Left-handed bench hooks vs. right-handed bench hooks

27th February 2020


	Left-handed bench hooks vs. right-handed bench hooks


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			When buying a bench hook, or making your own, you need to take into account whether you and any others likely to be using it are left or right-handed.

			Thought should also be given to whether the bench hook needs to be reversible. This is where the hook, as well as the stop, is offset from the edge, so the bench hook can be used for sawing either way around. In this case, the stop and the hook are effectively the same thing.

			Bench hooks are designed in slightly different ways to suit left-handed and right-handed users, or both, and in some cases to make them reversible.

			Right-handed use only
			A bench hook with a hook that goes the full width of the base and a stop that is offset from the right of the base is non-reversible and for right-handed use only.

			Left-handed use only
			A bench hook with a hook that goes the full width of the base and a stop that is offset from the left is non-reversible and for left-handed use only.

			Left or right-handed use, but not reversible
			More versatile, is a bench hook with a hook the same width as the base but with its stop centred on the base so that it has an offset on both the left and right. This kind of bench stop will be suitable for right and left-handed people, but not reversible.

			Left-handed only or right-handed only and reversible
			If you want a bench hook that is reversible but for use only by a left-handed person or only by a right-handed person, each stop / hook needs to be offset from the same side. They would be offset from the left for a left-handed person (as shown here) and from the right for a right-handed person. The advantage of this is that if the stop gets damaged, the bench hook can be reversed – the stop put into the hook position and vice versa – allowing the woodworker to continue work uninterrupted.

			A drawback to reversible bench hooks Extensive damage might mean that what was the stop cannot be used effectively as the hook if it is unable to fit flat against the edge of the workbench.

			Reversible for right-handed use one end and left-handed use the other
			Another arrangement is a bench hook with the stop and the hook offset from different sides of the base. This is reversible, for right-handed use one way round and left-handed use the other.

			Right-handed and left-handed at either end and reversible
			The most versatile bench hook is one that has both stop and hook centred on the base, so they are offset on both sides. These provide for both left-handed and right-handed use and are reversible.

			A drawback to this type of bench hook If the stop or the hook, or both, are centred on the base (i.e. offset on both sides) there is less face on the stop or hook for supporting the workpiece, and supporting the hook against the edge of the workbench. This should not be a problem where the bench hook is quite wide, but could be a problem with narrower bench hooks.