"America's Best Home Workshops"

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  • Jeffrey Schronce
    Veteran Member
    • Nov 2005
    • 3822
    • York, PA, USA.
    • 22124

    #16
    Originally posted by TheRic
    Let me guess you visited Thom !!

    Ether expensive machines, or very well stacked and packed!!

    Can we see pictures, or get a shop tour?!!!
    Not my shop (obviously! LOL!) so I can't post pics. Guy will likely be at the PA meet up for those coming.

    And yes, expensive machines. Think 20" Felder jointer.

    Comment

    • Pappy
      The Full Monte
      • Dec 2002
      • 10481
      • San Marcos, TX, USA.
      • BT3000 (x2)

      #17
      Still the "Grand Prize" winner to me for small shops....

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      Don, aka Pappy,

      Wise men talk because they have something to say,
      Fools because they have to say something.
      Plato

      Comment

      • gwyneth
        Veteran Member
        • Nov 2006
        • 1134
        • Bayfield Co., WI

        #18
        I love those pictures, Don.

        They could be in an ad for Freud dust collectors (if that's whose it is).

        Comment

        • TheRic
          Veteran Member
          • Jun 2004
          • 1912
          • West Central Ohio
          • bt3100

          #19
          NO WAY!!! Are those real pictures or a setup? The person would have to spend more time cleaning the dust off / out of everything than woodworking.
          Ric

          Plan for the worst, hope for the best!

          Comment

          • gwyneth
            Veteran Member
            • Nov 2006
            • 1134
            • Bayfield Co., WI

            #20
            Originally posted by TheRic
            NO WAY!!! Are those real pictures or a setup?
            That's why it could be an ad, Ric.

            Comment

            • thrytis
              Senior Member
              • May 2004
              • 552
              • Concord, NC, USA.
              • Delta Unisaw

              #21
              I just got to the "Shop On Wheels" shop. I guess that with its benchtop saw makes up some for the "Over-the-Top" workshop with all matching General equipment. You could almost use that for the 45 sq ft porch, though i would suggest scaling it down slightly because fully set up it would leave 6 sq ft of open floor space left.
              Eric

              Comment

              • radhak
                Veteran Member
                • Apr 2006
                • 3061
                • Miramar, FL
                • Right Tilt 3HP Unisaw

                #22
                I saw it at Lowes but did not even open it. After seeing Rod's shop tour I had felt overawed and just a wee bit depressed, so I guessed a mag like this one would send me to therapy , and reading your posts i guess i was not too far off.

                I am always (and only) interested in the smallest, most crowded shops. Gwyneth, maybe some pics from your shop would be interesting, and maybe also informative. That goes for all those working in the 'sub optimal-space' shops.

                And Don, you have to tell us where those pics come from. If not from an advt, they must be transitional - ie, somebody moving stuff out / in, temporarily placing those tools in the living room, or maybe the basement got flooded?

                Even then, as i look at those pics i am thinking of the stains or traces of sawdust on the carpet that never escape LOML's eyes...
                It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
                - Aristotle

                Comment

                • LarryG
                  The Full Monte
                  • May 2004
                  • 6693
                  • Off The Back
                  • Powermatic PM2000, BT3100-1

                  #23
                  Originally posted by radhak
                  I saw it at Lowes but did not even open it. After seeing Rod's shop tour I had felt overawed and just a wee bit depressed, so I guessed a mag like this one would send me to therapy , and reading your posts i guess i was not too far off.
                  You might want to at least thumb through it on the newsstand, see if you revise your opinion. While it is true that most of the featured shops, considered as a whole, are a lot bigger and fancier than most of us here will ever have, when you look at the small details you will see a lot of really great ideas and clever solutions to the same problems we all face in our shops, regardless of size.
                  Larry

                  Comment

                  • Dale In Corona
                    Forum Newbie
                    • Jan 2005
                    • 81
                    • Corona, CA, USA.

                    #24
                    Those shops are nice, BUT (there is always a but isn’t there?) Being a, fairly young, married and working man I never have time outside of the weekend for woodworking and then, I am rarely in a position where I can commit a full weekend to it (more like part of a day before the loml starts in with the old "are you going to be out here all weekend, or can we go do something?") That of course doesn’t even take into account the weekends where we are "previously occupied" or out of town in which I am completely unable to do any work whatsoever. So, I'm still looking for the "I don’t have time to spend all of my life working on making my shop perfect so that I can pursue my woodworking hobby" solution to workshops. Don’t get me wrong, my shop is somewhat functional, out of necessity. Its just that so far I haven't had as much luck turning the third car slot of my three car garage into a very well built wood shop as I would like. Oh sure, I could probably make the solution work a lot better if I dedicated myself to it but I would like to figure out how to make it happen without spending all of my time just doing that. I built my own bench, which is an extremely simple design compared to those I have seen pictured here and I am working on my own mobile base for my BT, other than that I haven't been able to spare much time for working on the shop without risking the complete loss of project time to it. I have found that getting my garage turned into a woodshop has averaged about 10 to 1 in terms of shop build time vs. available time to work on projects which has made the loml wonder what I am really "producing" from all of that $ I spent on my wood working tools.

                    Comment

                    • gwyneth
                      Veteran Member
                      • Nov 2006
                      • 1134
                      • Bayfield Co., WI

                      #25
                      Originally posted by radhak
                      I am always (and only) interested in the smallest, most crowded shops. Gwyneth, maybe some pics from your shop would be interesting, and maybe also informative. That goes for all those working in the 'sub optimal-space' shops.
                      radhak, I don't even call it a 'shop'--it's a 'shop space' because its first, and primary, function is an insulated porch keeping traffic between kitchen and backdoors from allowing cold air into the house. The front porch is slightly bigger, and does the same thing between front door and exterior door.

                      I have cheated slightly to give the 'shop space' more room--the (benchtop) bandsaw, CMS, and (little) drill press are in the 'auxilary papermaking area' AKA the front porch. All three of those have occasional applications in making paper or pulp.

                      I'll take some pictures next week to contribute to the "small squalid shop-space supplement'.

                      Comment

                      • Red88chevy
                        Established Member
                        • Sep 2004
                        • 236
                        • Midland, Texas.

                        #26
                        I agree with Dale, it's a struggle balancing time working on the shop with time making anything. It hard to work on something such as a mobile workcart when you are 3 or 4 projects behind family expections. Since I never seem to get to the point where everything is done, I only work on the shop when I have to in order to complete a particular project. For me, its organization that is the biggest problem, I should have plenty of space but I still keep falling over everything.

                        Comment

                        • Tom Clark
                          Forum Newbie
                          • Jul 2007
                          • 92
                          • Deming, NM
                          • Powermatic 66 w/48" sliding table

                          #27
                          Originally posted by LarryG
                          You might want to at least thumb through it on the newsstand, see if you revise your opinion. While it is true that most of the featured shops, considered as a whole, are a lot bigger and fancier than most of us here will ever have, when you look at the small details you will see a lot of really great ideas and clever solutions to the same problems we all face in our shops, regardless of size.

                          Larry,
                          My shop is one of the ones featured in the 2007 version of America's Best Home Workshops. I love visiting others shops, even if they are just in a magazine. To me it doesn't matter how small or large a shop is, but the most important feature is how much fun you can have enjoying the hobby.

                          I can't wait until the next version of the mag comes out. Meanwhile, I am glad I just discovered this group whose name is about shop layout - big or small. i look forward to seeing more of everyone's shops!

                          Tom

                          Comment

                          • LarryG
                            The Full Monte
                            • May 2004
                            • 6693
                            • Off The Back
                            • Powermatic PM2000, BT3100-1

                            #28
                            Welcome to BT3Central, Tom! I recognized your name immediately as the "shop cabinets" guy ... I went to your web site to order a copy of your book, saw a notation that you were traveling, decided to wait.

                            This is actually but one section is the larger forum, but it gets a fair amount of traffic. Lots of great folks are members here. Glad to have you aboard, and hope you'll stick around.
                            Larry

                            Comment

                            • radhak
                              Veteran Member
                              • Apr 2006
                              • 3061
                              • Miramar, FL
                              • Right Tilt 3HP Unisaw

                              #29
                              +1 for wanting to buy the book, but having to wait. intrigues me, the idea that i could build cabinets like those in your shops...
                              It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
                              - Aristotle

                              Comment

                              • Tom Clark
                                Forum Newbie
                                • Jul 2007
                                • 92
                                • Deming, NM
                                • Powermatic 66 w/48" sliding table

                                #30
                                Originally posted by LarryG
                                Welcome to BT3Central, Tom! I recognized your name immediately as the "shop cabinets" guy ... I went to your web site to order a copy of your book, saw a notation that you were traveling, decided to wait.

                                This is actually but one section is the larger forum, but it gets a fair amount of traffic. Lots of great folks are members here. Glad to have you aboard, and hope you'll stick around.
                                Larry,
                                Thanks for the welcome. After reading some of the emails about what some of the guys think of anyone who has a larger than normal playhouse, I kind of wondered if I was in the right place. However, making our woodshops more efficient has always been a priority of mine, and when I found this group about shop design it sounded right up my alley.

                                Building my shop cabinets was the easiest thing in the world for me. My designs are super easy to build for anyone. As a matter of fact I built quite a few before I ever had my first tablesaw!

                                Jeannie has been mailing out copies of the book daily, even while we are camping in North Carolina, (Hendersonville) so she is filling cc orders.

                                I would dare to post a photo or two if I can ever figure out how to add one to the replies... Care to enlighten me on the procedure. I have always been kind of web phobic.
                                Tom

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