How to set up a folding workbench
Updated: October 2026
The carton is open, the legs are half out, and a video for a different Workmate is playing on the bench. This is how to set up a folding workbench you actually own: identify the model, use that model's latch, and keep your fingers out of the joint. The [mobile workbench comparison](/hub/workshop/mobile-workbench) is where the bench was chosen. Products Compared followed the WORX and Metabo instructions, the Bosch manual, and the faults UK reviewers describe, not a lab, on 19 October 2026. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
The carton is open, the legs are half out, and a video for a different Workmate is playing on the bench.
The carton is open, the legs are half out, and a video for a different Workmate is playing on the bench. This is how to set up a folding workbench you actually own: identify the model, use that model's latch, and keep your fingers out of the joint. The mobile workbench comparison is where the bench was chosen. Products Compared followed the WORX and Metabo instructions, the Bosch manual, and the faults UK reviewers describe, not a lab, on 19 October 2026. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Assembly | What has to lock | Listed weight | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Metabo Metabo MWB 100 | Yes, legs and struts | Slide the strut lock | 22.1 kg | 6.5 | about £174.95 | View offer |
 Bosch Bosch PWB 600 | No | Legs click | 11.4 kg | 8.7 | about £151.57 | View offer | |
| Best value |  BLACK+DECKER BLACK+DECKER Workmate 301 | Yes, flat-pack | Handle pins | 6.6 kg | 8.5 | about £34.00 | View offer |
On this page
Which bench you are opening
Ready-to-open benches are the Bosch PWB 600, the WORX Pegasus and the Pony, and you still latch them. The Workmate 301 is the flat-pack. The Metabo is laid face-down so the legs can unfold and a lock can slide over the struts. A LARBANKE does not fold. A WM425, WM200 or WM400 manual does not match a WM301. If staff use the bench, PUWER 1998 regulation 20 requires the employer to stabilise it. A householder is outside that duty.
Ready-to-open benches
The Bosch listing says no assembly. A UK owner puts a foot on the bar and lifts until the legs click. The manual wants a firm level floor and bans using the bench as a ladder. Find the leg-release buttons in daylight.
On the WORX, open the legs fully, then pull the top up until both latches click and the top is horizontal. To fold, press both latches, lift the centre tray, and keep fingers off the joints. A UK review describes a crushed finger in that gap. If a latch has not clicked, do not saw. The Pony has no printed latch order, so this page will not invent one. Set a height from 765 mm to 890 mm, and stop if it will not open square.
The Workmate 301 build
The Workmate 301 arrives flat-packed. The listing says English is not guaranteed. The sheet is called tiny or unusable, and the build often stops on the handle pins, which will not enter without force. Reviewers finish from a video of this model. Do not follow a WM425 diagram and hope the dowels match.
If a part in your hands is not on the sheet, stop and match it to WM301-XJ before you bend anything. Once it is together, reviews still describe wobble and, in one case, loose foot pads. The brand page states 760 mm. The amazon details field states a minimum of 84 cm. Do not average those two lines.
Metabo legs, height and the levelling wheel
The Metabo sequence starts with the top face-down. Release the leg lock, unfold the legs, hook the struts and slide the lock over them, then turn the table onto its feet. Set the height and level it with the foot. Metabo UK states 800–1,000 mm. The manual's maximum load is 120 kg. Do not saw more than 5 mm into the MDF top.
A UK review found three of four leg latches so stiff that a soft hammer was used, and the frame arrived dented. That is a fault report, not the method. Hammering a latch as routine can hide a bent leg. If a clamp spring is fitted so the clamp does nothing, strip that clamp before you blame the dog holes.
Folding it away
Fold only after the top is clear. A mitre saw left on the bench means it cannot fold. On the Metabo, bring the legs in from the tall end of 800–1,000 mm before you force the frame shut. A stiff latch, a dented rail, or a Workmate pin that will not enter the right way round is a return, not a bigger hammer. Carry a WORX or a Bosch only when it is folded, and expect the Metabo at 22.1 kg to need two hands. Holding the work is on the clamping page. Who should have bought which folder is on the best folding workbench page.
Common questions
Why will the Workmate not go together?
The WM301 sheet is the complaint that dominates the reviews, and the listing says English is not guaranteed. The build often stops on the handle pins. Use a video of the WM301, not a manual for a WM425 or WM400. If a pin still will not enter when it is the right way round, that unit is a return.
How do I know the Pegasus latches are in?
Both latches on that side have to click into the upper holes, and the top has to sit horizontal. One click on one latch is not the pair. WORX also says to open the legs fully before you pull the top up. If the top rocks, the latches are not home.
Where do my fingers go when it folds?
Off the joints. On the WORX, press both latches, then lift the centre tray, and keep fingers clear of the leaf as it meets the frame. A UK reviewer lost a fingernail in that gap. The same rule applies to any folding leaf: the hand that is not operating the latch stays on the outside of the frame.
How do the Metabo legs lock?
With the top face-down, you unfold the legs, hook the struts, and slide the lock over. The UK review that needed a soft hammer is describing stiff latches on arrival, not a step you should copy. If the lock will not slide after the strut is hooked, stop and contact the seller.
Does no assembly mean I can skip the latch check?
No. Bosch, WORX and Pony arrive ready to open, and the latch or the click is still the step that makes the top safe to load. A bench that is unfolded and not latched is a hinge with a plank on it. Check the click, or both WORX latches, before the first cut.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources and the amazon.co.uk listings compared on this page, read on 19 October 2026.
- PUWER 1998, regulation 20 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- HSE: PUWER overview (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- OPSS: LDNIO power strip PSD 2403-0065 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Metabo UK: MWB 100 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Black+Decker UK: Workmate 301 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- WORX EU: Pegasus WX051 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- DIY Garden: workbench round-up (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Consumer Rights Act 2015 (retrieved 19 October 2026)