Beginner needs help filling his toolbox

[Dustin Keys]

I'm just starting out with woodworking. I have very little skill or knowledge to start with, so I'm going to begin with the fundamentals (cutting straight lines, learning to make the basic joints, hand planing, etc). I've always loved hand tools, so that's what I want to learn to use initially. I also don't have the funds to completely rig my shop with high quality power tools and machines, so I would be quite limited if I tried to go that route right now.

I've spent two weeks reading every book, magazine, and forum I could get my hands on, and that has taught me a lot. I also spent the last two weeks scouring every antique store and pawn shop I could in search of old chisels and planes. That was a completely fruitless search as I didn't find a single quality tool or even one that had a good structure to rehab. Given that this search didn't pan out, I'm looking to buy new tools or build my own.

I'm lost as to which tools I need to begin though. I'm sure I need some chisels (although I'm not sure how many or which ones), a quality saw or two (don't know which ones specifically though), and some handplanes. What I need are specifics. What kinds of saws does a beginner need and which specific saws would you recommend (as in the brand and model), and then the same for chisels.

I would really like to make my own handplanes as I am on a budget and that seems like a tool a beginner could build for far less money than he can buy a quality one. I have some experience in building and modifying my own tools from my experience with guitar repair and modification (that's how I initially became interested in woodworking). Am I right in my assumption that a beginner could learn to make a good handplane? I was planning on buying the Finck book on handplanes as a guide. If I'm dreaming and this isn't something a beginner can do, please let me know.

I do have a circular saw, jigsaw, dremel tool, abrasives, measuring tools, and finishing supplies already that I can use, but that's about all I have to start with. At first, I just plan to practice using the tools and getting a feel for how they work and how to maintain them properly. Once I'm comfortable with them, I will practice building small boxes and items like that. The first real project I want to tackle is a desktop humidor. I would like to get the tools I need to do these things and then we'll see where it goes from there. Ultimately I want to build furniture, but let's see how I do building a few small boxes and stuff first.

Thanks for your help,
Dustin

[Brander Roullett]

I'm just starting out with woodworking. I have very little skill or knowledge to start with, so I'm going to begin with the fundamentals (cutting straight lines, learning to make the basic joints, hand planing, etc). I've always loved hand tools, so that's what I want to learn to use initially.

Greetings Dustin, welcome to a slippery slope.

I'm not too far from the place you're at, and I totally know what you're talking about. I've been acquiring tools and knowledge for about a year now.

For me, I found the best way to get up to speed was reading blogs of people that I enjoyed. There are some amazing people out there talking about this new (old) craft. Peter Follansbee, Chris Schwarz, Tom Fidgen, Bob Rozaieski, and many more. Check the unpluggedshop feed aggregator for lots of great blogs on hand tool woodworking.

To see what a typical craftsman was expected to have in his tool box, I direct you to a great starting book. It's called "Our Workshop" and was written in 1866, you can find it online at Evenfall as a PDF, or Toolmera has a high quality reprint. They list out what a typical tool list looked like:

* Small hand saw
* Sash and Tenon Saw
* Table and compass saw
* Axe
* Jack Plane (double iron)
* Smoothing Plane
* Spokeshave
* Cutting Gauge
* Marking Gauge
* Firmer Chisels 1/4", 1/2", 3/4", 1"
* Mortise Chisels 1/4", 1/2", 5/8"
* Three Gouges 1/2", 3/4", 1-1/4"
* Gimlets and bradawls
* Joiners Hammer
* Mallet
* Screwdriver
* Brace (36 black bits)
* Pincers
* Compasses
* Square
* Bevil
* Rule
* Grindestone
* Oil stone
* Oil can
* Gluepot

For someone starting out, I would recommend basing it on a project. Figure out a simple project like a dovetailed box, or a shelf, or something, and start acquiring the tools you need to make that project. Figure out what your passion is, what do you want to make, and figure out what tools are required to make that. It's better than running out and buying a ton of tools, and you can focus your time/money/energy into an area. If you get to wide focus, you'll (at least in my case anyway) lose steam, and get frustrated.

Depending on your area, you can find a tool collectors club like the Mid West Tool Collectors group, which unfortunately is no where near my area (Pacific Northwest, PM me if you want details if you're out here). The regular tool collector meetings are a great place to find tools. Most of my tools have come from there, rather than overpriced low quality antique stores (although, I have a few good gloat worthy finds).

For me, my favorite book learning source is Roy Underhill. I've had the pleasure of taking a class from him at his School, but the books are great if getting to North Carolina is too much. (it was my 40th birthday present, best ever!)

Anyway, l hope some of this helps!

Badger

[Prashun Patel]

Dustin - when I was at yr stage (as if I'm any further along nowadays) the best thing I did was start with a PROJECT not a tool.

Pick a basic project, then amass the tools to complete it. You'll have to teach yrself to spend on quality tools. This will take time and $$, so start small - with what you need. What you need is governed by the project you pick.

I suggest getting some back copies of Wood Magazine or the Family Handyman. They have a lot of good projects for many levels.

[Chuck Nickerson]

Hi Dustin. Here's a simple answer.

A beginner can build his own hand planes. Your first one will work, your second one will be better. Etc. You can use the blade from the first one in the second one, keeping your inital cost down.

You can start by buying just the tools you need to build the hand planes.

Somewhere there's a book on building your own joinery hand tools (marking gauges, saws, planes, etc.). If you think you'd enjoy that process, I'll look up the title for you.

[Pedro Reyes]

I am by no means experienced, but I have acquired some tools.

I also support the "pick a small project and get tools as needed" strategy, drolling over catalogs and trying to convince yourself how useful a tool can be is a lot of fun, but expensive. As an example I bought a LN #95, rarely use it.

But since a lot of times people don't like hearing this "pick a project..." advice, here is my list by the items I use on most projects, not use the most, but those that are almost always used. The list may seem silly but it is OK for small projects which is what I would recommend as first builds...


Pencil
engineers squares; 4, 8"
Marking knife(s)
Ryoba saw for general dimensioning (I build small stuff)
60-1/2 block plane <--- get the best you can afford, I have LN and love it
#5 jack plane <-- see comment below
3/4" bench chisel
small rip saw (e.g. dovetail) <-- try one if you can, I have old Disston and LN, love both.
small cross cut <-- I have LN carcass and a Disston
Marking gauge <-- I have several, if I had to throw them all but one, I would keep Glen Drake's, if I could keep 2 then the plain Veritas would slip in.
Wooden mallet - I made mine by cutting the shape of the head, sort of a trapezoid shape and laminated this shape 3 times, advantage of this is that you can precut the mortise in the center piece and fox wedge the handle.
Clamps <-- buy as you need, then buy more, then buy some more, then keep buying.
Smooth plane <-- I have #4 and #3, you may laugh but I sometimes pick the one I know is sharpest at that time, rinse and repeat.
1/4" mortise chisel <-- use this a lot, to cut mortises or dadoes
Some fillister plane, I use my old #78 the most
Router plane, again old stanley


Having said all that, if I had to do it again... I would buy Lee Valley's Skew Rabbet plane instead of my Ebay Frankenplane of a #78, I would also buy LN chisels as I need them instead of a kluged set of mismatched stanleys from ebay. In other words, buy the best you can afford. Most of these tools keep their value very well if cared for properly. Both Rob and Tom are class acts as are their businesses and products (in my experience). And if you can support the smaller tool makers even better.

The one thing I would not do differently (and people do have different opinions here) is get at least one or 2 bench planes from ebay to completely restore. My #5 was a <$25 ebay find. The amount of knowledge I gained about what is and is not important on a plane when I fettled it was invaluable. After a Hock iron and a LN chipbreaker, it's my go-to plane.

Hope this helps

/p

PS: when you need a shoulder plane, just buy the Lee Valley medium shoulder plane.

[Charlie Stone]

Hi Dustin, Welcome .. I am fairly new to the board, but I am for sure a few (not many) steps ahead of you.

For the sake of redundancy, Here is a quick list, and I will try 1: list what I got & 2: list what I want to replace it with and I will try to be specific.


pencil: HomeDepot has a bargin pack which includes like 10 carpenters pencils and a sharpener. The pencils themselves are bright orange, which makes them easy to spot in a workbench or shop filled i with saw dust.
Engineers square/precision square: Whatever you wanna call it, something to draw a SQUARE (90 degree) line. This may sound simple, but it is one of the hardest things to find. A quick test is, take a pencil and sheet of paper along with you. Line up the paper on something you assume to be straight (the edge of a table saw bed in the power tools section) draw a line on the paper, flip the square over and draw another line. If the 2 lines match up, its a good square. If there is a 1/8 inch gap at the top, its not square and grab another one and start over. There are some that are guaranteed to be square. If the package makes that claim, that is a good place to start.
CrossCut saw: I picked up a cheep little 20 inch crosscut handsaw from Ace hardware. No, its not great, nor the sharpest thing in the world, but its a good place to start before dumping $100 on a single saw. Over time, if you really get into hand tools, you will want a cross cut panel saw, a rip saw .. then there are back saws, see the next item.
Small Tenon saw: Also, I picked up a cheep "gents saw" from Ace Hardware. It is a place to start and didnt cost much. However, it is on my "soon to be replaced" list. The downside to the "gents saw" is the straight handle. This is fine for an occasional cut, but when you are going to be doing some serious hand sawing, you want a real handle.
Marking Gauge: I picked up a cheep one from Harbor Freight. It has pins rather then a cutter. I will be upgrading this as well to one with a wheel cutter.
digital caliper: Harbor freight, or the box stores .. don't spend over $30 to start. I will replace mine with one that also does fractional not just decimal.
flat 6 inch metal ruler: I got mine at ace. I don't suppose it matter where you get one, but get one (or 2). When you want to be precise, nothing will beat it.
clamps clamps clamps: Again, harbor freight is a great place for stuff like this. Plan on getting at least 10 to start, and every time you go in the store, pick up a few more.
Wooden mallet: sometimes hard to find, but you don't wanna be whacking your good chisels with a metal hammer.
Bench Chisels: I started with a value pack of 5 chisels from Harbor Fright for about $7. These are really great starters, cuz you don't care if you break them and its a good place to practice sharpening. I am upgrading to a set of crown chisels, starting with a 1/2" and a 3/4" I found I used those the most from my HF set and they were first on the list to replace.
Brace and bits: if you are going to be drilling larger holes, nothing beats a brace. Check garage sales to get an old one. For the most part, even an old junker is better then most of the new stuff on the shelves if you can even find them.
Mortise Chisels: This is where you want to be careful. If you are dealing with primary s4s lumber from the box stores, then you will want to start with a 1/4 or 3/8 inch chisel. The rule to remember is the rule of 3's with mortises. The mortise should be 1/3 the width of the stock you are working with. I waited to buy mine, and then went straight to the top with a full set of Ray Isles mortise chisels from toolsforworkingwood.com. *any site with a 1 year guarantee on everything they sell is another good place to start. It's a fair bet that you will be happy with what you buy.
hand planes: ohh .. the worry, ohh the pain. You should get 3 to start. I picked up my first plane from Grizzly. I got their jointer plane and absolutely love it. I think that might be my best $50 spent on a hand tool. very little setup and it was good to go. I consistently get .0015" shavings with it on oak and curly maple. The Jointer is a must if you will be gluing panels. When it came to spending $400+ for a jointer, I got a Rigid. Next either a low angle block plane, or a smoothing plane. I picked up a $30 buck brothers smoothing plane at HomeD, and it turned out to be pretty good. Kinda sloppy in setting the blade depth, but, it was easy to lap the bottom and sharpen the blade to get a beautiful result on the wood. For the block plane, I had my pains. I got the cheep $10 job at home depot which was sitting right next to the smoother. When I got in the car I took a close look at it decided it was junk and tossed it aside for the time being. I picked up an Anant 9 1/2 block plane. Cost me $60 and it was total crap. I am now waiting for UPS to deliver my Veritas DX60. Ask me in 2 or 3 days how I like it. I am sure I will.
a work bench. Make it, buy it at harbor freight, or dump tons of money on one, but get one that has a flat top and will take a beating.

After that, have fun and remember, your not a wood worker, your a tool collector.

[Charlie Stone]

oh, while you're at it, build yourself a toolbox. I would recommend the studley. Once you build the box and fill it, you will be a master woodworker.

[Jim Koepke]

Depending on your area, you can find a tool collectors club like the Mid West Tool Collectors group, which unfortunately is no where near my area (Pacific Northwest, PM me if you want details if you're out here). The regular tool collector meetings are a great place to find tools. Most of my tools have come from there, rather than overpriced low quality antique stores (although, I have a few good gloat worthy finds).


Badger

Badger,
Not sure where you are in the Pacific Northwest, but there is a tool collector group up here, or at least there used to be:

http://www.tooltimer.com/

The web site is still up, but I know there has been a lot of antique shops going out of business due to the economy.

Another place to look is pawn shops. They are often more willing to deal on prices than antique shops.

jtk

[Jim Koepke]

Dustin,

Welcome to the Creek and the slippery slope.

With chisels, you can cut a 1/2 inch channel with a 1/4 inch chisel, but it is very difficult to cut a 1/4 inch channel with a 1/2 inch chisel. That said, I have acquired most of my chisels from various second hand sources. I did buy a few from a local hardware store when I first started working wood.

If you want to make your own planes, I think that is a great idea since you already have some experience working with wood and adjusting tools.

I think you could also save money buy finding old tools from ebay or buying them from some of the other sources people mention in other threads such as Brass City, Sandy's Loot or Patrick Leach. There are also a few members here who sale tools when they have spares.

Have you looked through the Neanderthal wisdom/FAQs thread? There is a lot of great information in there.

My suggestion for a first project before you make the humidor would be to make a shooting board. Derek Cohen has a great site worth a look at inthewoodshop.com/

That, a block plane, some layout tools, a chisel and a back saw will likely be enough to make that humidor.

One skill that you may already possess is the ability to sharpen a blade. Another that will be real handy is to be able to sharpen a saw.

If you don't already have one, get a camera so you can post pictures, just about everyone loves pictures.

Good luck and have fun,

jtk

[Steve Branam]

Here's my version of the answer to exactly these questions, though it's still very much a work in progress: http://www.closegrain.com/p/intro-hand-tools.html.

Is the giant Mr. Coffee still there in Sherman on I-75? I worked for a year at the TI plant back in the early 80's before moving to Dallas.

[Brander Roullett]

Badger,
Not sure where you are in the Pacific Northwest, but there is a tool collector group up here, or at least there used to be.

They are still up and running, and I'm now a current member. :) And now about every two months, about $100-$200 flows out of my wallet, and I come home with all manner of fun new tools.

They've been great for helping me fill out my tool box with basics, and now a little more specific.

I'm in Seattle btw.

[Abi Parris]

Dustin,

If you are in the area (Garland), dowdstools.comis having one of their sales Nov. 13 & 14. There are usually some decent tools to be had:)

[Peter Cobb]

If you want to make some of your own tools, Hayward (one of The Schwarz's favourite authors) has this book (http://toolemera.com/Books%20%26%20Booklets/booksplans.html) (link to toolemera free download page, it's the first link).
Haven't made any yet but the plane plans seem pretty simple but sensible, he suggests you start with the iron in hand and build around it.
Hock is probably the most mentioned plane iron source, I think Finck sells his own line too.
Cheers,
Peter
Popular Woodworking made a recommended list for the serious woodworker based on Hayward's suggestions...link (http://www.popularwoodworking.com/upload/contents/290/Tools_Woodwork.pdf) (pdf from popwood)

[Dustin Keys]

Thank you all for your help! This is definately what I needed. Some of the links and resources provided here are very thorough, so it's taking me a while to comb through it all but it's certainly worth the time investment.

The tool list is thankfully getting smaller the more I read. I know many people practice small boxes and such as first projects, but I want to build stuff I need. I need tools, a workbench, and bench accessories right now, so that's what I want to start building. The information you guys have provided is right on target to get me started.

It seems that a couple of quality chisels (1/4" and 3/4" seem to be popular suggestions) and some good hand saws need to be my top priority for initial purchases. I'm confident I can make the planes. I'm going to have to learn to get it right, because I can't afford to buy all the ones I need (and I'll probably have to swap blades between the ones I make for a while). I am going to continue looking for old ones that can be worked over, but that hasn't worked out so far. I need to find a flea market closeby, as I haven't looked there yet.

I really appreciate the information so far and I'll continue to read (and re-read) through everything that you guys have posted here.

Thanks again,
Dustin Keys

[Steve Pippins]

Dustin, make a trip over to Canton Tx for the First Monday Trade days. The next sale is October 30 and 31.

You will find pleanty of hand tools. Make sure to check the junk piles for old plane irons.

Steve

[Dustin Keys]

You know, I've never been to that sale and I never think about it. I might be able to go down there on Sunday. Thanks for the tip!

Dustin

[Gaz Palmer]

Regardless of tool branding, simply buy the best you can afford after researching and test driving as many examples as possible.

Here‘s the list of tools and I was partially provided and mostly had to buy for myself during my first year apprenticeship;

** = Optional additions


* Hand saws - Rip, crosscut and panel
* Tenon saw
** Dovetail saw
* Coping saw
** Fret saw
** Half hatchet
* Jack plane
* Smoothing plane
* Block plane
* Rebate/Rabbet plane/Fillister
** Spokeshave
** Cutting gauge
* Marking gauge - mortise
* Bevel edged chisels 1/4", 1/2", 3/4", 1"
* Mortise chisels 1/4", 1/2", 5/8"
* *Gouge chisels 1/2", 3/4", 1-1/4"
* Bradawl
** Marking knife
* Claw hammer
* Warrington cross-pein hammer
** Pin push
** Spirit level
* Mallet/maul
* Screwdrivers - various
* Bit brace & bits
* Carpenter’s pincers
** Compass/trammel heads
* Square
* Sliding bevel
* Rule
* Tape measure
* Sharpening stone/stones
* Oil
* *Clamps - Sash, F and G

A great deal depends upon your approach to your interest in carpentry, but possibly the best first project and one that many apprentices carry out is to make the tool box/chest for your tools and then move onto making items such as oil stone box, bench hook, shooting board, mitre box. All provide practise at materials preparation, making joints and using the tools in the above list and you can move on from there.

We still provide our apprentices with the above basic kit (Barring optional extras) and the toolbox is their first project. :)

[Dustin Keys]

Thanks for all the help guys!

I didn't make it to Canton this weekend, but I did stop by a much smaller flea market near my parent's home where I found a few things.

I landed a very clean Bailey #4 (type 9) for $10. The handle had a crack in the bottom that won't be an issue, the sole needs to be trued, and there is some very minor rust on the iron. For $10, I think that's a pretty good buy though. He had a lot of other similar planes on the table that would probably sell for about the same. I may go back next weekend and pick up a few more.

I also found an old Disston saw that will serve as a sharpening practice tool at first as it's in rough shape. I only paid $4 though, so it's worth that just to have something to learn to sharpen I figure.

Dustin