[Jewelry making - Article 00281] - Re: [Orchid] Jeweler's Work Bench

[Peter W . Rowe]

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>     Why are so many benches cut this way? There seems to be very little
>     practical use for a cut out. 

    I'm guessing here, but I'll bet the cutout is a holdover from the
    european benches where instead of a bench pan or drawer to catch
    filings, one had a leather apron-like affair.  The leather needs the
    cutout to provide a proper shape to the suspended leather to form the
    catching pounch.  With a slide out bench pan or drawer, the cutout
    also reduces the degree to which the drawer has to slide out in order
    to still be able to catch filings, which means the drawer need only
    just slide off a shelf, the arrangement used on many commercial
    benches.  Much cheaper than, for example, actual extension slide
    hardware which might be needed to get a stable bench pan sliding far
    enough out under a straight front bench.  I've seen straight front
    benches that didn't need the hardware either, but the bench drawer
    needs then to be a bit deeper.  Again, perhaps cost is the factor
    here.  But in the end, I think it's just the tradition started by the
    design of the original leather apron, which does work better with the
    cutout, (and which still makes a fine arrangment.  Such benches are
    still in wide use in europe.  Our metal bench drawers are only
    different, not necessarily any better. 

Peter

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