Website: Byrdwoodworking.com

Hobbyist or Pro: Pro

Shop Type: Standalone

Square Footage: 1040 sq. ft.

I have a 24 year background in construction and the last 13 years as a commercial construction superintendent. I have been building furniture and cabinets for the last 12 years and teaching myself new techniques to improve my skills with every project. I have been laid off since last Sept. and haven’t had much luck finding another superintendent position, so I’ve been trying to make a start at my own woodworking business.

The shop is a 26ft. x 40ft. pole building that I built in 2005. I framed in the walls to insulate and drywall. I also decided to frame and sheet the floor instead of concrete. It has a 200 amp independant service. It’s location is about 100′ from my back door. Equipment is as follows. 5hp Delta unisaw, 15″ Delta planer, 14″ Powermatic bandsaw, 18″ 3hp Jet bandsaw, 36″ vintage Crescent bandsaw, Powermatic 719T mortiser, Delta 8″ jointer, Performax 2244 drum sander, Jet 6″x108″ edge sander, Shopfox spindle sander, Delta 6×48 belt/disc sander, Delta/Rockwell 24″ scroll saw, Delta 12×36 wood lathe and too many hand tools to list.

I rent a unit in a warehouse. Would love to have it in my basement or a garage but l don’t have either! The shop is in a bit of a mess as l am working on a few projects. I bought most of my tools from Axminister. Here in the UK it is quite popular, a bit like your Grizzly’s. Just a run down with the equipment l use:

*Scheppach Deco 450 Scroll saw – I wouldn’t be able to do what l do without this! German made with cast iron top. Solid and beautiful machine to use. I was thinking of getting an Excalibur but this does the job extremely well.

*Jet JTS-10 Bench Top Saw Bench – At the moment being used as a worktop.

*Axminster AWHBS310N Bandsaw – Mid range bandsaw. I do a lot of re-sawing on this and it does an exceptional job.

*Axminster MB9020 Bench Top Planer Thicknesser – Does the job, would like to have the standalone systems when I get more space.

*Axminster WD13L Pillar Drill – Really cheap worktop pillar drill, does the job.

*Dakota Deluxe Full Size Router Table – Love this router table and got it half price from Rutlands £99! Attached is a Titan router.

*Axminster AWEDE2 Dust Extractor – When I got this extractor I thought it would be powerful and keep the dust in, heck was I wrong! This is not the best but I have converted it into a cyclone, and it works pretty well now and the dust surprisingly stays in.

I have been doing woodworking for the past year, but properly got into it in the past 6 months after watching Marc’s tutorials and works from other members.

Of course, this is a very small shop, but I can manage quite well. I tend to work on smaller projects. I like to do a lot of my sanding outside as well as my table saw work because of my very limited space.

Well, I hope you’ve enjoyed the tour of my shop and hopefully it has helped you feel as though you have a bigger shop than you thought. Lol, because I always get a good laugh when someone is giving a shop tour saying “this is my small workshop”. Take a look here eh! I hope to make woodworking a good career someday like Marc and Norm Abrams.

Location: Calahoo, Alberta, Canada

Hobbyist or Pro: Hobbyist

Shop Type: Standalone

Square Footage: 500-999

Shop Description:
I read Marc’s article about moving back to his old shop, and I couldn’t help feeling a little zealous. That’s because I built my dream shop in early 2010 and was then transferred for work from Western to Eastern Canada. Fortunately, I built it on my parents property where my wife and I intend to retire, but I don’t get to use it very often at this time.

The shop (26 feet by 36 feet) occupies half of the main floor of a Ponderosa pine barn that I built on the property in 2009. The remainder of the main floor of the barn is a metal and car shop and in the loft there is a one bedroom suite and a large party area.

Features include: 12 foot ceiling; six 3 foot by 3 foot windows for plenty of natural light; infloor heating; sliding doors and loading dock to move wood in and project pieces out; built-in air supplied by a 5 HP stationary compressor; 6 inch galvanized steel vacuum piping; and purpose-installed electrical system.

I upgraded and purchased almost all of my power tools from Grizzly in the Fall of 2009 which includes:
- 5 HP 12 inch G0605X Table Saw with tool boxes
- 3HP 19 inch G0514X2B Band Saw
- 3 HP 8 inch G0490X Jointer
- 5 HP 20 inch G0454Z Planer
- 3 HP G1026 Shaper
- 3/4 HP G1495 Lathe
- 1 HP G0610 Dovetail Machine
- 1 1/2 HP 20 inch G7948 Drill Press
- 5 HP 24 inch G1066Z Drum Sander
- 3/4 HP G1014ZX Combination Sander
- 1 1/2 HP G1140 Edge Sander
- 1 HP G1071 Oscillating Spindle Sander
- 2 Hp G0532 Spray Booth
- 2 HP G4814 Mortise Machine
- 5 HP Cyclone Dust Collector
- 3/4 HP 12 inch Dewault Mitre Saw

There are numerous other power and hand tools as you might imagine.

I haven’t had the opportunity to run all the equipment through the paces since I have been using the shop to finish the barn and not build too much furniture. I’ve also got a few more tools to purchase including a track saw, domino cutter, and portable dust collector.

I can hardly wait to move back like Marc has done. There is no place like home and a great shop!

Location: Dalton, GA

Amateur or Pro: Amateur

Shop Type: Standalone

Square Footage: 0-249

Shop Description:
My shop is in a prefab 12′ x 16′ building. It’s insulated but I still haven’t got around to putting in A/C or heating. I build cabinets as a side job in this shop, and it is comical to see me manhandling 4′ x 8′ sheets of ply on to my table saw. So, any way I hope that you enjoy the tour.

Originally intended as a small upgrade to the wiring and to build a small work bench, I discovered a huge carpenter ant problem. After tearing out the entire back wall and rebuilding, I decided it was time to go all the way. So I refinished the entire shop inside and out, as well as a new roof and overhang. I then proceeded to purchase as much new equipment and gadgets as I could muster to fill it up.These are pics of the now finished shop, as well as a pic of my first Morris chair.

Well, I have finished my shop (are you ever really finished?), and I thought I would share with all. We bought a small piece of land and I tell family and friends that we built a shop with a house attached. The stand alone shop is close and connected but no dust in the house. It is 24 by 28, I wish I had made it bigger. I have been heavily influenced by your advice and I have used a lot of Norm’s ideas in the outfitting of the shop. You can see his stuff in the pictures. It has heat and air so I can work year round. The roof is quite high so I can add an upper loft later. The walls are lined with CDX so I can screw and nail to the walls without looking for studs. The builders splashed paint on the walls while using the space for painting so they had to paint the CDX. I have pretty much all the tools I need. Not visible are the scroll saw and mortise.

The shop is now producing projects as you can see. I am using the roll around dust collector and some day may put in a cyclone but the high ceilings will make it difficult. I am pleased with it and I am thoroughly enjoying working in it. —Richard

I am a novice woodworker. I started acquiring the tools needed before I really knew what I was getting myself into. I traveled with some friends to a Grizzly scratch and dent sale and ended up coming home with my table saw and planer, before I even had a shop to put them in. I slowly started collecting the tools I would need, such as routers, mitre saw, biscuit joiner, drill press, etc. Then I began to build my first shop as an edition to my garage. I had to tear down the 8’ X 24’ shed attached to the garage, it was starting to fall over; and constructed a 24’ x 16’ shop in its place.
Over that time I have purchased tools as I found a use for them, like the dust collector, band saw, 6” jointer, and numerous miscellaneous hand tools. I am currently in the process of selecting projects that are building my skills in different areas, such as work benches, book cases, cast iron radiator covers, etc. My main interests are furniture building, but before I can get there I am trying to find smaller projects that are going to build upon my skills and knowledge.