Shop Tours

[burrellski]

I was looking around www.shoptours.org last night and thinking what a great resource it is. Would it be possible to add something like this to bt3central? We have all seen Rod's shop and a few others and personally I've gotten a lot of great ideas. Does anyone else have any interest in a "Members Shops" section setup similarly to the articles section so it would be an always available resource?

Just a thought....
Matt

[TheRic]

I wouldn't want other people to see my shop Maybe after I get some things rearranged like I want them. I like looking at how other people do things, helps give me ideas. If we don't do it here, at the least I'm going to bookmark that web site, and look at it more when I have the time.

[radhak]

Fascinating, but mostly unreal

What I mean is, they give me a complex. Many of them have a stand alone barn/workshop, with dimensions that almost challenge my whole house! So i kept clicking till I hit 'Tom Sontag'. Finally, this is something I can relate to, so now I can move on and not be angst-ridden about mine-is-so-much-smaller

[charliex]

I have been thinking about posting my garage / shop pic's here for sometime but not sure if anyone would be interested or maybe it eats up too much storage room. I could also do reviews on some of my tools now that I have had some time and experince using them. My son said he was going to build me a site but if I ever buy a ticket I'll probably win the lottery first.

[dlminehart]

I like the idea of a shop tours site, especially one that is organized into groups of shops of similar sizes, as radhak's comment suggests. Perhaps in increments of 100 sq. ft.? While we're dreaming, why not add a further grouping between spaces dedicated essentially to woodworking and those that are strongly multipurpose, shared with autos, household storage, metalworking, or some other use?

I can imagine a database of shops in which each record (individual shop entry) consists of both photos and text, in which the text was populated by checking boxes in forms as well as having free form comments. The checked boxes would indicate things like size of shop, shared uses, presence of such standard tools as table saws and dust collectors, etc. This would have a search engine attached, allowing one to see all the shops with, say, dust collectors AND router cabinets AND size less than 300 sq. ft.

Anyone know offhand of a user-friendly and inexpensive (or free) software package suitable for this application?

[LarryG]

I like the idea of a shop tours site, especially one that is organized into groups of shops of similar sizes, as radhak's comment suggests. Perhaps in increments of 100 sq. ft.?

Great idea (including all the parts I snipped out), but the increments should maybe be even smaller for shops under, say, 500 SF or so. The difference between a 500 SF shop (smallish two-car garage) and a 600 SF shop (largish two-car garage) is not insignificant, but the practical differences between a 100 SF shop and a 200 SF shop are HUGE.

[dlminehart]

Good point, Larry. In my 150 sq. ft., I keep wishing for just another 10!

[TB Roye]

I have a 120 sq.ft. of stand alone shop and the annex in the garage. I would like to have shop tour section on this forum. Can always use suggestion on how to improve my shop for easier/efficient use of space.

Tom

[burrellski]

Fascinating, but mostly unreal

What I mean is, they give me a complex. Many of them have a stand alone barn/workshop, with dimensions that almost challenge my whole house! So i kept clicking till I hit 'Tom Sontag'. Finally, this is something I can relate to, so now I can move on and not be angst-ridden about mine-is-so-much-smaller

That was part of what drove me to ask about it here. The shoptours site seems to be the land of powermatic cabinet saws and dedicated finishing rooms. I'm certain the postings here would be much more relevant to my current setup.

[Ken Weaver]

Given the nature of this forum, I don't have problems, we'd all like to have a Kirbyesque shop - but shoot - who else is that anal? (Gotta love ya Rod!). Here's mine - I'd love to pick up some ideas from other members here, at least I know someone won't flame me for doing it the way I did.

[Popeye]

Any reason it couldn't just be a thread in the Shop layout section? Just a thought. Personally I don't mind folks seeing my mess or disorganization. I like the lived in look Pat

[rcp612]

I would really enjoy a shop tour site in this forum. Everyone has just about the same equipment but ideas on placement and use concerns would be much more helpful if seen. Ya know, the 1000 word thing.

[LarryG]

I agree with Pat that this could be rolled into the current Shop Setup, Layout & Design section. I guess I was assuming all along that the proposal was for an extension or enhancement to that section, rather than something completely new and separate.

In addition to photos and drawings of shop layouts, I'd like to see particular emphasis paid to the various ideas folks have come up with to use what space they have to its fullest. When space is tight, you gotta get creative!

For example, and as I've mentioned before, I placed the top of my torsion box assembly table only 18" above the floor. Partly this was because of the low headroom (barely six feet to the underside of the collar ties), but mainly it was because having the table down low would provide a much more spacious, 'airy' feel around it than if it were up at a more conventional height:



This has worked out very well. If the top were up around waist level, I'd constantly be running into the thing; but with it down around my knees, I almost don't know it's there. (For reference, the table is 42" x 60" and it sits in a clear space that's only eight feet wide, measured from the front of the miter saw to the face of the wall on which the clamps are hanging.)

[burrellski]

Any reason it couldn't just be a thread in the Shop layout section? Just a thought. Personally I don't mind folks seeing my mess or disorganization. I like the lived in look Pat

What I had in mind was something closer to how the articles section is setup. A single page with links to "John Doe's Garage Shop" and "Jim Smith's Basement Shop." Something that the owner of the shop can go back and update as changes are made and new additions are brought into the shop. I guess I view it as more of a shop reference or idea center. I think this would make it easier to go back and reference when I finally get around to building that miter saw station I saw in John Doe's garage.

Maybe a thread with a stickey in the Shop layout section would accomplish the same thing though?

In addition to photos and drawings of shop layouts, I'd like to see particular emphasis paid to the various ideas folks have come up with to use what space they have to its fullest. When space is tight, you gotta get creative!

Exactly why such a library would be so valuable. We all encounter the same problems. I'd love to see what others have come up with.

[onedash]

I was just looking at some of my pictures from a year ago or so....I guess I have aquired a good amount of tools since then along with other clutter in the garage. Nothing else I can get rid of though i dont think. I moved the freezer into the house. But now we have three more bikes out there.
I gotta find a place to put my new BS and lathe.....