Between 485 & 705 SQ/FT Mid-Century Moto Mecca Makeover
- Thread starter sakurama
- Start date
Workspaces between 485 and 705 squarefeet.
E12-535iTurbo
Well-known member
You know that I bought a solderpot because of you and that I now feel an additional urge to revamping my little Honda just so I can use it and have that little detail just perfected.
Damn you Gregor!
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Damn you Gregor!
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GeddyT
Well-known member
Just watched Episode 8. I know for a fact that my beard game is not strong enough to have earned an invite to that pre-show party!
Or maybe Portland in general...
Or maybe Portland in general...
So I was working on both the subject of this post and shooting it for IG stories and got frustrated a bit with both. It took way longer than I expected (big surprise) and after working on it in Rush on my phone I got frustrated with trying to cut so much to fit IG's format so I gave up and didn't. So tonight I posted my first little video that I edited on my own. I'm such a big boy!
Much like in Hawaii when you get off the plane here you're given a PNW beard to have or to share. It comes wrapped in a Pendleton shirt with some strip bar tokens and a can of microbrew.
We also had beards for people to rent. You'd have been fine.
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Sometimes I feel like I spend more time trying to find the quick and easy way to do something than if I'd just succumbed to what I knew I should do in the first place. Maybe that's part of the process.
So focusing on the lathe I wanted to address the tool holder that I'd made a long time ago with aluminum. It was nice to see how bad my aluminum welds were because it certainly tells me I've progressed leaps and bounds. I had run out of space and I wasn't keen on the design.
If you want to see the video on this (GJ prevents embedding in build threads - who knows why) you can check it out here:
I would suggest a dry martini you can drink in about three minutes.
I think I spent the better part of a whole day cleaning the shop and trying to think of an easy way to cut these plywood holders and then hold them in place to fix them on the board. In the end the easy was turned out to be the way that seemed hard - to just make a jig that held them captive and set the spacing. Before I'd landed on that I laid out the spacing and drilled the board. Then I made this little jig. It was very close but probably a mm off and as I went across the board with 12 of them - it got progressively worse and off.
I just filled the holes. I have stopped worrying about things looking perfect in the shop. In fact I've even stopped erasing my layout lines and I now leave them and clear coat over them. I've decided they tell a story about the making of this thing and I like that.
My mistakes. The actual posts are all spaced perfectly but the holes I drilled first were wrong.
I don't like cutting wood on machine tools but then I didn't have a better way to do this. I cleaned the mill very well after.
Here's an affiliate link to the SpillMaster: https://amzn.to/2UV5BeQ
These are great for cutting fluid or WD40 when you're machining. I've never been in a shop that didn't have them on every machine. Buy the brushes in large packs and cut the bristles down so they don't fray.
I want very much to be neat and organized. For me having a place for everything, and everything in it's place, as my grandfather was fond of saying, frees my mind from having to think about where something goes. If it goes to the same place all the time I'll find it next time much easier. Probably 20% of my shop time is spent looking for the thing that was in my hand two minutes ago. I am always fighting that.
I couldn't look at the raw edge of the material cabinet. Couldn't do it. I sanded it and poly'd the edges and also decided to drill and store the collet closer next to the collets in that middle space.
In addition I made holders for the steady rest and the tail stock turret. I just love having all this baltic birch kicking around. I'm trying to just make as much stuff as I can to help with the organization right now. I need to start on the bikes but I feel like I'm on a roll with shop organizing. I don't want to hurt that momentum.
Gregor
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GeddyT
Well-known member
I had never heard of Festool until I found this thread (and therefore this forum). I lost my whole tool collection in my fire, and in a way that was a good thing. Tools you buy when you're broke and in college, then broke and newlywed, then broke and newlyDad, oh and you don't know any better, tend to be of the "what's the cheapest price" variety. I'm so sick of cheap, crappy tools either performing poorly or failing on me that I've reached a point where I'm only buying quality when quality is called for.
With that in mind, I picked up some baltic birch to make Mrs. GeddyT's standing desk, and the plywood yard happens to also be the local Festool dealership, so I figured I owed it to myself to head into the tool aisle and make Garage Journal proud.
Me walking into the Festool aisle:
They made the mistake of hanging the price tags on the damned things!... I envy you guys that have this stuff, as I've never been able to avoid filling the shop with dust no matter what I do with my table saw and miter saw. But it was just too much for how little use it would get. Maybe someday.
With that in mind, I picked up some baltic birch to make Mrs. GeddyT's standing desk, and the plywood yard happens to also be the local Festool dealership, so I figured I owed it to myself to head into the tool aisle and make Garage Journal proud.
Me walking into the Festool aisle:
They made the mistake of hanging the price tags on the damned things!... I envy you guys that have this stuff, as I've never been able to avoid filling the shop with dust no matter what I do with my table saw and miter saw. But it was just too much for how little use it would get. Maybe someday.
fartymarty
Well-known member
So here's some very valuable advice:
Festool doesn't break. They really don't redesign things all the time and they have been way ahead of other companies designs for a very long time. Some things they make are comparable or only slightly better - like drills. You'll see I have a LOT of Milwaukee which comes up for sale all the time unlike Festool. But things like the track saws, sanders and the vacuums - they're game changers.
I had my first Festool track saw for over 10 years before I upgraded. Honestly I probably didn't need to and I can't recall why. It might have been to get the TS75 which I ended up not liking as much. The vacuums I have - the first one was bought new in 2002 and the second one used when I got the house. Both are the same vintage and I've never had an issue. My orbital sander I bought used for $100 and when it broke I called Festool, talked to a person who troubleshot it for me over the phone and then sold me a $7 part that fixed it so they're also repairable.
So look for them used!
If you do a CraigsList search and set a notification you'll get an email when one comes up. They tend to fall in value a bit and then hold at that price forever so if you buy a track saw for $300 you'll sell it for $275 5 years later. That right there is real value. Could you rent a Festool saw for 5 years for $25 - I don't think you could.
Right now on ebay the "sold" search tells me they're selling for between $250-400 but you'll do better locally. You know from following this thread I'm always looking for a way to save bit of money and run the shop with a low overhead. Right now my income is about a tenth of what it was but my overhead is so low that I'm hoping that I'll be able to weather this.
The other part of that is sell your junk in the shop that you don't use. USPS picks up almost every day things that I've sold on ebay. I probably sell about $1000-2000 a month of things that I either bought intentionally for flipping or that I don't use. Kids clothes (Patagonia holds some value), old bicycles, whatever, someone will buy it and that's better than tossing it into the landfill.
I learned about CamelCamelCamel from Matt (Lil'Scorpion) and I've used that to great effect on Amazon. I will always buy "Warehouse Deals" because they're generally just open boxes for a steep discount. Almost every lens I have came from Amazon Warehouse. I don't care about perfect cosmetics I care about function.
Also, I hate to say this, but in the next few months people without jobs are going to start to sell all sorts of things to make ends meet. I'm already doing that but then I always do that.
Anyway, that's my way of saying there's a few ways of going green and also having good tools. You just need to be savvy.
Gregor
PS this is probably why I'll never be a sponsored by Festool...
quadrcr87
Well-known member
Thank you for sharing your view on this. It is important to understand that you don't have to run out and buy the latest and greatest at retail prices to maintain a shop full of quality. I try not to impulse buy. Instead I buy what I want after thorough research on both price and quality.
I have also subscribed to your YouTube channel. You are doing a great job, keep it up.
Andrew
BoilermakerFan
Well-known member
Shouldn't it have a sub-title: F'in Gregor! ????
nicholam77
Well-known member
Love this. I do the same, although not on that scale. The whole post was great advice, really. Not only can it make more expensive/quality items more attainable, but it benefits others buying on the used market, and potentially avoids the landfill which I think is huge in our throwaway society.
Sent from my iPhone using Garage Journal
Not likely to happen with Festool, but just keeping your eyes open you can get some great steals. I'm getting more and more into traditional woodworking and have picked up some beautiful old Disston saws out of the $2 rack at junk shops, etc. My best find was a near mint Starrett 85 for $15, they are $250 new and over $100 used. At the same shop they wanted a ridiculous $40 for a rusted hulk of a Millers Falls #8 smooth plane that I wouldn't have paid $5 for. Life has no logic.
I don't have the skills to make Festool worth it, but I'm with you: cheap tools are the bane of my existence. Not worth it.
I don't have the skills to make Festool worth it, but I'm with you: cheap tools are the bane of my existence. Not worth it.
Biff Lungren
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 1, 2013
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As far as I've seen for new the prices in my local hardware match online. So If you do buy new you can throw your local retailer a piece. Do it for me! I'm also a self employed who can't work now,
GeddyT
Well-known member
The other part of that is sell your junk in the shop that you don't use. USPS picks up almost every day things that I've sold on ebay. I probably sell about $1000-2000 a month of things that I either bought intentionally for flipping or that I don't use. Kids clothes (Patagonia holds some value), old bicycles, whatever, someone will buy it and that's better than tossing it into the landfill.
I learned about CamelCamelCamel from Matt (Lil'Scorpion) and I've used that to great effect on Amazon. I will always buy "Warehouse Deals" because they're generally just open boxes for a steep discount. Almost every lens I have came from Amazon Warehouse. I don't care about perfect cosmetics I care about function.
Also, I hate to say this, but in the next few months people without jobs are going to start to sell all sorts of things to make ends meet. I'm already doing that but then I always do that.
Anyway, that's my way of saying there's a few ways of going green and also having good tools. You just need to be savvy.
Gregor
PS this is probably why I'll never be a sponsored by Festool...
I feel like I should be laying on a couch while reading this and paying hourly therapy rates, as it hits way too close to home. I am a very strange combination of hardworking when it comes to the difficult stuff and suuuuuuuper lazy when it comes to the easy stuff: I'll put in a 14 hour day doing heavy work, but put my tools away afterward? Whaaaat?.... Things like picking up the phone to call somebody, posting a simple ad on craigslist and meeting with somebody to sell something, checking my mail, etc. are just so damned difficult to motivate myself to do.
Which is to say that the "selling" half of "buy low/sell high" is where I fall flat on my face. I easily have thousands of dollars worth of really nice **** to sell, I'm just too lazy to post the ad (coronavirus is my excuse for now, but that won't last forever...). Just one example: A friend of mine had never done a track day, so I flew him back home from the east coast and signed him up for one as a wedding present. I had a spare bike lined up, and he had all of the gear necessary except for pants. I told him I'd take care of it and asked him his size. Got on eBay and got a great deal on brand new track pants, figuring he'd use them once and I'd flip them for at least close to what I paid. That was in 2016, and they're still in my closet. (And he lied to me about his waist size because he was embarrassed, so they didn't even fit! They're still new and have the tags on them, and Mrs. GeddyT bugs me about selling them about 10 times per year.)
I think your post has sufficiently shamed me into making a change in this respect, so as soon as this damned virus leaves us alone, I'm going to sell a shipping container worth of stuff and clear up some space and funds.
As for Festool, I have no doubt that it's amazing stuff, holds its value, etc., I just wouldn't use it enough for it to be worth it, even at secondhand prices (unless it's $15 for a vacuum as mentioned above!). When I buy things now, I try to find the best deal on the best equipment, hence a four month, 400 mile radius craigslist alert for "Quincy 325," but there are still priorities, and woodworking tools are down the list. If I ever have a project coming up that requires a lot of indoor (wintertime) precision plywood cutting, I'll be on the hunt, though.
Same time next week, Dr. Halenda?
E12-535iTurbo
Well-known member
It's the other way around here. Didn't anybody tell you? First you get a tool, then it'll find a project for you. Then you enter a new stage in life where you really can't imagine life without that tool.
They're a disease, like a virus, you know...
I use the iPhone eBay app - it eliminates the need to take photos, import them, upload them to ebay... way too much hassle. I'll open a cabinet and see a lathe chuck I haven't used in three years and I look up something similar, use the "sell a similar item" that is typically on the page and then just make some adjustments to the description, take a few photos on the app and post it. Done.
Aaaaaannd, I'm afraid our time is up today. I think this was a good session although it sounds like you could be using Corona virus as an excuse to not face your fears? Maybe this week you could try to sell one thing and we can talk about that experience next week. Do you think you can do that?
Does next week at the same time work for you?
Gregor
A previous post from this thread inspired this sign that hangs above my workbench.
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It is a constant reminder that I cannot achieve my dream of an organized and productive workspace by holding onto things that don't support that dream. Whenever I'm questioning as to whether I should keep/sell/scrap something, this sign points me in the right direction.
One good/bad thing about Festool, they raise prices every year so minus inflation, you will likely sell whatever you bought, for the same price. They also have factory reconditioned stuff that they email blast once in awhile, which is why I have a Rotex...
rk_tek
Well-known member
I started working from home about 2 weeks ago and have a 2nd kid coming in about 6 weeks. Whenever I take a break from work, even 5-10 mins, I try to go through one of those random boxes in storage or clean, put away, throw away some of the stuff that has been accumulating. I’ve managed to go through all of the boxes of a deep storage closet, cleaned the back porch of an entire bathroom remodel, wired an outlet in my tiny shed for battery charging, and put in the last piece of shoe molding I promised my wife I’d do 4 years ago. I also have a stack of things to sell locally and another to sell on eBay. There’s a guy on the GRM forums that has done incredible car builds with a full time job and family. His motto is, “If I have 5 minutes to work, then I work 5 minutes”. Eventually those add up and you’ve accomplished weeks of work.
jlevers
Well-known member
Since this seems relevant to the discussion of finding things for (relatively) cheap -- Gregor, how'd you go about finding a house that was as interesting/had as much potential as the one you did, but that needed a lot of work? Were you looking for something that fit that description? Judging by the rest of this thread, I'm guessing you were...
Did you have a strategy for finding it, did you just look for a long time, or get lucky, or some combination of those things?
I'm thinking about buying property in the relatively near future, and when I do, I'd like to do something similar -- buy a not-yet-nice place that needs enough work for the price to be closer to what I can afford. Curious to hear your thoughts.
Did you have a strategy for finding it, did you just look for a long time, or get lucky, or some combination of those things?
I'm thinking about buying property in the relatively near future, and when I do, I'd like to do something similar -- buy a not-yet-nice place that needs enough work for the price to be closer to what I can afford. Curious to hear your thoughts.
Lotusnut
Well-known member
While I do not have the amazing skills of Gregor, over 30 years I have done 3 houses from run down to nice and made a good profit in the process. Finding houses with character that are run down is just a matter of watching and waiting. In my experience you want to be in an area that is, or is becoming, desirable. Most importantly be one of the last being improved
and definitely not the first. They are out there in every city just be patient and get the right one not just any one that comes along.
Rob
I wanted a mid-century house and we'd looked for over a year. We had the luxury (not sure if that's the right word) of living with my mother in law in her tiny house while we looked. That allowed us to save money and be patient.
This house was a short sale and we made an offer under the asking and kept looking knowing that a short sale can take months to a year. As time went by we wished we'd just offered asking because options in our range were getting slim. 9 months later the bank accepted our offer.
So partly I saw something others didn't but we also got lucky. The house still needs a ton of work so how lucky we got is up for discussion.
But yeah, I'd told our realtor to look for places that showed poorly, needed work and were unusual. And we were patient.
Gregor
GeddyT
Well-known member
Out of curiosity, why Portland?
GeddyT
Well-known member
And the beards? Clearly the beards!
For real, though, I love Portland myself. Still have friends there, but used to have even more before some moved back up. I used to take advantage of any excuse to head down that way, but I must admit it's been some time now. At least since the kids were born. Hoping I can make next year's One Show. If there's a next year...
cfloren
Member
I just filled the holes. I have stopped worrying about things looking perfect in the shop. In fact I've even stopped erasing my layout lines and I now leave them and clear coat over them. I've decided they tell a story about the making of this thing and I like that.
My mistakes. The actual posts are all spaced perfectly but the holes I drilled first were wrong.
Very wabi-sabi. The mistakes and layout lines show the human touch.
What's your go-to technique for filling holes in plywood? I've never been satisfied with the typical nail hole filler putty stuff.
You've shared workshop space in a past life; wondering if you might have sage advice for keeping a machine or work area more or less organized, when it's shared among friends?
I rent a small warehouse space and share it with friends and acquaintances, like a co-op type thing. Race cars, lifts, personal projects, bikes, storage. We've managed to get a decent machining/fab area set up on the cheap, with a lathe similar in size to yours, a Bridgeport knock-off, TIG & MIG welding area, grinding, etc but it's a struggle to keep organized; most of our guys will work on something intensely for a few hours and then walk away with tools and benches in disarray. I've found that if I put the effort in to make an organizing upgrade like a new cabinet or a shelf or clearly labeled bins, it will get used, fairly respectably at first but entropy takes over and we're back to clutter within a few days or weeks.
I'm hoping you have some reflective wisdom or ruminations on this even though you don't share your current shop. No worries if not but it would be interesting to get your take on that.
In addition I made holders for the steady rest and the tail stock turret. I just love having all this baltic birch kicking around. I'm trying to just make as much stuff as I can to help with the organization right now. I need to start on the bikes but I feel like I'm on a roll with shop organizing. I don't want to hurt that momentum.
The tone and color of the birch really warms up the look of the machining area. Contrast is nice!
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I have this epoxy wood filler that I use for modifying pistol grips for competition. Not sure what it's called but it's a two part in a tube with a colored section on the outside and a white center and you kneed it into one color and it dries quickly.
As for the shop - that's really hard. There's always someone in a group that is a slob and it is so hard to deal with that. Truly the best way to deal with it is to have separate areas for each person and limit the shared areas. Shadow boards or drawers work well because the tools have an undisputed home and their absence is really obvious.
By far the best solution I've found is to move my tools 3500 miles away and in a locked garage. None of the guys have borrowed a single tool since I've done that. Extreme solution? Yes. Effective? Absolutely!
Gregor
myamoto1
Well-known member
Gregor - do you prefer Milwaukee over Dewalt? I've never had good luck with Milwaukee trigger switches, so I stopped buying them. I could be convinced it's time to start looking at them again over Dewalt. (please note to the larger collective - this is not intended as an invitation to start an M vs D debate
)Gregor - do you prefer Milwaukee over Dewalt? I've never had good luck with Milwaukee trigger switches, so I stopped buying them. I could be convinced it's time to start looking at them again over Dewalt. (please note to the larger collective - this is not intended as an invitation to start an M vs D debate
Not really. My step father had a Milwaukee sawzall that had the hardest life of any tool I’ve ever known. I inherited it and used it for a long time. I think they were made in the USA then. So that was the start of my loyalty - and I like red more than yellow. Most of these cordless tools are pretty similar. Like cameras you buy into a system so it’s all interchangeable.
Gregor
myamoto1
Well-known member
Thanks Gregor! Funny you mention an old Milwaukee Sawzall - I bought an old one from a neighbor 15 years ago and he probably had it 10yrs before that. It's the only Milwaukee tool I have that is still fully operational and it has seen a lot of use and abuse over the years. I agree on the red over yellow, but after having my metal chop saw and 2 drills all have trigger failure, I made the switch over to "yellow".
gasgas17
Well-known member
I have a small fleet of Dewalt cordless drills, vacuums, planner and many corded tools for my renovation business. They make really good Pro grade cordless drills. I have been basically replacing the same drill with the newer version for about the last 12 years. They do wear out about every 2 years getting used every day. Sometimes it's just cheaper to buy a new tool rather than replace just the batteries too. Believe it or not, they seem to be lasting longer as they get updated over the years. We have a Dewalt service center near us, so we buy a lot of tools reconditioned. They are just new tools sold without the original packaging. Sometimes a previous generation of the latest and greatest. They always have brand new batteries and we can usually get them for half of retail and some times a lot less. I have 3 sizes of impacts in my mechanical tools now too for working on vehicles.
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One of my favorite youtube videos of all time is AvE's breakdown of an old Milwaukee Sawzall. Thanks for reminding me to revisit it! (video below, his channel is definitely worth a follow!)
cfloren
Member
Thanks for the response. I've used a 2-part liquid epoxy to fill gaps in old redwood, and I think I know the type you're referring to. I'll give that a try next time.
My shared shop has one or two slob type members but I've noticed that they get better with some unspoken social pressure; seeing a clean organized space when they start a job probably helps remind them to put it back that way when they're done. Spoken social pressure helps too! I run the shop, pay the bills, and do the administrative stuff but try not to be too much of a manager. We're all friends and there are a few super talented people and I want to encourage tidiness without stifling the creative output or nagging anyone. Shadow boards are a great idea. We have a wall of pegboard that I could shadow-ize. Thanks again. Keep up the rad bite-sized videos - very enjoyable so far!
neilc
Well-known member
Another way to find deals on Festool....
Festool has a 30-day return policy on tools. Those returned tools get refurbished and sold at discounts. Go to festoolrecon.com and register for alerts. Sometimes they have none. Other times they have quite a few different products. Tends to be pretty popular on Black Friday in the past.
Festool has a 30-day return policy on tools. Those returned tools get refurbished and sold at discounts. Go to festoolrecon.com and register for alerts. Sometimes they have none. Other times they have quite a few different products. Tends to be pretty popular on Black Friday in the past.