Tools for my workshop?

[Don Lamothe]

Another Newbie here looking for advice on setting up a workshop in one half of my unfinished basement which is about 20 x 22 with a few lally columns in the middle (I'm thinking this space might not be big enough?). I’m looking for advise on buying power tools. Here’s what I have; an old table saw, a bench top drill press that's very old, small bench-top router with a few bits. Hand held tools include a belt sander, palm sander, cordless drills, skill saw, biscuit joiner and a hand full of clamps. So I think I need a Band saw, Jointer, Thickness Planer, Bench-top Drum and belt sanders and all the accessories for these tools like sand-paper, blades, bits, etc… plus a dust collection system, lighting and electrical outlets and still have cash left over to replace those very old power tools when they die. I have about $5000 to spend on all of this but I don’t want to spend it foolishly and regret it later. I don’t have enough knowledge to shop for used power tools with any confidence. Any suggestions on what to look for (or stay away from) and what I really need vs what I think I need would be very much appreciated. Thanks in advance!!!

[Bryan Lisowski]

What are you interested in making? Without knowing that it will be hard for the group to spend your $5K.

[David Stone (CT)]

Bryan's point is well-taken, as is the common advice that you purchase things as your desired projects dictate. But it's tough at the beginning when it can feel as if you need pretty much everything and don't know where to start. I started about where you seem to be, with an imperfect but serviceable-for-the-moment table saw, a drill press and some basic power and hand tools of varying quality. The next step, in my experience and opinion, is to acquire the ability to mill up solid wood to create truly flat accurate stock of the appropriate dimension--which is an elemental part of woodworking from the standpoint of both design and effective joinery. The machine means to this end is a planer and a jointer. There are lots of options, but your $5k budget needs to cover a lot of other ground also. So my recommendation would be a capable lunchbox planer, plus some kind of Jet/Grizzly-type jointer, ideally 8 inch, but 6 if that's what you can swing for now. (And I would suggest at least perusing Craisglist and Facebook Marketplace to see whether you can't find a lightly-used relatively recent jointer used, to conserve funds. If it's a known brand and just seen hobbyist use, you're probably not taking much of a risk.) You will also want to pick up a 1 HP portable duct collector to deal with all the chips these two create. At this point, you're probably in for around $2k and it's probably best to hit pause on the machine buying while you fill out all the other stuff you will likely need very quickly, like decent clamps and layout tools, tooling, some basic woodworking hand tools, supplementing the power tool stable a bit and getting your shop electrical and lighting in place. Let's say this is another $1k at least. From there, it depends what you want to make next. I will say that of the two other machines you name, a bandsaw is a more foundational tool than a drum sander (though I personally pine for one of the latter, if only I had the space). FWIW, of the machines that I have, here is how I rank them for the work I do as a hobbyist making stuff for his house and shop: Leading actors: table saw, jointer and planer, band saw, router table. Supporting actors: 12" disk sander, drill press. Bit player (though very handy at times): oscillating spindle sander. Next big thing: shaper. Crew: dust collectors. Occupying space until I have the time and inclination to learn how to use it: lathe.

[Christopher Herzog]

My two cents is to really think hard on the drum sander. It sounded good to me and I hardly ever use it. Planer gets 15" or less. Wish I could do that over. Depends on the projects that you want to make.

Chris

[David Publicover]

A 20x22 space seems pretty nice to me. I have a 12x22 garage. The list of tools can be endless but as mentioned, it depends of what you want to make. Having had a basement shop, I’d give dust collection some priority as sawdust wafting through the house might get tiresome. Get good lights and lots of them.
My stationary tools are a table saw, bandsaw, a jointer and lunchbox planer ( although they are being upgraded to a J/P combo machine). My router table is a bench top model. The rest gets done with hand tool or smaller power tools. Good luck with the setup!

[Tim Janssen]

My shop is in the basement , dimensions 11' 4" by 31'. Here are 2 pictures:
440883
The band saw and drillpress are at the far end as well as a table with a grinder and a beltsander/discsander.
440884
The DeWalt planer and Mitersaw are on their own movable cabinets. To the far right is my clamp rack.
My lumberstorage, also movable is againts the backwall.
Maybe all this might give you some ideas for your shop
Good luck.

Tim
PS my routertable is in another room on casters so if needed i can roll into the shop.

[John Bailey]

I've got a 20x20 shop and I'm not sure I could function with a table saw. I've got a 10" DeWalt radial arm saw that works in that space. Ripping is going to be the same problem as a table saw, but cross cuts are a breeze. I love my Oliver band saw and use it much more than the radial arm saw.

Get a decent 14" band saw. If you think you might do some resawing, get a 12" extension.

A track saw is a good investment. I've got an EZSmart system with a Makita circular saw that I believe, at the time, was the best and most robust system. That being said, there are many more options now-a-days and they all look pretty good to me. You can do most woodworking projects with a track saw and a band saw.

Get a decent circular saw, router and an orbital jig saw. I have all Bosch because I like their pliable cords.

I use a drill press much more than I thought I would. A floor model is nice, but a table model works well.

Most will tell you a joiner is important. I think they're correct, but I never could learn to use one properly.

I don't use it very often, but when I need it, a bench top planer is very handy.

Buy the best block plane you can afford.

Get a decent set of chisels also. I have a full set, but use 1/8, 1/4, 1/2 and 3/4 almost exclusively.

An old beat up set of cheap chisels that you don't mind abusing comes in very handy.

If I had $5,000 to spend and were just setting up a shop and didn't want to go used, I would travel to the nearest Grizzly store with a pickup and a trailer and come home with a shop.

John

Did I mention to get as many clamps as you can? Silly me, get hundreds -- big and small, get them all.

[Richard Coers]

I wouldn't think about starting a woodworking hobby without a table saw. If you only have a bandsaw, how will you cut plywood?

[Bill Yacey]

I would suggest putting / leaving your money in the bank, and buy tools as you need them for whatever work you happen to be doing. Often there are other ways of accomplishing the same result using tools you already have. If there isn't any work-around, purchase the needed tool that allows you to move forward.

Nothing worse than buying a bunch of tools that you don't need, or ever use more than once.

[John Goodin]

I didn’t see a random orbital sander on your list. A good one can be had for not much money.

Buy tools as you need them. It stretches out the fun and can help prioritize what is really needed.

Buy quality if you can afford it. As mentioned above there are many work arounds and it is better to have fewer, quality tools than a shop full of junk.

Try to keep your shop mobile. Being able to move machines around a bit can be helpful depending on the project. This is more important with smaller spaces.

Get a good dust collection system. What defines “good dust collection” is debatable around here but nonetheless it is important.

[Rick Potter]

I recommend you find a woodworking club, hang around at a Rockler or Woodcraft store, maybe even the tool aisle at Home Depot.

Start talking to people there, about what they have, and what they use it for. Try to find a buddy that has some power tools and get a feel for what interests you, THEN start looking for what you decide you need.

[Stan Calow]

Set aside part of your budget for good hand tools. Chisels, squares, files, saws, hand planes, etc. You need these because you can only get so close with power tools. I also recommend that you start checking out garage and estate sales, as you will find every tool you can think of, sooner or later at one of these sales, for a fraction of the cost of new. Lots of it is junk, but I've come across everything from Unisaws to boxes of router bits.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Don, you do not mention where you live, there might be someone in your area who can also help introduce you to some of the tools or even help you with a few projects using some tools that they already own.

It was suggested that you buy the tools to complete the project that you are working on now. That is a very good suggestion. Buy what you need when you need it. A couple of thoughts:

I really like my Table Saw and I use it often, but, sometimes, I end up using a circular saw on a track.

Will your purchase lumber that is already S4S, or will you mill it yourself? My local woodcraft allowed me to pick out wood and then they would mill it for me. It cost more but they had the machines that I did not.

I purchased a used Dewalt planer and I use a sled to joint the wood; I also do not feel like I have room for both a planer and a jointer.

Do you have or need a work bench? Will you build your own? I purchased a workbench because I did not feel that I could make one with my skill set at the time. It still works just fine.

If you are thinking "I need some hand tools", you might need to think about sharpening. You can go a long time before you need to sharpen your hand saw and even old pros like Steve (https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?285710-Disston-Panel-saw-rehabbed) pay to have his hand saws sharpened. If you have a hand plane, however, you probably want some ability to sharpen it, but you can get buy with sandpaper on glass (or other methods with a low entry price).

So, what do you want to build first? If you build something like a cabinet or standing book shelf, a pocket hole jig is very fast, repeatable, and easy to use. The plywood is already flat and of a single width (well, it should be, <cough>) and you can have that assembled very fast compared to trying to flatten a rough board with a hand plane (or similar). You then need to figure out how to edge it (lots of opinions on that too).

[Matt Day]

Buy used. A good cabinet saw (Unisaw, etc) can be had for $500, some time and elbow grease to clean it up. 6” jointer for $250, lunchbox planer for $250, 14” bandsaw for $250, ROS, small dust collector $250. Then another few hundred for misc accessories like sandpaper, DC hose, misc.
After that, but what you need for the project at hand. Maybe you’ll need to profile some edges or make multiple parts, where a router table would be a good thing to buy. Maybe you’ll need a doweling jig or Kreg jig.

Summary - take your time looking at the used market for the basic machinery, and buy as you need from there.

And by the way, there have been dozen and dozens of threads just like this over the years. Lots of information can be found with a simple search.

[Scott Bernstein]

Hobbiest here... I think get what you pay for when it comes to machines. Buying used is certainly a great to save money...if you have time to look around and if you have the ability to transport the machines. I have neither, so I have bought all mine new. I also learned to buy the biggest machines that I can afford and will fit in my space - buying smaller machines and then outgrowing them is an expensive lesson. I consider the "main" machines in my shop to be my jointer/planer combo machine, cabinet table saw, and dust collector. Bandsaw and drill press round out the big stationary machines in my shop. Next most commonly used include pantorouter, router boss, and router table. Track saw to break down sheet goods. Handheld tools include the usual sanders, routers, drill/drivers, Lamello Zeta p2, Domino joiner. Useful jigs include table saw crosscut sled and Leigh dovetail jig. Lots of clamps... I do have a sliding miter saw which I bought early on, before I knew better, and I hardly use it now.

[John K Jordan]

I agree that what you want to use the shop for can quickly narrow down the tools that will be useful and can fit into the space. I don't know if this was mentioned, but if I had just one saw it would be a bandsaw. A bandsaw is useful for almost any type of woodworking. I find it an essential tool for woodturning, making jigs and patterns, resawing, repairing things. The 14" saws these days seem pretty good and many can cut 12" thick stock or green wood.

JKJ

[Jim Dwight]

I have a bandsaw on order but I've been getting by for several years without one. I had a smaller one before that. I use a Bosch jigsaw at the moment for curved cuts. I believe Bosch is recognized for having very good jigsaws but I'm sure there are other good ones. There is a huge difference between a Bosch and a simple homeowner quality jigsaw.

If you are planning to work on sheetgoods or big pieces of lumber, I would have a track saw on the list before the bandsaw. Especially in a limited space it is great to be able to accurately cut large pieces without moving them through the saw. I believe the Wen is the least expensive but it might make sense to step up to a Makita or DeWalt because they are available with tracks significantly longer than a sheet of plywood. But you can join two shorter tracks and use a Wen. That raises the question of buying once or upgrading later. If you buy the Wen, it might not be your last track saw purchase.

I agree completely about buying tools as you need them. You would be able to make a lot of furniture with what you apparently already have. If you add a track saw, a good jigsaw and possibly a better sander you will be able to do a bit more and do it more quickly. I recommend a Bosch 1250DEVS sander. It is not cheap unless you compare it to a Festool Rotex which has the same capabilities. It's advantage is it sands much more quickly. But if you are patient a much cheaper sander will do the same thing.

If a router does not have a good chuck it is not worth using on anything serious. The issue is the bit will slip and ruin your work. My mid sized routers are a couple Porter Cable 690s. They are not PCs latest but I think they may still be available. You need a router that takes both 1/4 and 1/2 inch bits and it's best to have both a fixed and plunge base. I also use a PC 7528 in my router table and a Bosch Colt for little roundovers and chamfers.

If you use S2S lumber you don't absolutely have to have a planner and jointer. Of the two, the planner takes up a lot less space and is far cheaper - a lunchbox. I have and occasionally use a jointer but I do not normally face joint large boards because they are not straight enough to give me the thickness I want in the end. So a lot of the time I just use the planner and use the track saw to give me a glue up ready edge. So I would get a planner first. The DeWalt 735 seems to be the recommended model these days. If I upgrade from my old AP-10 it may be to a Rikon with a segmented head.

I bought a bandsaw because I want to make a new dining room table with curved legs. That is an example of the idea of buying tools when you need them for a project.

[Thomas Canfield]

The best advice is to decide what you plan to do and then buy equipment. I started out to do some flatwork and bought in order: in 1/2 double garage, bench drill press, 14" bandsaw w/o riser, table saw, 6" jointer, box planer, router & bits, then oscillating spindle sander, built 22x24' shop with dust cyclone system, switched to floor drill press, bought used Jet 1015 lathe, upgraded (?) to Jet 1015 VS, then added Jet 1236 lathe, bought used 8" jointer, bought Powermatic 3520B lathe, and was down the road to doing turning and the flat work tools sit idle for 95% of my shop time. I have had the big lathe for about 13 years and have maintained a midi lathe now using a Rikon 70-220VSR. I found that the lathe gave more immediate satisfaction and offered many different options from little pens, lidded boxes, bowls of all sizes, and hollow forms, and easier to deal with items made. There are some that get a lot of satisfaction from doing a lot of extra to the turnings including burning, dying, segmented work, etc but I like to work with found tree wood normally. Spend some time deciding what you want to be doing 5 years from now with the equipment. I know I have a lot of tools and equipment that I bought then that I definitely would not buy now restricting my work space, but I also am not ready to give up on them.

[Alex Zeller]

Everyone is going to have similar but somewhat differing opinions. But that's because we all don't do the exact same things. If you plan on making small jewelry boxes then you can get by with different tools vs making cabinets and large furniture. If you think you might like to turn wood then the jointer and even less a planer isn't going to be helpful. But a sharpening system would be extremely useful. Have you looked around for what's available for wood in your area? If you buy nice S4S (sanded four side) lumber that's ready to be used then a jointer and planer can be pushed off down the road. Do you think you will be doing mortise and tenon joints? If so there's plenty of ways to make them. That could mean a table saw with a router in the extension, a stand alone router table, or a mortising machine.

Do you like hand sanding? If not I would suggest more than just a ROS (random orbital sander). A sander didn't even enter my thoughts a few years ago and now I have several hand sanders, a 20" disc sander, a 26" drum sander, and an oscillating spindle sander. I'm looking now to get a stationary edge sander. Of course these aren't all things you need when starting out but as you get going you'll realize the gaps and desires.

So you really need to decide first on what you want to focus on. It could be just enough tools to tackle most tasks without focusing on the specialized tools for that task.

[Jim Matthews]

I recommend you find a woodworking club...try to find a buddy that has some power tools and get a feel for what interests you, THEN start looking for what you decide you need.

An introduction to power tool use at any of the Woodworking schools will illustrate which tools you actually like using and of them, which ones will fit your shop.

If there are estate sales in your area, look for the tools that appear worn - those are the "users".

Look at the ones that still have the manuals, original knobs and factory fresh surfaces - those are the "Shop Queens" that never saw serious work.

[Roger Feeley]

I would suggest putting / leaving your money in the bank, and buy tools as you need them for whatever work you happen to be doing. Often there are other ways of accomplishing the same result using tools you already have. If there isn't any work-around, purchase the needed tool that allows you to move forward.

Nothing worse than buying a bunch of tools that you don't need, or ever use more than once.

+1 on the ‘buy it as you need it’ plan. and make sure that the project delivers something that the wife or kid wants. Trust me, you do that for 30 or 40 years and you will be all set.

[Roger Feeley]

I wouldn't think about starting a woodworking hobby without a table saw. If you only have a bandsaw, how will you cut plywood?
Richard, some guys get along fine with a track saw and a miter saw. I have a table saw and a track saw. I hardly ever move the rip fence on the TS past 12” anymore. I’ll never give up either saw, though.

[Earl McLain]

I've got a nice miter saw on a great stand--but it stays in the shed between deck/outdoor projects. In the shop, it's an old (1957) Dewalt Radial Arm Saw that will be more accurate than any miter saw for the rest of my life. Well tuned with the proper blade for the tool and the job--and it's a pleasure to use and the net footprint is similar to when i had a miter saw set up full time. Beyond that, some of my least-used tools were purchased in the interest of "building a shop"--wish i'd heeded the buy-as-needed admonition for several tools.
earl

[Todd Mason-Darnell]

I would suggest putting / leaving your money in the bank, and buy tools as you need them for whatever work you happen to be doing. Often there are other ways of accomplishing the same result using tools you already have. If there isn't any work-around, purchase the needed tool that allows you to move forward.

Nothing worse than buying a bunch of tools that you don't need, or ever use more than once.


What Billy said....I made this mistake, though on a much smaller scale, when I first started.

Now I buy as a really need.

[Ben Helmich]

3hp dust collector. And electrical if you don’t already have it.

[Michael W. Clark]

Since you have the TS, once you start using it much, you will see the need for dust collection. After that, planer and jointer would be next for me. Some would say a bandsaw before tablesaw and that may be valid, but you already have the tablesaw... After this, assess the tools you need for the project you are working on and buy the best version of the tool you need, especially if you see yourself using that tool on projects going forward.

I have upgraded my jointer already and would still like a larger one. I would like a better planer as wel than my first purchae. I bought a better DC a couple years ago too.

You can spend a lot of money, however, you don't want to spend so much that you feel guilty about doing something else with all that woodworking machinery sitting idle.

[John K Jordan]

I would suggest putting / leaving your money in the bank, and buy tools as you need them for whatever work you happen to be doing. Often there are other ways of accomplishing the same result using tools you already have. If there isn't any work-around, purchase the needed tool that allows you to move forward.

Nothing worse than buying a bunch of tools that you don't need, or ever use more than once.

As for "nothing worse" my perspective is a a little different. For me there is nothing better than having a wide variety of quality tools on hand when the need to use them comes up, even if it doesn't happen often. For example, my milling machine, metal lathe, TIG welder and plasma cutter don't get regular use but when I need them they are there. I can't remember ever being sorry for buying quality tools or equipment. I guess much of it depends on your range of interests, if you have the luxury of enough space, and, of course, your budget. Running an active farm may also be a factor - I love being able to build or repair almost anything and the opportunities around here come up a lot.

I do still I have a new 8" PM jointer in my storage building in the crate. The I'll move it in the shop at some point when I a round tuit - I could have used it this week! A few years before I built my shop I bought major tools such as the jointer, drum sander, PM66, and slider for the PM66 and put them all in one of my storage buildings. (I waited for good prices) This decision was based on the suspicion that once I built the shop I wouldn't have much money left over for the tools!

JKJ

[Melvin Feng]

Do you have a Rockler, woodcraft, or other woodworking store near you that holds classes (socially distanced, of course!)?

I'd recommend using some of that $5k towards taking a variety of classes: something with turning (pens, spindles, bowls, etc), something with cabinetry, something with laminations, maybe even an instrument, etc.

This way you get an opportunity to get your hands on some tools that you don't have, you get to see how they are used, and what kinds of projects you can start making on those tools. You might surprise yourself with what intrigues you.

If you go this route, you will most likely buy fewer tools, but better quality. For example, if you decide you really want to get into turning bowls, you can use about half of the money for a full sized lathe with an 18" swing or so, and then another $1k for tooling (gouges, sharpening setup, chucks - it quickly adds up!), and then a full sized bandsaw for processing bowl blanks, and maybe even a chainsaw.

But, if you decide you really want to be able to do cabinetry from the classes, then you can go more the route of the jointer, thickness planer, table saw, etc.

[Alex Zeller]

Just and FYI, plan on spending money on things like saw blades, router bits, sand paper, etc. Those little things will eat up a pretty good chunk of change. If you are frugal and read up you can find lower priced options that are diamonds in the rough. For example, a dado blade. You can find them for less than $100 to well over $300. Then there's the specialty stuff like jigs. A lot of stuff can be made but if it can't it'll add up. For example a dovetail jig. You can hand make them but that's a skill that takes time. Or you can buy one and learn how to use it and get nice tight joints much quicker with less wasted wood.

[John K Jordan]

As for "nothing worse" my perspective is a a little different. For me there is nothing better than having a wide variety of quality tools on hand when the need to use them comes up...

I forgot to mention that buying tools before you actually need them only makes sense to me if you have already have experience with those types of tools so you know if they are right for what you plan to do. If just starting out without a clear idea of what you want to do and how to go about it, buying a bunch of tools just to have on hand is probably not a good idea.

[Frank Washer]

I would buy a good cordless track saw first, it can almost replace a table saw, especially in a basement shop. Than I would look for a used table saw, then a compound miter saw, after that I would buy as you figure out what you need. I always scan ebay & CL first, if you're patient the good deals come.

[Don Lamothe]

Thanks everyone for all your input! Sorry for the slow response but my internet has been down. My next/first project will be a set of folding Adirondack Chairs (yes the one from Rockler) hence the need for the Band saw for making templates with curves, the table top oscillating drum/belt sander and the router for making pieces from the templates. I'm comparing some Grizzly Band saws against some Jet Band saws. Do I really need 2 HP vs 1 HP? I didn't even know what Resawing was until I started this search. Will I ever even be doing resawing??? The Grizzly's come with a fence and a miter gauge but the Jets don't. The Jet has a 5 year warranty vs. Grizzly's 1 year warranty. Id' like to spend my budget wisely but I don't want my most expensive tool to be the one that I bought cheaply and had to replace (Thanks Jim for that advice!). So much wood, so little time...

[Melvin Feng]

Thanks everyone for all your input! Sorry for the slow response but my internet has been down. My next/first project will be a set of folding Adirondack Chairs (yes the one from Rockler) hence the need for the Band saw for making templates with curves, the table top oscillating drum/belt sander and the router for making pieces from the templates. I'm comparing some Grizzly Band saws against some Jet Band saws. Do I really need 2 HP vs 1 HP? I didn't even know what Resawing was until I started this search. Will I ever even be doing resawing??? The Grizzly's come with a fence and a miter gauge but the Jets don't. The Jet has a 5 year warranty vs. Grizzly's 1 year warranty. Id' like to spend my budget wisely but I don't want my most expensive tool to be the one that I bought cheaply and had to replace (Thanks Jim for that advice!). So much wood, so little time...

That is really helpful. I think a benchtop oscillating sander would be good to start with, I think ridgid has a combo edge and spindle oscillating sander that could work well for you.

As for bandsaws, if you ever foresee yourself purchasing rough lumber that may be thicker, being able to resaw is crucial. The cast iron 14" style typically has 6" of resaw, with an optional riser that gives you up to 12", but these saws aren't really designed for resaw work. With resaw, power is very important to make resawing easier so that you don't get bogged down. If you think you may want to be able to resaw, getting at least 12" of resaw without having to modify the saw would be my personal preference, with at least 2 HP.

If you know that you will only ever use S4S lumber though, then resawing ability is wasted money (though, I would say always buying S4S lumber will be more expensive in the long run).

For the router, if you are planning on doing a good amount of patterning work, I would recommend getting a full size router table with dust collection. I've been eyeing the whiteside compression template bits too, but they are pricey. It would be most convenient to get a table that has a nice lift that is convenient and consistent to operate.

For the bandsaw and the router though, make sure to budget blades and bits, and high quality ones if you can - don't buy the kits unless you know that you will use all of them, buy the bits that you need. I prefer whiteside, but there are a few big names that make high quality bits. Timberwolf offers a variety pack of blades if you want a range of sizes that will fit whichever saw you choose, but if you know exactly how you are going to use the saw, just get multiples of the blades that you will use most often (I got the 5 blade variety pack when I bought my bandsaw, but I only ended up really using 3 of the blades in the year and half since I've had the saw, and I've also bought different blades that I realized I needed or wanted to try)