My basement shop is a little more than 1,500 sq. ft. including a dust collection room and bathroom. There is a large laundry sink in the bathroom. I also have a 240 sq. ft. finishing room at the rear of the garage. The finishing room and basement workshop are connected by double doors and a 6′ wide stairway. This is great for bringing materials in and taking projects out. The finishing room is also used to store a 5′ x 10′ trailer for getting materials. There is also a traditional stairway from the shop to the living area of the house.

Some of the unique features of the shop include six 3′ x 5′ daylight windows and a 9′ foot ceiling. The shop has color correcting fluorescent lights like those used in paint shops. A dedicated electrical panel provides power to the 110V and 220V outlets that are spaced about every 3′ and 50″ off the floor. The shop stays about 60 to 70 degrees year around. Anti-fatigue mats cover the floor. The ceiling and walls have two layers of drywall with sound resilient channel between the layers. There is blown cellulous insulation in the walls and ceiling. The dust collection room has additional sound proofing and also houses the air compressor. All this creates a good sound barrier to the living area of the house above. The shop has a 37″ flat screen TV connected to a stereo. The sound can be transmitted via a long range FM transmitter so that I can listen to music or TV thru my headphones even with equipment running.

My primary equipment includes a Steel City 3HP granite top cabinet table saw, Festool Kapex miter saw, Grizzly 2HP 17î bandsaw, Dewalt 20″ scroll saw, Grizzly 3HP oscillating edge sander, Grizzly floor standing oscillating spindle sander, Grizzly 12″ baby drum sander, 5HP 38″ Woodmaster drum sander, Delta bench top disc sander, Delta 17″ drill press, Jet 2HP full size lathe, 3HP router table, Grizzly 3HP 15″ spiral head planer, and a Grizzly 3HP 8″ spiral head jointer. A collection of Festool power tools compliments the stationary tools. There is a 4′ x 8′ vacuum press for veneering. The dust collection and air filtration for the shop is an Oneida 5HP cyclone dust collector and two Jet overhead air cleaners.

The work tables include a 20″ x 40″ sanding table, 4′ x 8′ worktable with a shelf underneath for storing the current project, a 38 x 76 traditional hardwood workbench with more project storage underneath, a miter saw station with two 8′ wings and ruled stops for quick and repeatable cuts, 7′ x 4′ table saw out feed table with offcut storage underneath, two 48î x 26î rolling cabinets, and 3 Festool multifunction tables. The Festool MFTs are the most used work surfaces in the shop. In all there are 55 shop made drawers plus a few cabinets for storing hand tools and supplies. A couple of long shelves are used for storing veneer. The clamp rack holds over a hundred clamps of varying sizes. The 4′ x 8′ lumber rack holds stick lumber, sheet goods and two large rolls of waxed and unwaxed paper.

I had never been able to saw a straight line or even nail a board. About three years ago my son needed my help on his Eagle Scout project. We struggled but with lots of help, built a playhouse on the church playground. Afterwards I took the leftover lumber and made myself a little workbench. I began picking up a tool here and there and before I knew it, I wanted to make a few projects. For fifteen years my life revolved between my two sons. My oldest kept us at the baseball fields 9 months out of the year and my youngest kept me busy as an Assistant Scoutmaster. My extra activities had come to and end and I am so glad I found woodworking. My wife and sons even get into it occasionally. The following are a few photos of my humble little shop.

My first workbench was made from leftover Eagle project. A grinder, sander and drill press are in the background. Also is the pegboard and table saw. With more scraps I made a stand for a hand-me-down miter saw, complete with an old Kirby for dust collection. Also are shelves for sanders, jigsaw and such.

When the wood started piling up I had to make lumber rack, cutoff bin. The router table sits below.

After the projects started, I decided I needed a better workbench. I made this one with a low budget. The large and small shoulder vises came from Highland Woodworking. I started playing around on a lathe and had to have one. I have made several bowls now. Plan to start turning pens soon.

My latest purchase, from Highland Woodworking, is my new 14 inch Steel City band saw. I plan on picking up the riser block and fence later on. I have already cut bowl blanks and attempted a collapsible castle.

Well, thats my little shop. I started off small but I plan to upgrade most of the tools. Over the last couple of years I have made several projects including Adirondack chairs, quilt racks for charity, a cedar chest for my wife among other items. You can check them out at: http://lumberjocks.com/billboard You can check out my shop cam on Ustream or on the Live Cam list. I am live in the shop a couple of days a week. I have been enjoying my new hobby, especially bowl turning. I plan to take the bowl turning classes at Highland Woodworking soon.