If you were building the shop of your dreams, What would you have that you don't now?

Ed Fowler

Ed Fowler

Joined
Jul 21, 2001
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WE are planning the new shop now. We all have grinders, air compressors, drill presses, vices. Some have forges and heat treating ovens. What would you want special? I ask for your ideas for the ideal shop.
 
Ed,
All I could ask for is more room and more electrical outlets. It's the biggest shop I ever had and it's still to small (2000+ sq ft in 3 rooms on 2 floors).
Think about electrical outlets. I have 48 110 and 220 outlets that are staggered (on a wall, each are on a different circuit) so I can turn on all the equipment on a side and not sweat popping a breaker.
If I had it to do again, I'd have had 96. Wire, boxes and outlets aren't that expensive.
Internet, telephone, security, and audio-visual wiring are worth thinking about, also.
 
Have the space I want, around 900 sq feet I think ( havent measured it off since I moved in ). I'll second Kit, more outlets. The big ones are for the grinder and the mill. Need to get seperate lines run for each. I've got a very good ventalation system, but having an even better one wouldnt be bad. Otherwise, a lavatory, fridge and cable would be cool.....oh wait, I'd never leave the shop then ;) - Charles
 
Why not an 11 axis CNC machine if asking for the moon? :D
 
I`ll go with what Kit & Charles said plus
1- surface grinder 2-mill 3- lathe the reason is
I use to do gunsmithing work when we where in Co.
I could live with out the cable as long has the
fridge had Tequila in it (for after work )
:rolleyes:
 
Tall ceilings with a really big fan up high to suck all the heat out from the forges. Natural light and lots of electric lighting. The bathroom with a shower is a must and a place for all my knife buddys to bunk would be nice.
 
i agree that you can't have to many outlets. more ventilation. and one of the biggees ED is lots and lots of celing lights! the exrta plugs will help with lighting for each station. i started with two 4ft four blub celing lamps added two more and am about to add another two. and my shop is in a small one car car garage.
 
Being new to this game I'm still trying to aquire the basics like power hammers, a decent anvil and multiple belt grinders and buffers to avoid setup time (among other basic items). Of course I would need much more space. 120 square feet shared with lawn mowers and such just aint cuttin it. That being said... I would love to have a quiet comfortable room that I could shut out the world for a while and just think, ponder, create, read, watch a favorite old western, or just plain take a nap. I guess it would primarily be a library, but it would have comfortable furniture, internet access, drawing tables and tools, and maybe even a fridge and some snacks. I don't have the experience to know if this is practical, but I want to build my future shop (primarily the smithy and grinding/dirty rooms)with walls that swing open, lift up, etc. so that I can have lot's of fresh air during favorable weather. I definitely agree with rhino about the lighting.

On the non-reality side of things... I want a self cleaning model. Push a button and everything is back in its appropriate place, the floor is swept, fresh belts are put on the grinders, etc.

Rick
 
I would have to add the "more electric outlets" to my list also. But, probably the thing I would get first would be some kind of super powerful dust collection system.
 
I'm too new at this to be much help but, mabe an EDM machine, a seperate room for all the tooling, surface grinder, hydrolic press, CAD/CAM program on the pc in the library, those specialty machines that test deflection and tencil strength.
 
That would be sweet, a good knife testing area. Library would have to be separate to not get "dusty" and you could include a easel for drawing knives and maybe a computer to access resources, photoshop, and Bladeforums!
 
Let's See Here , # 1 a great Small Power Hammer with a Huge Compressor ,#2 A Bridgeport mill, #3 a Good Quality Lathe,# 4 a decent Precision Surface Grinderwith Magnetic Chuck,#5 a good Rolling mill next to the Power Hammer, #6 a "Tim Taylor" more power type of Dust collection system ,#7 a real good drill press,#8 a Bandsaw that loves to eat Titanium ,( hey it could Happen) Lot's of light , a wood storage area , and of course a Bathroom . yep that sound's pretty good to me .:D





OOP's i just noticed the Don't have now part ! well some of these would be nice Upgrades .
 
A press would be great and a real floor. Maybe a cleaning lady to come in and tidy it up every now and then. Something that would put my tools back automaticly. Maybe a screen that would hide me from the neighbors when I go out to pee.....
 
Lets see, too many things to list really but here is some food for thought

1. Enough outlets and capacity on the electric service to run everything without even putting a strain on the system. Plan on people running more than one machine at once, and the overdraw of a motor as it kicks on.

2. Lighting. Lots and lots of overhead lighting. Not so much high wattage, as a large number of lights. Moderate light from every angle is MUCH better than strong lighting right in your face or from behind you etc. No shadows even if your standing next to a machine or facing a different way than usual.

3.Lots of room. Bench space dedicated to just handwork like assembly and layout stuff,preferably with a 1/2" lip around the edge so small parts can't roll off.
Its really a bear to slide machines in and out of the way as you move back and forth, so it would be nice if all or most had their own work space.

4. Windows, Large sliding/garage doors. If the weather is nice out, its great to get some fresh air into the shop. They can also be a welcome source of light.

5. Concrete floor with proper pitch to drain, either out a door or through a grate in the floor. With the type of machinery your using your going to accumulate a large amount of grit,grease and grime. It would be nice to have the option of blasting things out once a year with a pressure washer or hose. Not to mention all the buckets of water around for dipping. If you spill one, it would just drain away rather than you having to clean it up.

6. Exhaust fan or fans. Gives you the ability to clear the shop of harmful fumes and dust. You probably wear a respirator but your eventually going to want to take it off. Also helps cool things off.

7. Storage space. Don't eat up your shop space trying to store steel, spare sawblades, belts etc. I'd have an ajoining store room with racks or drawers for everything that doesn't need to be immediately at hand in the shop.

8. A clean room/area . Something partitioned off or a seperate room for applying handle finishes, sheathmaking etc. Somewhere that you don't have to worry about picking up grit or things getting scratched or knocked around.

9. This is working out to be a pretty damn big place, so a personalized golf cart for trips from one end to the other ;)
 
1. grinder
2. lathe
3. milling machine
4. computer
5. fridge
6. microwave
7. pool table
8. jacuzzi
9. plasma screen TV
10. bowling lane
11. BUTLER :D
12. lavatory
13. tennis court
14. my own Hooters:D :D

..oh...shop, not dream awesomehangoutplace... *sigh* ..someday......:)
 
Ed, you probably already have equipment most of us would sell our mother-in-laws into slavery for, so I would certainly add air conditioning. I still have to do some finishing work on my new shop, But I am having it air conditioned, for sure. My shop will be a freezer box this summer, no more sweat running in the eyes while working. Hey, good luck on the new shop, too!
 
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