Thread: Uni Student Setting up a small Wood-Working shop

There is a book by Chris Schwarz called The Anarchists Toolchest. In it he goes to some trouble to describe how one can put an entire productive woodworking workshop into a "portable" crate. It obviously focuses on hand tools, but you can supliment it with portable power tools

It's tempting to go down the big machine path, but it requires a huge amount of space, plus it's very easy to start down a serious path of big bux and big decisions.

If I were in a situation where permanance and space were limited I would consider a well organised hand tool chest, a festool auto-on dust extrator (second hand), a good hand router (tra001 would be good) plus a "Paulk" workbench/table with a router table built into it and a quality circular saw (with a really good Blade) to build it all with.

A battery drill, good bits and an Axminster Parf Guide system will make the Paulk-bench top. This will let you use the rail system from any of the manufacturers to cut up sheets and prep big stock with fantastic accuracy.

These few things will get you right into building high quality furniture with minimum cost and highest accuracy.

People often overlook or trivialise hand tools, but they are very efficient. I do a lot of Japanese Style work and find the range of chisels, saws and hammers to be outstanding. The planes are fabulous, but I have a bugger of a time setting mine up and instead moved to Veritas planes. I LOVE them.

Welcome to the forum Amanda.
Woodpixel has given some good advice there. If your space is limited handtools are a winner. The strength of powertools is in repeatability. They are fantastic if you are making a dozen identical items. Set the machine up and cut the components one after the other. Setting up the machine to do that can be time consuming and if you want to make one of something you can often have the job done with handtools before you would be finished setting up the machines.

The downside is that handtools require more skill to use effectively so there is a steeper learning curve, but from your post it seems you have started accumulating some nice handtools anyway. As Woodpixel suggested the Annarchist's toolchest would be a good guide to which handtools to get. Also look at "Made by Hand", by Tom Figden.

What really drives how you work and what tools you use is what projects you want to make (followed by the usual space and monetary constraints). Handtools can be sourced second-hand quite cheaply and there are some excellent quality ones among the older stuff. The Handtool Preservation Society (not a member but I do go to their sales if I need something) holds second-hand tool sales three times a year and I have bought a lot of tools there myself. Hand Tool Preservation Association of Australia Inc. - Tool Sales. Next one is on 12 November.

Cheers

Doug

Clamps... lots and lots of clamps...

I'm in a similar boat trying to set up a little workshop. Its a slow process unfortunately as money doesn't grow on trees.

The bit of advice i have is to go to as many markets, garage sales etc and look for decent clamps on the cheap. Buying them new is quite expensive for the amount needed for a lot of projects. I managed to get 3 older F-Clamps for $10 which wouldn't buy you 1 of the bunnings cheapies...

I'm not very mechanically minded, so i tend to buy my power tools new... but for hand tools, get 2nd hand where you can so your budget stretches further with the bigger powered stuff if you need it.

Just some input from a fellow beginner...

Hi Amanda, welcome to the forums.

First of all where did you do the uni program? Are you still enrolled? I see that you are in Melbourne.

I was / still are in a very similar situation to you, having studied a furniture course at RMIT which got me interested in this whole rabbit hole of a hobby. I've now amassed a collection of tools, mostly focusing on the power tools and now moving towards collecting hand tools a bit more. I'm trying for a bit of a "hybrid woodworking" approach.

If you have some space, such as a one car garage I think having some larger power tools works really well. A tablesaw and a router table can perform a multitude of tasks. Therefore my suggestions would be to look at a larger router for use mainly in a router table, and the table saw. I personally would not buy a "jobsite" saw. I would scour ebay, Gumtree and the marketplace on this forum for a used tablesaw importantly with a cast iron surface. For fine furniture work I (personally) don't believe a jobsite saw is up to the task.

After this you can think about other bits and pieces, probably hand power tools. A circular saw with a good blade is benificial, a belt sander for flattening table tops and other glue ups and numerous hand tools.

As to the planer/jointer question definetely a planer thicknesser, don't attempt to save money on this one, either splurge or find a different way to do it. Friends have had small cheap machines and after using them I bought the dewalt 735. This is frequently reviewed as the best in its class, being the "lunchbox" type planers. A combination machine would be great, however I believe the prices are a fair bit higher.

After all of that, especially having larger machines that spew dust into all corners of the room dust extraction is a must. Wood dust especially manufactured boards (MDF) are just bad for you. Have a look in the dust extraction section of the forum and you'll probably be blown away by information. Main principles are to have ducting to your machines as large as you can, 6" / 150mm being preferable. Then a 2hp dust collector of the type sold by carbatec, hare and forbes and timbecon is a minimum requirement. Again a second hand one is a good option.

For power tools a shop vac style one is the way to go, festool being preferable however expensive. Again read the dust extraction forum.

Hopefully that all helps,

Enjoy your woodworking!

Deverell

Originally Posted by Deverell

This is frequently reviewed as the best in its class, being the "lunchbox" type planers.

Almost like winning a gold medal in the special olympics?

Ive been thinking about this a bit since I wrote last. The bad thing about advice is we can give it all retrospectively based on our experience, but it really comes down to what you want to build. Perhaps, like others, Ive spent a small fortune but still lust over some bigger purchases. I'm lucky in I make serious money from my hobby so can sort of justify it, but it's led me into some loopy thinking about what I *need* (opposed to want)

Gak! Oh to win the lotto

Using the "if I were a teenager again...." What would I tell myself?

I went down the path of wanting to be a commission woodworker. My personal experiences led me down rabbit holes of dust collection, Power, repeatability and precision. It has served me well, but there are still things I cannot do.

Ive recently refound hand tools. As I mentioned Ive always had Jap saws, hammers, planes and chisels. I read a book on Shukonin of Japan (and many YouTube's) showing those master craftsmen work their miracles plus a chap here in Oz called Des King whose books on Kumiko are inspiring.... But I've never truely pursued it until recently (it's been all production machines and tools so far).

A member here has convinced me of the merits of Veritas hand planes. They are supurb. So easy to sharpen and set up for perfect cuts it isn't funny. Ive invested in a few and I'm super chuffed about it.

If you aren't doing production, seriously consider a good range of boxable hand tools. Don't skimp. If you are making money with them, buy the good stuff.

Look up the videos on PaulK workbenches and the Axminster Parf guide system. It will solve your storable/portable workbench dilemma.

Dust will be a problem. A bigger 2 or 3hp DC is necessary if you go down the table saw and combo thickie/jointer route, but do take some time reading about how festool uses it's portable dust collectors for job site dust control. They are serious about their tradesmen keeping clients houses (and work sites) clean. For a small Shop that needs to pack up nightly, or one that needs to travel and move, it's worthy of consideration.

Originally Posted by woodPixel

Ive been thinking about this a bit since I wrote last. The bad thing about advice is we can give it all retrospectively based on our experience, but it really comes down to what you want to build.

Just to elaborate on woodPixels comment a little further (and it was a very good post)....

While opinions on forums are valuable and should be considered, i think it's important not to feel like its the only way of doing things.

I have budget and space constraints, so while i'd love to have a Harvey Table Saw, a Full sized Jointer, planner and thicknesser etc, i don't have the funds or the space for it all.

I'm planning my tools by priority... My first purchase was an Ozito Sliding Compound Mitre Saw.... its crap... but it served a purpose. I'll upgrade it eventually... but it taught me not to just go out and buy a bunch of very cheap power tools...

I can't fit a full sized table saw... so i'm saving for a Dewalt DW745-XE Jobsite saw... its got the best fence in its class and is compact so will fit in my space. I'll make jigs for it as needs arise.

I need a dusty, so i'm going to buy a 2hp from timbecon. More expensive than a 2hp from Carbatec, but you'd need to modify the carbatec for optimal performance which is something i'm not confident doing (see 2hp Dust Extraction thread) and the timbecon already appears to be "modified".

I'll need a shop vac and random orbital sander too, that'll be next... nothing too expensive but I won't buy the budget brands either... the list goes on.

The problem with seeking advice on forums is that there are a lot of people on here with years and years of experience and large sheds that are full of fantastic machinery who wouldn't even consider the smaller combination or jobsite machines as a decent option. In a perfect world where space and funds weren't a consideration, their opinions are probably bang on the money, but in a world where space, time and money is in ever decreasing supply, they are perfectly acceptable alternatives. Will you get the same level of accuracy? IMO You probably can with a little more effort, time & Practice. So take advice on board but don't let it define what you do. You know your individual circumstances so because the general consensus may be that a contractor table saw, or a benchtop planer/thicknesser won't compare to a full size model, don't let it put you off getting further into working with wood.

I only post this because i don't want people to be turned off working with wood because they feel like they can't in the small space that they have. I'm going to be working out of a single car garage in a complex of townhouses and i'm determined to make it work. My shed might not be as big or as well tooled out as others on here, but i'm going to give it a red hot crack and maybe one day i'll be able to buy a house with the space to buy dedicated machines that have a permanent spot in the shed and don't have to be moved and stored to be able to use another machine.

Until then, i'll go back to planning my shed requirements and trying to find the spare cash to fund it...

Hi WoodPixel,

Thanks for your response, I was in the midst of responding to your earlier comment but will just do this here.

I reckon i will definitely try and get ahold of that book as it sounds like it could really help my situation out.

I currently have a Makita RT0700CX trim router (https://www.bunnings.com.au/makita-7...outer_p6240215) and was hoping to buy the different bases (plunge base, angled base etc) for it to make it a bit more versatile, do you reckon I would be able to get away with this router only? or at least for now? I've also done quite a bit of research on the "Paulk" Workbench and do agree that could be a good path to go down.

Earlier you also mentioned a circular saw, would you recommend that over a table saw? If so do you have any in particular that you would suggest?

Dust extraction is a particularly new subject to me that i know is necessary once i start looking into powered machines despite it not exciting me as much as new tools Festool is talked about highly everywhere so i can just imagine who great it would be but it does come at a hefty price which i'm trying to balance out with other potential purchases. I'm an incredibly indecisive person as well which makes this process quite a bit more difficult unfortunately, but am so impressed by the responses and help from everyone in the forum so thank you for that!

Hi Dibbers,

I 100% agree and you do make a great point! I'm definitely in a similar position and am looking into getting by with a couple of basics. Like you mentioned I'm also thinking of getting ahold of a Dewalt Job-Site and was looking into the DW 745-XE as well as the DW7491 too. I know "job site" saws tend to repel some wood workers but i'm leaning towards the compact/portable side of it especially for such a small place i'm in at the moment and at least it can definitely get me started.

Thanks for your comment!

Amanda

Originally Posted by AmateurAmanda

Hi Dibbers,

I 100% agree and you do make a great point! I'm definitely in a similar position and am looking into getting by with a couple of basics. Like you mentioned I'm also thinking of getting ahold of a Dewalt Job-Site and was looking into the DW 745-XE as well as the DW7491 too. I know "job site" saws tend to repel some wood workers but i'm leaning towards the compact/portable side of it especially for such a small place i'm in at the moment and at least it can definitely get me started.

Thanks for your comment!

Amanda

No worries at all.

From what i've researched, the 7491 has a bit more power, but the 745 has a larger rip capacity... so its a trade-off (always is with the smaller machines haha).

Seriously though, clamps! they're bloody expensive some of them! Markets are your friend. Melbourne from what i hear has a plethora of choices for markets compared to Sydney, so you should hopefully be able to get some on the cheap... I'm also doing some digging on AliExpress to try and find some half decent cheap options, i'll post on the forum if i find any.

Hi Deverell,

I did my uni furniture elective at Monash University, I'm currently studying Interior Architecture but I really have fallen for this whole woodworking/furniture building and am really interested in pursuing it further, hoping to even do a couple of short courses this coming holiday season.

Its good to see someone else in a similar position to me I too am really hoping be able to dip my toes in both power tools and hand tools, also hoping to really expand my knowledge and skills within this so called "hybrid woodworking" approach as well. I worked with a couple of hand planes and do love them but being the amatuer I am it has taken days for me to just flatten and square a board and was hoping to turn to some power tools to help me out.

Thanks for your help!

Amanda

Welcome to the forum Amanda.

If you're still there perhaps you have access to the machine space still, take advantage of that whilst you can! There's been many times where having access to the 5 axis cnc, wide belt sander and many other machines would have been fantastic! In particular one thing I've been wanting to do was make a "MF slab" which if you do a Google search is a larger version of the festool multifunction table. The top is drilled with numerous holes which allows the easy creation of jigs and with a festool track saw (very handy) perfectly straight cuts.

As woodpixel said, the parf jig to make this type of table is available however if I had free access to a cnc I would batch a few out whilst I had the chance. They say you don't miss something til it's gone and that's definetely true with tools!

On a further note to the festool tracksaw and MFT, I was having a chat to a guy the other day who due to space requirements invested in a tracksaw and MFT table in place of a tablesaw. These are very portable and easy to pack away, yet still give very good cuts, especially on sheet goods. If space was a major consideration for me I would buy an MFT and a TS75 system. Watch a few videos to get an idea of the uses.

Hi Amanda
Welcome to the forum. I think it is really great that you're adding your learning in interior architecture with a practical and yet creative furniture making undertaking. I understand your desire to get up to speed quicker with some judicial use of power tools. This approach has a lot of upside. I love using handtools unplugged, but I do go to my table saw and my drill press a lot.
To kit out a workshop is usually an expensive undertaking, and it is especially tricky if you live in a share house situation where the work space might not be on the offer. There are a few things to consider before going out to buy expensive tools though:

1. Power supply: You need to make sure that the garage/workshop you will be in has sufficient power to run your tools and this usually means a separate circuit otherwise the overload will cut in while your flatmate is boiling the jug and you're running the table saw. That just wouldn't be great.
2. Dust extraction: I'm sure that our resident dust extraction police will come around soon to tell you that you need to spend heaps to get an extraction system going. But unfortunately, there is a health and safety angle that you can't completely ignore.
3. Noise: These Dewalt job saws are noisey, in fact any power tools with an universal motor are noisy beasts. You got to take that into consideration. I know these job saws are small and portable. But working in a noisy environment long term, even with hearing protection, can take a lot of the fun out of woodworking. I'd always recommend tools that use induction motors whenever possible. They are quieter and they run smoother. Quite often they can be had second hand as well.
4. Over investment: Woodworking is considered an expensive hobby, perhaps not as expensive as skiing but it can be a real sink of savings. 2nd hand stuff are better value for money and you should browse through the ads here. There are usually good stuff at decent prices if you willing to be patient.

Have you considered joining a woodworking club so that you can use their power tools, they provide work space as well, augmented with your own personal collection of hand tools. That could be a great start. You don't have to worry about finding work space either. You can also get ideas and help from other club members as well. I don't belong to one as I have most of the tools myself and I'm a bit time poor. If you are in the south eastern suburbs, considering monash is around this side of town, one such club is the waverley woodworking club. You can go there to have a look at the shop and decide if it will be of any use to you before you join up at any of these clubs.

Finally, I'd like to invite you to our monthly melbourne get to together. Matt (simplity) and Sally, our default "presidents" of the GTG are lovely people (not that the rest aren't) and there are usually a few woodies there, and I'm sure you will get as many good suggestions as there are participants. Its at the RSL in box hill and the next meeting will be next monday usually at 7.00ish. Quite often there are show and tells. Its a nice way to spend an evening with fellow woodies. Melbourne Forum Get Together May 2017.