Between 265 & 485 SQ/FT The 12-Gauge Garage

[bazzateer]

Jack, as ever you've presented this 'precis' of your garage in a simple but informative style making it an enjoyable read. You should take up writing professionally, I'm sure you'd do well at it.....................................oh, hang on a minute.............err.............******!

 

[bushhawg73]

Very nice. The garage has both fit and function. The detail you put into the place shows not to mention you are a pretty good welder and carpenter.

 

[Swiftmotoring]

Jack,
I have enjoyed reading the threads on you 911 and garage, very impressive. What does a guy with your taste and talent use as a daily driver??

 

[Jack Olsen]

Thanks, guys. I actually got about an hour to do some work in the place today. I ripped five 2x4s down the middle.

Then I had to cut the results into 60 15-1/4" lengths. I've got too many C-clamps, but it makes something like this easy to set up. I only had to measure once.

When it's done, it's going to be a toy for the kid to climb on in the front yard -- part wood ladder, part rope ladder.

Jack,
I have enjoyed reading the threads on you 911 and garage, very impressive. What does a guy with your taste and talent use as a daily driver??

Thanks. It's funny. I'm deciding right now what to get next -- which will mean getting rid of my current daily driver.

I'm a little bit irrational when it comes to cars. (Okay, I'm a lot irrational when it comes to cars.) I drive the Porsche around town a lot more than a guy in his forties ought to. It's got a full cage. It sets off car alarms whenever I go out (not from volume so much as because its springs are so stiff it shakes the pavement). I drive my 1983 Jeep CJ7 a lot too, in spite of the fact that it's old and ugly and probably not very safe.

My official daily driver is currently a Jaguar XK8 coupe, which I've had for seven years. It's never gotten to stay in the garage, so it's getting a little tired looking. The only picture I have is from shortly after I got it.

The XK8 has been reliable and comfortable, but I'm only sort of a fan of its styling. That said, I tend to hate anything designed after 1963 or so. I had a Series 3 Jaguar XJ-6 for a while before this one, and thought it was really beautiful. At the time I was young and single and had no need at all for a big old sedan.

Now I've got a kid, and I need to get a sedan again. It's got to be reliable and I suppose it ought to be something the kid won't be embarrassed by when I pick him up from school. So that means locating that old XJ-6 is out of the question, as much as I miss it. And the newer Jaguar I've been driving might qualify as a 'trying too hard' car for a guy who's going to be pushing 50.

I've been looking at a lot of different cars this past few months, and I will no doubt end up making a poor decision because I disqualify so many cars for totally irrational reasons. (Like, I really only like round headlights on a car. And anything touched by Chris Bangle makes my skin crawl.) The currently leading candidate might end up winning the contest not because it's a particularly good car, in any way, but because it generates the fewest objections from my long list of car-related idiosyncrasies.

But I can't think of a single car made in the past five years that I really like -- even if cost weren't an option. It makes my wife a little crazy, and I can't blame her. She drives a Prius. It was an easy decision for her, and she loves the thing.

 

[bknudtsen]

I've been looking at a lot of different cars this past few months, and I will no doubt end up making a poor decision because I disqualify so many cars for totally irrational reasons. (Like, I really only like round headlights on a car. And anything touched by Chris Bangle makes my skin crawl.) The currently leading candidate might end up winning the contest not because it's a particularly good car, in any way, but because it generates the fewest objections from my long list of car-related idiosyncrasies.

But I can't think of a single car made in the past five years that I really like -- even if cost weren't an option. It makes my wife a little crazy, and I can't blame her. She drives a Prius. It was an easy decision for her, and she loves the thing.

I totally understand your way of thinking! My irrational idiosyncrasies revolve more around having a vehicle that could survive a post-apocolyptic zombieland. My wife doesn't understand either.

Anyway, have you considered a well kept Toyota Landcruiser FJ60? It has round headlights, four doors, looks cool, readily accepts a chevy V-8, and has that cool retro look thing you seem to like.

Here's a company in Van Nuys; that does renovations, conversions, sales.

http://www.tlc4x4.com/FJ60_86_shots.htm
http://www.tlc4x4.com/FJ60_84_shots.htm

Good luck,

Brad

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

V8 in a post '75 car in California? Uh...no. Not legally at least.

 

[mad57]

Jack great redo on an allready nicely done garage space.... but i have to see some more pics of the porsche, iam a 57 chevy guy but have always wanted an older style porsche.

 

[jj3]

Every time I see this garage I really enjoy it. It is clean, simple and basic (but just on the surface). Once you get into the depth of the entire area it becomes evident that so much work and thought went into every aspect.

As has been said before, you're an inspiration Jack.

Thanks for sharing with us!
JJ

 

[bossracer]

What kind of hinge do you use on the folding work benches? I can't make them out. I have a 9 foot section of countertop out of the neighbors house. I'm thinking to copy your idea. I like it!

Garage looks great.

 

[metal1313]

jack i say keep the cj and clean it up, dont go crazy, but upgrade the brakes, maybe a little slight performance and suspension work, and new seats, belts, and a real cage. safe and fun, and it could easily pull a little 4x8 trailer, such as an hf type folding trailer.

that siad if i was better off id keep my bronco and buy a newer truck. the bronco needs alot of rust repair, and even though i know i can get the panels cheap, and can replace them myself, i cant paint the truck, or afford the time to have it down.

 

[markviii]

Jack,

I enjoyed reading about your garage renovation (I saw the original thread, too). It's nice to see it kept as a working space, not a show place. You used the space to good advantage to meet your work space needs. Nice to see you thinking of safety as well with the rounded corners on the table. As for the flooring, it looks great - I like the light color for reflectivity and the tile dresses it up. While using your welder, you could put some sort of covering on the floor (non-flammable, of course), similar to what BB767 does when he welds or works on cars on our black/white tiled floor. Good job all round.

Chris (markviii)

 

[Jack Olsen]

Jack great redo on an allready nicely done garage space.... but i have to see some more pics of the porsche, iam a 57 chevy guy but have always wanted an older style porsche.

Thanks. I had the car out at our local track again last week. It's pretty in the pictures, but there's no substitute for redline in 5th gear as you go through turn 8 at Willow Springs.

What kind of hinge do you use on the folding work benches? I can't make them out. I have a 9 foot section of countertop out of the neighbors house. I'm thinking to copy your idea. I like it!

The hinges on the wooden bench have a four inch pin length and the long leaf is 6" while the short leaf is 2". I have three -- each fastened into a wall stud with 3" wood screws. I also have a support underneath each hinge so that when the work surface is down it's resting its weight on the support, not stretching the hinge.

I can jump up and down on the bench without a problem.

Jack,

I enjoyed reading about your garage renovation (I saw the original thread, too). It's nice to see it kept as a working space, not a show place. You used the space to good advantage to meet your work space needs. Nice to see you thinking of safety as well with the rounded corners on the table. As for the flooring, it looks great - I like the light color for reflectivity and the tile dresses it up. While using your welder, you could put some sort of covering on the floor (non-flammable, of course), similar to what BB767 does when he welds or works on cars on our black/white tiled floor. Good job all round.

Chris (markviii)

Thank you, Chris. Your husband's and your shop is already the stuff of legend on this board, so I appreciate your noticing my little 400 dquare feet of project space. I do put welding blankets down -- otherwise I get little spot burns from slag and grinder spray.

And while I'm posting pictures, here's the new phone that just went in -- I won't have to go scrambling around for one of the cordless ones anymore. And my tongue-in-cheek sign reminds me that the garage is not for chatting it up.

 

[bossracer]

Jack,

I definitely stole some of your ideas. The countertop section needed only a small corner cut off to clear. It is 10 feet long. I used 4 adjustable spring hinges and 2 regular hinges. The adjustable spring hinges were supposed to help take some of the weight off. They are designed for a door, not vertical operation so I'm not so sure they are doing anything. I may try to install a hatchback lift strut and see if it can help with the weight.

I used a 2X4 all the way across the bottom. Still need to add another on the left side. Ran out of scrap wood.

All in all, it was super cheap. table top - free. 2X4's -- free, left overs. I spent about 100 bucks on hinges, eye bolts and clips.

I couldn't find any heavy duty feet like yours. What brand are they?

Still need to paint it all, like yours.

Table up:

Down:

Whole shot. You can see it is small. 17X17.

 

[michel]

Now come on...
Pls talk to us about the Mustang sir...

 

[Mustanger]

Yes...tell us about the car....

 

[Jack Olsen]

That's cool!

I wouldn't have thought of an L-shaped table like that, but it looks like it works great.

The spring hinges are certainly increasing the support for the table, like any hinge would. I doubt you can dial in enough tension to make a meaningful difference in helping with the weight, though.

With the straight up and down legs, I wonder if it would make sense to have a hinged triangle shaped piece (maybe 14" on each side where there's the right angle) that could swing out and lock the center leg into position, somehow, sort of like a gusset -- so there's no danger of the legs getting kicked out. Then again, I know that's not an issue on my metal table -- yours might be beefy enough to insure nothing slides when it's in the down position.

Some more storage and some paint and that Mustang is going to have a really cool place to rest. Is it a straight-line or a track car? It looks bada$$.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Jack, the garage still looks great man. Every time I see a pic of your garage, I'm amazed with the amount of stuff you have jammed in there and still organized.

Something I've been wondering for a while, what is the total count on the C-clamps ?

 

[bossracer]

On the legs, I'm planning on adding 2X4's to keep the legs from over extending. I've thought about how to tie them together. But it would have to be up high to keep from hitting stuff below. Plus with the full length 2X4 underneath, the table should stop in the correct place.

Well, like the garage the car is a work in progress. It is a re-creation of a car that never was. I was only 7 years old at the peak of the Trans Am years. But I've always loved them. It is built just like I would have built it back in the day, provided Rich Uncle Louie wrote the check. There is essentially no modern technology in it. It does have a front bumper on it now. But there are no pics of it.

Flat tappet solid lifter cam, double pumper Holley, no mufflers, stock Mustang suspension. 15X8 inch wheels. Bone stock Boss heads, stock stroke honest 302 CID. And 40 year old NOS TRW pistons. When I started "vintage" road racing, racing gas was about 2 bucks a gallon. Now it is 10. And I can run through 40 gallons in a weekend. So, I don't get to run it much. I hope to run it a couple times this year. I've sat out since Nov '08.

here are a couple shots of it on the track:

here's the engine bay. Air Filter top has since been replaced by an aluminum lid that matches the valve covers:

here's a link to all the pics: http://www.supermotors.net/registry/6520

 

[rustbucket49]

Jack, I see you got a Millermatic Auto-Set. You had a Hobart to start with, didn't you? Which Miller did you get ?

 

[Jack Olsen]

Something I've been wondering for a while, what is the total count on the C-clamps ?

Ha! Are you suggesting I might have a problem -- especially considering I'm a hobby welder at best?

Well, maybe I do. I just counted. I have 78 C-clamps total. 55 are 6" or less. 23 are between 8" and 12".

But each one's got a place -- so if you stand in front of the garage, you can't see any of them. And I got all of them second-hand, or from Harbor Freight, so there's not a fortune invested there.

Jack, I see you got a Millermatic Auto-Set. You had a Hobart to start with, didn't you? Which Miller did you get ?

It's a Millermatic 211. I sold the Hobart 140 to a fellow Garage Journaler.

I still haven't installed 220 in the garage, so I'm basically doing the same type of work I'd been doing with the 140. But I got a good deal on the 211 and now have some room to grow.

 

[NUTTSGT]

78 , wow, I have a long way to go to catch up

 

[Shrek]

Jack,

Do you happen to have a build on the over head cabinets? I like the look of them and thing something similar would work great in my space.

Thanks,

Glenn

 

[Jack Olsen]

I don't have very good documentation on the cabinets. But here's what I snapped with the camera while I was putting them together.

They're attached to the wall studs and ceiling joists. It's a pretty straightforward box design, with (sistered) 2x4 supports along the front and single 2x4s in the rear -- also 2x4 uprights. The shelving is 7/16" MDF. The sliding doors are hardboard, I think 3/16". Since the majority of the new cabinets were directly above a pair of cabinets that would not be moveable (and weigh over 700 pounds each), I also let the weight of the lower shelf sit right on top of the cabinets. But if you could silde the metal cabinets out (you can't), the wooden cabinets would support themselves just fine.

This is where I started, getting the stored stuff out of the old cabinets.

I had to do a little patching on the exposed sections.

1,500 pounds of steel cabinets moved in. Thanks to levers, furniture dollies and carpet, my back was not injured in the process.

This is with the framing started. You can see that the section of the cabinets above where the workbench is going to go has a bottom edge that's higher. Work lighting gets fit into that space.

For the sliding doors, I simply used a table saw to cut grooves in a section of 2x4.

Here the doors are in place.

And now there's paint and the decorative aluminum strip is glued on.

This is a set of similar shelves above my steel-topped bench. I made a curved corner for this set.

And here it is with skin and trim.

And here it is all together:

 

[51rider]

That last photo has to be my favourite of your shop

I particularly like the bench with the curved metal frame. It all blends in so well & looks absolutely fantastic.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

...For the sliding doors, I simply used a table saw to cut grooves in a section of 2x4.

Hi Jack,
I don't know why I never thought of this before but this re-post of your sliding door details made a light come on in my head.

I have a large built-in shelving unit from the previous owner that I put a face frame on, intending to make doors for it. It's about 7' tall x 5' +/-. Complicating the matter is that my JetSki trailer is parked right in front of it so door swing room is limited. Since you have these sliders; though yours are smaller, do you think the dado-ed 2x4 approach would provide adequate ease of sliding larger hardboard doors than you used? Each door would be 7' tall and just over 25" wide. Right now, I rarely get into this cabinet because it holds camping and seasonal stuff. But I'm moving that stuff overhead and will put more regularly used stuff there in the future.

The other option would be to hang the hardboard doors by sliding bedroom closet door type hangers, but so far I haven't found the sheet metal track you mount overhead for those. I tried OSH, but will check out Home Depot this weekend. I'd like to get away cheap and just dado the 2x4's putting finger recesses in for opening/closing. Any advice appreciated.

 

[Jack Olsen]

I think it would work fine with hardboard on pine, honestly. The doors would each be 3' wide. If the wood grabbed too much, you could try some graphite, or beeswax (someone here will know what would be best), or even get 5' of aluminum T-shaped stock for the center, with wood on either side.

Rolling hangers would work, of course -- but that's not as cheap as a split 2x4.

And on an unrelated note: the thing I forgot, which is so obvious for this type of door, is to make the top set of grooves twice as deep as the bottom, so you can remove the doors by lifting them up until the bottom edge comes free. Mine are permanently trapped, which isn't a problem (yet), but there would have been no harm in cutting deeper grooves for the top guides.

Someone on this board reminded me of that, too late. Live and learn.

 

[Born_Annoyed]

First off, I'd like to say well done young man! I have a request. Can you please take a few pictures of the way you have the Anvill mounted? Looks like it's mounted to receiver bar's and welded to a 1/4 plate. And how is it attached to the wall???

Thanks, and keep up the great job.

Marc...

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Thanks for the fast response.

You're saying the doors should be 3' wide but that would be too much overlap to allow getting things in and out of the cabinet. Each face frame opening is (I think) about 26+". Is there any reason why I couldn't make the doors overlap only...say 2-3"? My concern about them sliding isn't so much the friction as it is the height vs width. Would they tend to rock rather than slide? But I think you're right that beeswax or silicone would help. I'll post up some pictures once I get this completed. Thanks again.

 

[tweezer]

Jack,

I definitely stole some of your ideas. The countertop section needed only a small corner cut off to clear. It is 10 feet long. I used 4 adjustable spring hinges and 2 regular hinges. The adjustable spring hinges were supposed to help take some of the weight off. They are designed for a door, not vertical operation so I'm not so sure they are doing anything. I may try to install a hatchback lift strut and see if it can help with the weight.

I used a 2X4 all the way across the bottom. Still need to add another on the left side. Ran out of scrap wood.

All in all, it was super cheap. table top - free. 2X4's -- free, left overs. I spent about 100 bucks on hinges, eye bolts and clips.

I couldn't find any heavy duty feet like yours. What brand are they?

Still need to paint it all, like yours.

Table up:

Down:

Whole shot. You can see it is small. 17X17.

Are you guys screwing those hinges straight to the wall?

 

[bossracer]

mine are screwed into the studs.

 

[Jack Olsen]

Yeah, it's not enough to just attach it to the wall. You've got to fasten to the studs themselves.

You're saying the doors should be 3' wide but that would be too much overlap to allow getting things in and out of the cabinet. Each face frame opening is (I think) about 26+". Is there any reason why I couldn't make the doors overlap only...say 2-3"? My concern about them sliding isn't so much the friction as it is the height vs width. Would they tend to rock rather than slide? But I think you're right that beeswax or silicone would help. I'll post up some pictures once I get this completed. Thanks again.

I was just throwing out an approximate size. If you make them overlap 2-3", it'll be perfect. Also, the lower you put the holes (or handles), the less tendency there'll be for them to rock.

 

[JBC]

Jack,

Part of the greatness of your garage is the fact that you do have limits. Everone has cash limits. Some more than others and thats great. I'm a card carrying capitalist and free market supporter myself. So, throw enough money at a problem and you can fix it - like make a refrigerator fly. I know, just take a look at the MH-53E (Sea Dragon). Its like running a business, a monkey can cut cost but it takes a creative mind to cut cost in the right places at the right time and use what he has available to make it work and work well. Your garage works well and it shows creativity and inginuity. That is worth a lot of cash in my mind.

JBC

 

[28HopUp]

Jack,

THANK YOU for posting up pics on the transformation of your garage. There are so many cool features that the rest of us can put to good use. Although high car-count pristine/decorated garages are interesting, your working shop utilizing a small space is inspiring. Thank you again!

 

[NUTTSGT]

Dan, you could also try some smaller hanging track some place like TSC. This would be the roller for the top. It rides in a metal track, it maybe to expensive for what you have in mind.
http://www.tractorsupply.com/home-i...ity-per-pair-flexible-with-door-strap-3542035


If you stick with the sliding doors like Jacks, you can use some regular bar bath soap as a lubricant to make the door slide easier.

 

[Jack Olsen]

That last photo has to be my favourite of your shop

I particularly like the bench with the curved metal frame. It all blends in so well & looks absolutely fantastic.

Thanks very much for that. Since I designed it and built it, I'm pretty pleased that someone else likes it.

Part of the greatness of your garage is the fact that you do have limits. Everone has cash limits. Some more than others and thats great. I'm a card carrying capitalist and free market supporter myself. So, throw enough money at a problem and you can fix it - like make a refrigerator fly. I know, just take a look at the MH-53E (Sea Dragon). Its like running a business, a monkey can cut cost but it takes a creative mind to cut cost in the right places at the right time and use what he has available to make it work and work well. Your garage works well and it shows creativity and inginuity. That is worth a lot of cash in my mind.

THANK YOU for posting up pics on the transformation of your garage. There are so many cool features that the rest of us can put to good use. Although high-car-count pristine/decorated garages are interesting, your working shop utilizing a small space is inspiring. Thank you again!

Thanks guys. You've gotta make the best of what you've got. I'd love to have a 50'x100' shop with a row of lifts holding up my fleet of high-end performance cars -- but I've got my two-car space and my 38-year-old race car and my wife occasionally asking why we have to park our regular cars out in the street. I'm fine with that. And she seems to understand.

At the same time, I'm not willing to give up the stuff I like to do -- so rather then trip over boxes of **** every time I want to make something cool for my kid, I'm glad I devoted a little bit time and energy to work benches and storage and ways to make the small space work as a kind of modest shop. I appreciate it every time I use it.

Latest little project -- front-yard zipline.

First off, I'd like to say well done young man! I have a request. Can you please take a few pictures of the way you have the Anvill mounted? Looks like it's mounted to receiver bar's and welded to a 1/4 plate. And how is it attached to the wall???

Well, I mounted the anvil to the plate in the, uh, wrong way. I drilled four holes through it and bolted the base plate on. But it's a Harbor Freight cast iron anvil, so it's greatest calling in life is probably going to be to occasionally straighten out a nail or bend a piece of steel stock.

On the wall mount, I don't have any pictures of the installation, unfortunately. But I'll say this: it's not a great idea for an anvil at all. I took the plywood off the wall and cut up a 1/8" steel C-shaped (like 2"x4" rectangle tubing, but only three sides) leg support for a workbench and made two crossmembers that fit between the wall studs. A double trailer hitch receiver got sandwiched between them. The square tubing on the anvil base slides into the hitch. The mount to the wall is pretty sturdy, but the whole point of an anvil is to be able to really go nuts on it with a hammer. I think I'd need to add a single-leg attachment going straight down to the floor from the base of the anvil if I wanted it to be strong enough, long term, for a lot of pounding. I think the way it is now I'd just tear up the wall studs.

That said, it's a good mount for a vise or a grinder when I'm using the welding table.

And it's a good place to store that anvil until I find a place for it. I got a 200# anvil not too long ago, so the little cast iron one is going to have to find a use somewhere or I'll send it packing to someone who needs a good boat anchor.

 

[rustbucket49]

I have been toying with idea of getting a MM212. I may invest in a TIG set-up first though......

 

[crewchief888]

as i've said before i think jack has one of the best looking/functional small garages ive seen.

making do with whats available, and searching for deals is what it's about.
anyone can spend money, and for a lot of people spending money on making a working garage "purty" aint gonna happen.

my hats off to you

 

[JBC]

Jack,

That zip line looks like a good flight simulator for the litte one. Just get that contraption to rotate around the wire and wham, you got an aileron roll. Make sure you have a good three point harness.

JBC

 

[thomask]

Building a zip line?

I know your a screen writer and wonder are you teaching your son to be a stunt double?

Neat project.

 

[Jack Olsen]

It's engineered to go pretty slow. But then, the kid hasn't even turned 2 yet. I bought that seat because it had a three-point harness and (presumably) was built to prevent litigation and broken toddlers.

But we'll see. So far, the little guy has gotten scared whenever I've put him in it. Maybe he knows some things about engineering I don't. I'll let him go at his own speed -- but I'll post a video when he starts liking it.