Wednesday, January 28, 2009

You Want to Set Up Shop...So Where Do You Start?

There are a few different schools of thought when it comes to equipping a new shop. Few are better than others. Here is some advice I would impart on someone looking to get into the art of woodworking.

There are many tools one will need while partaking in the rewarding past time of woodworking. The most important tools are those given to you at birth. That said, safety is key when working with any tools. For more on this visit the Shop Safety post.

Of course one will need at least a minimal set of hand tools including but not limited to:

Tape measure (25 ft recommended)

Claw Hammer

Screwdriver set (not just a driver with interchangeable bits)

Straightedge

Compound Square (in addition a framer's square is convenient to have)

Clamps - spring clamps, quick grip clamps, and bar clamps. One can never have too many clamps; start a collection.

Once these minimal tools have been attained it is time to get down to business! I would recommend starting with a quality circular saw. Some would say to get a good table saw. I dispute that on the basis that I completed a lot of projects before owning a table saw. It is a sizable investment to purchase even an entry level table saw. Dust management, an edge guide, and laser guiding are all things to consider when choosing a circular saw. The next tool that I would purchase, at the same time as the saw if possible, would be a router.

There are a few things to consider when choosing a router such as power, collet size, variable speed control, etc. One may also want to consider a combo kit. A combo kit includes a motor, a fixed base, and a plunge base. Stay tuned for router reviews.

A pair of sanders is the next purchase to be made. Now that the minimum required tools have been bought and projects are pouring out of the shop too fast for hand sanding it is time to upgrade from hand to electric. Consider a random orbital sander and a half-sheet sander to start with. Dust collection is the key. Down the road consider a belt sander, but for now an orbital sander and sheet sander with good dust collection is a must.

It is now time to move up to the big time. It is time to invest in a table saw. Notice the term invest. There are expensive saws, cheap saws, and saws that are ridiculously priced. I recommend starting in the $400 - $600 range. I will cover table saw options and things to consider in a later post.

Of course there are other tools beyond a table saw to consider. This is just a recommendation of how to start outfitting a shop from scratch.

Have a good one and remember, Safety is not an accident!

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