Sounds frustrating. Good luck Matt.
Setting Up Shop
- Thread starter Sprung
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- #42
My wife was gracious to me today. With no operational saws, and a need to keep moving forward on getting the shop set up - my list of projects my wife wants me to build continues to grow - and with no space right now to actually disassemble the Sprunger saw to see what's up with it, I started looking at buying cabinets. Not enough money in the shop fund after previous purchases. And nothing readily available nearby used where I could just buy the upper cabinets. So my wife was gracious - even though I only had little more than half the money for them, my wife told me last night to buy cabinets. So today, before she changed her mind, I did just that. Plan is to get them hung up and start filling them tomorrow.
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- #43
Cabinets are up! Used a board screwed to the wall at the height I wanted and level to help support the cabinets while I hung them. My wife helped support them while I drove in screws. About an hour, start to finish to get them hung. I'm going to start filling them today, but won't get very far. The adjustable shelves have those crummy and annoying plastic locking shelf brackets that are a pain in the butt. So I've ordered some basic shelf pins and they'll be here tomorrow.
Directly under this will be a workbench, so I am planning on some LED strip lights underneath the cabinets to help illuminate the bench area.
Directly under this will be a workbench, so I am planning on some LED strip lights underneath the cabinets to help illuminate the bench area.
Now sir, that is progress!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It’s coming together nicely.
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- #46
I started loading up cabinets - after I realized that I could just cut the locking tabs off the shelf pins and just use those (and cancelled my order for some). Got a number of boxes emptied and broken down for recycling. Feels good to be making some progress in getting things put away. Hope to make some more progress over the next couple days, as time allows. My goal is to have the shop to a point where we can start wiring it up in about 3 weeks from now.
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- #47
Progress has been slow - have been very busy, which has yielded little shop time. My wife made a comment the other day about how I've been burning the candle at both ends and said I need to take a little extra time off this week. I hope that happens and, if so, that will mean shop time.
But some progress has been made. Got shelves put together and loaded up. Stuff has been moved around. I sold my workbench - it just wasn't going to work in the current shop and I want to do something different. Since I don't have the horizontal surface of the workbench, I set up the folding table as a place to set and sort stuff right now. And today I put the Unisaw back together - just need to align the top and fence - and had to add leveling feet to it since the floor slopes in the garage toward the center floor drain. But can't use it until power has been run.
Yup... A whole lot more still to do...
But it's starting to look less like @Tony 's shop and more like a functioning, usable shop.
But some progress has been made. Got shelves put together and loaded up. Stuff has been moved around. I sold my workbench - it just wasn't going to work in the current shop and I want to do something different. Since I don't have the horizontal surface of the workbench, I set up the folding table as a place to set and sort stuff right now. And today I put the Unisaw back together - just need to align the top and fence - and had to add leveling feet to it since the floor slopes in the garage toward the center floor drain. But can't use it until power has been run.
Yup... A whole lot more still to do...
But it's starting to look less like @Tony 's shop and more like a functioning, usable shop.
It’s really coming together nicely. Looks like a real shop not a garage work place,area,mess like mine.
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- #50
Some more progress Thursday night and Friday. Got drill station mounted, as well as the sound system up. Grabbed an old computer monitor we had and an old Roku (that is really slow and kinda works most of the time) and now have the means for entertainment in the shop. Outfeed table has been set up. Started getting the dust collector in place.
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Your getting there brother! Looking good, you'll be up and running in no time. Far faster than I was.
Looks like your getting pretty close to being able to use it again.
Heck of a lot of progress! 220V should be going in soon? Chuck
You are making me green with envy. The snow is about gone and I have people wanting to help but my shop is on hold. They can't legaly work on it and even if I want to putter at it alone I can't buy a load of gravel or concrete. Keep us posted fun to see the progress.
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- #55
Thanks, guys!
The biggest hurdle will be getting power run.We're putting a subpanel into the garage, which will allow me to run a variety of circuits - 220 for the table saw, a line for an electric heater, dedicated line for the dust collector, line for the lights, and a line or two for everything else. Current state of things, not sure when that's going to happen.
Dave, hopefully you can get to working on yours soon. Your house has come along very well though. I'll be looking forward to seeing your shop progress when it does happen.
The biggest hurdle will be getting power run.We're putting a subpanel into the garage, which will allow me to run a variety of circuits - 220 for the table saw, a line for an electric heater, dedicated line for the dust collector, line for the lights, and a line or two for everything else. Current state of things, not sure when that's going to happen.
Dave, hopefully you can get to working on yours soon. Your house has come along very well though. I'll be looking forward to seeing your shop progress when it does happen.
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- #56
I've had some time in the shop here and there over the past week. Got a good amount done.
Finished putting together the DC. Now just need to run power to it and then run DC lines to tools. Why the piece of rope? It will help hold the cyclone separator up when I take out the garbage can for emptying. Was a simple and cheap solution that required no tools to put in place - which is good because I have no tools up and running yet. If it doesn't work out, I'll come up with something better.
Got a base built for one toolbox - this gets it off wheels and allows me to put it up against the wall, even in spite of a concrete ledge. In my previous shop this was mostly random storage. Not it has all sorts of hand tools - sockets, wrenches, screwdrivers, pliers, etc., etc. - and I labelled the drawers so I don't forget what's in each one. Has a few empty drawers right now, which is nice for future expansion.
The three level tool chest that I previously had the above tools, plus some others in, I separated. Then took the wheels off the bottom one and built a base for it. You'll notice that bases will be a common theme in this shop - bases give me leveling feet and this floor is anything but level since it slopes from the wall toward the floor drain throughout the entire garage. It slopes worst in this area, since the floor drain is in the middle of this island of tools. Tools have been placed to allow access to the drain to pour water down it on occasion. This tool chest house saw blades and safety accessories, circular saw, jig saw, router, and associated items.
Started taking apart the DeWalt MBC RAS I picked up. Plan is to replace the bearings and clean it up. It needs a couple of replacement parts - it was missing an arbor flange and someone removed and bypassed the thermal reset at some point. I'll be building a new table for it as well, along with a new stand with, you guessed it, leveling feet.
I also moved a pile of stuff to the basement storage room, stuff that I need or want to hang on to, but don't need to keep in the garage.
Here's how it's looking right now.
I'm at the point where I can't do much more until electrical work has been done. I'm hoping that there is maybe some chance that we (I and the guy who is going to help me) can start on that this week. We're going to put a sub-panel into the garage and wire up the garage, then call the electrician in to double check our work and run a line from the main panel out to the sub-panel. Nice thing is the house was upgraded to 200A service and panel before we moved in, so adding on will be easy. Once electrical has been run I will run DC lines.
Finished putting together the DC. Now just need to run power to it and then run DC lines to tools. Why the piece of rope? It will help hold the cyclone separator up when I take out the garbage can for emptying. Was a simple and cheap solution that required no tools to put in place - which is good because I have no tools up and running yet. If it doesn't work out, I'll come up with something better.
Got a base built for one toolbox - this gets it off wheels and allows me to put it up against the wall, even in spite of a concrete ledge. In my previous shop this was mostly random storage. Not it has all sorts of hand tools - sockets, wrenches, screwdrivers, pliers, etc., etc. - and I labelled the drawers so I don't forget what's in each one. Has a few empty drawers right now, which is nice for future expansion.
The three level tool chest that I previously had the above tools, plus some others in, I separated. Then took the wheels off the bottom one and built a base for it. You'll notice that bases will be a common theme in this shop - bases give me leveling feet and this floor is anything but level since it slopes from the wall toward the floor drain throughout the entire garage. It slopes worst in this area, since the floor drain is in the middle of this island of tools. Tools have been placed to allow access to the drain to pour water down it on occasion. This tool chest house saw blades and safety accessories, circular saw, jig saw, router, and associated items.
Started taking apart the DeWalt MBC RAS I picked up. Plan is to replace the bearings and clean it up. It needs a couple of replacement parts - it was missing an arbor flange and someone removed and bypassed the thermal reset at some point. I'll be building a new table for it as well, along with a new stand with, you guessed it, leveling feet.
I also moved a pile of stuff to the basement storage room, stuff that I need or want to hang on to, but don't need to keep in the garage.
Here's how it's looking right now.
I'm at the point where I can't do much more until electrical work has been done. I'm hoping that there is maybe some chance that we (I and the guy who is going to help me) can start on that this week. We're going to put a sub-panel into the garage and wire up the garage, then call the electrician in to double check our work and run a line from the main panel out to the sub-panel. Nice thing is the house was upgraded to 200A service and panel before we moved in, so adding on will be easy. Once electrical has been run I will run DC lines.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #57
Tuesday night I figured out what I needed to get started wiring the garage. Placed an order online with Home Depot for curbside pickup at the nearest store. Picked it up today. Tomorrow I'll start wiring the garage. Do still have some things I'll need to buy - mainly feeder wire for between the main panel and the sub-panel, a breaker for in the main panel, and some 8 gauge wire to run to the heater - but it'll be good to be able to get started on the wiring.
Matt, it’s ironic seeing your sketch of tool and storage layout. When I built a shop building in our last house, around 1996, I had a sketch like that and in the corner was a rectangle that said “lathe”. I had never used a lathe but figured a well set up workshop should have one. I came across that sketch in 2009 about the time I stopped traveling so much and wanted to start some wood projects, and so I decided to get a lathe to finish out the shop per my sketch. The rest as they say is history.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #59
@TimR - Tim, you were right way back then, even though it would be a while before you would get a lathe. I agree that a well set up workshop would have a lathe. Turning can be a rabbit hole entirely of its own and it can also be something you naturally integrate into other areas of woodworking beyond just turning.
Makes me think of a small cabinet I built early last year. A commercially made metal knob would have just been out of place on it. Didn't take me long to turn that little ebony knob and I think it really helped to make that piece what it is. Couldn't have easily done that without a lathe.
Makes me think of a small cabinet I built early last year. A commercially made metal knob would have just been out of place on it. Didn't take me long to turn that little ebony knob and I think it really helped to make that piece what it is. Couldn't have easily done that without a lathe.
@Sprung , first great accomplishments!!! Wow, this is exciting. So, in the Military and bouncing around from place to place, you finish a house restoration, or setting up shop, orders would come in just about the time you were actually enjoying it. That isn't going to happen to you is it?? 
Also, know you like older, well built tools, but that stereo is dating you as well...…..
Also, know you like older, well built tools, but that stereo is dating you as well...…..