Thread: Help Me Buy all the tools I need.

George, happy woodworking. I think it is an admirable idea to ask for opinions in this Forum before you commit yourself to acquisitions. I am not going to advise you other than to share my experience. I started with a Triton workstation and router table and found them very useful, working with them for about two years. Then I decided I wanted a cast iron table saw and router table and a 14 inch bandsaw. I had spent quite a bit on the Triton gear, planer attachment, finger jointer, jig saw attachement etc, and in retrospect I should have gone for the more solid equipment from the beginning. I would think that a lot depends on how seriously long-term you are in commitment to woodworking and how portable you want your machinery items to be. I look forward to reading what others will recommend.

Originally Posted by grharris2002

Hi Guys and Girls,

What I need help with is the following.

1. Whats the best brand for quality, longevity in Power tools. At this stage im leaning toward Dewalt or Makita?

Id go with the makita but thats just what i have owned.

2. What can and cant I live without for the time being?

3. I have compiled a list of what I think I need. Can you see something I have missed?

Here is the list.

-305mm Sliding Compound Mitre Saw
-Router mounted in Triton Router table.
why triton

-Cordless Drill (Mine was recently wrecked in Flood)
get the makita 9.5volt one.

-Circular Saw mounted in Triton Work centre (for long cuts)
get a tablesaw a little dearer but worth the money.

-Maybe a drill press.
definately

-Maybe a Planer (Power) or a thinknesser in its place and get a hand plane?
go with a planer/jointer and some good hand planes or make your own.

-Maybe a biscuit joiner?
a good quality dowel jig or a domino wold be better IMO

you will also need

• geared power drill
• chisels
• bench grinder
• good quality hand saws.

these will make life a lot easyer

• bandsaw (must have)
• bench sander (disk and belt)
• lathe
• belt sander

Thanks for all your help guys. I guess I have so many questions is because its such an expensive exercise I really want to get it right. That and the local hardware shop cant answer all of my questions but they do try.

stear clear of the local hardware and go to a specialist dealer. the quality will be better and normaly cheeper to.

welcome to the forum

i would go for solid machinery that is going ot last and have a good resale value. your work will be better for it. hare and forbs gear is priced well and is of good quality.

http://www.machineryhouse.com.au/

Welcome to the Forum George

WOW asking here for us to spend your money no budget limit

You just missed the QLD tools sale of the year in Brisbane but not to worry come down to Sydney we'll look after you.

De-walt not after all the recalls this past year

George
welcome to the forum
I agree with fencepost. I eventually sold my triton gear on eBay. The table saw gets a good workout. I reckon it is a lot more accurate then the triton ever was. You can also get a cast insert for a router to put on a table saw in place of one wing. Not sure how good these are. (any comments anyone?) I was never really happy with the triton router top. I think it bowed a little if I put any pressure whilst running the timber past the bit.
I'm yet to make one similiar to that used by Mr Gifkin http://www.gifkins.com.au/
Do you really need a compound miter saw? I use a sled on the saw for fine work (but then I don't have a need for compound angles)
Can't comment on deWalt tools. Have had a small Makita router for over 25 years, still going well. I've also a half inch Hitachi inherited from my Dad which has to be over 20 years old. It has had on occassion a lot of work.
I use a thicknesser a lot, have recycled a lot of old oregan and other stuff. I've a small drill stand, tis useful but would like a larger pedestal version with a bigger drilling capacity ie my little one will only drill about 50mm deep, bit of a pain really when drilling through a bit of 4 x 4 to make mortices.

Hi George,
First welcome to the site and the strange world of woodworking.
As to you'r question everyone will suggest something different. The list you have is a reasonable one if the budget allows. Makita and Dewalt are both good.(others may not agree). As you have done a bit before you should have a look around at what is out there and what they cost. I can't comment on the triton as I have never had one.
My leaning would be a mid range table saw instead of the triton and SCMS.
A good router and router table(you can build one if you like). A router can also cut biscuit slots.
A hand held circular saw(makita for sure).
A jointer and thicknesser are good to have but some with manage hand tools.
A hand held electric plane is the way to clean up recycled timber. If you hit a nail in the thicknesser the blades are expensive. $20 for the hand held blades.
I find the bandsaw is my most used machine but I got by for years without one.
A drill press is good to have and a benchtop one is not expensive either. Hand tools can not be overlooked either all the usual ones. Too many to list.
Hope this helps a bit and see what some of the others suggest.

Regards
John

Welcome George,
I smiled when I saw you mention the Triton stuff and the words "top quality" in the same breathe as opinion in this forum is usually strongly divided on it's merits but I think Fencepost2 puts a nice spin on it.

I have most of the original, pre GMC Triton stuff and I have yet to outgrow it and in time I may, but for now it suits my needs and I've used all of it at one time or another. However from all reports I'm glad I didn't buy the planner attachment for the Workcentre - that sounds like a bit of a disaster

One thing I would say though is put a Triton saw in your Workcentre and buy a Triton Router- whether you place this in a Triton router table or not is the up to you but the general opinion is (mine included) that the Triton router table surface accuracy needs improving.

It's taken me 10 years of hacking timber around to get to a point where I think I have most things I need still hemming and hawing about a bandsaw

I think your list is probably OK although one thing I would definitely throw away is your orbital sander and replace it with a RANDOM orbital sander - that way you'll avoid the little swirlley marks in your otherwise nicely finished piece.

Take the time if you haven't already to search through the forums to see what others have said about the items on your list.

Orraloon and Sawdust Maker have got in whilst I was typing and, as they say, our individual needs are different - you'll just have to sort out what suits you

Hope this helps

Regards

Ian

Im going to get my head bitten for this but her goes

Stay away from the triton table saw (work centre) the circular saw itself is great but as a table saws it sucks. Its setup is fiddly and by the time you have bought all the accessories you might have well purchased a proper table saw. I have owned one and I HATED IT with a passion.

Thats my 2 cents worth LOL

Andrew

George - this question comes up a lot on this forum, & maybe you should do a search to satisfy yourself that the same old answers are given, too. There are those who will confidently give you a shopping list, no doubt based on the sort of work they do themselves, or simply their own 'wish list', & who knows? It may be just right for you.

On the other hand, you'll get a lot of more conservative advice, too, like get stuck in & buy what you need AS YOU NEED IT. If you are really getting into the wood business in a big way, you will soon develop your own preferences & prejudices depending on what you like to make & to what level. Once you have some questions, like "would brand X do this better than brand Y&". Or be more versatile, or whatever. Once you know where you are trying to go, you can debate the pros & cons ad nauseum with the good folk here, who are never short on opinions!

Your bias seems to be towards electron-burning equipment, but if you really get serious, you'll start acquiring a few decent hand tools, too. I've taken 50 years to accumulate my tool chest, with quite a few 'trade-ins' along the way, but if I had been able to go out & buy what I've now got right from the start, I wouldn't appreaciate more than half of them for what they are, and I certainly wouldn't have had as much fun!

You actually need very few tools to build anything - it just takes a bit (lot?) longer, and is maybe not as enjoyable, unless you think a bucketful of blood, sweat & tears has to go into every job. So figure out what the first big job will be & what would be the tools necessary to complete it.

Failing that, my advice is to observe the old maxim "buy the very best you can afford". You'll rarely regret lashing out on more quality than you thought you needed, but I'll bet London to a brick you will regret it if you buy the minimum quality.

Welcome to the forum, & start making that sawdust...
Cheers,

Personally, I find the bandsaw to be one of the more important tools, their versatility makes them worth the money.

Although I can't speak from experience about the Triton, I have always had a gut feeling that multi-purpose tools just can't quite do as good a job as a tool designed for a particular purpose. So I would say buy a table saw, and router table designed for it.

A thicknesser and jointer will prove to be useful as well, especially if you mill timber, or use recycled timber at all.

Drill press is always very useful. Would be rather hard drilling mortises and any other hole that requires specific angles with a cordless.

Hand tools are a must, chisels, sharp tenon saw and a hand plane very high on my priority list.

That's pretty much what I see as important tools to me. Have fun shopping.

Here's my take on your list:

305mm Sliding Compound Mitre Saw
- Not really necessary. Your Triton will do this job.

Router mounted in Triton Router table.
- Can you still get the router mounting kit that came out for the Mark III? If so, you don't really need a separate table.

Cordless Drill (Mine was recently wrecked in Flood)
- Cordless is OK, but if you're drilling any of the heavy hardwoods out your way you might be better off with corded.

Circular Saw mounted in Triton Work centre (for long cuts)
- ... and for the stuff for which you'd otherwise use an SCMS. And yes, the brands you mention will fit in a Triton.

Maybe a drill press.
- Bloody near useless.

Maybe a Planer (Power) or a thinknesser in its place and get a hand plane?
- With the money you've saved by not buying an SCMS, look for a combination jointer/planer.

Maybe a biscuit joiner?
- You could, but for the money you'd spend on a biscuit joiner think about a Dowelmax or Ozzie Jig instead. Much more accurate and useful.

Add a couple of chisels (if you want to try cutting mortices), some clamps, a ruler and a square, and you're set to make a whole lot of furniture. Anything else you can buy when you've talked yourself into needing it ... and if you're truly honest, there won't be much else you "need".

First of all..Get a Lathe

Starting with the basics:

Hand Planes (4,5,7)
Chisels
Square
etc.

As for machinery:

Bandsaw (must have)
Drill Press
Table Saw
Thicknesser
SCMS
Router Table
Jointer
Bench Grinder
Drum Sander

Note: Hand Planes and Chisels are essential!

Originally Posted by IanW

Failing that, my advice is to observe the old maxim "buy the very best you can afford". You'll rarely regret lashing out on more quality than you thought you needed, but I'll bet London to a brick you will regret it if you buy the minimum quality.

Welcome to the forum, & start making that sawdust...
Cheers,

I agree completely. I am onto my third tenon saw after only 12 months or so at woodwork, 4th plane etc etc etc. All quick, spur of the moment purchases.

I have now scrimped and saved and purchased a few very good tools, and it is sssooooo nice in comparison that I just want to saw & plane away...

....what is more, so does swmbo & the kidlings....

My 2c worth is buy a few very good pieces of equipment, rather than all on the list then be unhappy. Unless, of course, you have just won tatts.

Hafgan

PS build a router table; I did, it's even square and works, and if I can, anyone can! H.

You also might want to look at this site
http://www.toolcritic.com/index.html

Looks like there hasn't been a lot of discussion about the work and storage space you have available or your interests and preferences for the sort of work you would like to take on.

Given space, I would opt for a tablesaw or combo saw and planer unit. Lot more rigid overall and a lot less aggro as it's a set and forget type unit. Haven't seriously used Triton tables but I understand the comments about setting them up, particularly if you have a single circ. saw that works in the table and as a portable.
Personally, I got a mid 60's Gilbro 10in saw 6in planer combo and a DW radial arm saw, both in excellent condition and very accurately set up for $500 from a friend who was downsizing to a 2BR unit. Knew what they were capable of as I had helped him and his sons with projects in the past and used them for my stuff as well, it was too good a set to see broken up and spread around.
He's getting as much use from them now as I do. Had bought a Ryobi CSMS previously, and it has had a little use. Also have a circ. saw (cheapy). A real bonus of the set is they take the same size blades, so a $100 spend in the GMC ebay Triton clearing sales bought a set of 8 decent blades for them to share.
I would opt for a drill press myself but understand that others would prefer to stay with portables (corded or battery). Again I have a good setup with multiples of both, plus battery drivers as well.
Thicknesser is nice, but aims at getting two faces parallel, rather than gettting the work straight and smooth, so they rely on the first surface being straight.
Lots of decent routers around, and if you have a decent saw, its not hard to cut and assemble a ply or MDF table for it. Use a mounting plate rather than fixing the router to the table base, this reduces the impact on bit length.