"Mike W." wrote in message .. .

I can't say that I recall ever seeing Norm with much of a
workbench. Seems like he has some great big 'work tables', but no bench to
speak of. Is this an attribute of 'Normite vs Neander' on the requirement
of the true sense of the woodworkers workbench? Or is it just 'To each
his own'?

Others have answered about Nahm's bench, but I'll toss in a few
words about Neander vs. powah tool "requirements" for a bench.

Neander bench height is likely to be different from a bench
designed for powah tools. Common wisdom is that a Neander bench is
about the height of the distance from the floor to the woodworkers
palm when he stands with his arms at his sides and his hand held out
palm-down. Nahmite benches tend to be built to match the heights of
various stationary powah tools so it can serve as an auxiliary
"table".

Neander benches need to be designed to withstand the rigors of
planing, chopping dovetails, mortising, etc. Nahmite benches may or
may not have that requirement.

Neander benches need a workholding system for jointing and
surfacing boards. Nahmite benches may or may not need that.

Neander benches need a tool shelf to hold all of those fancy
Lie-Nielsen and Veritas planes so that they can admire them while
pondering what to build next. Nahmite benches may or may not need
that. :-)

Anyhow, you get the idea. Personal preferences will play a large
role, as will the particular blend of Neander/Nahmite that you happen
to be.


Chuck Vance