GAAAAHHHHHHH!! I can't take it ANYMORE!!!!
Let me start by giving a brief overview of my shop, or the thing I like to call my shop. My "shop" is an 8'x8' shed that sits in my back yard with an extension cord, or sometimes two, ran out to it from the house. Lets face it, the thing is a mess! I can't hardly do anything in there! I have 2 workbenches and a whole mess of shelves with no real way to organize anything. One workbench has my scroll saw, drill press, and band saw on it. The other is where I do everything else. My prep work, assembly, designing, whatever. Well, yesterday I had it. I'm sick and tired of the mess and the tripping and the hunting, and everything else that comes with a small space that's packed to the gills with EVERYTHING!! It just plain SUCKS!
So, the time has finally come. The planning. The planning of a complete renovation! The complete renovation, of my tiny. Little. SHOP!!! MWAAA HAAA AAAAA BAA HAAA HAAHAHA!! (now commence psychotic rambling) As of yesterday, I have been researching small space organization, and workbench construction, and peg board tool racks, and pegboard cabinets with sliding panels, and below bench storage with drawers and cabinets, and flip top tool carts, and bench dogs, and LEG VICES!!! and, and, and,...... pretty much anything and everything that has to do with consolidating a mess, eventually making things neat and organized.
I think the best thing I've done for this project so far is that I've started an "idea book". Every time I come across something on the web that I want to do, I right it down. I draw a little sketch. I dream about it being in my shop. If I find a bench top clamping system that I can integrate into my bench top, it goes into my book. If I can build it, and I think i can fit it into my 8'x8' shop, and I KNOW BEYOND A DOUBT it will make my shop time that much more enjoyable, it goes into my book. Then I get a headache, so I put my book down, and I drink a beer.
I'm giving it a week. One week of researching, and sketching, and dreaming it all into my shop. After the week is up, phase 2 will begin. I'll take all my measurements, then I'm going to sit down and draw out my plan. Then I'm going to double check my plan. Then I'm going to double check my double check, then I'm going to, well, I think you get the point. Once everything looks good on paper, it's time to start phase 3, the tear out and the finding somewhere to put all the crap. Then phase 4, the construction of my new workbench and the places to put all the crap back into.
Right now (it may change by the end of the week) my intent is to build a good sturdy workbench with a double layer top of MDF, integrated bench clamping system of some kind, and a flip top area for my scroll saw. Underneath will be multiple drawers of at least 2 different sizes, and cabinets with pull out shelves. Most, if not all of this (since I'm pretty much broke most of the time), will be done with things I already have, or scraps that I can find here and there. So keep an eye out for ideas to do things on the cheap. I'm a good one for that. Heck, just look at my shop made router table in my projects.
So anyway, it's late and I'm tired, so Goodnight! Stay tuned for more!
Let me start by giving a brief overview of my shop, or the thing I like to call my shop. My "shop" is an 8'x8' shed that sits in my back yard with an extension cord, or sometimes two, ran out to it from the house. Lets face it, the thing is a mess! I can't hardly do anything in there! I have 2 workbenches and a whole mess of shelves with no real way to organize anything. One workbench has my scroll saw, drill press, and band saw on it. The other is where I do everything else. My prep work, assembly, designing, whatever. Well, yesterday I had it. I'm sick and tired of the mess and the tripping and the hunting, and everything else that comes with a small space that's packed to the gills with EVERYTHING!! It just plain SUCKS!
So, the time has finally come. The planning. The planning of a complete renovation! The complete renovation, of my tiny. Little. SHOP!!! MWAAA HAAA AAAAA BAA HAAA HAAHAHA!! (now commence psychotic rambling) As of yesterday, I have been researching small space organization, and workbench construction, and peg board tool racks, and pegboard cabinets with sliding panels, and below bench storage with drawers and cabinets, and flip top tool carts, and bench dogs, and LEG VICES!!! and, and, and,...... pretty much anything and everything that has to do with consolidating a mess, eventually making things neat and organized.
I think the best thing I've done for this project so far is that I've started an "idea book". Every time I come across something on the web that I want to do, I right it down. I draw a little sketch. I dream about it being in my shop. If I find a bench top clamping system that I can integrate into my bench top, it goes into my book. If I can build it, and I think i can fit it into my 8'x8' shop, and I KNOW BEYOND A DOUBT it will make my shop time that much more enjoyable, it goes into my book. Then I get a headache, so I put my book down, and I drink a beer.
I'm giving it a week. One week of researching, and sketching, and dreaming it all into my shop. After the week is up, phase 2 will begin. I'll take all my measurements, then I'm going to sit down and draw out my plan. Then I'm going to double check my plan. Then I'm going to double check my double check, then I'm going to, well, I think you get the point. Once everything looks good on paper, it's time to start phase 3, the tear out and the finding somewhere to put all the crap. Then phase 4, the construction of my new workbench and the places to put all the crap back into.
Right now (it may change by the end of the week) my intent is to build a good sturdy workbench with a double layer top of MDF, integrated bench clamping system of some kind, and a flip top area for my scroll saw. Underneath will be multiple drawers of at least 2 different sizes, and cabinets with pull out shelves. Most, if not all of this (since I'm pretty much broke most of the time), will be done with things I already have, or scraps that I can find here and there. So keep an eye out for ideas to do things on the cheap. I'm a good one for that. Heck, just look at my shop made router table in my projects.
So anyway, it's late and I'm tired, so Goodnight! Stay tuned for more!