Abstract: A metal shearing or punching machine has a body with upper and lower jaws defining a throat, the lower jaw carrying a die and the upper jaw carrying means for applying force to a blade movable in the throat to co-act with the die. The blade is pivotably mounted with respect to the body and the position of the pivoting axis on the body is selected to substantially eliminate detrimental misalignment of the blade and die when application of working force causes deformation of the body. For a given force to be applied between the blade and die the body can accordingly be made of relatively lighter construction than conventional castings used hitherto. Lateral stability of the blade is further enhanced by use of a relatively long bearing for the blade mount, e.g. substantially the entire width of the body adjacent to the pivot. In a preferred embodiment, the body of the machine is composed substantially wholly of two profile-cut steel plates connected by ties.