Inside The Woodshop

Some would call it a garage, but it hasn't seen a car in, uh, years. Many years.

It's small, but it only needs to have room for tools, wood & me. It's the woodshop.

I routinely spill onto the driveway when I need to process lumber, or let finish dry in the Southern California sun. On the driveway is the cargo trailer we use for storage when it's not on the road to our next event. Beside the house are 2 sheds that store lumber, work in progress and sometimes even finished work waiting for customers.

The shop is in chaos most days. Working in a small shop means that every flat surface is storage if it's not being actively used at the moment. The limit on space generally means I can only work on so many pieces at a time, but I keep learning new ways to juggle more projects on their way to the finish line.

In the woodshop, here are the tools I actively use to make the cutting boards, serving pieces, game boards & home decor shown on this site:

• The workbench I designed & made is the centerpiece of the shop. Every project spends a great deal of time on the bench.

• Craftsman 10" Cabinet Saw, now on its 2nd motor. Nothing fancy!
• Makita track saw for breaking down lumber.
• Probotix Nebula CNC Router. My "assistant" cuts most of the shaped boards and all of the home decor that I make.

• Custom router table cabinet I built using a Jessem lift & fence. The router is a 3-1/4 hp motor from Porter Cable.
• Craftsman 14" Band Saw.
• Delta 16-1/2" Drill Press, barely used.
• Every floor tool - and bench top tool - is connected to the dust collection system, an Oneida V3000 with HEPA filter. Good dust collection is essential for a happy marriage. Ask me how I know.
• DeWalt 735 planer, upgraded with a Shelix rotary cutter. This tool has a dedicated passive dust collection system with a cyclone collector and another HEPA-rated filter.
• I actually use 6x different sanding machines depending on the needs of the project at every stage. The Festool hand sanders are all connected to a Festool Dust Extractor, again with a HEPA rated filter.

1. Festool RO 150 FEQ: a 6" sander that's a beast
2. Festool RO 125 ETC: a 5" sander for edges
3. Festool DTS 400 REQ: a triangular hand sander for small spaces
4. Jet 16/32 Drum Sander
5. Jet 4" Benchtop Belt Sander
6. Jet Benchtop Random Oscillating Sander

Have a question about the shop? Drop me an email; I'm happy to help.

Henry

Valencia, CA

5/14/2020