All Replies on What tool am I missing?

A thicknes planner would be my next choice

-- Ken

I would opt for a 6” x48” bench top belt sander myself. Making the small crafty items that I make, that sander is the most used tool in my shop.

-- In God We Trust

I don’t know why you never used the SCMS?

When I go to build something, I work in stages.

Joint and thickness.

Then rip or cut to length. Here I use my miter saw as much as the table saw.

Then details like holes, rabbits, bevels, etc.

-- Michael :-{| Diapers and politicians both need to be changed often; and for the same reason.

It depends on the kind of projects you do. Think about a time when you needed a certain tool that you didn’t have. Maybe that is the next new tool. I probably wouldn’t pick a sander without updating the DC system. One tool I could recommend is a cordless impact driver; greatest thing since sliced bread. How’s the saw blade? A good saw blade improves your work.

I usually buy a tool or tools I need when I do a specific project. Or build it better, quicker. Let the projects guide your tool selection, else you may have a tool sitting around for months not earning its keep. The exception is old solid great value tools that don’t come along often. And that could be any type of power or hand tool. The other exception is shop and tool accessories and upgrades, like MrRon suggested, a good grade saw blade, dado set, Kreg kit, clamps, hock or IBC plane blades, chisels, vice, wood, wood, wood. The final exception is tool clearance sales, 1/2 price, deep discount is good stuff.

-- david roberts, spinning Tales from Topographic Oceans, no, really.

A planer would be my next choice… You can joint on a planer, but you can’t plane on a jointer…

-- Manufacturer of fine quality sawdust since 1984. Comments and advice on my shop welcome. Check it out at http://lumberjocks.com/dbhost/workshop. Gladly accepting shop build donations!

Miter saw. And you have just about the right amount of $’s. It’s a lot easier than a table saw for cross cuts and we all make tons of cross cuts.

-- Failure does not stop me, it makes me try harder..... because I'm crazy.

Meant to make it clearer. I have a planer, a makita… something happened to my post.

A miter saw might be it. I just don’t need a huge 12” scms, but a small one would be fine. Space is a huge consideration. If I need to make big cuts, the table saw is fine.

Just sharpened the table saw blade about a month ago. Nothing like a sharp blade. A box joint blade would be nice. A hock blade, yep.

I’m actually going to try my hand at making clamps.

The best tool is the one I’m going to build… a real bench.

-- Telescope Maker, Woodworker, Brewer, Gizmologist, Gardner, Lawn Mower

Upgrade your BT3000 to a used Ridgid contractor saw. or a lathe for your Telescopes.

-- W James Brokenbourgh Custom furniture maker http://artisticwoodstudio.com/

I would get a lunch box planer.

-- Bondo Gaposis

You must be skilled indeed if you can joint and square
your boards confidently with hand planes. Personally
I find jointing is not so difficult but squaring can be
very tricky with hand planes. A jointer is an expedient
to the craftsman who wants to eliminate all the planing
and checking with a square.

How about a hollow chisel mortiser? It makes the mortise and tenon joints you’ll use on those larger projects so much easier…

-- Don't anthropomorphize your handplanes. They hate it when you do that. -- OldTools Archive

Or get yourself some sweet mortising chisels.

If you use dimensional wood, a planer is a game changer…

-- Happiness is like wetting your pants...everyone can see it, but only you can feel the warmth....

I would have gone with a planer/jointer combo

-- I am not so rich to buy cheap tools.

I’ll admit that I’m not yet woodworking, but more constructing. Finished a wood floor in a bedroom yesterday and used the MS to cut to length constantly. I traded a canoe for a 12” Makita sliding saw last year and sold off my 10” Hitachi MS and ancient Craftsman radial arm saw. I also sold off my 30 yo Craftsman TS and bought a used Ridgid TS that was barely used at 2-yrs old and a barely used Ridgid jointer. Although I have not followed the advice about letting the projects guide the next tool purchase, I do agree with it. What I’ve done is target where I want to be in a couple of years and watch the used market to buy things half off. There are lots of people who do not end up where they want to be or change where they want to be in 2 yrs, so my m.o. is “buy right” and if you decide to sell it later, there’s little to no loss. also, sounds to me like you answered your query – build a nice workbench. $300 and lots of info on LJ should get you a nice one. Just yesterday, I noticed a link to an article in Fine WW about building a “new-fangled workbench”. Another variation on the theme that caught my eye was a guy who bought all-wood laminated IKEA countertop to use for his workbench top. I have to tear down my shop to build another, but I’m saving ideas about workbenches to facilitate building my hybrid in 18 months or so. For the next year or so, I’m searching for a vise for the future bench. PEACE

-- Like Guy Clark sez - "Sometimes I use my head, Sometimes I get a bigger hammer"

Oh. and another thought, how does anyone do woodworking without a router table? Mine is minimal and old, but necessary for any craft-sized or furniture project. I’ll build a good one when the shop is complete along with a workbench and an assembly table that doubles for outfeed from TS and jointer.

-- Like Guy Clark sez - "Sometimes I use my head, Sometimes I get a bigger hammer"

Radial arm saw, old Dewalt MBF. Crosscut, Miter, rabbet, shape, it does it all. Or go with a lathe – tons of used older stuff out there for good prices.