Category: Miscellaneous

In August I finally got a proper shop. After nine years since we moved to our new house, I now have a decent workplace. And as expected, it wasn’t 100% done (will it ever be?). Courtesy of my dad, I now have a bench vise, something that I consider fundamental in any shop.

I also installed a curtain beneath the work bench. I would rather have the shelf below exposed, however I quickly realized that was not good. Every time I drilled, sanded or worked on wood, it was a pain to clean the wood chips and dust below the workbench. So I installed one of those plastic bathroom curtains on a rail below the bench. Not exactly handsome but saves me a lot of work during cleanups.

And as you can see, there are new tools 😊. Oh come on, don’t give me the same look my wife gives me… Of course I had to get more tools. Of special note are two Japanese saws (a Ryoba and a Kataba), which made me think about why I ever used Occidental saws before. And a new (and better) jigsaw and a nail gun, both battery-powered. Unless it’s some sort of bench-top tool, I’m going cordless 100%. Next on the list is a random orbit sander and a (plunge?) router, cordless of course.

And this is the first diorama project I made in my new shop. A couple of years ago I bought a guardrail like this, though it was shorter and frankly poorly made. So using chopsticks, a strip of MDF as base, water-based paint, wood glue and LOTS of sanding and cutting, I made another one. I already made some photos using it, and it turned out pretty good. I think.

When we built our new house almost 9 years ago, one thing that I wanted was a dedicated workspace for tools and crafts. A room to work on my hobbies, bikes and store my tools. And I got the space. However, as you can see in the shot above, it was kind of shabby in terms of a workspace. All right, let’s be honest: it was an utterly pathetic excuse for a tool shop 😣.

So in the last month, I started to work on it, transforming it into a proper workshop. And by “working on it” I mean buying what was needed. Of the highest priority was to have a work bench, and that was the first thing I bought. I also bought those wall panels to hang all my manual tools in the open, at easy reach.

The yellow drawer was from my daughter’s old bedroom, which works perfectly as a space to store supplies and small stuff. The yellow chair (and yellow table under the workbench) were also from her bedroom. If you care to know, that small chair is perfect to wash my car’s wheels 😁. I also installed more power sockets, both in 110 and 220 v.

I had an old office desk that I didn’t use any more, and it fitted perfectly in that niche in the back wall. It’s a fantastic station for the delicate stuff, like working on models or making dioramas. The whole space came out as a true carnival of styles, furniture and parts. Yet, I for one dig the “repurposed look”. Can’t say why, though I think that mishmash style makes the tool shop look homely.

Of course I’m not 100% done yet, with some things still missing. For instance, I desperately need a Nº 5 bench vise, as I need a bench grinder. And I would love to have a small belt sander… Nonetheless, I’ll eventually get there. Most important of all though, now I finally have a decent work space.
😊😊😊