Saw Horse and Shave Horse

The third in the series of Countrycraft Workshops by Les Murphy –  this time learning how to make a couple of essential tools to help when you need an extra pair of hands to hold your work steady when sawing or shaping your timber.

The end products may look a little rough and ready but they are built using minimal traditional tools and using green wood gathered from local woods – or for some elements we use wood recycled from old bits of furniture etc. They are constructed without using any screws or nails and yet are extremely sturdy and would give years of use even if kept out of doors – no workshop should be without a Saw Horse or a Shaving Bench.

I should also point out that the Draw knives we used to fashion much of the timber were made by Les using blades from old clippers and with handles that Les also turned himself on the lathe.

Les holds these occasional workshops in country crafts as part of his role with the Mynydd Maen Commoners – the workshops are sponsored by Torfaen County Council as part of the Upland Management Scheme.

The Twmbarlwm Society works closely with the commoners and we support these events wherever we can as these new found skills will, no doubt, come in useful in our work on Twmbarlwm.

Members are always invited to take part – so make sure you look out for the next one because spaces are limited and allocated on a first come, first served basis.