brianinpa's Workshop

My shop is my family’s two car garage. It doubles as both a wood shop a mechanics shop. For 20 years I was an aircraft mechanic in the US Navy, and no matter how much I try, the tinkering mechanic rises to the surface. It could be the garden tractor, or any of my cars or a family member’s car that I work on.

Because of the fact that my shop serves two purposes, most of my wood working equipment is mobile. I have a Craftsman 113.29991 table saw that I acquired from my father-in-law who got it from his father. I have used several different saws in both high school and at numerous military base hobby shops and do not long for anything when it comes to the way this saw performs.: it is a saw that I plan to pass on to one of my sons when I am no longer able to use it. I have enlarged the table surface to 3’ X 4’ by building a router table onto the right wing of the saw table. At the time that I took ownership of this saw it came without a rip fence that did not function correctly. I could not afford a Beismeyer or other equivalent rip fence so I turned to the library where I found a book that provided instructions on building a rip fence from plywood. This rip fence is more than I expected from plywood.

In addition to the table saw, I have a DeWalt Power Shop 925. I would put this saw up against ANY power miter saw. Their a critics out there that talk down on a radial arm saw and claim that a power miter saw if far superior: I disagree. This saw came to me by way of my father who had bought it for $100.00 at a local yard sale: his loss, my gain.

The other woodworking tools I have are a Powr-Kraft TPF-2020A 36” lathe that I bought for $1.00, a Powr-Kraft horizontal drum/disc sander, a AMT 18” lathe (this has been retired due to the purchase of the Powr-Kraft), Craftsman drill press, and a Pro Tech band saw (by far my weakest link.)

The final piece to my woodshop that means the most to me would have to be my work bench. It is a 200 pound behemoth that was started with a bunch of 1½” X 2½” pine boards laid out so that they are stacked horizontally into a somewhat butcher board design. The base is made from simple 2×4’s with a diagonal brace to help support the top. When I hit a chisel with a mallet, I know that I am working on a solid surface and when I move it, I wish I had designed wheels into it.

If you notice, most of my tools have a certain age to them. That describes one of my other wood working hobbies: old woodworking machines. Everything I have is still in it’s original condition, but as needed I am going to overhaul and restore each piece: first to be done will be the sander. Just because it is old, doesn’t mean it has to be replaced.

It isn’t much, but it is all I need. I guess the only real problem I have is that I have to allow my wife to park her car in it.

-- Brian, Lebanon PA, If you aren’t having fun doing it, find something else to do.