Q:

Can I use sawhorses to hold furniture during glue-up? I’m worried that my furniture won’t be square because the sawhorses aren’t flat or even.

Don Stevens , Cleveland, OH

A:

Sawhorses will work in a pinch. Even if the floor isn’t level or the piece rocks a little, they won’t cause you to have out-of-square glue-ups, as long as you’ve cut square joinery, clamped appropriately, and checked everything for square as you go. But they’re not the most user-friendly glue-up helpers.

Assembling furniture on them is tricky because they don’t give you any surface area to support the work, so you have to balance it carefully to prevent it from falling. You also don’t have a convenient place to keep clamps and glue, which can make the process more scattered. Finally, the open area under the horses lets the glue drip onto your floor.

A better way is to put a glue-up table on top of those horses. It doesn’t have to be fancy, or even permanent. You can make a sawhorse-mounted table from plywood or even an old hollow-core door, both of which can be stored against a wall. I have a dedicated glue-up table that is about 28-in. wide and 96-in. long. It’s the perfect size for just about all the furniture I build, and I’d recommend something similar for a makeshift version.

Quick-to-make clamp holders. Dadoed wood strips keep clamps in place for panel glue-ups.

Fine Woodworking Recommended Products

Rockler Deluxe Panel Clamp

These clamps can handle glue-ups between 10 in. and 36 in. wide, and boards up to 3 in. thick. Sliding feet attach to the lower bars with magnets, letting you position them quickly for stability on any surface. The spring-loaded jaws adjust easily, dropping into notches along the bars. And the powerful clamp handles clear the benchtop.

Buy at Amazon

Estwing Dead-Blow Mallet

A quality dead-blow mallet that packs and punch but isn't too heavy for furniture work.

Buy at Amazon