Why you shouldn't use 2x4's for shop furniture
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- Опубліковано 21 гру 2023
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Workshops can be a place of inspiration or dread. I did my hobby woodworking in a damp and musky prefab garage and it had miserable concrete walls and floor with a horrible corrugated steel roof that dripped with condensation. Sometimes I did not want to be in there but when I built a custom workshop that had insulation, plasterboard and laminate flooring I found I enjoyed it and did better quality work. I was also compelled to design good looking workshop furniture. There is psychology behind the environment we are in and how it impacts our moods even if we are unaware of it
You dont have to be a maker. A well organized shop is a quality of life issue.
I agree 100% with your philosophy about an intentional work environment. “A little bit nicer than it needs to be” is my mantra. Painted surfaces, upgraded hardware and accent lighting definitely bring things to the next level. Pursuing Flow is always my goal.
My shop is absolutely a reflection of the reclaimed materials I happened to have on hand, and I hate it. Time to start improving each part of the shop so the commission work is easier to do!
I build stuff with the lowest amount of cuts. If I have a 22" piece of plywood instead of 24" like I wanted, 22" it is 😅
Just wanna say the cut at 9:10 was editing gold. Kudos to your editor and great planning for that shot.
So good I didn't even notice it at first.
Yeah, that was a good one. I had to rewind it a few seconds to make sure my eyes weren't fooling me.
While I don't have a wood shop, I do have a sewing room. I will use your shop greatness mentality to make my sewing room more user friendly. I have some kinks to work out to make the work flow better so that I can stay in the "zone." Merry Christmas, and keep up the great videos!
I find myself trying to find a balance between looks nice and let's use up the stack of 2x4s that I brought home from work. I use cheap material but try to fancy them up, joint/square edges, real jointery, paint/stain, and maybe a maple or walnut trim.
100% on the practice part. I recently built a house (paid someone to, not myself) and intentionally left a lot of it missing upgrades that would have cost a fortune. As someone new to woodworking, taking on projects that will be on display in the house has a high probability of failure, i.e. it looks worse than 3rd owner Ikea furniture sold on FB marketplace. So all the projects I am taking on first are out of site. Either they're in my shop, or in closets, or not permanent fixtures of the home. But I am building all of those things using techniques I learn about on channels like this. If I can make something look great in the shop (etc), I can translate that into something for the living room. Or at least that is what I keep telling myself.
Granted I'm a newbie woodworker I've only made 3 projects:
End Table
Work Bench
Rolling Table to hold dumbbells
You better believe I've used almost nothing but 2x4's for these and I absolutely love it! Especially my Dumbbell table where I used three 2x6 boards for the top surface and 2x4's for the framing. Most likely I'm still in this honeymoon stage with woodworking but for now I can't stop staring at my projects. My next project is gonna be a 4'x8' assembly/feed table for my table saw. Can't Wait!
I'm in a similar stage, and I think using construction lumber is completely fine. If I was doing this professionally I most certainly would make it pretty like this
Bro, thank you so much for this video. As somebody’s new to the woodworking thing, I really appreciate the fact that you amplified that the shop isn’t just a place to build things but an escape and a Zen moment. Building up my shop isn’t just about making it so I can build anything but making it so that I will enjoy building anything.
This video really resonated with me. My shop has been under construction for 25 years, building out a wall here, duct chase at another time, set of cabinets on one wall, 1/2 of the suspended ceiling a year or two ago and so on as I had time.
This year I had to do some lighting upgrades for my living room reno and realized that I should include the 6 troffers and 2 pot lights I’ve had for close to 20 years ago for my shop in the circuit planning. This after years of 1 troffer and LED worklight as my only lighting. Now I walk into the shop and can’t believe how bright it is and how pleasant it is to work there.
I just did a day and a half of turning Christmas ornaments and thoroughly enjoyed myself.
Also your comment on sanding: bang on. I dreaded sanding and the mess it makes but have a Fein vacuum and Oneida Dust Deputy setup to connect to all my cutting and sanding tools and it makes a huge difference. The Fein is remarkably quiet and the Dust Deputy keeps the hepa bag on the Fein clean, so I’ve used one bag in 3 years.
Excellent cart for your laser!
I totally agree with you about your shop furniture etc.
My shop is a mess (terribly) and there are days where I am ashamed and also un-inspired to create items.
I know when my shop is looking good, I feel so much better in the shop.
You are also right about our shops are never finished, and keep evolving!
Thanks!! Merry Christmas!!
Travis - great video! Being intentional is a function that applies not just to the shop but with most everything in life. I am sharing this with the guys in my shop. They think I am crazy with my ideas when a simple table works, but it needs to do more than just work - it is needs to perform intentionally. Looks like I have to be intentional and roll up my sleeves and get out there and show them the difference - prove it to them! Keep up the great content - your work does more than just provide for you and your family - IT MAKES A DIFFERENCE!!!
Great video! Good 10 minute-ish coffee break length. I just this summer completed (well 90%) of my electrical in my new shop. Sadly, right now, it's a giant storage shed with bright lights. Your concise tips, tricks, and philosophy hit the nail on the head. (Pun intended). Thanks for the encouragement!
You can tell a lot about a person by their choice of pencil. That GraphGear 1000 you keep whipping out says a lot about your appreciation of a quality tool.
Lots of great info. I looked at your shop/garage workbench plans. I like it. Your plans are a lot more detailed and looks easier to understand compared to other plans. Keep up the great work!
Roger
Couldn't agree more. I probably won't do fancy stuff, but the shop tables I have were cobbled together in 20 minutes and it shows.
By contrast, I built a new workbench. I took my time, designed a workbench with specific features I've been needing to solve specific problems, drew up plans, and _voilá_ I love doing woodwork again.
I tend toward using what I have to cobble together stuff for the shop, but you're right, if I was a little more intentional, I would like being out there even more.
This mentality could be applied to so many things in life
100%
Great video. You’re totally spot-on. I have a wreck of a shop and I find myself dreading the idea of stepping foot in it. Time for change. Thanks.
All of your points are totally valid Travis! My goal is to have my workshop as clean as in operating room. After all, nobody facing a serious procedure wants to be rolled into a dirty unorganized OR. Organization is the key. You can work effortlessly, and maybe even flawlessly with everything at your fingertips knowing where they belong. There is a place for everything and everything in its place. Merry Christmas 🎄 Travis!
Travis, totally loving the new shop greatness video! It’s the stuff that drew me to watch everything you put on UA-cam years ago! Great reminder that your shop is so much more than just a place to work! Happy holidays to you and your family! Look forward to more great content in 2024.
This is exactly the type of videos I love the most on this channel! Thank you!!
Great video this week! I designed a simple storage solution for my lathe tools. But after watching your video it is getting expanded. Thanks for sharing!
This is the kind of video that motivates me to get off my rear and get busy doing things, like making my maker spaces much more organized and efficient, which then motivates me to get going on projects I've been wanting (needing) to do.
For the same reason that I love your channel because I got hooked with the seamless, clean ,and welcoming style of your shop. I love a shop that not only serve the purpose but how cool and clean could be.
Thanks Travis for sharing more and more ideas.
One of your best explanations. Your zen is becoming apparent. Totally agree with your approach. Thanks.
Funny you said Snap! I did 2 weeks ago after 25 years. Bran new shop on its way. Proper planning and drafting was time consuming and frustrating. Now it's time to play with all my tools and build, build and build ! Can't wait.
Great pacing and info, thank you for the video!
1000%. It's all about mindset . Being in a clean space, nice, efficient, and well thought out. It brings out creativity and being able to make the next thing.
Great video and great advice. Thanks for the information and I agree. Before I retired a co-worker would give me a hard time about building my own cabinets and finishing them like furniture while he mad an ou lock kits. We still are on different pages and yes his clocks came out very nice. Thanks again
One of the VERY best videos I've seen, just subscribed !
You bring excellent vibes to learning. Keep up the great work and thanks for taking the time to make such quality content
Recently my new shop build, (the workshop itself), has come under the microscope and the question keeps coming up; "Why is this project taking so long?". To that I answer something like - "Well, I have always dreamed of having a workshop that is just what I want it to be, after all I am retired and spending my time creating my shop is enjoyable for me". I go on to tell them is about the journey. I am a retired computer tech, and I love automation. In my shop it's all about cool things. By building the cool things into the shop frame, thats enjoyable for me. I love the fact that I can push a button and the big dust extractor (in the room outside the shop) the extractor comes on and the particular blast gate opens, as well as the ultra quiet booster fan that brings that cleaned filtered air back into the shop. I love the fact that the shop air is filtered and returned in a seperate system that is not hanging from the ceiling and again is ultra quiet, but very effective. And on and on and on.
These projects take time, which I have a lot of. I have started building my shop furnature, and as Travis said, it needs to be functional, save time, and be estetically appealing.
Super Cart Travis, by the way I'm still waiting for my Dewalt croscut upgrade for the dust extraction, but I know your busy, like us all.
Lowell
That cart turned out awesome! I am a programmer by day and let's just say there are a lot of parallels to what you discussed in this video. Investing the time and energy into being more efficient pays off dividends, you're right. I always think of it as me freeing up time to do the things that I actually want to do, rather than the mindless repetitive stuff. Like you mentioned, more time back to be creative. Anyway, hope you and your family have a great Christmas!
You make some excellent points...and definitely food for thought as I contemplate cleaning my shop.
Your video is timely because I've just embarked on my journey to have the shop I always wanted. All the things that are "good enough" are getting jettisoned and I'm going to make my shop a place I look forward to going to instead of dreading the unorganized mess that it's become. It's going to be functional, organized and have some bling.
I'm only just getting back into wood working after many years of living in an apartment in the city (hence why I'm watching this video).
My main shop experience is a wooden shed with a corrugated iron roof, dirt floors, and an extension cord for the power tools... But since I was a teenager learning to make things from my Dad, that shed stands out in my memories as one of the greatest places in the world.
Having said that, though, as an adult now, I completely agree with what you've said.
My only question would be: for items like a table saw or mitre saw, do you need the strength of the construction lumber, rather than the plywood you used for the laser bench? I assume plywood would be fine since the tools are not that heavy, but most shop furniture I've seen looks like it is built strong enough to take a herd of elephants learning to tap dance on top of it.
A Shop Nation video about Shop Greatness?!? Yes!!
Crazy, I know!
Great video, so much from this i should take to my own shop as i plan out a full overhaul of the space. For anyone thst might see this and want to tey that 3m mesh paper...be careful if you do client work or really care about your finish. For some people it works great or they wouldn't keep pushing it. Faster material removal does not mean a better surface, it just means faster. I had to resand an entire top of a sofa table for a client after chasing swirl marks from thst paper on a festool sander with dust extractor. I went slower, faster, pencil trick, tried all sorts of stuff. Changed back to thr festool paper (other high quality paper would probably be good too, festool is just what i had) and swirls gone in one run through the grits. Just be cautious.
Great to see you get back too your roots with this video. I've missed this!
Love this channel so far. Our philosophies align very well but I have been unable to capitalize on the intentionality of my shop due to time constraints but retirement is coming and I am looking forward to working in my new shop-even more so now.
I’m about to rebuild my small workshop storage. After watching this I’ve already made the plans bigger and better!
These videos are straight fire Travis ! Thx for teaching me how to use a power drill!
With you 100%. I have a small shop, and every square millimetre has to earn its keep. Sheet materials are more space efficient.
Quality/finish- ask yourself if your partner would have it in the kitchen. if not, keep designing until you get a yes. Your workshop should be your happy place.
This is a great topic. I try to make a point of either trying an idea or a technique in my shop furniture, but I'm still using the piles of dim lumber and non-baltic birch and seeing if I can find a way to make that stuff work. My stuff is still ugly and sometimes doesn't worked as planned, but I can say I learned something on the back side each project.
Always positive, educational, and inspiring content...thanks!
“Fabricobble”. Hehehehe. I’m stealing that. ;)
Specific, Efficient, Easier, oh my. thank you. 👍👍
Man, I agree with you. Nobody in my circle gets it, but IMHO a shop has to look good, so you feel good when you work in it. I mostly get comments like 'are you building a living room ? *gnihihi*'. I personaly hate woodworking shops, or garages that look unorganized and dirty. After I'm done for the day, I take 5 min an clean my work space, so it is nice when I enter it another day.
Tho I like to work with construction lumber for stuff like that (lumber prices go brrrr), I think it is important to have a fitting colour scheme, just like you have in an actual living room. In my case, I went the kinda standart route with white walls, grey / anthracite floor and furniture and walnut like stained surfaces. Nothing special, but clean looking, organized and (mostly) tidy.
Great video, thanks Travis! I love your philosophy in all your builds and enjoy your content. And of course the humor. Scott
I afree 100% with you. Iam not a woodworker but a metalworker. Every time I have have the opportunity to upgrade a shop work space I make a point of overbuilding it and making the space more efficient. Yes it costs time and money however in the long run it saves me both of those commodities. The other thing I do is paint or powdercoat everything. It looks nice to my eyes and is a reflection of the quality of work that the shop is capable of producing.
1:43 I screwed a whiteboard to the man door of my garage. Before anyone says, "What if someone opens the door while you're sketching on it?" I live alone and if that door opens and I wasn't expecting anyone, it's go time.
2:09 For those who say they hate working on shop infrastructure, I'm coming to you from the future to say you will need this if you want to a less stressful environment. Every time I add or improve something for my shop, I find myself getting more efficient or productive.
4:10 Example, my project (outfeed) table. I created an in-house built T-track grid system on the table using 1/8" x 3/4" wide steel flatbar, buffing off the mill scale and adding a matte automotive black primer finish to the metal. And I used 1" flat head #8 screws flush with the metal to fasten them down. I added strips of poplar banding (it's almost as though I saw a video on this at some point), cutting the corners at 45 degrees once mounted (prevents having sharp edges when running into it!), then added a chamfer to the banding all the way around. When you walk into my shop garage, it's the first thing my eyes are drawn to every time. The table itself is 1/2" plywood with 3/4" MDF on top of it (glued to the underlying plywood). I had planned on just using shellac to finish it, but after a couple coats, I realized I was running out and that was when you couldn't get it in stores due to supply chain issues. So I did a couple coats of satin finish poly on top. It actually looks professional, and I'm no pro. It has taken a ton of abuse. In the new year, IF my business doesn't sustain a catastrophic failure, I may consider taking the top off, keeping it, and completely re-doing the base with wheels that are meant for this type of build. I'm not happy with the current wheels under it anyway (stupid cheap farm supply store wheels barely lock). Oh, and that's the beauty of doing one of these builds. You may build something that holds up for now, but eventually you can replace it with an upgrade based on your elevated skill level. My current shop vac based dust collector cart is at the top of my list.
8:19 Clutter in the shop is the bane of my existence. It's so weird how the simple task of tidying up and then stopping to look at what you've done will have a positive effect on how you feel.
9:10 I appreciated the video edit there.
Hmmm, you motivated me to clean up my shop! It *IS* a chore having to move everything just to do something creative. And I just realized that I have a lot of dead space that I can put to work! Thank you.
I really like the philosophy here. I have not spent much time on my shop furniture.
I have a system that works well enough for me, but I'm looking to ramp up my production and I could use some variety. I think I'll apply this mindset before I start pushing on the next project!
Great video, lots of valid points and topped off with a really cool project.
was this a competition to see how many advertisements can fit into a single video? Product placement was over the top.
I’ve got the comment a couple times, the funny thing is there were literally just 2 placements (including the ad in the middle) in the whole video
This was a great video, my shop furniture is mostly made from the cheapest stuff I can find that will function. I might start rethinking that for future shop projects!
"Shop Greatness" is more of a process to manage than a problem to solve. Great video...again.
Awesome Video. Everything I ever made with construction lumber when I was first starting out has been replaced! Intentionality is where I struggle as sometimes I can be overly analytical of where I want everything and end up taking forever to complete projects. I think the most recent shop cabinets I built were based on Rev. 7. . . For an 8 foot row of cabinets with some drawers!!!
I happen to live were there is a lot of new construction and a lot of useful construction grade and trim lumber tossed in dumpsters I’ve acquired for free. I’m just setting up my woodworking shop and happy to make all my rookie mistakes on free wood for the machine stands and storage I’m creating for my garage shop.
I wish all diy guys would run a clock to show us all how much time each of these projects takes, then we can decide which ones to tackle.
That would be an interesting concept. The only issue is the clock would somehow have to negate the time it takes to film the projects. In my experience it easily multiplies the time by 2-3x
"SawStop hotdogs". "Shop Okayness". You're on fire today! LOL
Wait, I ask Santa for $10k in F tools and I’m not going to be a better woodworker? 😪
Working In the commercial space with lots of room. 🎉
This was truly great! Lets hear more about that StackTech system!
Great video, a good message, and a really nice cart.
Great project and really appreciate the message, as always. I'd just add not to get too tied up in perfection for shop furniture. It is a great way to learn & practice, as you stated, But I can't imagine a situation where I'd re-do the a shop piece just because it didn't turn out the way I'd hoped (unless it just didn't work, I suppose).
One more reason for a great looking shop: if your business is to sell “stuff” customers will judge you based on where you work. Nice organized shop seats “quality” and you care.
Great video Travis you are so right my work space is a total mess my goal for next year is to start building myself some shop greatness and make it a place I want to be and work in. Thanks as always for the inspiration.
As far as 11 minute advertisements go, this is not the worst one I have seen.
Great Video!
Gotta admit, I've definitely fallen into the trap of "oh well, i'll get around to it later..." or "It's not that bad having to move things around every time I change process, just get over it and do it".... but in reality, inconvenience drives me insane. I buy tools to improve the efficiency of my process but I dont invest in my workspace and that's what is really holding me back from that zen - flow state woodworking we all know and love!
Again, great video! inspired me to want to get back in the shop and finish those workspace improvements ive been putting off for months!
Inspirational, quality content! Good work, Travis!
Great points on this video and couldn’t agree more. One thing that might be an idea for a future video is how to go about reading a set of plans. I’m new to this “building stuff” and looking at a set of plans can make your head spin. Doing a beginner video on reading a set of plans would be super helpful. Merry Christmas!
Man I told you that full shed video would take off. I use my garage as an office, indoor bike riding area, bike shop, and youtube studio. Plus I'm on a budget so i only focus on function and QOL, no aesthetics. Despite that, it makes me super happy to have a space that works so well for me and I'll always be improving it overtime. Shop greatness (to me*) 😂
Even for non-elegant shop furniture, I still find it so much better to use 3/4” plywood ripped down to strips to be much better, there’s no twist, they are stable and they are stronger per size.
Excellent video, excellent point... well done Travis!
Great, now I'm stuck on shop furniture philosophy, thinking about all the problems in my shop instead of building the 15 projects in the hopper. Damn it, Travis. Why must you do this to us? ;)
Slow is smooth, smooth is fast
hahahaha you have no clue what my shop looks like. If you did you would be rolling on the DIRT floor in hilarity.
Great video! I agree with you but with limited space i find my shop furniture to be too bulky. Trying to find plans that minimize the footprint of my tools. By the way i purchased your miter saw dust collection tool and couldn’t be happier. I have a Dewalt and the stock application was horrible. After many attempts at homemade contraptions I now have a lot more control over the dust the saw creates. Thank you!
I need to have a semi-portable workshop as my garage is tiny (1953 construction) so I make a lot of rolling carts that I can arrange as my project needs. I do spend more time in finishing and making it look nice than the actual construction but that's just me and a great way to test stains and finishes.
I think you hit the record for the number of sponsorships in one video!
I’m going to start using a flavor of “shop okayness!” Love the advice in here about using shop furniture to get better at skills and making things actually look good. I’m working on that myself this year as well. Fantastic video!
Also, really smart how you used the gif about the dust collection along with the top right link to the video about it. That’s brilliant
I started to revamp my shop. I fell into the make everything as big as you can. It gave me no space and made it hard to move everything around. Its making me think about what i actually need and use it for and because its smaller o can use better materials
Fantastic video man
Brilliant video as usual, and lots of great ideas.
I need to take more pride in my little shed, and that is my plan for 2024. I'm going to redesign the layout.
Great video and great advice.
Sharks wirh lasers= thumbs up!
Well done Sir.
Thanks for the video and you have a fine cart for your laser, but tell us how your Bambu printers are working out. Thanks again 😊
Great video and inspiring content!!!! What software did you use to draw up the cabinet design?
My wife and I love Factor. We highly endorse the food! We both get to pick the meals we both want to eat which sometimes is very different from each other. I mostly choose Keto, and Protein meals and I haven't found one that didn't taste great after buying them for about 6-8 months now. And one of the best parts, no clean up.
Thanks for the video. What do you use to connect your vacuum hose to the Kreg track saw? I’ve been duct taping the hose for my Rigid vacuum to the dust port b/c I haven’t found a good adapter.
I agree, 100% with you!!!
That maple plywood does look nice!
I have a reupholstering business. Ive found that i need to schedule 6 hours each week to update the shop/make repairs to equipment/ improve work flow functionality. Ever since doing that my work atmosphere is better and more efficient. If i didnt schedule those hours id always have an excuse ill do it another time. Im too busy
I have a few edge band trimmers from Amazon, that one at 3:37 looked like it cut smooth. Where did you pick it up?
Nice work. And I get what you're saying about shop furniture. Great video.
Did you make a video on making the laser cart? I have a XTool laser and I'm looking for a storage solution for it.
Awesome cart! Just wondering, which track saw do you like more, the Kreg or the Rigid?