Setting Up Shop #3: A little more organization

Well, I know it has been a long time, and it’s truly taken me this long to achieve any progress. I’m not just late updating the blog!

I’ve posted a few new pics on my workshop section, instead of trying to post here in the blog. This is still difficult as I don’t really want to again need another website to store my pics on. So I’ll make due this way.

So I’ve managed to set up a small work area in the back corner. I simply used one of my steel shelving units (only used the bottom half) which is 48×24. This gave me a quick work area and allowed me to begin to organize into something more that a mess.

I put up a framed peg board which is storing some hand tools already. No real layout of this yet, until I unpack all my tools and decide what I need most. I built a quick clamp rack and hung it next to that work area, which is handy to my assembly area at this point as well. This moved my clamps, which were always in my way … into one central area, and tucked away quite nicely. I also built a quick screwdriver holder. I had one in my last shop, but I guess with packing up it got disposed of. This comes in very handy and ensures that I put my drivers away after use, rather than leaving them lay out on a bench or table.

As you can see in at least one of the pics, my CMS has yet to find a real home. Currently sits atop my TS. My plan is to build a MS cabinet against one wall, which will provide storage and a nice flat area for the MS. I also intend to put my benchtop TS (or as some call it a contractor TS) into a cabinet as well. This would nearly finish my storage requirements and give me a nice stable TS area with plenty of outfeed and a new assembly area. Of course any of you who operate in a small shop like me knows that dual purpose work surfaces are a must!

As I noted in my workshop update, power is still a major issue for me. Since my shop is in a single car condo garage, there is only one 20 amp circuit servicing the whole garage. I can barely use my RAS or TS with the radio and light on!!! The pics show a lot of extension cords running a muck (... I know, I know … safety hazard!!!) so my next real focus is to get power placed around the shop without the cords strewn on the floor. This will probably be a few power bars, fed by multiple cords tacked around the ceiling, but I haven’t made up my mind. Again, no sense having access to power all over, if the circuit can’t handle any additional load.

So this si my adventure in shop downsizing. I have to tell you it SUCKS!. Going from a large dedicated shop, with heat, ample power, and space to move around … this has been very enlightening to say the least. But hey … it’s certainly brought out my creativity … when I get time to be int he shop anyway!

-- "The German is like a willow. No matter which way you bend him, he will always take root again." - Alexander Solzhenitsyn -