Black & Decker Workmate Complete Model History

A bit of Workmate trivia for you: In 1983 Black & Decker in the U.S. offered a rebate program for purchases of new Workmates. The list of then-current models that were eligible for the rebate shows there were twelve different Workmate benches available on the market in 1983, not counting the various Workmate accessories!

As I've said elsewhere, this site began as a research and documentation project on the very first Black & Decker Workmates, primarily the ten Types of the 79-001 produced from 1974 to 1982. This page is a modest expansion of that mission, providing an overview of all the other models.

Assembled below is a variety of documents and images that illustrate what I believe is all of the Workmates that Black & Decker made for North America. It includes catalog excerpts, photographs, newspaper ads, and part diagrams, presented in order by model number and indicating the approximate period when each one was sold. It does not attempt to match the in-depth research that I have done on the earlier models. If you have any relevant documents that you want to contribute, or information on a North American model that you don't find here, please let me know via the Contact page.

Catalogs

First, a few vintage catalogs from 1983 onward that I have collected. These give a sense of which models Black & Decker was promoting the most in certain years. In most cases they had additional Workmates on the market at the time that did not get featured in the catalog. (You can find many more catalogs and other documents from 1974 to 1982 showing the Workmate 79-001 and its close relatives on my Documents page.)

1983 Black & Decker catalog excerpt Form 323, Rev. 5/83. Shows seven Workmates and five Workmate accessories immediately after the 79-001 was discontinued.
1984 Black & Decker Power Tools Accessories catalog excerpt Form 369. Shows the four floor-standing Workmates of the time.
1989-90 Sears catalog excerpt Shows an amusing goof by someone at Sears—a Workmate 400 unlike any other. It has been assembled with the vise crank handles on the back side of the Workmate, opposite where the footrest and the top-release latches are.
1991 Black & Decker Industrial/Construction Distributor Reference Guide 1991 excerpt Form 12647. This catalog is for the professional market, not DIYers, so it shows only the two top-of-the-line models.
1993-94 Black & Decker Power Tools Catalog Form LCPQC93. Shows the four floor-standing Workmates of the time.
1994-1995 Craftsman Power and Hand Tools catalog excerpt The Workmate appears to be the 79-041.
1997 Black & Decker catalog excerpt Form No. LCPC97. Includes four Workmates and two accessories.

79-001 Deluxe Dual Height Workmate (1974-1982)

Of course, the 79-001 is covered in great detail throughout the rest of this site.

79-002 Standard Single Height Workmate (1977-1981)

August 7, 1977

79-003 Single Height Workmate Type 1 (1977-1978)

August 7, 1977

79-003 Single Height Workmate Type 2 (1978-1984)

October 8, 1978

79-004 Deluxe Dual Height Workmate (1979-1980)

Closely related to the 79-001, the Workmate 79-004 is covered in detail here: Workmate 79-004

79-005 Deluxe Dual Height Workmate (Canada) (1977-1985)

Closely related to the 79-001, the Workmate 79-005 is covered in detail here: Workmate 79-005

79-006 Standard Single Height Workmate (Canada) (1977-1983)

The Canadian model 79-006 appears to be identical to the U.S. model 79-002.

November 30, 1977

79-008 Table Top Workmate (Canada) (1978-1981)

November 6, 1978

79-009 Dual 27" Workmate (1980-1984)

April 24, 1980

79-020 Tilting Bench Top Workmate (1978-1985)

November 7, 1978

79-021 Drop Leaf Workmate (1981-1985)

April 29, 1981

79-023 Standard Bench Top Workmate (1981-1985)

November 22, 1981

79-025 Hobby Crafter Bench Top Workmate (1980-1985)

June 1, 1980

79-028 Workmate 100 (1991-1995)

December 4, 1993

79-029 Workmate 85 (1984-1993)

September 26, 1984

Workmate 85C (Canada) (1984-1986)

November 4, 1984

79-030 Workmate 400 (Canada) (1991-1993)

November 6, 1992

79-031 Workmate 100 Work Center (1982-1984)

November 2, 1983

79-032 Workmate 200 Work Center (1982-1997)

December 2, 1982

79-033 Workmate 300 Work Center (1982-1995)

October 13, 1982

79-034 Workmate 400 Work Center (1982-1996)

Original blue 400

Later black 400

December 2, 1982

79-035 Workmate Clampdown 35" (1979-1983)

The 79-035 appears to be identical to the UK model 2000 which was sold from 1978 to 1984, the only instance where the same Workmate was sold in both the U.S. and UK. To further confuse things, this largest of all Workmates returned to the U.S. market in 1991 as the 79-039 Workmate 2000 (see below).