I am excited to be joining this community and wanted to reach out for some advice. I have recently developed a passion for woodworking and am in the process of setting up a small workshop in my garage.
Although; as a beginner; I am a bit overwhelmed with all the options and considerations. I thought this forum would be the perfect place to seek guidance from experienced makers.
What are the must have tools for a beginner? I want to invest in quality tools that will serve me well as I develop my skills; but I also need to stay within a reasonable budget.
My garage is not very large; and I need to make the most of the space I have. Do you have any tips or tricks for organizing a small workshop efficiently? Any recommendations for storage solutions would be greatly appreciated.
Safety is a top priority for me. What are some essential safety practices and equipment I should be aware of? Are there any resources or classes you could recommend for learning more about workshop safety?
Besides hands on practice; what are some good resources for learning woodworking techniques and projects?
I am considering becoming a member of Dallas Makerspace to take advantage of the tools and community. Can anyone share their experiences with the woodworking facilities and community here? Are there specific classes or events I should look out for?
Thank you in advance for your help and assistance.
Very difficult to answer your questions with out knowing what you want to make.
What do you want to make (furniture, toys, guitars, âŚ)? What is your goal?
DMS is a great place to start in woodworking:
Itâs cheaper than buying a lot of tools you may or may not use.
Lots of advise from experienced (and not so experienced) woodworkers
Itâs got more room than your garage
Itâs got heat and AC (at least I assume your garage doesnât have heat and AC)
The tools are already set up, tuned and maintained (for the most part).
My advice:
Join DMS for one year
Go through DMS woodshop training classes (S and O, bandsaw, lathes, slab, etc). Read DMS Rules and review tool manuals.
Make a short list of a few things you want to make, that you think you can make in about a year.
Find a group of âadvisorsâ to help you with how to make stuff (at DMS this is easy) or post on TALK asking for advise on how to make something.
Sign up for âDMS maintenance daysâ. You will learn a lot and gain confidence in (someday) setting up, tuning and fixing your own tools
At the end of the year - assess how you did, what you liked/didnât like. You will be able to answer all your questions above without spending thousands of $$ setting up your own garage shop.
When you make something youâve never made before - make a prototype out of cheap/crappy wood - work out issues, cuts, make sure the proportions are right, etc. Then make a second one out of expensive/good wood. After 35 years of woodworking I still do this.
Bonus activity - make a list of what you think you would buy now for a garage shop - add it up (probably $5 to $15k). Redo the list one year from now. You will be amazed at how it changed and how much you learned at DMS in one year.
I second this recommendation. It is very easy to fill up your garage with a bunch of power tools youâll either never use or seldom use and clutter it up with a lot of hand tools, too. DMS has both the tools and people with experience to help you figure out what you need. Take the time to investigate, design and then decide. In the meantime, you might find some tools for sale at a very economical price.
I have a ton of woodworking tools at home in my garage, and I joined DMS because I donât have enough room for more tools at home. The DMS tools usually have more capability such as a wider planer and are much higher quality. For instance, not everyone can afford a Sawstop with an extended feed out table.
This is especially crucial because it will dictate your choice of tools. My woodworking shop probably doesnât have a single power tool that you would find useful because of my typical projects.
If you use the DMS tools as a learning experience you will figure out not only which tools you want, but also which features you want on those tools. If you just charge ahead and start buying stuff, in a year you may decide that you should have bought a different variant of that type of tool. I donât think anybody buys the right table saw the first time.
While youâre using the DMS tools, pay attention to how much space a tool requires. As you noted above, layout is going to be crucial. We have our table saw next to the garage door, oriented so that we stand outdoors (just barely into the driveway) when we use it. Between infeed and outfeed, there isnât enough room in our workshop bay for all the working space needed for a table saw.
Give some thought to which parts of your projects you would want to do at home vs. what you would be willing to do at DMS. The four primary tools in every wood shop are probably table saw, jointer, planer, and compound miter saw (or radial arm saw). Itâs unlikely that you will have the space or electrical power for all of these. So what would or could you do at home?
Having said all that, IMO every homeowner needs to own a table saw, a compound miter saw, a circular saw, a shop vac, a powered or cordless drill motor ⌠and close behind that would be a drill press and a small pancake compressor.
In the interim, start working on infrastructure; things like pegboards, electrical, shelves and shop lights - you can never have enough of those.
EDIT: As a good DMS project - build yourself a work bench and assemble it at home. You will learn a lot about the major power tools and how to do things.
Loving this feed in general. Really good thoughts being put forth.
My two cents (worth half of that) would be to start with some quality handheld tools and a miter saw. Pick a color (red, orange, yellow, or green brand) based on quality/cost and decide on corded or cordless. If you go cordless consider battery system and the related cost as well. I still use DMS for the big stationary stuff (table saw, planer, jointer, etc.) and have no plan to have those at home. If you use DMS for the big tools and get a few tools like a drill, driver, orbital sander, circular saw, etc at home, you will be off and running.
I thought about this some more - i edited my original post adding:
The tools are already set up, tuned and maintained (for the most part).
and
5. Sign up for âDMS maintenance daysâ. You will learn a lot and gain confidence in (someday) setting up, tuning and fixing your own tools
and
When you make something youâve never made before - make a prototype out of cheap/crappy wood - work out issues, cuts, make sure the proportions are right, etc. Then make a second one out of expensive/good wood. After 35 years of woodworking I still do this.
Best piece of comical advice is best way to make a small fortune in wood working is to start with a large one! Lol! But itâs all about finding the market you can tailor to best! Iâve found a hyper specific design based niche area where Iâm more effective than say if I was in the scaled up mass produced numbers! I can create unique pieces but I find it hard to decrease time and increase production! So itâs really about finding what market your skill sets can tailor to cause if you venture into the wrong one for your particular skill set itâll always be a battle you feel like youâre losing
I donât usually sell the things I make, so I am NOT an expert, but I have sold a few things, like pens for $175-$200 by word of mouth. Iâve also donated some things to raise money for the Battleship Texas Foundation you can buy here:
Hereâs the kind of woodworking products Iâve seen people make a little money with:
Pens, bottle stoppers, cutting boards, various turned objects. These depend upon the audience, the quality of the work and the notoriety of the artist/craftsman or woodworker.
Iâve also seen famous knife makers use exotic woods in their knife scales with great success. Some even just sell the scales. Same for scales on handguns.
Veneer work. I have a friend that does great marquetry on furniture. He even taught a class at DMS. His workshop is in Granbury, Texas. https://www.waynedelyea.com/
Chess sets, gaming boards, various puzzles for kid. All of these can be sold pretty easily.
Furniture - gaming tables, coffee tables, end tables, other tables. Chairs, stools and various lamp stands etc.
Rustic furniture - making furniture from old branches and tree logs is popular amongst some customers.
Cabinet making - various forms of cabinets, especially beautiful custom cabinets can go for a pretty penny, especially if it happens to be combined with stained glass inserts.
Carvings - a lot of beautiful carving work can be done with some chisels, a proper vise and various other tools.
So as many have said, decide what youâre going to make and/or sell, study/learn from someone that knows how to make things you want to make, and then buy your tools accordingly.
Of course, skills development requires great instruction, practice and a lot of mistakes. To me, that is half the fun of learning a new hobby/vocation, but with certain materials it can get quite expensive.
to be joining this community and wanted to reach out for some advice. I have recently developed a passion for woodworking and am in the process of setting up a small workshop in my garage.
I want to invest in quality tools that will serve me well as I develop my skills; but I also need to stay within a reasonable budget.