Fake Woodshops vs. Your Woodshop

[wouldwurker]

Question 1: How many hobbyist woodworkers out there wish their shop looked like the ones in FWW, Pop WW, or New Yankee Workshop?
Question 2: How many of us, assume that EVERYONE ELSE’s shop actually looks like that?
Question 3: What’s the negative impact of the image of the ‘studio set’ shop on the woodworking community?


Last night I had the pleasure of visiting an actual working shop (more on that later). Guess what…didn’t look anything like the cover of FWW. And it was awesome.

But wait???!!!
No perfectly matched half blind dovetailed cabinets and drawers spanning the walls?
No infinite feedback loop of progressively longer clamps mounted in succession?
None of those power tools that mysteriously don’t have cords?
No $10,000 maple Roubo?
No distinguished gentleman rubbing paste wax onto a handcut dovetailed cabinet, with a smug, self-satisfied pride…wearing a brand new flannel shirt to look more ‘everyman’? Trust me, I looked!

Here’s what I did see:

• Wood. Lots of wood.
• Tools. Tools that look like they’re made more than a few pieces of furniture. Tools that have had belts changed and parts repaired over the years. Like a F-150 with 250,000 miles…Workhorses, baby, workhorses.
• Cords. Guess what – power tools need to be plugged in.
• Jigs jigs jigs…most of which had useful notes penciled onto them
• Test pieces.
• Work surfaces...that looked like they've seen their fair share of work
• Drawers, shelves, and cabinets. Some made of plywood, some painted, some metal… either built or accumulated from various sources over the years - ALL with perfectly utilitarian functionality
• A place for everything, and everything in its place. Except for when it’s not. And certainly not on museum-esque display.
• Hardware. Lots of it.
• Space heaters.
• Utility Lights
• Real live sawdust…in a woodshop!

But overall, immediately….upon first glance, I saw a place where quality work gets built…efficiently and regularly.

And guess what…all that stuff I mentioned above. I have that stuff in my shop! Albeit on a much smaller scale, but it was all there from the crude, yet wonderfully functional, and always disposable jigs hanging off the wall, to the screwdriver on the worksurface…right where I need it.

Here’s the thing. I used to look at those pics in the magazines, or the TV shows, and think, “…if only I had that shop I’d be so inspired to build.” I need to make my shop look like that! Why am I such a mess that my shop looks nothing like that?
Well F that.
This shop made me want to build something. It inspired me more than any BS ‘studio set shop’.

And it made me feel better about my little shop. Hell, even on Marc’s guild videos if I catch a sandwich and a Dr Pepper in the background I get excited. For a moment I get a dose of reality (don’t change a thing Marc!).

Do we beat ourselves up because this idea and image of the ‘real woodshop’ has been pounded into our heads?
Does it make us feel disorganized under false pretenses?
Does it make us spend more time thinking about beautifying or organizing our shops with a methodology that’s actually less efficient?

Hmmm...ok then, maybe I’m not disorganized.

A power drill practically lives on my benchtop. You know why? I replace batteries in my kids toys on that bench 12 times a week. And the special, dedicated, french cleated, power drill holder I made with purple heart- has a bunch of tape rolls hanging off it.

There’s a big as$ piece of white board propped up against my finishing worksurface. There’s dried glue and finish all over it. On that work surface is a bottle of glue, and a hammer & screwdriver for opening cans of finish. Those tools live there...in eyeshot. They work together. There’s where they need to be.

I have quality power tools that I maintain…and they certainly look like they get some use.

My expensive hand tools are out of sight…in a cabinet…for their own good. Having them displayed in eyeshot doesn’t make me feel any more like a woodworker. When I need them, they come out. Sometimes they stay out. Sometimes for a while.

Most of the shop furniture legs have 100 layers of poly on them. It’s where I wipe the excess off an oily rag before I dry it.

My clamps are stored between exposed wall studs on an unfinished wall. A bungee cord keeps them from falling over if I have an earthquake. Zero reason to hang them up. Absolutely none. No reason at all to dedicate wall space to those clamps. None whatsoever.
(yes, I admit, it does look cool)

The occasional beer can makes an appearance. Sometimes, a Chinese food container.

My utilatub has a rotating collection of dried oily rags draped over the sides. Never saw those in a magazine photo.

I pee in that utility tub. Saw that once in a magazine photo.

There’s a trash can in sight and in reach of my bench <gasp>. There's trash in it <double gasp>

There’s a scrap bin in sight and in reach of my bench. The scrap bin is not dovetailed together.

And lastly…a litter box. Guess what…I enjoy my cat’s company in the shop. And he needs a place to poop. Preferably not on curly maple.



That said, I’ve been pining over an outfeed table for months. All these plans for special planer flipping, cabinet/drawer, double-hinged rollertop, t-track dadoed…blah blah blah.

So last weekend I said "F it" and built it out of two bys. Butt jointed with screws and on went big ol’ casters. Didn’t even bother screwing down the plywood top, since gravity does a swell job of that. And STILL, it took me 3 times longer to make because (for some reason) I felt the need mill the 2-bys and meticulous line up every screw for perfect symmetry.

But guess what. Now I have an outfeed table. It’s a worktop when it’s not an outfeed table. And a storage area when it’s not a worktop. And a roll cart when it’s not storage.

And it’s ugly, and crude, and dusty

…and some fine ass furniture will grace its presence for the next 30 years.

And that furniture ain’t for the shop, tootsie pop.



So what does your ‘real shop’ look like?

[Tpt life]

Right now my shop is my garage floor. No cabinets, no bench... I have been clamping some work to an old shoddy bar counter to do upright work. On the floor I have various boards with stops etc. You wouldn't call it a shop.

[dwacker]

Mine is clean sparse and efficient just the way I like it.

[Tom Cancelleri]

My first working area when I got into woodworking was a Wolfcraft folding adjustable workbench with a 3'x3' piece of 1/2" MDF on. I had a couple of stationary machines (drill press, bandsaw, Ryobi 3000 table saw, and my nicest tool was a Performax 10-20 drum sander) I built my first project which was an acoustic guitar that I wish I had completed pictures of. If you have the drive and desire to build something you'll find a way. When I packed all my tools up and put them in storage, I kept just my scroll saw in my closet of my 1 br condo. I hooked my vacuum cleaner too it and used it to make small projects, picture frames on my dining room table. 

 

My first workbench

 

[wdwerker]

Looks like Vinny was paying attention to lots of details last night !

[Raefco]

My shop is under my house, it will be a cool shop once I get settled in, but since I personally built the house in my spare time, when I wasn't working to pay for it so the shop has been a bit neglected. I have been working to remedy that but I fear other things will take priority once the weather breaks, back to making money comes to mind oh well we're all just spending time anyway.

[Mzdadoc]

It's funny that you bring this up. I've tried to set up my shop/garage to be as efficient as possible forgetting about all the years I was a mechanic.

As a tech I owned what I needed and updated only if I could make more money with that new tool design. I know every drawer of my tool box and every tool in it. Pick a drawer and I'll tell you what's in it. Actually had to say the same thing to a state trooper in AZ one late night many years ago.

When I was still turning a wrench for a living we had a saying. "The bigger the tool box the dumber the mechanic!" Some of the most intelligent technicians I knew had a small tool box with only the needed tools and they ran circles around the other guys.

[dwacker]

It's funny that you bring this up. I've tried to set up my shop/garage to be as efficient as possible forgetting about all the years I was a mechanic.

As a tech I owned what I needed and updated only if I could make more money with that new tool design. I know every drawer of my tool box and every tool in it. Pick a drawer and I'll tell you what's in it. Actually had to say the same thing to a state trooper in AZ one late night many years ago.

When I was still turning a wrench for a living we had a saying. "The bigger the tool box the dumber the mechanic!" Some of the most intelligent technicians I knew had a small tool box with only the needed tools and they ran circles around the other guys.

 

My garage looks like a bomb went off. I have more tools, that most mechanics only dream about. It would be easier to go buy a screwdriver than it would be to find one in my garage. I changed the water pump on my old truck took 3 hours. 30 minutes to change the pump and 2 1/2 hours to find the tools.

No way I could work like that in my shop. 

[RichardA]

What I want to know, is why Vinny didn't knock on the door when he checked out my shop?  Huh? Explain yourself, young man, I have beer in the fridge and John Daniel in the freezer, I have checkerboard size pieces and we could have invented a new game!

[Tom Cancelleri]

Vinny, did he have a bat or shotgun to protect the shop?

[wdwerker]

Or an old bat with a shotgun?

[wouldwurker]

Or an old bat with a shotgun?

Ha! 1000 points

[Eric.]

I would have enjoyed that post a lot more, Vinny, if I didn't have to squint through the whole thing.

 

Organization is the primary reason why my shop looks the way that it does.  Hanging my clamps on the wall is the ONLY reasonable way for me to store them...and if I'm going to hang them, why not put them in order according to length?  No point in being sloppy on purpose.  Tidiness is a byproduct of necessity for me, and it makes for a more productive and enjoyable work area.  If I had endless space, I would hope for a shop that looked like David Marks'...which is about what I envisioned when reading your description.  But I don't have that luxury.  I have to organize or it's impossible to work.

 

But I'll also add that I DO prefer to work in a space that looks and feels "cool."  Just like I prefer to live in a clean house with nice things.  It puts me in a better mood...no further explanation necessary. 

 

Ultimately all that matters is the quality of the work produced in a shop and the joy that someone garners when working in it.  The shop itself is only a vessel for the craft...what the shop yields is the important part, both materially and philosophically.  If you do your best work in a pristine FWW poser shop, great.  If you prefer a messy, disorganized, dusty hole, great.  You better not have gaps in your joinery either way, or it's all a waste of time.

[wouldwurker]

I would have enjoyed that post a lot more, Vinny, if I didn't have to squint through the whole thing.

 

 

Weird - fixed it

 

[Dan S]

My shop is immaculate right After I've finished a project, during a project it looks more like this.
 

 

[Tom Cancelleri]

I would have enjoyed that post a lot more, Vinny, if I didn't have to squint through the whole thing.

 

 

See how you like reading this Vinny =P

[davestanton]

I think a shop reflects the owners personality. My own shop gets swept out every day and sometimes a few times a day while a project is on the go. Why ? Because I can't handle tripping over stuff, stacking things up on a bench and slowly being reduced to working on 1 square foot in the corner, not being able to find a particular tool because I put it down... somewhere and it ended up buried under other things I hadn't put away.... the list goes on. I enjoy walking into my shop in the morning and knowing nothing is going to hinder my desire or imagination to make something or I can just sit in there (my own space that I have control of). Maybe I am in a minority, but as I said at the beginning of the post, your shop is a reflection of your personality. If I were to spend time in your shop Vinny I think I would feel a desire to tidy and organise, too much distraction for me to be able to focus on the job at hand. That said, I bet if you were to make something in my shop, it would end up how you manage your own space.

[wouldwurker]

If you re-read my OP, there's nothing that necessarily constitutes disorganized or untidy in my shop.

 

I agree that my shop is a reflection of my personality, in that I'm pragmatic and efficient. 

[Raefco]

I believe in the best case sinario a shop would be a direct reflection of its owner, but in most cases, especially a home or hobby shop, it is a compromise, as much as I would love to have a picture book shop, I have a job, a business, a home and family that all take priority over the contents and cleanliness of my hobby shop.

[Trip]

==>My shop is immaculate right After I've finished a project, during a project it looks more like this.

Exactly the same here ---- except for the immaculate part... In those 'before' and 'after' photos --- mine is permanently in the 'before' state...

[dwacker]

 

Here’s the thing. I used to look at those pics in the magazines, or the TV shows, and think, “…if only I had that shop I’d be so inspired to build.” I need to make my shop look like that! Why am I such a mess that my shop looks nothing like that?

Well F that.

This shop made me want to build something. It inspired me more than any BS ‘studio set shop’.

 

 

So how would you have felt if it was the oposite full of modern equipment and spotless as a shop could be and looked like an advertisement for a machine manufacturer? 

[wouldwurker]

One question, did I pay for it, or was it given to me?

If it was furnished and handed to me, I'd feel nothing.

If I earned and built it myself, I'd have inspiration out the wazoo.

Give a teenager a Lexus for his birthday, he'll treat it like garbage.

Give a teenager a crappy job and let him earn and buy a $3500 '89 mustang....he'll treat it like a Rolls.

My shop is the '89 Mustang

[AceHoleInOne]

In the heat of battle...my shop looks like a fricken explosion went off.  Stuff everywhere. Stepping over power cords vacuum hoses you name it. When I finish the process I'm working on,  it gets cleaned up. Start the process over again.

 

-Ace-

 

That's my story and sticken to it. A clean shop...nothing is getting done but cleaning the shop.   

[JohnDi]

I bought a used planer from a professional furniture maker who's shop was beautiful, organized, and clean. Left there and had a pity party on the long drive home because my shop is my crowded garage.

When I sold my old planer on CL, the guy who was buying it walks into my garage, his eyes get big and he says " wow, you've got a dream shop!"

Made me realize it's all a matter of perspective and I really have it pretty darn good.

[Tom Cancelleri]

I bought my first bandsaw from a guy who had a shop that was 40x60 behind his house. He had a "man cave" in the front of his shop with a 55" TV, leather couch, fridge and some other misc stuff. The shop was immaculate with the exception of 1 corner which had nothing but wood scraps and cutoffs from previous builds.