Thursday, October 13, 2011

Workshop Set-up

Over this past weekend I spent some time in the workshop cleaning and organizing. My shop was on the verge of being over-run by scraps and sawdust, which is just the way I like it but, sometimes enough is enough. Not only is a messy shop an unsafe workshop, it is also a less productive workshop. So, while I may feel more at home being surrounded by sawdust and woodscraps, I felt it was time to clean up.
For me, doing a little shop cleanup ends up being more of an exercise in re-arranging and organizing my work space. It seems to be this never-ending quest to 'get it just right'.  I guess if you have a large enough workshop with designated areas set-up you may not be constantly trying to re-invent your space. However, I haven't quite gotten to that point. My workshop is in the garage of my home, which I also share with the laundry, workout area, bicycles, and storage. So, after all that, I have about a 10'x16' space to work in.
Most of my tools are on mobile bases, so they can be stored out of the way and rolled out when needed. This is pretty much a necessity in a smaller shop. Being able to roll tools that aren't being used out of the way is probably the only way I can make this small space work.  Having many of my tools on mobile bases goes a long way towards getting the most out of my space but it seems like I am still always struggling to find a good layout. 
I guess the biggest obstacle I have comes back to the limited space that I have.  My workspace is just fine for working on small projects, cutting small materials, making repairs etc.  It is when I go to build something large (like the large built-in I'm getting ready to begin) that I really start itching for more space.  I'll have the shop set up and organized just the way I want it and once the large project begins to take up more and more space I start re-thinking my layout. 
Maybe one of these days I'll come up with the perfect layout or maybe I'll come up with a larger dedicated workshop.  Until then, however, I'll just jump on here and vent.

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