Now that I have recent photos, our shop

[Al Navas]

It has been quite a while since I posted any recent photos of our shop. I have been busy making saw dust, so it was a good time to shoot some pix, before picking up all the clutter :D .

Recently, I shared with you photos and details of my home-made spray booth (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=65690&highlight=spray+booth). In the photos that follow I share some more of our shop with you, as it is right now, busy and cluttered, not clean and neat, as in past photos.

This will be a short one, as I must get busy and update the blog with some stuff. If you are interested, please see the rest of the photos at the blog in the next few days.

I decided to start off with bird's eye views of LOML's area, which comprises the scroll saw, the carving bench and the cabinet for her carving tools, then the lathe area with the sharpening tools:

The general setting of the shop is as follows - lots of huge trees, and LOTS of leaves to take up late in the Fall (91 loads, each load = 200 gallons, of leaves, in 2006; thus, must use a cyclone rake):

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/September%202007/1-ShopFromYard.jpg



We now move to the inside. Sandy is the resident scroll saw, carving, and turning partner.

1. The scroll saw area, along with the carving bench and the carving tool cabinet:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/September%202007/1-CarvingArea.jpg


2. A floor-level angle on the scroll saw-carving area:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/September%202007/1-CarvingArea-ScrollSaw.jpg


3. The lathe area, with the sharpening station beyond the fiber drum (which contains shavings from the lathe, to bury the turnings in them, and to help slow down the drying):

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/September%202007/1-turning-sharpening.jpg


4. Her new sharpening station will look like this:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/cabinets/Sharpeningstation-withTR13032.jpg


5. Some of Sandy's stash of turning blanks. You might be able to spy more turning blanks under the lathe, under her turning tools, and under her current sharpening station:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/September%202007/1-TurningBlanks.jpg


6. A bird's eye view of my area, which goes from the table saw, to the router table, the DC system, lumber storage, band saw, and sanders (the planer is just to the left of the router table and DC). Not shown is the bench area, the mortising machine, the drill press, the clamp rack, and the office area:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/September%202007/1-RTLumber-BS-TS-Sanders-1.jpg


I will post a few more later.

But, if you get chance, please visit the blog for the remainder of the photos of the shop. I hope you enjoyed seeing these photos!


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[David Duke]

Nice looking shop Al................love the setting, I'll swap trees with you. While I've got quite a few most of them are pin oaks and the leaves are a PITA to get up.

[Keith Outten]

You guys need new lawn mowers so you can retire those rakes. I bought a Dixie Chopper 5 years ago and haven't raked a leaf since, it turns leaves to dust and they disappear.

Nice shop Al, it doesn't look anything at all like mine :)

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[Al Navas]

Nice looking shop Al................love the setting, I'll swap trees with you. While I've got quite a few most of them are pin oaks and the leaves are a PITA to get up.
Thanks, David! I know what you mean about the pin oaks. But you should try and mow the sycamore leaves, which can run about 14-18 inches across... :eek: . Maybe I exaggerate???





You guys need new lawn mowers so you can retire those rakes. I bought a Dixie Chopper 5 years ago and haven't raked a leaf since, it turns leaves to dust and they disappear.

Nice shop Al, it doesn't look anything at all like mine :)



Thanks, Keith!

It is funny you mention the Dixie Chopper. We did look at these, and for some reason did not put one on our short list. We ended with two of the 54-inch Poulan Pro machines, 27 HP engines, which will do a great job mulching too. The problem is, the leaf mat can get up to 12 inches deep in some places! This will kill the grass in short order, especially if I don't get the leaves up quickly, before the snow makes it impossible to do so. And if we lose the grass, erosion results, with the torrential, short-duration rainfall we get sometimes.

Our solution: A leaf pile that produces the best mulch you have ever seen. It is the richest thing I have ever seen.

NEXT: Dixie Choppers, for sure!


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[Bob Marino]

Very nice shop - clean, large and well organized. What is your flooring?

Bob

[Jay Brewer]

Great looking shop Al, nice and bright and laid out well. One question, is that the Grizzly 17" bandsaw? I couldnt resist the weekend sale they just had and ordered one, any information would be appreciated. Thanks

[Al Navas]

Very nice shop - clean, large and well organized. What is your flooring?

Bob

Thanks, Bob.

We put down vinyl flooring on top of carpet padding. This is the type of flooring you might put in a garage.

I noticed as I got older that my knees and ankles just were not the same as in earlier years, and struggled with regular pads of various makes. Finally settled on this as the final choice. This color was selected to "hide" the saw dust - it does a terrific job, especially on photos ;) .





Great looking shop Al, nice and bright and laid out well. One question, is that the Grizzly 17" band saw? I couldn't resist the weekend sale they just had and ordered one, any information would be appreciated. Thanks

Thanks, Jay! And congratulations on getting that 17-inch toy!!! Did you buy the regular 17-inch, or the X series saw?

I have had this machine for several years and it has performed great. I use it primarily for resawing.

But LOML is also a woodworker; she needed a heavier-duty tool than her scroll saw to work on many of the toys we make in our Guild for the Christmas Toys for Girls & Boys, and the 17-inch fit the bill to a tee.

It has been great for toy-making, especially after I changed the stock blade guides from the stock Euro-style to the Carter bearings. And for tight turns with a 1/8-wide blade, I got the Carter stabilizer; when using this narrow blade with the stabilizer, it almost feels like you are using a scroll saw. You can view an earlier thread on this at this earlier post (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=46050&highlight=grizzly+carter+guide). I had to rework the blade shield a little, to make the stabilizer and the new bearing guides work properly. You will be able to see a few more photos at the earlier post.

------- Al


http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/Stabilizerand0.jpg

[Don Bullock]

Wow! Al, I'm impressed with your shop. You have a very nice set up there. I'm looking forward to more interior shots.

[Tyler Howell]

Good looking set up!!
A lot of great work going on in there:cool:

[Al Navas]

Wow! Al, I'm impressed with your shop. You have a very nice set up there. I'm looking forward to more interior shots.

Thanks, Don! I will definitely have a bunch more photos. Had to take my wife to the Dr. this morning, and will start the grass mowing process this afternoon.. So, other duties call, for now :cool: . Soon I will be back with more.




Good looking set up!!
A lot of great work going on in there :cool:

Thanks, Tyler. Glad you like it. Might make it up your way one of these days - maybe when it is a little warm, like earlier in the year :D .


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[Jay Brewer]

Hi Al, thinks for the write up about the guides. I thought I might have to replace them, we will see when it gets here. I didnt get the extreme one, I rarely use a bandsaw, but it was on sale for the weekend and couldnt pass it up. Thanks for the help.

[Al Navas]

Hi Al, thinks for the write up about the guides. I thought I might have to replace them, we will see when it gets here. I didnt get the extreme one, I rarely use a bandsaw, but it was on sale for the weekend and couldnt pass it up. Thanks for the help.
My pleasure, Jay.

Don't rush to replace the euro guides, unless you get to a point that you believe you have to do it. I went over two years with the stock euro guides, without much problem. As I got into wider veneers, the Carter guides became necessary for me, to accomplish better resawing.

I think what you will need almost immediately will be a good blade, since many stock blades are not what many of us need. If you are a wood turner, you might want to ask the turners what they use to make their blanks round. I would imagine that a 3-tooth per inch blade, also used in resawing, might be adequate.

Enjoy that new band saw, Jay! And please remember to show us some photos when you are ready.


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[Al Navas]

Wow! Al, I'm impressed with your shop. You have a very nice set up there. I'm looking forward to more interior shots.

Don,

Glad to oblige. Here are a couple more, from the most recent post there. I finally updated it, and now have the complete tour on the blog:

1. Looking from the drill press, over one edge of the workbench, toward the table saw and the entry door:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/September%202007/1-Bench-Plus-TS-Jointer-Lumber-1.jpg


2. The desk in the open office area, tucked in behind the clamp rack:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/September%202007/1-ViewFromDesk.jpg


3. The reference library area, to the left of the desk area, all within easy reach:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/September%202007/1-Desk-Library.jpg (http://javascript<b></b>:void(0);)


Thanks for looking!


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[Jason Tuinstra]

Al, great looking shop. I don't know how it stays free of dust enough to have a desk in there, but the hat is off to you. Looks like a nice place to go and create! Thanks for sharing.

[Keith Christopher]

Man! I am in love with your shop. I have to agree with Jason don't know how you keep it so dust free. I am thinking it's a 'model shop' (like model homes) because it has no dust of SHAVINGS !!!! Very nice.

[Al Navas]

Al, great looking shop. I don't know how it stays free of dust enough to have a desk in there, but the hat is off to you. Looks like a nice place to go and create! ...

Thanks, Jason!

Well, whenever I am cutting anything, the overhead air cleaner is on, in addition to the DC at each machine.

And, when sanding, the Shop Vac system is connected to the ROS; that way, I don't even have to wear a mask.

Believe me, there IS dust on the desk, but it is camouflaged :) . I guess it is a matter of cleaning in between projects, and when the chips and saw dust become unmanageable.





Man! I am in love with your shop. I have to agree with Jason don't know how you keep it so dust free. I am thinking it's a 'model shop' (like model homes) because it has no dust of SHAVINGS !!!! Very nice.

Thanks, Keith, for not noticing all the dust on the desk, too!

I am not sure how it looks so clean, when all we do is dust about once a week, and run the overhead air cleaner and the DC religiously.


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[John McCall]

Al, you have briefly described the flooring in your shop. Could you expand a bit? Clearly, what you have would be great under foot, but how well does it wear when moving heavy item around? Does it take abuse? What type of linoleum did you use? Is it a residential product or commercial? Does heavy machinery sit on the linoleum or did you use cutouts to allow equipment like your table saw to sit directly on the concrete below? What type of carpet pad did you use: synthetic, sysal, rubber? Thanks for any further information you can provide. I like the idea and might want to use your approach.

[Al Navas]

Al, you have briefly described the flooring in your shop. Could you expand a bit? Clearly, what you have would be great under foot, but how well does it wear when moving heavy item around? Does it take abuse? What type of linoleum did you use? Is it a residential product or commercial? Does heavy machinery sit on the linoleum or did you use cutouts to allow equipment like your table saw to sit directly on the concrete below? What type of carpet pad did you use: synthetic, sysal, rubber? Thanks for any further information you can provide. I like the idea and might want to use your approach.

Thanks, John!

I used cutouts for only the band saw, and later for the drum sander. Left the edges as received everywhere else. I have NO idea what type the padding is, except it is the thickest, from Lowe's.

This stuff takes abuse. However, you CANNOT roll heavy stuff around, because of the carpet padding I put under it, as I explain below. IF you did not use the padding, you could roll heavy stuff on it, though, although the ribs might make it a little tough.

We wanted insulation from cold temperature on the concrete in the colder months; a secondary thing we wanted was protection, such as from spills. Looking around the web we found vinyl garage flooring in various flavors.

The vinyl flooring is the stuff one would put in a garage. It is ribbed, to allow a fluid, such as water, to run in (mainly) one direction, such as when you wash the vinyl. In our shop we will not do that intentionally, of course. The color selection was intentional, to make the saw dust "disappear"; it is amazing how well it camouflages the saw dust!!!

We purchased ours in 10-foot by 25-foot rolls, from JNK Products ( http://www.jnkproducts.com/garagefloormats.htm ). The vinyl is only about 0.028" think (28 thousands of an inch), and provides very little insulation and padding. As a result, we brainstormed HOW to provide some knee and ankle relief, in addition to insulation from the cold concrete.

The solution we decided on: The thickest carpet padding we could find at Lowe's. It is cheap, and easy to cut and install under the padding.
In this photo I am right in the middle of the installation, with my helper taking a breather - I have already made the cutout in the padding around the band saw, and later made the cutout in the vinyl flooring itself:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop/IM000281-1.jpg


And just minutes after installation, with the table saw and the workbench in place - you can spy the rest of the flooring behind the table saw:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop/IM000316-1.jpg

It took two rolls, one for each side of the shop, along the length, leaving 20 feet bare, beyond the workbench. We stand most of the time around the machines, and that is where we installed the flooring.

I almost forgot - we installed the vinyl in the finishing room, too, also on carpet padding - in this case I also have spread a canvas, to prevent dyes and finish from getting all over the vinyl prematurely:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/Finishingroom-spraybooth-1.jpg

The advantages of this flooring are pretty obvious, I hope.

The main disadvantage: I cannot roll the machines around very much - the padding pretty much prevents them from rolling at all on the vinyl, because of the thick padding under it.

Solution? Pull back the machines, and roll the vinyl and the padding. Takes about 10 minutes to do it, and about 20 to put it back together.
Thanks for asking!



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