Thread: A Para's Shed

All power to you mate, admire your tanacity and willingness to overcome your obstacles

I spent 3 months in a chair, so I know how hard it can be. Bryn you have my deepest admiration also.

Been an uneventful week in the shed, of course the mezzanine didn't get finished, this time it was that the powder coating wasn't good enough..

Can't tell the truth from the BS, but hopefully ill see it completely installed next week.

Finally put my order in for some new machines, i now have a Hammer Spiral head A3-31 with the digital gauge, N4400 and AF16 with a Poly Drum filter on order, all with the rolling kits i'm expecting it in August, Glad i decided to get separate 20amp circuits when i designed my electrical layout as all three machines ask for 19amps.

I just have to get some extension leads made up now, as i believe they are just a cut short cord.. if anyone has made any for the Hammer, let me know what you went with.


I'll hopefully be building my workshop cabinets next week, it'll all just sitting there now all cut, i just have to find some time to put it together and fit it.

Installed a Karcher Hose Holder, i have OCD issues when it comes to a clean work shop, every thing must have a place and the tangled hose was irritating me.

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I did try to order it from the local Karcher store 800mm away. I did my homework and gave them the Part number when i rang, said he would call back in an hour to confirm stock..

2 days later. with no reply, i decided i'll look elsewhere, i had a look and found it on Amazon UK for a decent price, ordered it and it was here in 4 Days, two of those were the weekend..

Anyhow, thats me for the week, I'm heading down to Melbourne tomorrow to watch the Brazil Vs Argentina game and enjoy a long lazy weekend away..

You really know how to shop don't you, that's some nice gear. You bought single phase machines going by the current draw. 2.5mm2 orange circular should handle a 20A draw. You can buy premade 20A extension in 5, 10 and 20m lengths but you might be better off getting a sparkie to make them to length for you given you can buy a 100m roll of 2.5 2C+E for the cost of one premade lead.

Yeah they are single phase, i want to be in a position that if i move i don't have a to worry about three phase being available.

I've saved for quite few years to get to this point, so i plan on enjoying them and its nice to use good tools and machinery, these will see me out and I've been wanting this since 08.

but life gets in the way, Marriage, GFC, buying a house, moving countries, but 9 years on from seeing the felder gear at the Sydney wood show in 08, I've almost there, well is not felder, but hammer is the next best thing for me.

I plan on seeing the sparky who fitted out my shed next week about some leads made up.

2.5mm2 should do the job, but ill get the sparky to work out what i need, he is a few units up from me and he'll get one of his guys to made a few, that is once i decide the length, i should only need about 3 meters at the max from the placement of the sockets.

I haven't post much as I've been busy.

decided to make oak handles for my cabinets instead of buying steel handles, so I've been stuffing around with those, just waiting for the glue to dry on all the handles so i can fit some M4 screw inserts and then oil.

But I did finish up the kitchenette fascia panel to hide the hot water system, i finished of the edges in Tassie Oak to match the benchtop, i think it came out all right.


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I have some spare black panel left, i might look at doing another panel to cover the pipe work.. its annoying me.

Mezz balustrade is almost done, just need a kick plate to go on the gate.

The powder coating is annoying, as due to stuff ups and wrong sizes, the powder coat was done in different batches, so i can notice the variances in the colour.

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but it is a workshop, so i should let go of that issue.

Now, i just have to finish my cabinets, so i can move tools into them and then throw the rest of the racking up on the mezzanine.

Then i can start my Steel Timber/Panel Rack.

Good on you. I was para for a while after brain tumours but can walk sort of) a bit now.

I started with no woodworking knowledge and basically educating myself by trial and error plus a lot of youtube videos. I'm also a single dad to 3 kids and on a disability pensions so have to watch the dollars. But never say never - with careful buying, occasional help from my oldest son and some modification, I can do most things that don't require fine woodworking skills. I'll be following your journey.

Originally Posted by IanG3145

Good on you. I was para for a while after brain tumours but can walk sort of) a bit now.

I started with no woodworking knowledge and basically educating myself by trial and error plus a lot of youtube videos. I'm also a single dad to 3 kids and on a disability pensions so have to watch the dollars. But never say never - with careful buying, occasional help from my oldest son and some modification, I can do most things that don't require fine woodworking skills. I'll be following your journey.

I feel for you, 3 kids and on a disability pension would be hard for anyone, tools can be picked up cheap secondhand, thats what i did when i did my apprenticeship, as i was 16, living in a share house, living of franklins pizza and white bread (i hadn't learnt to cook, i was still a kid), back in the mid nighties.

Apprentice wages aren't great in the first and second year if your not living with family, I use to pick up good old tools at the market for up to $10 and fix them up and after a while i had a nice basic collection.

I was lucky i already had the skills from when i did my trade, so i was just a matter of adapting, mind you not even thing can be done successfully with limited movement and some help is required.

Keep up giving woodwork a go, it can be rewarding, even if it is bloody hard.

Well I've been busy putting together my workshop cabinets, along the way i also made a tassie oak bench and as i couldn't find any timber handles that i liked, i decided to make my own handles for the cabinets.

They were a simple tas oak 35mm x 8mm with a 20mm x 8mm with the 20mm trimmed shorter to allow the same recess all the way around, Glued together with PVA, Drilled in 32mm either end to accept a M4 grub screw insert, then sanded and three coats of oil.
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I would have preferred to just router a rebate in a larger stock, but as I'm still saving up for a CMS router insert for my MFT, i decided this option should hold, the grub screws thread into the outer face, so that should add a little;e extra strength

I levelled up the cabinets with my dumpy and my lucky wife got to lie on the ground and adjust the cabinets legs, took a little longer to level as I expect it to be perfect.

I made the cabinets over the last few weeks and used the duct lifter to move them into place, the thing has made everything a lot easier.

Screwed the overheads together, only to find that the overheads were 1mm bigger overall on each cabinet, which gave me a 3mm overrun, which i could have worked with if i hadn't already cut the tassie oak bench top to size already

The flat pack company offered to recut a cabinet, but i decided to just knock the side of the cabinet and use the festool plunge saw and trim the 3mm off and reattached the side.

It was the easiest solution, i didn't want to wait another few days for a cabinet or rebuild one, plus i had my wife heading over to screw the overheads into the cabinets that night.

Used a plywood plate on top of the overhead, to level it with the side cabinets, cut the plates with a 45 degree mitre so it couldn't be seen from below and used the duct lifter to install.

My wife screwed of the overheads, once she had finished work and head out to the workshop, although i had to get her to go back and redrill and screw in new screws as i had the clutch set to high and unknown to her, she was stripping the thread, got a few masonry anchor plugs in to hold the overheads up, will finish off the rest of the cabinets tomorrow as my drill packed it in, and I've been chasing down a new rotary hammer drill, and not its not a Festool, i ended up with a cheap blue Bosch that will do the job and also the timber racks

But i got my third coat of oil on the benchtop today and used the duct lifter to install the benchtop into place.

I'm hoping to get the tassie oak kick plates installed and oiled up tomorrow along with the end fillets, scribed and installed.

Then next week i can set up my Tormak and the Linishall bench grinder i brought a while back for metal work and sharpening TIG rods.


Anyhow, this is what it currently looks like

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I'm not happy with the handles on the cabinet above the drawers, I'll make some longer handles as the gap doesn't look right to me, and i still have enough m4 grub inserts left.

Looks fantastic but I would be worried about the load bearing capacity of the adjustable cabinet legs once you start loading the storage up considering it aint weet bix and empty saucepans.

Originally Posted by rwbuild

Looks fantastic but I would be worried about the load bearing capacity of the adjustable cabinet legs once you start loading the storage up considering it aint weet bix and empty saucepans.

Fair point, most people properly don't think about this aspect, like the tradies that overload the rear of the dual cab ute and then wonders why the chassis bends

The load will be transferred on to the Fitted Oak kick plates as well as the adjustable cabinet legs on two axis, these span the sides of the cabinet and also the cabinet side panel.

Also the cabinets have internal solid backs and i plan to have at least 6 mounting points back into the concrete wall for each large unit and three each in the overheads.

Balanced anchorage points should reduce the load on to the legs/kickplates (I use a mixture of Ramset fittings depending on location and the strength rating required, as well as adding more fixings, as for an extra few bucks you can ensure that you don't have to go back to the job.

Its a workshop cabinet, i shouldn't be able to see any ugly dynabolts or mushroom head anchors, there will be too much crap in there


I do find that lined cabinet bases are better at load holding, but with the solid backs and with the right masonry fittings, the load should be fine.

Well, i got the cabinets secured, 2 dynabolts and 6 mushroom anchors in each cabinet, i have to grab a few more dynabolts as i ran out for the top, as my wife when a little overboard with the top mushroom head fixings and put a slight twist in the cabinet, but i can fix that tomorrow

Got the kick plates cut, a bit of mucking around, as i wanted them tight, got a coat of oil on them, now i just have to adjust and clean the doors.

Then i can start loading it up with crap and do away with the temporary shelving, so I can build my timber and panel rack


I still need to bolt down the bench grinder, the tormak is already set up on the bench.


Now i just have to start making some tool boards, they will be black panel with oak edges and oak tool holders for my chisels/ planes eta as still have a sheet lying around and some tassie oak

i'll get them made, throw them on the wall with french cleats and then get onto the timber and panel rack, as I'm sick of having to move sheet material.

I'll take forever making the individual timber tool supports, so i'll leave that until after i finish the timber rack.

"Can't seem to add the photos today??"

Not the greatest photos, but it shows the finished workshop cabinets.

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Go the Bench grinder in place, will look at bolting that down after I'm happy with placement.

Got the Tormak out of storage and put it back together and trued up the edge, happy days

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Got a lot put away today even if i only spent 3 hours at the workshop, i could almost get away without having to build a wall tool board, although I'm so use to just seeing the tool and grabbing it than opening a door and finding it, plus i like looking at my hand tools, it motives me to use them more.

I'm limited to one side of the cabinets at the point in time, as i have all the components for my camper van build organised in there.

Electrical, Plumbing, Solar, insulation/sound deadening and awning fittings are all accounted for and ready, although the fridge and the external water tanks can go up on the mezzanine for now.

Im going to have to make a start on the Clamp racks now though as I'm getting sick of having to move them around

If it wasn't for the tools you could pass it all off as designer joinery