make storage easier. These are almost universally known by the name of the original – the Workmate – which was invented in the 1960s by a Ford and Lotus engineer. Whoever makes them now, they allow you to safely clamp parts to cut, paint, clean or disassemble in comfort and safety.

Some classic Morris owners might buy this good-value workbench just for the name, but it has another useful feature. In addition to the conventional clamping action of the two plank-like work surfaces, they can also be individually tilted to 45 or 90 degrees. This makes it far easier to hold awkwardly shaped or large components. By the time you reach the 450kg weight limit on the WORX, you’re talking about being able to hold an object as heavy as a concert hall-standard grand piano. And when was the last time you felt the need to clamp a grand piano in place and do some sawing? Measurements and Markings All our products, bar the Stanley, have cross-pieces providing additional bracing between the legs, with the WORX and Keter turning these braces into practical tool storage.

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Draper provides limited information on this workbench, but it’s not our shortlist’s most sophisticated or advanced product. It’s by some distance the cheapest, which is a compelling advantage, though you get what you pay for with this workbench. The clamps are low quality, interchangeable and the bench sizes seem the same but I've never actually measured them. They're versatile and okay for what they do but I wouldn't recommend them as your sole woodworking bench - too low for all day use and not rigid enough for hand planing. If you want something cheap and cheerful to hold your timber in place occasionally, it’s hard to argue with Draper’s value for money. Pros

Offering a maximum clamping depth of 34mm, its full width of 525mm achieves a mid-table finish in our comparison chart (below). At first glance the Clarke bench looks similar to our winning Workmate, with legs that can be deployed or folded to give two possible working heights. It also has a step so you can put a foot on it comfortably to steady the bench while using a saw, or can reach high up if working on a tall parts such as a bumper. We reviewed six of the best-selling workbenches to see which stood out for the motoring DIYer. We tested how well they gripped a radiator hose while being cut, held a wheel while it was being wire brushed, and provided a platform to hold a differential. The load-bearing capacity of just 200kg is the second-lowest we recorded (Draper hasn’t published figures for their product), though we did like the PWB 600’s integral storage tray and grippy feet. Some manufacturers etch measuring tapes, angle compasses and even operating instructions onto the surface of their benches. This approach can be confusing if you look at them upside down, but we’d always recommend a product with these markings over ones that don’t. It’s a simple addition, yet it can reduce the need for additional tools and streamline the process of fine measurements mid-job.

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If money was no object, we’d choose the innovative Mac Allister Folding Workbench. It is easy to use, and the size of the surfaces makes it much more useful for most automotive tasks. It also folds down neatly for storage. The Draper’s maximum clamping width of 430mm is the second-smallest we tested, with only the Keter performing worse in this area. The two products have almost identical weights, though Draper hasn’t published a maximum load — it’s unlikely it would match the Keter’s impressive 453kg payload capacity. Then again, this product is half the price. To save costs it comes as a big bag of bits, so you’ll need to do about 40 minutes of assembly yourself, but once built you are left with a pretty basic – and small – bench. But it is uncomplicated, easy to use and folds up to a smaller size for storage. The 4.5kg weight means it’s not too much effort to lift off a hook on a garage wall either – that’s less than half the weight of most other benches here. Vertical clamping, inboard measurement markings, tool storage, and wobble-free chassis design are some of the attributes we valued highly in testing.

All of our shortlisted workbenches have pre-drilled holes which accommodate plastic pegs (aka bench dogs), allowing you to move them around and create a flexible work surface area. The Keter is particularly impressive, offering loads of horizontal space for resting drills, saws, spirit levels and other essential items while clamping an object.I have two of the Keter, a McAllister and a Forge Steel - The McAllister and Forge steel are own brands (Screwfix, B&Q) but basically badged items. I've not noticed any difference between them. They were bought at different times - normally when on offer somewhere. Weight is more significant, especially if you’re going to be lugging a bench up and down your stairs alongside tool bags and other equipment. Mine have had a hard life and they still function although one of them has sagged a little in the middle so that it's no longer flat. They're heavier that they look but very easy to carry and store/transport and for that reason they have made my B&D Workmates redundant. They take literally seconds to erect or collapse - much faster than anything else I've ever used. The really remarkable feature of the Workmate is the maximum load capacity – a whopping 250kg. That’s enough to hold a Rover V8 engine. We didn’t test it to that extreme, but it certainly felt perfectly secure with our heavy wheel and differential. Mac Allister Folding Workbench 850MM – Recommended