# Birth of a Workshop



## croessler (Jun 22, 2007)

*In the beginning*

For a couple of years now I have been trying to get my wife's agreement to build a shed in the back yard to house all of the yard equipment, sports gear, etc… She recently quit her part time job at a spice shop and picked up another job at the local WoodCraft the same afternoon (Major gloat for me).

To my amazement she has started taking an interest in Carving and Turning. We acquired a used Jet mini lathe and some basic Sorby tools. A couple of weeks have passed and she has started to grouse about the crowded condition of the garage (I think my evil plan is working!).

So. here is the plan:
1) Build an 8"x12" shed with loft in the back corner of the yard and move the lawn and sports equipment into it.
2) Throw out all the "junk" we never seem to part with (old Christmas decorations and the like which we have never used)
3) DIY or pay someone to epoxy finish the garage floor
4) Build storage on two available walls for tool and lumber storage
5) Finally build my dream workbench!!!!!!!

Oh… now my oldest son has picked up a part time job @ WoodCraft and has started turning pens. I hope to post some of their work soon. I am quite proud of them both!

More to follow soon….


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## Drew1House (Mar 18, 2007)

croessler said:


> *In the beginning*
> 
> For a couple of years now I have been trying to get my wife's agreement to build a shed in the back yard to house all of the yard equipment, sports gear, etc… She recently quit her part time job at a spice shop and picked up another job at the local WoodCraft the same afternoon (Major gloat for me).
> 
> ...


Wow fun for you… If you epoxy the floor… use the devoe 2 part true epoxy… I have used Rust-o- and the devoe and there is a night and day difference.


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## cajunpen (Apr 9, 2007)

croessler said:


> *In the beginning*
> 
> For a couple of years now I have been trying to get my wife's agreement to build a shed in the back yard to house all of the yard equipment, sports gear, etc… She recently quit her part time job at a spice shop and picked up another job at the local WoodCraft the same afternoon (Major gloat for me).
> 
> ...


Well, at least it's consistent - the women rule the world -). At least you have some hope now, she's interested in woodworking now, so the tools will be forthcoming. Hopefully WoodCraft offers their employees a nice discount.


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## shaun (Sep 16, 2007)

croessler said:


> *In the beginning*
> 
> For a couple of years now I have been trying to get my wife's agreement to build a shed in the back yard to house all of the yard equipment, sports gear, etc… She recently quit her part time job at a spice shop and picked up another job at the local WoodCraft the same afternoon (Major gloat for me).
> 
> ...


[email protected] the evil plan… I love a good conspiracy.. lol

I put down some epoxy floor covering in the basement a while back. It wasn't tough to do at all and it came out pretty good, at least I was happy with it. I'll be adding to it pretty soon. I can't remember the name of the product I used but I picked it up at Home Depot in the paint dept. They offer 3 or 4 grades of covering the primary difference (that I could see) was the thickness of the coat after it dried. I'd suggest going with the thickest one you can afford. The price changes quite a bit as you go up in grades. I went with the mid grade and it came out alright. I was planning on givinig the top shelf stuff a shot this time to see how big the difference is but I'm going to check out this devoe stuff before I commit to it. (Thanks Drew)


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## MsDebbieP (Jan 4, 2007)

croessler said:


> *In the beginning*
> 
> For a couple of years now I have been trying to get my wife's agreement to build a shed in the back yard to house all of the yard equipment, sports gear, etc… She recently quit her part time job at a spice shop and picked up another job at the local WoodCraft the same afternoon (Major gloat for me).
> 
> ...


lol @ evil plan… (oh heheh that's been said already haha)
hmmm "in the beginning" and "evil plan"... getting a mixed image here!

and I see "DISCOUNT" ooooooooooh


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## croessler (Jun 22, 2007)

croessler said:


> *In the beginning*
> 
> For a couple of years now I have been trying to get my wife's agreement to build a shed in the back yard to house all of the yard equipment, sports gear, etc… She recently quit her part time job at a spice shop and picked up another job at the local WoodCraft the same afternoon (Major gloat for me).
> 
> ...


Ms.Debbie, 
I agree; it's especially mixed for a Sunday school teacher (me).


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## Loogie (Jan 19, 2008)

croessler said:


> *In the beginning*
> 
> For a couple of years now I have been trying to get my wife's agreement to build a shed in the back yard to house all of the yard equipment, sports gear, etc… She recently quit her part time job at a spice shop and picked up another job at the local WoodCraft the same afternoon (Major gloat for me).
> 
> ...


Your wife works at WoodCraft! What a score! Good luck with your shop.


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## Dez (Mar 28, 2007)

croessler said:


> *In the beginning*
> 
> For a couple of years now I have been trying to get my wife's agreement to build a shed in the back yard to house all of the yard equipment, sports gear, etc… She recently quit her part time job at a spice shop and picked up another job at the local WoodCraft the same afternoon (Major gloat for me).
> 
> ...


Atta Boy for the "evil Plan" !!


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## Bsmith (Feb 2, 2011)

croessler said:


> *In the beginning*
> 
> For a couple of years now I have been trying to get my wife's agreement to build a shed in the back yard to house all of the yard equipment, sports gear, etc… She recently quit her part time job at a spice shop and picked up another job at the local WoodCraft the same afternoon (Major gloat for me).
> 
> ...


Not to worry Chris. "Surley you won't die." ;-)


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## Maggiepic (Aug 26, 2010)

croessler said:


> *In the beginning*
> 
> For a couple of years now I have been trying to get my wife's agreement to build a shed in the back yard to house all of the yard equipment, sports gear, etc… She recently quit her part time job at a spice shop and picked up another job at the local WoodCraft the same afternoon (Major gloat for me).
> 
> ...


You have to love it when a plan comes together.
If you are going to DIY the epoxy on the floor, I would highly recommend having a floor company either grind or shot blast the floor to prep it for your application. This will make the epoxy adhere the best it possibly can because all the floor contaminates have been removed, ie. sealers, oil, grease, soaps, etc. It makes a big difference rather than just cleaning it, even with acid etching. It's worth the expense. Your epoxy will last much, much longer. Most epoxy failures I have seen are adhesion problem/peeling.
I agree with Drew on the Devoe products. Huge difference from the box store products.

Edit: Just noticed how old this thread is…oh well..advice for others maybe?


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## croessler (Jun 22, 2007)

*Finally, a bit o' progress*

After taking more than a year off from woodworking on a regular basis I'm finally regaining control of my shop. I'll edit the post later and add a few pictures.

Close to 18 months away from woodworking, except for a couple of quick Christmas gifts. I am finally able to make progress. My shop/garage has been filled to the gills with items from my parents home awaiting disposition to whomever inherited it. In the last couple of months I finally got the shed built and over the last week moved 98% of the non-woodworking stuff into it. Life is starting to return to normal…..

Oh… almost forgot; I got my JDS dust collector assembled and working as well as my Jet Drill press. Both went together easily and without incident (reviews to follow).


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## woodworm (Jul 27, 2008)

croessler said:


> *Finally, a bit o' progress*
> 
> After taking more than a year off from woodworking on a regular basis I'm finally regaining control of my shop. I'll edit the post later and add a few pictures.
> 
> ...


Great news on the progress of your shop & your woodworking activities. 
I marked this blog, so I'm in the know when you add pictures/or update the progress.


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## Swede (Feb 19, 2010)

croessler said:


> *Finally, a bit o' progress*
> 
> After taking more than a year off from woodworking on a regular basis I'm finally regaining control of my shop. I'll edit the post later and add a few pictures.
> 
> ...


Let the wood chips fly enjoy your shop.


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