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My 20'X40' Hot Rod Hobby Shop pics

NUROADSIR

Active member
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Messages
29
Location
So MN
We had a garage tour this weekend, and I had the garage cleaned up so I thought I would post up some pics of my 20X40 shop (condo) with 14' ceilings. I also spent a few weekends cleaning up my equipment and painting it which seems a little **** but in retospect it's actually makes things look less busy..

I've been able to scrounge quite a bit of equipment and wall hanging stuff from good friends and family at other stuff has been cost effectively acquired along the way.

Heres a good overall. I have work space at the front and 4 post as you walk in so I can stack two cars. I picked up the 4 post last year. It's a Danmar and overall I am really happy with it, and by far the largest single expense. Ideally I would like a scissors lift recessed in the concrete below it for wheel and tire changes and brake jobs...

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I had an electrical contractor friend give me four 6 bulb HO t-5 fixtures that really light things up. I may need additional lights at the entrance of the shop above the overhead door to create a little more light.

My dad had the vintage lights for 20 plus years and donated them. I converted the lights to 100W equivalent fluorescents and hang from uni-strut.

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The vintage 1948 cabinets are from state mental hospital and have stainless shelves and bottoms. I picked these up for $300 I think I might paint the white wire shelf to match. I picked up some doors (auction buy for $20) for the front of my work benches (pictured) I'll paint them the same shade of green. I made the work benches from 3" angle and 3" square tubing with double layer plywood tops.

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Looking back. I added some 32" wide 13'6" tall speed rack to one side to keep things off the floor. Space is tight. Normally I put the wagon up top to create a little more floor space but I have a few projects to do on the car to get it ready for summer.

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Another pic of the cabinets

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I tried to match the workbench to the cabinets but they are not quite right. The work bench is from the 50's and it was olive drab. The saw was an auction find 20 years ago from an old, old machine shop. It is a meat saw converted to steel and it works great. The midus sign was a freebie from a sheep shed that I found last year.

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My metal fab table to the right. It has 1" surface ground top, and is built from 4"X4" 1/4" wall tube. It weighs about 2000 lbs. I plan on installing pull out cabinets on slides to hide some metal working tools, scrap steel, fixtures etc.

That model A sedan body piece with the number 14 is from a dirt modified that my dad build in 69 and 70. It was really competitive in Southern Mn, and won the MN State Fair Modified Championship. I tracked the body down a few years ago bought it and gave it to my Dad for Fathers day. He thought it would look cool in my shop, the other side is going into the Kossuth County Iowa racing hall of fame, as he was inducted last year.

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Here's another pic. The welding cart was fabbed from extra header mandrel bends. My uncle made the vice stand. The vice feet have foot pedals, that actuate cams to deploy casters inside the round tubing feet. The Chevrolet sign is from my Dad's garage and originally was attached to a barn door.

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The little shear was a C/L find. I had to make a new pedal assy as the cast pedal was in a half dozen pieces and had been brazed another half dozen times. I used custom ovalized foot pedal that is scrap steel from exercise equipment. It will do short pieces of 18ga. I think it is 1920's vintage.

The press is a new addition as well. I bought this for $45. I had to reinforce the down tubes with the triangular plates as it was tweaked pretty good. I then cleaned it up and painted it. It works well.

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Next plans are for a bead blast cabinet, and I would like to update the welder, and start doing some ornamental iron work..

Hope this provides some inspiration, and ideas!
Thanks!
 
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Omphaloskeptic

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 11, 2008
Messages
2,346
Location
Ultima Ratio, Wa.
Wow, terrific shop! You certainly have been fortunate in acquiring equipment, storage, and signage for your place; well done!

Your Uncle's design for the vise stand is really slick. Could you post some close-ups of the caster cam mechanism? A mobile vise that is stable/stout has got to come in very handy, especially when you start doing the ornamental iron work.

More detail pics of the toys and tools would be very welcome.
 

Boostmeister

Member
Joined
Mar 12, 2013
Messages
15
There is a lot to like here .... really well done, love the cabinets and the colour you have chosen for some of the bench frames and tool stands is great. Like this a lot! Thanks for sharing.
 
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NUROADSIR

Active member
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Messages
29
Location
So MN
Theres a few sketches at the bottom. The first shows the foot pedal level in the up position, and the second the lever is in the down position deploying the caster. The lever passes through a milled slot in the square tubing and is attached to a piece of round bar stock (cam) that is drilled off center and has a flat milled on it. The cam pivots on a 1/2 bolt through the square tubing and pushes on a steel slug (the red piece and heavy for extra mass) It has a caster welded to the bottom of it. This assy rides inside the steel tubing shown in green that is welded to the square tubing.

You can kick the wheels down and it has about 3/16 travel and when you get it in position just kick the levers and it sets down on the steel tubes

If you need pics I can take some.




Wow, terrific shop! You certainly have been fortunate in acquiring equipment, storage, and signage for your place; well done!

Your Uncle's design for the vise stand is really slick. Could you post some close-ups of the caster cam mechanism? A mobile vise that is stable/stout has got to come in very handy, especially when you start doing the ornamental iron work.

More detail pics of the toys and tools would be very welcome.
 

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Icky1911

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 31, 2013
Messages
65
WOW! Awesome shop! Great signs, great looking tools, cars, and lifts.
 

Omphaloskeptic

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 11, 2008
Messages
2,346
Location
Ultima Ratio, Wa.
Theres a few sketches at the bottom. The first shows the foot pedal level in the up position, and the second the lever is in the down position deploying the caster. The lever passes through a milled slot in the square tubing and is attached to a piece of round bar stock (cam) that is drilled off center and has a flat milled on it. The cam pivots on a 1/2 bolt through the square tubing and pushes on a steel slug (the red piece and heavy for extra mass) It has a caster welded to the bottom of it. This assy rides inside the steel tubing shown in green that is welded to the square tubing.

You can kick the wheels down and it has about 3/16 travel and when you get it in position just kick the levers and it sets down on the steel tubes

If you need pics I can take some.


Thanks for the reply!

Nice, clean design that could be made without the need of a mill/lathe.

"and is attached to a piece of round bar stock (cam) that is drilled off center and has a flat milled on it."

I'm guessing the round bar stock is about 1" dia.?
 
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NUROADSIR

Active member
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Messages
29
Location
So MN
Correct, on the one inch, as the travel does not need to be that much (3/16)It could definately be replicated without a mill or lathe. I forgot to mention that the outer tubes have a set screw at the bottom to keep the inner steel cylinder and caster from falling out the bottom.


Thanks for the reply!

Nice, clean design that could be made without the need of a mill/lathe.

"and is attached to a piece of round bar stock (cam) that is drilled off center and has a flat milled on it."

I'm guessing the round bar stock is about 1" dia.?
 
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NUROADSIR

Active member
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Messages
29
Location
So MN
The 62 is is a 78K actual car with one repaint. It still has the 283, 2bbl, glide factory air and a perfect original interior. It's hard to get in this an not grin...I just installed the new wheels, and plan on pulling the window tint, and painting the window posts blue again..(un-dorkifying it!)

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This is an aftermarket steel '32..Healthy small block, 5 speed, 4:11 rear, British Racing Green and Tan Leather, a real fun car that works really good.

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Heres the chassis for my '34. The body is steel, I chopped the top in the mid 90's, and it stalled while raising the kids, now I have redone the chassis, bartered my way to a 392 Hemi, GM 4-speed, and it will have a quick change rear...It should demand your full attention....

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Very nice. Would like to see a few more photos. Tell us about the 62 Chevy...Mike
 
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WhoWhatNow

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Joined
Feb 22, 2011
Messages
1,889
Location
Collegeville, PA
Theres a few sketches at the bottom. The first shows the foot pedal level in the up position, and the second the lever is in the down position deploying the caster. The lever passes through a milled slot in the square tubing and is attached to a piece of round bar stock (cam) that is drilled off center and has a flat milled on it. The cam pivots on a 1/2 bolt through the square tubing and pushes on a steel slug (the red piece and heavy for extra mass) It has a caster welded to the bottom of it. This assy rides inside the steel tubing shown in green that is welded to the square tubing.

You can kick the wheels down and it has about 3/16 travel and when you get it in position just kick the levers and it sets down on the steel tubes

If you need pics I can take some.

Awesome space and beautiful cars. This is a great idea. I would love some more pictures when you get a chance.

Thanks for sharing
 

jdeck

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 18, 2013
Messages
82
Location
Boston, MA
:thumbup:Nice shop. Very nice cars too!

I'm really digging the wall cabinets, signs and especially the vintage lights. Good job on painting everything the same green color too, adds to the details.
 

Aaron P.

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 27, 2007
Messages
96
very nice shop n great use of the space...loving the complete retro style fit out.....can you add on an extension to either side to get some more space on the shop floor? my shack is 19 x 27, two cars n a bench make it very tight.....i need more space but more money to make the shack a palace....lol
 
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NUROADSIR

Active member
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Messages
29
Location
So MN
It was insulated and tinned out when I bought it. The panels are full height 14ft to the ceiling. I had electrical service but no outlets, so I ran the conduit. I did cut 4"x4" X 1/4" masonite spacers to put behind the outlet boxes and space them out, so I could run straight pieces of conduit between the receptacles that just clear the ribs.

For the 240 welder and compressor conduits I decided to use uni-strut fastened to the walls.

...Nothing was easy, but probably more thinking than doing if you know what I mean.

I probably put too many outlets in, and my justification was conduit is cheap, boxes are cheap, outlets are cheap......but when I started screwing all the terminals in place, it seemed to take forever..


I'm real likin' what I see here. Shop, equipment and cool cars!!!!!!

I like that surface mount electric on those liner panels. Was that hard to do? What length panels did you use?
 
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NUROADSIR

Active member
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Messages
29
Location
So MN
Aaron,
I'm in a fairly small town, and this is actually a condo arrangement...but not on the scale of typical garage condos. This consists of two buildings one with four 26X40 units and one with three 20X40 units. I got a great deal on my 20X40 and couldn't pass it up. Now there is a 26X40 for sale but he is asking double what I paid. Last week the guy next to me said he is going to sell, but I'm not sure I can swing it...his price per square foot is nearly double what I paid....I think I'll wait him out a little.


very nice shop n great use of the space...loving the complete retro style fit out.....can you add on an extension to either side to get some more space on the shop floor? my shack is 19 x 27, two cars n a bench make it very tight.....i need more space but more money to make the shack a palace....lol
 
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