- Sawhorse
A sawhorse is a
beam with four legs used to support aboard orplank forsaw ing. A pair of sawhorses can support a plank, forming ascaffold . In certain circles, it is also known as a "mule ".The sawhorse may be designed to fold for
storage . A sawhorse with a wide top is particularly useful to support a board for sawing or as a fieldworkbench , and is more useful as a single, but also more difficult to store.A sawhorse can also be used as the base for a portable
work table by placing a sheet of 3/4"plywood or even adoor on top of two sawhorses. If the sawhorses are strong enough, the portable table can be used as a platform for tools like atable saw , although with caution if the top is not secured to the sawhorses.Related devices
* A
sawbuck is a similar device for working withlog s and branches.
* Devices resembling sawhorses but without the top rail are also sometimes painted with bright colors and fitted with flashing lights and used to block excavations orroad construction or other safety-related purposes.Crowd control
A device for
crowd control in the late 20th century had the shape of a sawhorse made of wood. The legs are similar but rather heavy dutyfacsimile s of the hobby version of about the same height. The horizontal bar consists of a heavy-duty plank of about 4.2 meters (14 feet) long with printed on it in large letters: "Police Line - Do Not Cross". The wooden sawhorses, used asbarrier s, are slowly being replaced. InNew York , for example, in 2007 only about 3,200 wooden sawhorses (14 feet long and $60 each) remain. They are being replaced by analuminium version called aFrench barrier (in the USA) of which New York now (2007) uses about 12,000 (2 meters (7 feet) long and $70 each). Other cities likeChicago andPhiladelphia also use both types.External links
* [http://woodworking.about.com/od/shopequipmentsupplies/ss/woodSawhorses.htm Sawhorse Building Plans on About.com]
* [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/29/nyregion/29sawhorses.html Sawhorses used for crowd control] ,New York Times (requires login)
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