Baby steps

[BoredSysAdmin]

So, As a first time home owner which includes 2 car garage - It is time to start filling with junk TOOLS
First things on the list and first baby step project is to make a really simple shelves for the bathroom storage cabinets.
Items purchased:
10 in. Sliding Compound Miter Saw which has been upgraded with this blade
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Diablo-10-in-x-80-Tooth-Non-Ferrous-Plastic-Saw-Blade-D1080N/100043779

and a Shopvac:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-4-gal-Wet-Dry-Vacuum-WD4070/202077241

Also purchased a $40 HF's circular 7 1/4 saw, but haven't used it just yet.

The product I was cutting is a melamine board pre-finished with cheap "Ala cherry" laminate.
Each board was about $9 and is sufficient to cut two shelves.

I am happy to report than all cuts were perfect. To protect the laminate during cuts I used blue painters tape from HF (btw - it's POS - don't buy it)

Photos here:
https://plus.google.com/photos/111982341744839796543/albums/6084567832791310257?authkey=CJiImIz5gdapTg

Brighter color board is the original, the darker stuff is the new replacements

Now, I know that this is really basic stuff, but hey - I think it's ok for someone with absolute ZERO woodworking experience and some guidance from a friend with some decent knowledge.

 

[Nestor]

Hey, gotta start somewhere. What's your next tool acquisition?


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[jcparks]

hey im in the same boat as you man. bought my house 2 years ago and have been working on my tool collection. keep an eye on Craigslist and watch for a router and a table saw, both have been invaluable in my experimental subwoofer cabinet build. Harbor freight is a good place if you need inexpensive wood clamps quick...

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Thanks guys. I guess before would I'm buying any new tools I gotta learn how to use what I already have and probably would borrow tools first.
As you could see from the photos the "table" needs further improvement/replacement likely. Not sure which one to go with.

 

[Rowdy S13]

Congrats! I love tools, possibly even more than Home Theater I am no wood working expert, and in fact I dont even own ANY wood tools, but it all looks good to me! I agree that the table sounds like a good next project. You should have the tools needed to build a nice one yourself. Congrats on the house, and the tools, enjoy both!


Sean

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

DIY Workshop table. Now that's a great idea !

 

[Swerd]

You will soon experience the odd paradox of DIY wood working. To build a workshop table, you really need a… workshop table to build it.

This is also true for most other things like, cutting jigs, router table, etc.

When I started wood working, I took a brief intro to wood working course at a local WoodCraft store. They have a big well-equipped shop, a Woodworker's Club, and part of the course was a pitch to join their club, but the course was still worthwhile. I never took wood shop in junior high school.

 

[flyboylr45]

Tools tools tools!!!! I am an avid DIYer. I've done some woodworking projects, to wall additions, drywalling and texturing, sidewalks, ect. This hobby is also a slippery slope. If you get into woodworking, there are some brands of tools that make things easier. I started with the basic tools and now have a complement of Festool tools. They are expensive but if you get into this, well worth it. I have a 3 car garage, and can't park a car inside. ;-) Next project for me is DIY speakers and subs. ;-)

 

[fuzz092888]

DIY Workshop table. Now that's a great idea !

There are a million shop table plans out there, free and paid. I also bought a shop table book that I think helped me rough out what parts were important to me and which parts wouldn't be as useful. Once you have the basic shape and style laid out, you can mix and match the feature set to the table and your needs.

The best part is, once the table is built, you can use it to build custom stuff for your tools like router tables, extensions and a table for your miter saw, table saw stuff (feed, side, and outfeed supports). One thing I've always wanted to do was to build side and outfeed tables for my table saw, but make the tables a touch shorter than the tablesaw so that I could place a bunch of ball bearings on top so that it feeds nice and smooth every time.

The same principle applies when building the side supports/table for the miter saw if it strikes your fancy.

 

[Alex2507]

Until you are ready to build whatever, the door on top of horses works great. If you're building a box on that door/table, you need to level it out first. If you get the adjustable height horses, you can play with height as well as location. I like DeWalt cordless anything on their 18v nicad used. The batteries are $130 for 2 (not as much as lithium ion). The tools are low price and high quality. It's yesterday's tech so the price is low.

 

[ARES24]

But then you use the new 20V LI stuff and .......

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Yeah, most likely I'd go for li batteries. NiCd is so yesterday

 

[Haoleb]

Good choice on the saw blade, it really makes a big difference on the quality of your cuts to get a good blade and those red freud blades do perform quite well when you take care of them and they are somewhat reasonably priced.

as far as a work bench a good set of horses and a door or just a sheet or two of plywood works great. I have built a few sawhorses before with varying designs but recently I needed a place to work on projects and found this design online so that is what I ended up building. Best set of horses I have used yet! They are big and extremely sturdy and also stackable.

http://woodworking.about.com/od/shopequipmentsupplies/ss/woodSawhorses.htm#step-heading