200 Square Foot Tiny Workshop

[goofiefoot]

Now that I'm actually using my small workshop, I'm realizing how important it is to keep the dust in check. Luckily, I had a lot of scrap material laying around to build this surprisingly effective dust filter!

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JZc_AP4dFM"]Building a Simple Workshop Dust Filter from Scrap Material - YouTube[/ame]

To prove I AM actually using my shop as, you know, a shop, I'll share one of my first projects. I finally got my european mount back on the pronghorn I shot in north Texas in October, so I wanted to make a plaque for it to hang on the wall.



I think it turned out great, and the best part about building this is I found a local guy setting up a sawmill to sell locally-sourced mesquite, live oak, and other native species. I was able to get a sampling of lumber to try out, and hope to build a relationship so we can work together on some more custom work.

The mesquite is amazing to work with. I ran the plaque through the planer a few times, then hit it with some sanding. It's nice and hard, and the grain and figuring is gorgeous!



I've heard live oak can be tricky to work with but we have a ton of it around from Hurricane Harvey in 2017. The grain is crazy and looks like it would make some interesting pieces. I ran a small piece through the planer and there was a lot of tear out around the cracks and holes. I'll have to play around it with more.



We'll see what we can do with these. I'm excited to get into more projects, and should have some ready to share more sooner than later.

[goofiefoot]

I've continued to work on getting tools and stuff off my workbench and shelves, and threw together a holder and charging station for my cordless drills out of scrap wood. Then I added a quick bit holder to keep those close at hand.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozjS0yGeBcI"]I Built a Quick and Easy Docking Station for my Cordless Drills - YouTube[/ame]

I also found a couple of Facebook Marketplace deals I couldn't pass up, so the shop is really filling out with tools. I've got to stop soon or I won't have room to work! :LOL:



I've been looking for a drill press off and on for a few years, and this one I just couldn't pass up. It's dirty and has a few dings, but it turns straight and is perfectly square!



I've been wanting to learn lathe-work for some time, but couldn't justify the start-up cost. I bought this off an older gentleman who had all the original parts, and the manual! The full set of chisels was a bonus.

[bobc]

Very cool. Going to get caught up on your most recent videos when I get home this evening. Keep up the good work.

[goofiefoot]

I've enjoyed using my shop-vac-based dust collection system, but have hated the room it takes up and dragging the individual components around the shop, so I built a cart!

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fjjvZpM0Ks"]How to build a workshop dust collection cart - YouTube[/ame]

It works well and keeps everything together, and most importantly, it's keeps things stable so I don't have to worry about the bucket tipping over while in use.

I hope y'all are enjoying the shop projects. More sooner than later I hope to actually move on to creating things for something other than workshop organization.

[goofiefoot]

I came across some old photos from about 6 years ago when I restored my grandfather's old Wilton bench vise and was pleased on how well the restoration went, as this vise still looks and works as awesome as it did when I put it back together.


This is the condition before I began restoring it. It worked great then!


Here is the newly restored vise - 6 years ago.


...and here it is today, right at home in the tiny workshop.

I put together a video of the restoration:

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItR3N5z9Zac"]How to restore an old rusty bench vise - YouTube[/ame]

I've been continuing to get things organized - building french cleat holders for smaller tools, and planning out where my larger tools and workbench might end up.

[kestanley2006]

Impressive restoration of the vice! Very well done


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Kingfisher789]

I've continued to work on getting tools and stuff off my workbench and shelves, and threw together a holder and charging station for my cordless drills out of scrap wood. Then I added a quick bit holder to keep those close at hand.

I Built a Quick and Easy Docking Station for my Cordless Drills - YouTube

I also found a couple of Facebook Marketplace deals I couldn't pass up, so the shop is really filling out with tools. I've got to stop soon or I won't have room to work! :LOL:



I've been looking for a drill press off and on for a few years, and this one I just couldn't pass up. It's dirty and has a few dings, but it turns straight and is perfectly square!





I've been wanting
to learn lathe-work for some time, but couldn't justify the start-up cost. I bought this off an older gentleman who had all the original parts, and the manual! The full set of chisels was a bonus.

Have you used that lathe?

[goofiefoot]

Have you used that lathe?

Not yet. I put a fresh edge on the tools, and next step is to build a stand for it. I picked up some free mulberry wood that has some interesting shape to it, and hope to do some primary turning on some of that to get it started on drying.

[Witchgrass]

Not yet. I put a fresh edge on the tools, and next step is to build a stand for it. I picked up some free mulberry wood that has some interesting shape to it, and hope to do some primary turning on some of that to get it started on drying.

You can also use a microwave to speed up the drying process. Usually within 2 days or so.

[goofiefoot]

Here in south Texas, we have a lot of mesquite, and I've been enjoying working with it in the shop. I needed a woodworking mallet, so I built one from a small slab I had laying around. This was a fairly easy build, and the final product turned out well. Boiled linseed oil really popped out the grain in the mesquite, and it looks amazing in the sunlight.



Check out the full build, and watch it come together:

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smHOjWmo8HI"]Make a Custom Woodworkers Mallet - YouTube[/ame]

I also got the wood lathe up and running. I found a cheap dresser on Marketplace and used some scrap boards to get the height just right. I've never used a lathe - just watched some YouTube videos - so I was anxious to get started. I sharpened the tools and started practicing. My first project was simply turning down a blank and practicing some tool work. Then I decided to use one of the mallet cut-offs to make my own magic wand. I think it turned out pretty well!







I've got the shop to a good point to actually start working on things and that's a huge step for me. I've spent a good amount of effort building tool and supply holders for the french cleat wall with the goal to get stuff off the floor and workbench so I have a clean workflow. The dresser for the lathe stand has nice drawers to hold supplies as well. I have a few more cabinets and stands for my tools I want to build, however, I feel I'm at a really good spot to actually start working!



Stay tuned! More's on the way.

[PoppinPiggies]

Looks like you are making the most of the space there for sure

[Matthewc131]

That's Awesome!!

[goofiefoot]

I had a cool partnership opportunity come up with Oneida Air Systems. One of their reps reached out after watching my dust collection cart video, and wanted me to take their newest Dust Deputy 2.5 for a spin and give it a review. I've been happy with the original Dust Deputy, so I was really pleased to try out the new kit, which came with a 10-gallon steel drum to replace my 5-gallon Home Depot bucket.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNRQKBxrT-s"]Big Upgrade to My Workshop Dust Collection System - YouTube[/ame]

[goofiefoot]

I finally got around to building my deck for the shop. With lumber prices finally starting to dip down, I grabbed some pressure treated wood and knocked this out in a couple days. I'm glad to have a nice, level space to work on dusty, messy, fume-y projects to keep the inside of the shop a little cleaner.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVg8ijsczZI"]I built a deck workspace for my tiny workshop - YouTube[/ame]

[goofiefoot]

Finally, I have the shop to a point where I can get around to showing off some projects!

My wife started a new teaching position this year, and asked if I could make her a pointer for her classroom. I did it one better and turned an oversized magic wand out of purpleheart - purple is her favorite color.









The purple color faded as I turned and sanded the wood, so I found a good way to bring that color back before I applied the finish. A little acetone and some time in the sun - brought back the color big-time.

Here's the full video showing the entire process:

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5htSqSik78c"]Turning a Purple Heart Magic Wand - YouTube[/ame]