New Shop planning

[Peter Turbide]

Hello all,

I now have the space and $ to put up a turning shop. I’m having much discussion with the Mrs. regarding square footage, me bigger is always better, her you don’t want too much space as it might be wasted. :eek::eek:
What will be going in is a 14” bandsaw and drill press and a 16 X 42 jet lathe, and a mini lathe, sharpening station, and a dust collector (to be purchased soon). The lathe will not move, other tools are on wheels or will be just at the moment do not want to move them to use them. As the space I moved out of was very crowded, is there some rule of thumb for reasonable spacing for various tools?

Thanks in advance

Peter

[Bob Riefer]

I've always started by thinking typical infeed and outfeed requirements... as in, I frequently rip up to 6-8 feet long on the table saw but rarely go longer than that... so if I have 8 feet clear in front and back of the machine, I should be comfortable in most cases.

When I run into constraints with that approach, I usually solve with either height of machine, mobility, or something else.

For example, outfeed from my bandsaw would crash into my table saw for longer cuts, except it won't because my bandsaw sits taller and outfeed materials will pass above my table saw.

Or, I can pull my drill press away from the wall (it is on locking casters) as needed if drilling a piece longer than will fit in that area. I try to have any tools that must be mobile be those that won't have to move as often. For me, that's drill press and sanding station, and they only need to be moved about 10% of the times. They're both on wheels while everything else (lunchbox planer, cabinet table saw, miter saw, band saw) is stationary.

And, I have my table saw inline with my garage door on one side and a man door on the other... This allows me to rip up to 20 foot boards (if the need ever pops up) by simply opening two doors for a few minutes.

Lastly, if the building may possibly be something different than a shop someday, think about size / shape for that. For example, 24x24 is about the smallest you would want a detached garage to be, and you wouldn't want that to be some funky L-shape etc. Some builders (such as pole barn outfits and modular options) may have standard sizes that are worth working within. I see a lot of 24x30 buildings advertised locally as an example.

Hope this helps!

[George Yetka]

That's plenty of space, but because of the width I would assume mobility in tools/benches. With mobile tools you can move stuff around till it feels right and eventually most will stay put. I'm in about the same space but square,It is however used for primary egress from the house and some outdoor items(need a shed). All my machines aside from the router table and drill press are mobile. but the only ones I end up moving are the drum sander and J/P.

With the tools mentioned I kind of picture the rear 1/3 of the space to be wrapped with shelving for blanks/green bowls maybe an assembly table in between. The front 1/3 of the space would be your dust makers with sharpening/ bench/ small tool storage/finishing in the middle.

[Jim Becker]

Someone who is focused on turning needs a lot less machine space, but don't underestimate the benefits of having dedicated places to do things like carving, finishing and other finesse operations that take place off the lathe. There's also the need to store raw materials and a lot of turning stock doesn't "stack" nicely like flat lumber does. So I submit to you that there is no wasted space if you opt for a more generous shop footprint. What you do want to pay attention to is the floor...turning when things are not in balance causes a lot of vibration, so you want the structure underneath that will permit securing your machine well and absorbing vibration as much as possible.

[Bryan Cramer]

Your tools are essentially long and narrow and since you only turn you shop could reflect that.

[Peter Turbide]

I agree with that a good friend had many issues with his powermatic until he turned to stand across the joists vs parallel.

[Jim Becker]

If you are going to be a pre-built shed, for example, many vendors have options to close up the floor joist spacing for more strength. You can then put a second layer of plywood down to stiffen it further. The same thing can be done with stick-built, too, assuming a wood floor is involved.

[glenn bradley]

Paper dolls for grown ups.
454977
It is no big deal to make full sized templates out of butcher paper or what-have-you; I had some cardboard. Place your "machines" on the ground and move about them as you would when operating / working. This will give you realistic borders that will not restrict you while also pointing out good machine arrangements. Have fun.

[Brian Tymchak]

Even though you are focused on turning, you may still have a need for the traditional shop tools (table saw, jointer, planer). At some point you may want to try segmented turnings, stave construction, etc. These types of turnings require material prep. You may also at some point want to laminate and cut blanks for table legs and other spindle-type turnings. If you have the means, I would lobby for some "room to grow" as it is always more difficult and expensive to add later.

[Mike Heidrick]

i powered my space (outlets and circuits), put in air drops, dust collection drops, storage and organization options (slat wall), and amazingly lighted it so that every 8' in my shop could be an entirely self ran shop space. No four outlets next to each other on any one circuit. I do every kind of shop thing though - wood, metal, cnc of everything, laser, welding, 3d printing, plasma, electronic builds/computers, crafts, sewing, quilting, classroom/teaching - you name it. I call it Mikiespace - my own personal makerspace.

Knowing you want a turning shop I would focus on lighting, your stock supply lanes, easibility of space cleanup, sharpening access, a finishing area, and space to move around. I know you said moving tools around but that gets old and why do that if you have the space. I design my workflows in triangles when possible.

[Peter Turbide]

Lots of additional thins to think 🤔 about GRRRRR

Thanks for the input

[Roger Feeley]

Consider heating and ac. In my shop I have several vac vents but no return. I have a 20”x24” hole in the wall to the stairwell with a big filter. The shop is otherwise sealed so the air has no path other than that filter. We haven’t had any dust issues in the rest of the house. It’s just the wife and me so no noise complaints.

[Roger Feeley]

For my present shop, I have a cluster of machines that wouldn’t work if they all were the same height. Material going through the jointer passes over the outfeed of the drum sander. The exception is that the disc sander bed is exactly even with the router table and serves as an outfeed extension.

so put me down as a +1 on considering table/bed height. You may find that you want to make some machines a little higher or lower.

[Roger Feeley]

Lots of additional thins to think 樂 about GRRRRR

Thanks for the input
don’t stress too much. Most stuff can be easily moved. The exception in my shop is the table saw which is a beast. I placed that very carefully and let the rest sort of arrange themselves organically. But I took steps to insure that I could move things. All electrical is visible. There are no outlets buried in the walls. That’s so I can move them on a whim. It also means that if I move (NOOOO!!!), I can easily remove all shop related stuff.