If You Could Change Something About How Your Shop Is Set Up, What Would It Be?

rane-dig

rane-dig

Joined
Dec 6, 2005
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154
I'm in the process of setting up shop to get into the hobby. I have the shop and I'm acquiring equipment at this point. I'm looking for lessons learned. What would you change in your shop? What do you like about your shop? What mistakes did you make with equipment purchases or layout of your shop? You get the idea.
 
My shop used to be a cabinet shop and happens to have a paint booth with a massive fan that blows outside, but it is not where I want to setup my work area. What do you look for in a filtration system?
 
Great idea for a thread! I'd love to hear what everybody thinks, I'm about to move in my shop in a week or two.

A dust collection system will be the first equipment investment for my new shop. I also built a partition so I will grind and drill in a separate room. I always use a full face respirator but I think keeping the dust down is important.

One thing I wish I would have done early on is to pack my scotchbrite and leather belts in their own bags, any cross grit contamination is to be avoided. I also want to look into a buffer with tapered spindles so I can remove my buffing wheels easily to pack them separately as well.
 
That is a good point about keeping the grinding away from the other stuff. Belt contamination is a point I hadn't thought of either. If anyone has photos of a preferred layout and is willing to share that would be helpful as well.
 
Dust Collection.. big expensive mill that costs more than my house.. a couple more 2x72's.. lifetime supply of belts :P .. a buffer.. a proper metal cutting bandsaw for profiling.. heat, more lights, a power hammer.. a press (working on that one currently).. I still have a LONG way to go as far as my shop..
 
I'd like hot water heating embedded in the concrete floor.

more electricity

More lights, whiter brighter walls
Steel coated walls - I do my welding outside & I really envy those with an indoor weld table ready to go- no setup. no cleanup.

More rooms to separate the clean and dirty tasks

better air dust collection filtration


more storage
I like Nick's idea of building a bench that fits over roller tool cabinets.




a CNC mill with software and skills to run it.
 
So what type of dust collection system should a person be looking at? Who are the best suppliers? I'm also looking for what examples of failures and successes, stuff you tried and it worked out great, or stuff that didn't. You guys have a lot of experience that would be a great benefit to many.
 
I always thought a CNC mill would be perfect for a small shop who wanted to turn out some serious production. Setup 8 or 10 good patterns and rough finish then put the finishing touches by hand, but I'm just guessing, I have very little experience with that type of equipment.
 
IMG_0001.jpg

Ok. I'll start off with pics. This is the space I'm working with. It used to be a cabinet shop. I got most of the saw dust out last winter and painted the floors. The Paint booth is on the far left, wood/metal storage on the far right. Compressor room on the right. I'm going to put my gas forge under the overhead heater and utilize the exhaust vent by hooking a hood to it. I was basically thinking about setting up my dirty stuff at the far end of the shop, clean stuff at the near end. There is an office out of the picture for very clean stuff. The table I bought at a company scrap auction. It has a 1" steel top. weighs so much it bent a leg on an engine hoist unloading it:) I have restored cars, trucks and other machines as a hobby, but I feel the need to make things at this point in my life.

So any help or ideas about equipment placement or systems, or workflow would be greatly appreciated. I'd love to see how you guys are doing it. Feel free to give tips as well as warnings.
 
strahd71 said:
oh thats easy! i would have a shop in the first place! :(

jake
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I hear you there. I got lucky and found this place about a year and a half ago. Working on stuff in the elements in Kansas is a challenge. Plus, if I cross the mrs., the dogs and me can go out to the shop and it is not so bad now:)
 
That is a nice lookin' shop you have to work with. I bet alot of folks will be jelous....including me:)
 
I was fortunate to find it. The house was in foreclosure. The people who lived there used the shop for storage if you can believe that. I basically got the house for it's real value and the shop was a bonus. I wouldn't have been able to build it for the same price. I've made good use of it so far and hope to continue to for many years.

So back to the topic, what makes a shop work well. What would you change about yours if you could? Thanks for the replies so far. I hope we can get some more input from the smiths and makers who have been there and done that.
 
I would build it to have a dirty room for forging, grinding and other tasks that make a lot of dust and a clean room for doing cleaner things like hand sanding and making sheaths.
 
I would double the size. Also, I would have black pipe running all around the perimeter carrying compressed air, with taps every 20' or so.
 
If I could change something about my shop it would be making it a detached building. I see you already have that covered. The next thing I would change is having the place wired for any kind of power needs I could have. I'd have a 220V 3-phase power drop or two installed to allow me to run big VFD motors for the grinder(s), and a serious heat treat oven. I'd have separate spaces for "dirty" work, "stinky" work, "hot" work, and "clean" work. I'd use as much natural light and natural ventilation as possible. It would be equipped with robotic maids that cleaned up after me and put my tools back where they belong.
 
rane-dig said:
View attachment 251719

Ok. I'll start off with pics. This is the space I'm working with. It used to be a cabinet shop. I got most of the saw dust out last winter and painted the floors. The Paint booth is on the far left, wood/metal storage on the far right. Compressor room on the right. I'm going to put my gas forge under the overhead heater and utilize the exhaust vent by hooking a hood to it. I was basically thinking about setting up my dirty stuff at the far end of the shop, clean stuff at the near end. There is an office out of the picture for very clean stuff. The table I bought at a company scrap auction. It has a 1" steel top. weighs so much it bent a leg on an engine hoist unloading it:) I have restored cars, trucks and other machines as a hobby, but I feel the need to make things at this point in my life.

So any help or ideas about equipment placement or systems, or workflow would be greatly appreciated. I'd love to see how you guys are doing it. Feel free to give tips as well as warnings.
Click to expand...


Really the pic has a hot tub in it!:eek: I mean that is freakin hot tub in the left side of the pic isn't it? ( You know the one with the wooden box sitting on it).......REALLY. Hey that is my first improvement I want to do to mine!:D But then I have to throw evrything else out.

Seriously,I would love to have more room and light. I don't think you ever get enough light,especially, when you get to be my age! I am dealing with a one car garage and it already had my wood work shop in it. I use alot of the same tools in the knife business, especially on wooden handles, table saw, planner, and chop saw to name a few. You learn to get creative with space.

However it doesn't allow for any different work stations everything is on wheels pretty much because of a back injury and lack of space. It allows for the moving around of different tools and then I can go out the door in good weather. I could use more room and would love to have at least a separated area for grinding and cutting out of blades! Right now I do most of it outside, this helps to keep the shop clean, provide natural light and solves my space problem. Space to spread out is my second biggest problem!
 
My first step would be to give myself two more walls. I like having a roof and two walls, but four would be nicer. Working on it slowly...
 
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