Where do I get started?!

[Rusty Ballard]

Hey all,
I'm new to the forum and have a new taste for woodworking. I recently did my first project, hope/blanket chest and received a plethora of compliments, not to mention the great satisfaction of completing my new task.
I took advantage of the woodworking center on the local military base and will be moving to my home in Peoria IL, where I will have no access to tools.
I enjoyed building joints such as tenon and mortise, but in my own garage what can I get started with, table saw and router?
I'm somewhat overwhelmed. At the local shop I have every tool possible. It's discouraging to think that to continue building I will have to spend a ton of money for the first few projects. Is it unheard of to have a local shop in the civilian world that I can rent the use of a planer and jointer? What about buying tools. Auctions, Sears/Lowes, internet.

Please send advice. ie website, general knowlege, past experience, etc.

Take Care,
RB

[John Bailey]

Rusty,

Let me welcome you to the "Creek." You have found the best, most intelligent, civil and fun site on the net. Welcome and don't be shy.

The best thing to do about learning is hang out here. There are some amazing craftsmen here. Any subject, whether it be hand tools, power tools, building a shop or whether the Cubs will ever win the world series, has an expert on this site. The rest of us try to be helpful too.

As far as tools, I bought most of mine used. In fact I picked up a jointer and a radial arm saw in Illinois. The best advice I've picked up is to buy the tool only when you need it, learn to use it, then go on to another project which needs another tool. But, you'll get lots of advice, better than mine, so stick around and listen to the folks on this site.

John

[Gary Kittleson]

RB,

I'm relatively new myself....I've spent more than I'll ever admit, but certainly enjoy playing!

Check out your community "recreational" center. Here they give "classes" four or five times each year. It's held in one of the school shops, and the students (adult ed.) can use all of the machines....

Enjoy,

Gary

[Jim Hager]

Welcome to the forum Rusty and welcome to the fine art of woodworking. Glad for you to have had a shop to work in on the base, I occasionally purchase tools from Federal Surplus for the school that I work at that I assume come off of military base shops like the one you mention.:rolleyes:

As to getting your own shop going, I wish you much good luck and pleasure as you put it together. If I had it all to do over again I would only purchase the best in quality tools even if it meant waiting a bit longer to get my hands on what I wanted.:confused:

Auctions are a good way to get started. I would stay out of Sears for power tools.:( Amazon.com has a great selection of equipment otherwise known as tool crib. E-bay seems to have a pretty good selection of stuff from time to time but the prices usually go off the charts.

Take it slow and don't get discouraged. I wouldn't know what in the world to do without my shop.:p

[Jim Becker]

Welcome to SMC, Rusty!

You can do a whole lot with a table saw and a router...and a few hand tools thrown in. But before you start going wild and buying tools, make a list of the kinds of projects you want to work on. They will help you prioritize building you shop by starting with projects that will work with the tools you have or by adding something new. In that manner, you can match budget with hobby satisfaction.

[Richard Wolf]

Welcome to the Creek. I like what Jim said about the table saw and router. Also try to be very realistic about your skill level when picking projects to start on. There is nothing wrong with building a bunch of small projects that builds confidence and skills.

Richard

[Tyler Howell]

Welcome to the Creek and fasten your seat belt soldier. Your in for more information than you bargined for.
The creek is a great place to wade in and hang out.
Great bunch of folks here.

Lot's of great used tools out there that will take you a little farther than Lowes and Sears.
If hand work is your thing (M&T) The rust hunt is a great way to find and learn about the history of hand tools.

Enjoy!

[Doug Shepard]

Welcome to SMC. I'm having a pretty hard time trying to think of projects you couldn't do with just a table saw and router and the list is pretty darn short. You can get an awful lot of mileage out of those two. A Random Orbit Sander might be a lower cost and worthwhile investment but it could be done by hand. Clamps is another that comes too mind - you can almost never have too many of those.
And before you go hog wild at Sears, stop and think about how many tools in the base shop had "Craftsman" labels. Amazon (Tool Crib) usually has a pretty good selection of Factory Reconditioned tools if you're trying to save some $$$ and you get the same warranty as new.

[Ian Abraham]

Yeah.. a table saw and a decent router would be a good start.
Then you can build an assortment of jigs and sleds / a router table etc to get the most use of them.
Some basic hand tools (chisels square handplane) / clamps / and some standard hand held power tools ( sander, drill, jigsaw ) will let you do a lot.
If you are going to work with rough timber you basically need planer. If you buy planed timber then you can do jointing tasks with a router and some home built jigs. OK a Jointer is better / faster but you can get good results from a router and your table saw, just may take a bit more time.

Remember there is allways more than one way to carry out any woodwork task. If you dont have a jointer you can use a thicknesser and sled, or a router / table, or router and frame jig, or a tablesaw with a good blade, or a hand plane.

Cheers

Ian

P.S. I dont even have a table saw yet, but with a bandsaw, a couple of routers and a table, drillpress, thicknesser and a growing assortment of hand and handheld power tools I can make most things. Just have to vary the exact method sometimes.:D

[Dev Emch]

Rusty...
Many have all ready beat every rusty nail worth beating... well, at least those nails with electron cords attached.

Dont forget hand tools. Geting a real jointer is a luxury but if you cannot spring for one just yet, see about getting a jointer plane like a #7 or #8 stanley or bailey or lie nielsen. Learning how to use this plane will really improve your skills and bring some much needed accuracy to your work before you haul home some 2 ton antique jointer from the OWWM crowd.

[Ian Abraham]

Ohh.. what the heck....


Go and buy a portable sawmill.. and work back from there...

Works for me :D

Ian

[lou sansone]

As far as tools, I bought most of mine used. In fact I picked up a jointer and a radial arm saw in Illinois. The best advice I've picked up is to buy the tool only when you need it, learn to use it, then go on to another project which needs another tool. But, you'll get lots of advice, better than mine, so stick around and listen to the folks on this site. John [/quote]

Welcome rusty to the creek. you will find a nice bunch of folks who have a great deal of experience and some that are just starting out. we all can learn from each other.
I agree with john on this. It does take some time to find the right tool and I have been burned, but in the end you can get some nice stuff if you are willing to wait.

best wishes
lou

[John Hart]

Welcome to the Creek Rusty!! You'll find that you'll learn more here at SMC than in 20 years by yourself. (well, I did anyway ;) ) I started woodworking the same way....On a military installation in the Base Wood Hobby Shop 25 years ago. It was a great experience. If you are anything like I was, you have a million ideas and not much money and not much space. I started out with a circular saw, a drill, and a bunch of handtools...most of which, I still have. I built up slowly over a long time, looking for deals when there was something I needed. There's already a bunch of great suggestions here so I won't belabor it anymore. Just wanted to say howdy!:)

[Mark Singer]

Welcome...lots of woodworkers here....some use wood some other stuff it all comes out beautiful!

[tod evans]

rusty, welcome! spend as much time as you`re able reading everything you can find related to woodworking on the net but especially in print. only you know what you hope to accomplish and by reading you`ll find umpteen different ways to approach the task. nobody i know has jumped into the field without first researching the options, so stash your dollars and enjoy the journey. this is a vocation/hobby that a person can spend their entire life trying to master, the more you learn the more you discover you don`t know. please try to remember that technology didn`t build the truely awe inspiring pieces we all admire from the past. my.02, tod

[Tom Hamilton]

Welcome to the Creek, Rusty. ;)

You have already received enough direction to keep you hopping for several months.

So I will echo the table saw/router/clamp route to tool collection with this added tidbit:

Watch the want ads in the paper for used tools; cruise garage/estate sales, especially the latter; keep an eye on th antique malls and get to know the booth owners, they will call you if they find something; and buy a couple of "how-to/shop tips" books at the used book store or check them out of the library.

The tool collection process may take more time than "shop time" at first but the ratio will change as you build tool inventory.;)

Good hunting and welcome to SMC. Tom Hamilton

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Welcome to the Creek Rusty! Neat place to exchange information and receive ideas and opinions. From beginners to pros....they are all here willing to shed some light on a subject.

Table saw, router, belt sander, Random Orbital Sander, jig saw, a selection of hand tools......little that can't be accomplished.....


Again....Welcome!

[Per Swenson]

<!--StartFragment --> Rusty,

Welcome.

Here is a great site to get you started.

www.woodshopdemos.com

Mr Lucas's instructional website is one of the woodworking

jewels of the Internet. His dedication and ability to translate

a plethora of woodworking stages, through pictures and text

for both the novice and the stuck in the old ways pro,

is second to none.

Good luck and enjoy your stay at SMC.


Per

[Jesse Cloud]

Rusty,
Welcome to the creek. The posts above have lots of good advice. One thing I would add is to buy the best tool you can afford at the time. When I started I thought, gee I can get a cheap saw and a cheap jointer for what a good saw would cost - and since I'm a newbie, I don't need a top of the line tool anyhow.
Well, it turns out that for most tools (saws, routers, handtools, jointers) that the good stuff is a lot easier to use. It is more adjustable, and stays adjusted. With a sloppy cheap tool you always have to keep an eye open to be sure it hasn't slipped out of adjustment.
So I wound up buying two of some tools - the cheap one and a mid-range one a couple of years later. Way more costly than doing it right the first time! Delta is a good middle of the road brand. Grizzly shoots at the same market, but I have been burned by some of their less costly items. Before you buy, ask on this forum if someone has had experience with that exact brand and model.
And if you are going the hand tool route, learn how to sharpen first. Either take a class or find a mentor, sharp tools are much more precise and way more fun to use.
Hope this helps.
Jess

[Rusty Ballard]

SMC- Just reading all the replys to my original most got my blood pumping. I'm going to save all the responses to keep them fresh. This is definitely the forum I was looking for!!

I've completed my first chest, done Christmas projects for/with LOML and started an oak mirror frame Christmas project- all this week. My ultimate goal is to build all the furniture for my house. (Yes, I realize this is a huge endeavor- but very inviting)

I honestly never considered hand tools, but I am going to look into it. I can only imagine the pride one would have after completing a project all by hand.

Thanks for all the welcoming responses. I'm looking forward to checking out SMC daily.

Take Care,
Rusty Ballard

[Burt Waddell]

Rusty,

I didn't start with the intention of building all the furniture for my house as you stated is your goal but at this point it is much easier to list the things I haven't built than it is to list the things I have built. Basically, I haven't gotten involved with seating and we have a few family keep sake type items. It has gotten to the point that I can't imagine what it would be like to have accept something that didn't do what I want it to do or fit where I wanted it to fit. It all started with building Christmas gifts one year and has evolved into a full time shop doing custom furniture and kitchen cabinets. One of my favorites is our bedroom furniture. It is mostly built in and made of Africian Mahogany - no stain - just clear coat. Woods were played for their grain pattern and color.

Yes, it is fun furnishing your own house.

Burt

[Mark Singer]

Use what you got and make the best of it.....gas ia $2.50 a gallon...ah,...buy a tool use it....put it in the vise...hit it with a hammer and .....get some glue...put the lime in the coconut...you know what I am saying ....evrybody does things different....thats what make the bowls go round and round.......on a lathe...just a suggestion:confused: