Hi eveyone,
I have just started woodworking and i am confeused at what tools i
should buy to start off. i would like to make small projects and
general house renovations eg: re fitting cupboards skirting and some
cabinet making.As i havent a lot of money for all the tools at once my
current budget is about 1000 euro or 1500 dollars if any body could
help it would be greatly app.
Safe woodworking!
Most people do best with a combination of power and hand tools. For cabinet
making, a decent tablesaw is usually the first big purchase. You don't need
the best, but you don't want a toy either. A mid priced saw with cast iron
top is best to start with and will take about half of your budget. Unless
you can find good used tools.
A drill that can double as a powered screwdriver is very nice to have. Most
of us find the cordless to be versatile, but a corded one will be cheaper.
Block plane is good for fitting parts. Bandsaw is a very good tool to have,
but a jig saw can do many of the same things for less money at startup.
Measuring devices, square, clamps are a must have too.
Other tools should be bought as you need them.
1) Take a woodworking course where you learn to use tools.
2) $1,500 is a reasonably good amount of money. It is enough that you
don't have to buy junk to economize. But good used tools are half the price
of new ones. Look for them!
Beyond that, there is not much we can tell you. For instance; some people
will tell you a band saw is the first tool to buy. Well, I left it for
last; and while I get a lot of use out of it, I sure didn't need it.
As others have indicated, the tools you start with should depend on the
projects you want to start with. I'm getting finished with a set of kitchen
cabinets at the moment. Here are the tools that have been indispensible for
me.
1. Table saw
2. Router
3. Surface planer
4. Drill (having both corded and cordless is very handy, but not absolutely
necessary)
5. Clamps
6. Pocket hole jig
7. Circular saw
I have and use a jointer, but there are ways to joint stock without it.
OTOH, nothing planes stock to thickness like a surface planer. I'd
definitely be on the lookout for a used mid-range table saw with cast iron
top. I bought mine (Delta contractor) used for USD$650. I bought the
planer (Delta 13") refurb for $300. You could get a drill for $50 and a
router for $100. Throw in a circular saw, a pocket hole jig and some clamps
and you're definitely under USD$1500. It won't all be top of the line, but
it won't be crap either.
Good luck,
todd
Not a bad list- but make sure you get the appropriate hand tools as
well. You need a good hammer, a couple of screwdrivers, nail set, a
set of chisels, tape measure, rulers, a good level, combination
square, a pull saw, a coping saw (for the trim on those cabinets)
utility knife, aviation snips (to open the other tools, if nothing
else) channel-lock pliers, and a set of sockets and wrenches for
assembly and adjustment tasks. If you don't have this stuff, and
spend your entire budget, you might find yourself at a standstill
right away. It can add up pretty quickly, even though each tool is
fairly inexpensive.
I'll give my own list of "indispensable" power tools, which differs in
a few ways. (Listed in the order I'd buy them if I was equipping a new
shop)
1. Circular saw w/ rip fence attachment
2. Drill / drill press
3. Miter saw and stand
4. Random orbital sander
5. Router
6. Belt/Disc sander
7. Table saw
8. Band saw
9. Thickness planer
The table saw is probably the most useful tool I've got, but it comes
in at #7 because you can do almost anything you can do with a table
saw with a circular saw and a bit of determination- and the table saw
could easily eat your entire budget in one shot. Same goes for the
miter saw- I'd hate to not have the two I've got, but in a pinch, the
circular saw will make those cuts as well.
Jeez man, where do you live? Those are retail prices where I'm at-
you'd think a used tool would be a little cheaper! I paid $599 for my
Delta 36-680 on sale (full cast iron top with the T2 fence)
re fitting cupboards skirting
and some cabinet making.
Need more info
By small projects do you mean jewelry boxes, picture frams
and stuff you can hold in one hand?
Cupboards skirting mean baseboards and trim?
"some cabinets" mean ply carcase and doors with
iron on edge banding or do you mean solid wood
cabinets and/or solid wood raised panel doors?
How much room do you have for setting up a shop?
You going to be taking out or opening up walls and
framing up walls? Renovation include doing dry
wall and running electrical wires etc.?
The exchange rate that bad - 2/3rds of a euro for a buck?
charlie b
Generally people think in terms of cutting and fastening tools. Your layout
and measuring tools are equally important--if you can't check squareness
accurately or mark off cuts precisely then you have little hope of actually
_making_ them precisely. A good combination square (one of these things
<http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?cat=Hand+Tools%2C+Carpentry&pid