Hi, I am new to woodworking and have been buying a few tools. Since my budget is getting small I was wondering what some of the must have power tools I should buy. The tools I bought thus far are:
Delta TS300 a skill router with a small table sander jig saw
I plan on doing some general house repairs, but id like to try a project like building a coffee table or an entertainment center.
Thanks for your help
Brian
Brian: A small table-top planer would help in preparing the stock once it has been rough-cut.
Bob
A couple of must have power tools are hand powered tools. A set of chisels, sharpening stones, and a block plane are "musts" if you want to build a table.
Those chisels will not be sharp when you buy them. They must be honed to get the most from them. A drill and drill press should be high on the list. Get a few brad point drill bits for wood. If you have a good jigsaw, the bandsaw can be postponed a bit.
As time goes on, consider a compressor with a finish nailer or brad nailer. Unless you are able to buy wood that is jointed and planed, they will be high priorities also. Buy tools as called for by the project you are working on. You'll be amazed at how you can work around things if you don't have every tool ever made.
A couple of lessons in woodworking goes a long way also. See if anything is available in your area. Don't forget a book or two. Ed
"Edwin Pawlowski" wrote in news:2kkEc.41074$ snipped-for-privacy@nwrdny02.gnilink.net:
Thanks for the info...I forgot I bought a compressor, a finish nailer, and a HVLP spray gun. I also have a hand drill. I've heard of using a router as a jointer, if that works I'll try to get a planer and also get the chisels.
Brian
Ed's advise is sound however I'll add precision measuring and marking tools are a must. Save your money and buy quality tools once and avoid the pain cheap tools will eventually inflict. A balance needs to be struck between choosing quality vs expense. Things like cheap router/drill/forstner bits will cause you more trouble than they are worth. I'll also say that education and patience will serve you well. Take your time and do it right. I like to make things so that one day, someone will be proud to own it.
Dave
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I assume you've got a few more hand tools: drills, bits, etc. I think you've got a good start on the necessities. If you want to continue to load up on Power Tools, then a bandsaw, jointer and planer round out the essential base tools (the table saw is the fourth). Unfortunately, they can be a hit on the budget.
I found a good set of chisels goes a long way. On money constraints, I'd buy a ROS, jig saw, drill, circular saw, router, possibly an electric planer before moving up to a stationary sander, bandsaw, table saw, router table, and jointer.
Starret Combination Square. I do ALL of my indirect measurment with this tool. I just have the square head and the 12" blade. ~$60
Marking guage. Get together with another woodworker and watch how he uses it. You want one that feels good in your hand and which is easy to adjust. This is for direct measurement when you don't care about the number, just the fit. ~$40
Take your combo square to the hardware store and find a tape that agrees with it for the first foot. I lucked out that the 30' Stanley I use for stage carpentry was good enough. ~$20
Bevel guage. This is for transfering angles. Same idea as the marking guage. You set it to the exact angle of the piece. You don't care about the number. ~$15
You can use a carpenter's square for setting angles, but you can to the same job with the combination square with a little care, particularly on the size pieces we're usually using.
The book "Workshop Math" from Popular Science has lotsa layout and measurement techniques. Also check out Lee Valley--they have reprints of some marking/layout books involving a carpenter's square.
Charles is 100% right on the money with this recommendation. Although I am not familiar with this particular book, I strongly suggest learning "shop trig". (try
The nicest thing about applying this to woodworking is that, where angle measuring tools are limited by their usually small size, trig can get you an angle at any size. Quickly and with an uncanny degree of accuracy.
Lots of people already know trig to this level. Perhaps you do, too. But if you don't, take the time to learn it. Your time spent studying will be repaid over and over and over. I promise.
Bill
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