Help me spend some money! :D (long)

[Rich Engelhardt]

I'm getting down to crunch time w/the tool buying. I'm all set to "retire" in another 13 1/2 months which means my tool buying after that will become real spotty - if at all..
I have what I believe to be the basics covered.
I'm open to suggestions as to tieing up some loose ends.
- TS - check
- Track saw - check
- ROS - check
- Jointer - check
- Planer - check
- Drill press - benchtop - check
- Routers & table - check - 1.25 through 2.75 PC 690 & Freud 1700 are my workhorses.
- Kreg pocket hole jig - check - 2 hole $39.00 one
- Benchtop bandsaw - check
- Biscuit joiner - check
- CMS's - check
- 10" blades for TS and CMS - check - but could always use another
- DC - check, or at least got it covered for right now
- Compressor - check
- Pin/brad/nail guns - check
- Jig saw - check - but -it's a GMC. Not too bad, but, it's a GMC.

Pretty fair assortment of drills and other hand power tools.
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Possibles:

- K3 Master system - $139.00. Only reservation is will it do more than the $39 one? Enough to justify buying one?

- Lathe. I seldom need to turn anything. Enjoyed turning years ago, but, not enough to want to get into it. Plus, most things that I'd use, I could buy already made.

- Mortiser.
- Dowel Max or similar.
- Domino.
Putting all three of these together since they do the same basic function - well - kinda.

- Trim router. Colt to be specific.

- Floor drill press or an upgraded benchtop.

- Shaper. Not sure I want to go down that slippery slope. Like a lathe, I can have mill work done locally. I'd have to pay a premium, but, @ this point it's well worth it. I've pretty much concluded that the shaper vs a 3plus HP router is a battle I have to fight in my own mind.

- Jig saw - Bosch to be specific.

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Uses. Right now and for the immediate future.
- Cabinets. Not fine custom ones, more "meatball" type. Something along the lines of what the borg sells.
- Built ins - such as - cabinets and book shelves.
- General home repair w/a heavy slant on A&C or Mission or Shaker influenced replacements of old worn or damaged houses.

No doors (other than possibly cabinet doors), boxes or fancy furniture which would require curved lines(ie: larger bandsaw).
(However - speaking of a bandsaw - if the right one came along at the right price, I might be interested for resawing)


Speaking of budgets..
I'm planning on having a sub panel put in the garage some time in the near future also. That's going to eat up a good chunk of the budget, so that has to be considered.

The budget at this point is about $2,000.00 - give or take.

I'm open to any suggestions/directions.

[Bill LaPointe]

Belt/disc sander. Use it all the time!

[Mitchell Andrus]

Domino. You'll wonder how you got along without it. But, half the budget.
Downdraft table (or install on in an existing bench)
6x89 Horizontal belt sander.
Re-do the DC piping with a better balanced set-up?
Ecogate for the DC. (I wouldn't be without mine) www.ecogate.com (http://www.ecogate.com) But, 125% of the budget.
Epoxy the floor.
More lighting/task lighting.
.

[Randy Reitz]

You don't mention much about your shop but I'd spend the biggest part of my budget on insulation, electrical rewiring, DC, lighting, and the epoxy floor. It may be hard to come up with large chunks of budget for those items after you retire.

It looks like you have a good basic tool set for most projects and can outsource some of your requirements. Only purchase the tools and tooling you need for specific projects.

Good luck and don't forget to enjoy the ride.

[Bill Huber]

You may want to look at a Ridgid Oscillating Edge Belt / Spindle Sander. I have one and it gets use a lot.

+1 on the Colt, it is small but has a lot of power and the balance is good.

I would look at the Jessem dowel jig it is a great jig and less expensive then the DowelMax. I would say go with the dowel jig over the Domino just because of the cost. Using dowels maybe a little slower then the Domino but then time is not a big deal.

I would say start looking for a larger band saw, one you can do some resawing with.

[David Helm]

One of my favorite tools these days is an open ended drum sander. It can sand planks up to 36" wide. The Grizzly G0458 that I have cost around $800 and makes it possible to use wide planks that I was unable to do before.

[scott spencer]

Rich - I've got a Kreg Rocket and a K3. The K3 definitely has more potential and can be a little easier to use, but for the vast majority of my uses, the $39 setup would be more than sufficient.

[Thomas Hotchkin]

LOTS OF WOOD, ENJOY YOUR RETIREMENT Tom:)

[Greg Plowman]

Have you considered the leigh FMT, I find mine to be terrific especially if you do a lot of precise repetitive work, also check out the Ridgid EB4424 14663 5 Amp Oscillating Edge Belt/Spindle Sander, ridged stuff usually sucks but this thing is great.

[Bryan Hunt]

You might also consider a set of quality chisels ( http://www.lie-nielsen.com/catalog.php?sku=bescset ) if you don't already have a set. Do you have a good block plane ( http://www.lie-nielsen.com/catalog.php?sku=60_5 )? Someone also mentioned a belt/disc sander, and I'd second that suggestion.

[Richard McComas]

Tool buying never ends, keep working.:)

[Rich Engelhardt]

Thanks!

Looks like the OSS (Ridgid) is on my short list.

[Chris Kennedy]

I would go for the Colt -- I received one for my birthday not too long back, and I love it. It is great for edge work.

I would go for the mortiser if you are thinking mission style furniture. That would be very helpful, methinks. I would hesitate on a doweling jug since you already have a biscuit joiner. I don't think I have used mine since I got the biscuit jointer (although my doweling jig isn't the fanciest). Maybe the Domino would be a good hybrid, but I would have trouble dropping that much money.

Cheers,

Chris

[Buck Williams]

It looks like you're pretty well set, for the type of projects you've described. Upgrading the band saw and drill press might expand what you'll be able to do, or at least make some tasks easier or quicker. The mortiser is a tool that I don't use on every project, but when I pull it out for a significant number of mortises, the speed and accuracy are nice. I'd play out the scenario you described on the band saw, and wait around until the right deal came along on a particular tool upgrade, or a tool you don't have. Enjoy the upcoming retirement, if nothing else you can get the shop in the shape that you need it to be, buy some wood, and have at 'er.

[Van Huskey]

If you do not anticipate having a "machine" sized budget for a while I would really consider getting a larger BS now. Consider for the cost of a Domino you can have a Grizzly 513P delivered. While it is on sale it is the best deal on a bandsaw for the price.

As far as the jig saw is concerned a bandsaw keeps my use of the jigsaw to a bare minamum, and unless you do a lot of in place work I would just get some good Bosch blades and save the $150.


With you periods of furniture a mortiser would be high on my list.

The Colt is well worth the money.

A simple DT jig if you plan to do a lot of drawers.

If you decide on a shaper keep in mind the tooling costs but the Grizzly 3hp is on sale and a great deal.

If you do plan to do a lot of pocket holes the K3 would be a wise investment.

The Rigid OSS would also be high on my list BUT if you don't plan to do a lot of curves as you mentioned I would rather have a high quality 6" ROS like the Bosch or Festool.

The DP is a hard question as a decent table top would handle 90% of my chores and most likely the $350 or more bucks would be better spent elsewhere.

The one thing I would note is do not make yourself tool-poor and not have the funds to get wood. A shop full of $100,000 worth of machines are worthless than tits on a bull unless you have wood.