New Shop, New Woodworker - Need advice please!

[cocyclist]

Hi –

I’m new to the forum and to woodworking in general.  We’re getting ready to build a new house where I have the opportunity to build a small shop.  I’m hoping I can bother some of you all for input on your mistakes an triumphs in designing my small shop space.

The types of projects I’ve been doing for years include speaker building.  Usually smaller bookshelf and the occasional floorstander.   For these projects to date I’ve gotten by with using my table saw only as far as stationary tools go.  It does mean that I’m working with large sheets for many projects, but I also have a Makita tracksaw that I usually use to rip down the big pieces.

I also would like to start to get into more furniture building, and am a major DIYer around the house so my shop is also ground zero for many of those projects.

I’d like to hear anyone’s opinions on equipment to build out my shop with and ideas on an optimized layout in such a small space.

 

Equipment:

Own – Sawstop PCS 52” Tablesaw, Bosch 12” Compound Sliding Miter

To buy – Grizzly G0809 Jointer/Planer Combo, Microlux R8 Mill/Drill Press, Shapeoko 3 33x33 CNC, Sawstop Integrated Router Table, Second router table, Onieda cyclone dust mgnt, possibly a bandsaw

 

The Space:

The spot in the garage I have is around 14x24 with 10’ ceilings.  I’m thinking of leaving two walls open with 9’ openings.  I could hang garage doors there in the future if I feel the need to condition the shop, but I’ve never found a need before.  Leaving it open gives me options to spill over into the ajoining spaces, but still things look really tight w/ 36”-40” walkways between equipment stations.

Appreciate any feedback, experience takes time and given this is a hobby, any feedback would be greatly appreciated to help me make some good choices up front!

 

 

[Chestnut]

All of this is opinion, one of the best ways to set up a shop is to be flexible in the beginning and set it up as you work in it. Everyone is different in how they work.

I have narrower walkways than 36-40" and have never had an issue. I like narrower walkways like 24" because it allows for bigger work surfaces. Beings that you have an adjacent space that you can spill over into i suggest wheels on most things. Having an assembly table that you can roll into the vehicle area for finishing would be useful. Or even make a torsion top and have saw horses so you can set it up and take it down as needed.

I've said it before and people got all OCD worked up. With the openings and the layout you can gain a lot of space for indeed and out feed if you depart from the  perpendicular and parallel 90 degree layout. If your one of those odd types like that again wheels so you can rotate as needed then move back.

Also with 10 foot ceilings you have a lot of space above the doors and above work benches. I think you could take your lumber rake move it up and gain some floor space in that corner for the joiner. Also with the DIY locking the miter saw in a corner might not be the best i'd probably swap the routing sanding and miter saw to allow the ability to angle the miter saw and have in feed and out feed through the adjacent doors. I've ran into that issue with where my own saw is located multiple times.

[Chet]

First off welcome to the forums.

Just looking at it on their website, I would be pretty skeptical of the jointer/planer that you are looking at.  The aluminum fence on a jointer like that can be a real finicky situation that can cause you more frustration then joy.  For roughly the same money you could consider a Powermatic 6 inch jointer and the Dewalt 735 13 inch planer (which is a pretty popular choice around here myself included). I have my planer on a mobile cart, even though it doesn't get moved, but like Drew said it is a good way to go in small areas.  You can get a mobile base for the jointer if you want and these two tools would be about the same footprint as the grizzly unit and I think you would be happier.   It is mindful to be cautious of lower priced combo tools.  

[Chestnut]

Oh i didn't even notice the jointer planer combo. I agree with Chet's comments above. There have also been a lot of availability issues with Grizzly, I hear rumors about manufacturing facilities ect but current political happenings probably are creating some issues as well.

[drzaius]

That's a good shop space you've got there. I agree with not putting up walls; you want to keep flexible. I have a 22' x 25' shop that also has 2 cars parked in it every night. I have things arranged so I don't have to do a lot of moving around when I want to work out there.

You may want to look at cutting down that table saw to 36" if things are tight. I had a 52" fence for many years but when I got a SawStop I went with the 36" fence & love the extra space that gave me. I don't miss the extra 16" at all. Ripping sheet goods over 36" on a table saw is pretty dicey anyway. That's what a track saw is for.

I'm just starting to dabble in speaker building myself. I've got a huge sub mostly done, just waiting for the back ordered driver, & I need to build 4 Atmos ceiling speakers. What a rabbit hole this is turning out to be.

[gee-dub]

Welcome.  Nice space.  I would keep the mindset that the area where the cars are can be temporary usable space.  If the machines near the cars are mobile, they can move out into that area to provide more outfeed and maneuvering room.  It can also act as an assembly / finishing area if you have a mobile outfeed/assembly table sort of thing going on.

As to things I did right:

• Put outlets at 50" from the floor so they are always reachable.
• Have a ceiling electrical reel for random electrical needs or to temporarily feed machines that are mobile.
• Put lighting on a different panel than the shop; even if you blow the main you will never be in the dark.
• Use PVC dust collection ducting that is lightweight and easily changed/modified.
• Made certain machines mobile; I don't move them much but, even just changing angle a bit can make many operation easier/safer.
• Store lumber vertically so sorting through is like looking for a book and not an un-stacking effort.
• Have a sink.
• Have a metal cabinet to store finishing products; lockable if you have young ones around.

There are so many things that so many people have found work well for them.  For example, I got rid of the CMS as it took up a very large foot print, I have other ways to do those cuts and I don't do a lot of trim work which they excel at.  On the other hand I have a drum sander which takes up a large foot print, does things that could be done otherwise but, I would be loath to be without it; we're all different.  You will find things specific to your needs and methods.  Remain flexible and don't build your setup so well and so finely detailed that you are reluctant to change it.

Have fun!

 

[..Kev]

Welcome to the forums!

You might consider looking through the archives here for shop tours that several here have done.  Might be some good ideas that will work in your shop.

[Cheeset202]

Welcome to the forum, you will get lots of input on shop design, folks on here have done some amazing things with small spaces.  I agree with comments on combo planer/jointers unless you are looking at the higher end units like like Felder, a 6” or 8” jointer and a lunchbox planer will serve you better.  You really need to think about the type of furniture you want to build.  You mention maybe a bandsaw, pretty sure that will gain higher priority as you venture into furniture building.  You are heading into a large wonderful rabbit hole when it comes to this hobby.  

[Pondhockey]

I'll emphasize wheels on major pieces; even if the machine only moves inches and somewhat reorients, I find that very useful in a confined space.  When you place machines imagine working on a 6ft or 8ft piece and how you will do it (and how often.)

I've been considering industrial curtains, in lieu of walls, to help confine dust.  Has anyone here done this?

 

[Bankstick]

This might be a bit off topic but something to consider for walking space around equipment.  I sold cabinetry for two and a half years.  A kitchen island had to have at least 36 inches around it for firefighters with full equipment to walk around it .

Curtains?  Harbor Freight has tons of tarps in all sizes.  Got a freebie with coupon the other day.

[legenddc]

Do you have a 2nd garage at the very top? How many cars could you fit in if you didn't have the shop and tractor in there?

Maybe move the dust collector into the 'shop' area to help keep the cars cleaner?

[cocyclist]

Thank you all for the feedback!

 

A few take aways I see strong consensus on:

- No go on the jointer/planer combo.  Looking at it more closely, it doesn't even save that much space.  Will plan on buying separate jointer and planer.

-Wheels!  Yes, I'm in total agreement there.  My last 'shop' like many of us starting out was a garage stall.  Everything had to be mobile and I loved that flexibility.  

-Miter in area of router station.  Agree, this will help with the occasional long stock/trim scenarios that my home DIY projects occasionally require.

-Be flexible, you'll establish your workflow over time.  I'm an optimizer, so regardless of where I start, there's no way in hell it's where I end up   Just trying to push off with a solid start!

 

Fingers crossed I can break ground soon.  I've been saying we're going to break ground in 4 weeks...for 8 weeks now.

 

One question I have that was just brought up legendc.  For a dust collector, that's new territory to me.  I've always just made a mess in the garage and that was unavoidable.  With a higher end cyclonic dust collector, how much residual dust would I be expecting in those car areas?  I was thinking it would be minimal, but then I got to thinking...I have no experience to validate that as either true or false!

 

Maybe some industrial curtains like Pondhockey mentioned might help containment for messy MDF work.  I'd still be curious, how much dust actually escapes a collector with hepa filter.

[difalkner]

That's going to be really nice!  We're using our two car garage for a full time shop, about 20x20 with 8 foot ceiling.  I envy your 10 foot ceiling!

I upgraded our HF standard 5 micron bag filter for a Wynn 0.5 micron filter and now there's no residual dust on anything around the DC.  Which also tells me it's no longer in the air and the mini-split filters need cleaning only once a month now instead of every week.

David

[legenddc]

Sorry, I missed you were getting a higher end dust collection. My experience with the Harbor Freight one is that there's lots of residual dust.

[Cheeset202]

Dust collection is a big subject on this forum!  Since you are looking at the higher end systems along with proper ducting size and layout your residual dust from machines you have hooked up to the system will be minimal, especially if you vent outside.  Your main source of dust at this point will be hand tools, both power and non-powered.  The top of the list for dust collection on hand tools is Festool but there is a steep price for their engineering.  Many of the top brands in hand tools are doing a good job here and will only get better with time as the concerns for health hazards due to micron airborne dust increases.  Recommend a good dust mask for that, regardless of how good a dust system you have.