WWGJD? 17' 10"x11' 9" storage/workshop

[Bessy]

Hey folks! Consider this thread a cry for help, if anything. I consider myself a fairly handy guy, and I've definitely cruised the GJ for far too many hours looking at different builds and ideas that you wonderful folks have come up with in the past. With that I ask, What Would Garage Journal Do with a 17'10"x11'9" workshop area?

Here's a look at the [empty] floorplan of the garage.

And a closeup of the room in question as well as it's dimensions

The single 4x7' door faces NNE for reference.

There is a catch however: Dad's a woodworker, so he's acquired over some years, more lumber stock than I can imagine he will ever use. He's also a packrat, which is a trait I try my best not to inherit, with limited but some success.

Me? Well I like to tinker, fix things, and rebuild/restore old equipment. I maintain and repair my mowers and equipment, outboards and Dad's atv. I'd like to get into some welding in the future when funds permit, and I am not ashamed to say I may get a slight chub on seeing working shops that look like decent, functional workspaces that a person could really do something in (Big fan of Adam Savage's shop!)

Now this is what I would like to accomplish essentially. Call it a to-do/milestones list of sorts.

1) Finish out the rest of the insulation and drywall, and replace the heavy, totally-not-at-all-weatherproof plywood/barn board door) with something more windproof, so I can hopefully keep the shop above freezing in the winter.
2) Move the lumber stock to the NNW corner of the shop (to the Left of the large 4x7 door) and store it in such a way that it doesn't feel like it could come crashing down at any moment.
3) Source or build a few cabinets for stuff like toolbags, fluids, parts, etc.
4) Gain back some useable floorspace such that I can roll a mower, small trailer, atv, etc in the door and work on it.
5) Create some sort of hardware/parts storage area that houses fasteners and the likes
6) Do as much as possible with reused, recycled, upcycled, cheap or low-cost materials that provide ok value without breaking the bank.

That's enough writing for now. I'll toss up a few more pics of what I'm dealing with in a little bit.

 

[tthornto]

I think the centerpiece of a small shop for someone with your interests should be a motorcycle lift table. It can be used as a workbench for just about anything and will save your back when working on small equipment.

 

[Bessy]

I think the centerpiece of a small shop for someone with your interests should be a motorcycle lift table. It can be used as a workbench for just about anything and will save your back when working on small equipment.

I would love one actually! But that will have to wait until I get the shop sorted out and cleaned up a bit first.

The first photo is of the semi-clean bench and makeshift tool/utilities board, power tool station, etc. Next to that is the 26" cman stack. It spans the south wall of the shop that got mostly boarded last winter during the bar build (on the other side of said wall.)

Follow that up with the wood storage, which is currently the bane of my existence. It's disorganized, and not very well kept. I'd like to move it to the north end of the shop (staying on the west wall) so that it's more behind the door. I may come to regret that idea in the event that we do put a new door in, but I'll deal with that when it happens. To the north of that wood pile (the last 7 feet or so) is part of the catchall shelves (picture number three) that have been in place since the previous owners. I have joked in the past that I fear it could actually be holding up that corner of the attic. [emoji12]

To the east is my main tool box(es) and behind that, the "parts department" (picture number four). Dad insists that the cubbies behind my box stay there. I support his idea of having the cubbies, but I wish to see them not full of dust and oily grime as they are now. I'd much prefer they were rebuilt, and given a sanding/coat of paint, as well as a purge of some of the items. The box on the top shelf for instance is filled with old nails, screws, hinges, door parts, and who knows what else. I know for a fact that it's darn heavy.

Last but not least is the final corner (North-East) which houses the vacuum for the non-existent dust collection system, and a few extension cords. It's in about as good a place as it will ever get, so it will likely stay there.

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[Bessy]

A few updates (I'll get pictures tomorrow) albeit not on the actual shop project, but rather the projects within the shop.

It's a bit of a catch 22 when you think about it, but essentially the projects that take place in the shop get stored (in progress) in the shop, which I understand adds to the clutter of the space. With that in mind, I decided this week to tackle a project that has been going on far too long.

Some back story, I know I've written about the Suburban tractor (my avatar) before and started many threads over on MTF regarding the various issues I've had with that machine. I got the engine running a year and a half ago and decided since I had it off, I wanted to do a full-scale, frame off, bare metal resto of the tractor. Well over the last year and a half, I have chipped away at the project from time to time, taken on others, etc and it's been left undone. I stalled in the paint phase as I was having a terrible time finding a good match to the original Jade Blue (an effort that I have since abandoned this week in favour of getting the machine back on it's wheels before I die of old age). Instead I chose to go with an orange paint scheme, as seen on the late 60s models (I believe just the XL models were orange, but I may be wrong). Bottom line is this, I don't have any orange parts for the tractor, so I wasn't as picky on the shade, I could get a colour that from pictures seems close, and it's far more durable than the blue paint i had picked out that had caused all the problems. It's not going to be a show piece after all, as much as I would have loved to have the old blue colour.

So this is where I'm at, I have half of the frame painted, fenders need a light sanding and touch up work to look nice enough to call complete, and I have the front axle ready to go as well (though it really needs to be bored out nice and round and fitted with a bushing).

It takes time but progress is progress. We're a boating family, and in addition to my own ventures i work part time in the marina business, so summer is not as conducive to shop projects. Hopefully I'll have more progress to show come fall.

 

[Bessy]

For anyone who may be interested, the tractor in my avatar is a 1971 Sears Suburban 12, originally Jade Blue Mist and Arctic White paint job. I loved the blue (still do) but in the interest of getting the project done, I opted to go for an orange paint scheme as was common on the 10xl mowers in the late sixties. Call it a resto-mod if you will.
Here's how things sit:
The rear frame is primed and ready for paint. It would have originally been blue, but I was planning to go white on blue anyways to make it pop a bit better.
The front half of the frame and axle (not pictured) has become orange, and I'm fairly happy for a rattle can job by an amateur.

The fenders however need a few more coats before they are ready as they have a few blemishes that need to be addressed with more paint. I probably should have properly primed them and done it in two part, but the orange paint/primer that I bought said it wasn't necessarily, I figure two more coats should suffice.
As for the garage itself:
Not much has changed other than the bench playing host to a few finished panels for the tractor.

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