Setting Up Your Workshop
by Carol Russell

Workshops tend to evolve over time and you don't always get the chance to plan as much as you may want to. However having a vision of where you are heading with your woodworking and what you want to make can help a lot.

Starting Off

Take a good look at the space allocated for your workshop. Whether you have a garage, an area under your house or a purpose-built shed, the tools you buy will be heavily influenced by the size and shape of the space you have to work in.
The smaller the space the more imperative good layout is and no available space should be wasted. It is very useful to be able to change the layout to accommodate larger projects. If you are going to purchase floor-standing machinery, I suggest you mount them on mobile bases so they can be easily rolled to one side when not in use.  

Some machines are just too big to move around and the orientation of your larger fixed machines and workbench can make all the difference to the flow of your workshop. Even if you are lucky enough to have a large workspace, a well-planned layout is still essential. You can walk a lot of extra miles in a large space and easily fill it up with needless things, creating confusion and disorganisation.

Drawing a plan on paper is important. You can even make a model that will help you see how things fit in relation to each other. I find it helpful to lay newspaper on the floor folded to the dimension of my machinery footprints, place them where I plan to have them and then walk around a bit see how it feels. The Carba-Tec catalogue contains the footprint dimensions of our floor-standing machinery, so you can do this before you buy anything.

Most of the larger items in your workshop have a relationship to each other. To keep the flow of your workshop running smoothly, position your machines in such a way that once a particular process is finished, the machine for the next stage is close at hand. Also, face them in a direction that doesn't involve a lot turning around of material. You will be grateful for this when machining long boards. The jointer and thicknesser are logically companion machines and will most likely share a dust extractor. Because they produce a lot of shavings, you will want to position them so the extraction hose is as short as possible to ensure maximum efficiency of your dust extractor. It also works well if your table saw is in-line with the thicknesser so after dressing your material you are easily able to size it.

Put special thought into positioning your sawbench, it needs as much space around it as possible, especially if you have a sliding table. You want to be able to move freely and safely around the whole saw and allow extra space for easy and safe handling of large boards and panels.

Safety

Safety is everything! Caring for yourself and those around you is always paramount. I don't want to sound like a manual but these basic principles should never be overlooked. Clear your work-areas, keep machinery in good condition and your blades well guarded. Use effective hold down systems, push sticks and eye and hearing protection. Don't work when tired or whilst taking drugs or alcohol and install the most effective dust extraction system you can afford (see Tony Forbes article The Basics of Dust Extraction and The Basics of Dust Extraction Part 2 from previous Focus magazine issues).

I can't stress enough that when an operation feels dangerous, don't do it! Always consider whether or not there is another way to achieve what you want more safely. It's easy to put yourself under pressure to finish a project and trying to take shortcuts is tempting, but you can pay a high price for those minutes gained. I have always considered myself a very careful woodworker but I can still call to mind several incidents of absolute stupidity on my part that should have been avoided.

I would also like to point out the importance of child-proofing. Even if you aren't a parent, small visitors have no end to their curiosity and ability to work out on/off buttons.  Keeping machines unplugged when not in use is essential. Make sure sharp hand tools are out of reach, or even better behind tool cabinet doors. Make sure machinery blades are covered or dropped below the table - a bandsaw or circular saw blade can be turned by hand and cause injury. Danger never goes away no matter how experienced you are. Sometimes experience and confidence can even reduce your vigilance.

Shop-Made Acccessories

Some of the handiest things you will ever have will be home-made out of scrap. Take the time to create your own jigs and accessories because you'll find that it is is time well spent. One of the nicest things anyone ever did for me was to make a pair of workshop trolleys to transport timber around the workshop. I often worked alone and they reduced a lot of handling and lifting.  I used them for everything especially when dressing a large quantity of timber. I had one at the infeed end and one at the outfeed end, and swapped them around when it was time to make the next pass. It reduced the chance of mixing up the boards. I probably wouldn't have taken the time out to make them for myself, yet they saved me a lot of time and effort in handling. They were also great to use as a glue-up table and could be wheeled to one side whilst my panels were drying. Many years on they are still in use. The next issue of Focus contains plans for a trolley very similar to mine.

Keeping It Down

Noise is nearly always a factor when designing a workshop, particularly as so many of us work in suburban settings. Try to purchase machines with induction motors. Most larger machines these days will have them, but smaller power tools such as routers and compound mitre saws still usually have brush motors and the sound can travel a long way. Having your timber racks around the wall can help buffer the sound. There are forms of insulation on the market that can be used to line the walls that have sound reduction properties. You can also clad with MDF or plywood sheeting which has the added advantage of giving a good surface to attach tool racks and shelves to.

An easy way to reduce your noise is to spend time mastering the use of hand tools. Sometimes we are all too quick to reach for a power tool when a handsaw, plane or cabinet scraper will do the job beautifully as well as giving you that special satisfaction that using hand tools brings.

Workbenches

No matter what you make you are going to need at least one workbench.  Your bench is the heart of your workshop and you will spend countless hours at it so give it the time and thought it deserves. There are many ways you can choose to go, from a heavy table with a flat top and a simple front vise to a traditional European style workbench with a well for tool storage, or a front vise and a tail vise and a bank of storage drawers underneath. It is essential for your bench surface to be flat. You need to be able to trust it as a point of reference when assembling projects. A lot of woodworkers like to be able to make their own workbench, especially as it can be made to measure to fit the space you have available. It is also an opportunity to use the skills you have acquired.