The American Craftsman Shop #2: Finishing the Shop

Man, your shop looks bigger than my house, and I’m envious. LOL

-- Adrian ..... The 11th Commandment...."Thou Shalt Not Buy A Wobble Dado"

It’s as big as my house.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

Nice to get things done. I know that drywall is a pain.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

I’ve been told more than once when building my shop, ” A mans shop should be at least as large as his house and probably twice as large”. But those are the nicest walls I’ve ever seen in a shop. Nice.

-- Terry Roswell, L.A. (Lower Alabama) "Life is what happens to you when you are making other plans."

and fast!

-- "Functional WoodArt" by Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

great look

-- making sawdust....

Wow. This is coming along nicely. In one day you finished hanging drywall, taping, mudding and put on 2 primer coats!!!!!!

The only way I could do something like this is to have a small army of shop elves helping. You must be in a hurry to get back to generating some sawdust.

I am going to enjoy seeing the final product- as I am sure you will too.

-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.

Plenty of outlets that you don’t have to bend over to use.
Smart.

-- No piece is cut too short. It was meant for a smaller project.

Looking good Todd.

-- I've cut that board three times and it's still too short!

Nice to see that you made it home OK and are back in the shop. What’s your next big project?

-- Bob Vila would be so proud of you!

Next house I buy I’m planning on a detached 2-3 car garage for a shop. Garage doors make it easy to move stock and projects in and out.

My shop has two sets of double doors. I must admit that overhead garage doors have more height to get the goods in and out.

The disadvantage is that garage doors are not even close when it comes to keeping the cold air out. My shop is way more comfortable than my brother’s. He has 3 overhead garage doors and concrete floors. I have 2 double doors, a single entry door, and wood floors. Long days in my shop are way more enjoyable.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

Well, my envy meter just pegged out.

-- Maplewood, MN

Rikkor – I plan on getting it done so I can share more out of my own shop. Your meter ought to go wild then!

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

That sure is a shiny white wall, Todd!! I think you have way too much energy. There is a lot to said for a fair amount of lazyness. It will be great when you get it done. I really like all those outlets in the wall.

-- Thos. Angle, Owyhee Design, Oregon

Thanks Thos.A. The walls are being primed right now so they are very white. But they will be painted an off-white that is actually color matched off of a piece of Jet woodworking machinery. So the walls are “Jet” white. The ceiling and trim will be bright white.

This allows for the walls to hide some dust and create a color difference between the walls and trim.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

By the way, welcome home.

If you paint the walls “Jet White”, how will you be able to make out the saw from the jet white background?

Nice walls and I really do like the color. It will make for a bright well lit space. I also would vote for wood floors for the comfort over concrete.

With the weight of all your equipment, how is your shop floor constructed?

Dalec

Wood floors! Nice.

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

The floor joists are 1×12’s that are 12” on center instead of 16”. This is sufficient to carry the load of this type of machinery. I kept the spans shorter too. This is according to the spec charts that I have.

This information is all available in any framing book.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

you will injoy a shop that looks good

-- Do it right the first time. Becuase fixing it is a wast of time.

I’m jealous already. Have fun in the new shop.

-- Bob K. East Northport, NY

Looking good Todd!

Oh yeah, in regards to your shop? You suck :P

-- "Give me your poor tools, your tired steel, your huddled masses of rust." Yep, I ripped off the Statue of Liberty. That's how I roll!

Tomcat – Please allow me to rub it in: it is 34×34 with a 200 amp dedicated panel, gas heat, wood floor, and 10’ ceilings. Oh and the space is deductible because of my business.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

Oh yeah…you really suck :P

-- "Give me your poor tools, your tired steel, your huddled masses of rust." Yep, I ripped off the Statue of Liberty. That's how I roll!

OK, I made a mistake earlier. The floor joists are 2×12’s NOT 1×12’s (Doh!).

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

Todd. Great looking shop modifications. Looks like a nice place to work.

-- Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com

Stunning.

My tablesaw is jealous.

Though, raw concrete is almost Rockwell grey

-- The only easy wood project is a fire

when does the Clippinger School of Woodworking begin? I am signing up for the JUne, July classes!!! SHOP LOOKS AWESOME!!!

-- Matt, Napa, CA...SING WITH ME: "Sum...sum...sum...summ...summ...summ...summertime..."

Napaman – Believe me, I have been thinking about it.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

Thanks Todd for the info on the floor structure. I saw your reply and read 2×12 and missed the 1×12.

Dalec

Like I wasn’t already fighting back enough envy ;-)

-- I've cut that board three times and it's still too short!