I really like Your carving videos - they are the reason why I subscribed to Your channel. The Art and carving make your videos unique, and make You to stand out from a myriad of other woodworkers, for me at least. P.S. That whisky cabinet is gorgeous, by the way.
One thing missing from the video i feel, is how long it actually took you. This easily looks like 60-80h invested. Maybe even more. I guess its hard to say since you are also making a video .... One of the reasons i do not have woodworking channel is that I don't have time (nor the knowledge) to film everything, edit it etc. it is however, a great way to just be doing things you like once YT is creating an income. And this changes the game obviously. Because now you can invest for example a week's work in just one piece because the profit is coming from the video.
@@Coen80 you are correct. There is way more time involved building this cabinet than a 30 min YT. I suppose I may have built YT channel in my woodworking years. It could be another income stream if you have a very active YT channel. But I chose woodworking over a desk job for a career as I don’t like to sit. So filming, editing, overdubbing etc sounds like way too much sitting behind a computer screen. Also not a huge fan of computers anyway. I am to old school. But I do watch a few YT Chanel’s, only the ones that I think are honest humans.
I grew up in a former soviet union and all tools I had were hammer, hand saw, a dull chisel and a knife - this is how I started… I later acquired a plane and a drill… this is how I did most of my woodworking… I didn’t make anything fancy - just utilitarian pieces for everyday use… that look reasonably nice… so, do I appreciate all tools I have now - yes… but can I make same quality furniture with a fraction of what I have now - absolutely… it may take longer and cause some frustration… but it also forces you to think out of the box and be more creative… and this is in my opinion a fast track to gain experience 😉
One thing I've learned: Time is money, so saving one means spending more of the other. You could start making things with little more than a panel saw and some sandpaper if you're willing to spend a lot more time working on it. Along that same track, you need to ask yourself what part of woodworking do you enjoy? I don't have a table saw, but I can make the same kinds of cuts with a circular saw and a straight edge. However that does require more time to setup to make sure the straight edge is in just the right place, and if you're making a lot of cuts you end up spending the majority of your time doing that setup. I've found that I would rather spend ten minutes cutting and 30 seconds on setup than the other way around, but others may feel differently, and that will determine the tools that you will want to buy.
I am a computer programmer, I started in the 1980s. I read articles by programmers from the soviet union who began programming on simple computers with 1024 or 2048 *bytes* of memory, not kilobytes or megabytes. Limited resources meant that they had to do everything with almost nothing, and gained great skill that way.
That saw is 599 I hate people that say you don’t need that but I am using it if you could make nice stuff without those tools that you said you don’t need then why don’t you do it without it and tell me how long it takes if it take you 8 mo to make a table then you can’t make money to buy more tools
Rex Krueger's woodworking for humans series builds up from very few tools to building your own tools and picking up new ones as you grow. it's all hand tools and about as cheap as you can get i think.
Rex is good, but he is also not really teaching "fine" woodworking. I feel like everything in life cost money. If you are going to do a Rex Kruger project, it would be great, but dont expect a David Charlesworth result. Same with James Wright. I really like his stuff, but some of his techniques and the lack of technicality for the tools and results doesn't sit well with me. The point is, if you want to do good work, it takes time and/or money. You can always compensate one for the other, but you are not going to be building fine furniture if you are using an off the shelf stanley handyman no 4. Yes you can spend 20 hours and have it perform fantastic, but what is your hourly rate worth? Cheap isn't always the best way to go or even start. If it's a necessity, then so be it, but it would not be my choice. You pick up all sorts of bad habits.
@@MintStiles Then watch Paul Sellers. He teaches finer craftsmanship than pretty much anybody else on UA-cam and all you need is a handplane, chisels from Aldi, a handsaw and sharpening stones. Yes, it will take time and labor, but it's proof you don't need $3000 worth of tools to make something good.
@@Raiver-of-Eridu Paul Sellers is a production hand tool woodworker. Good teacher, lots of interesting techniques, but he is by NO MEANS authority. I know for a fact that his team or himself removes comments in regards to techniques not consistent with his in comment sections. For example, he seem to hate it when people mention the usage of chip breakers to control tare-outs and will remove any comments to that effect. His hand planes tunings are honestly mediocre at best. While I have plenty issue with Rob Cosman and his pushy sales, his planes are in far better service specs. To a novice, he will seem like a God (or the best UA-cam has to offer). To a seasoned veteran, his approach is a bit idiosyncratic and his tools just okay.
@@Raiver-of-Eridu To add to what I just said, I am not saying that he is bad, it's just that he isn't the God everyone seem to make him out to be. To illustrate, a properly tuned plane is perfectly flat (or tip to tip convex by no more than 1/2 of thou or so) and square on the sides. The hard edges are rounded, but there are no additional removal of material on the sides. Or no blade should be stropped on the flat side. You will still end up with a sharp tool, but it will be a chisel that will rise with your cut, become progressively hard to remove a burr, and not a reference edge. Just to point out some issues as hard evidence. Finally, eschewing power tools for the sake of using hand tools is silly. Some work require calories, and that's the bottom line.
I worked for years in a small outbuilding with no electricity (or very rarely with a 100' extension cord hanging out the window) - my entire dining room is outfitted with pieces made primarily with hand tools. Mind-blowing pieces have been created for centuries without fancy tools - they just speed up the process and give you convenient precision, but they're ultimately just a great shortcut for a hobby woodworker, not a mandatory thing. That metric changes if you're trying to make a living at it (time is money and all that), but I've found it's amazing what you can make with a very limited amount of tools if you're willing to hone those skills and trade time and effort for smaller budget and space. None of that is to say that you shouldn't have those cool tools, but not having them shouldn't be an impediment to enjoying the craft.
The best advice for the budget conscious woodworker is to see if there's a local woodworker's guild or maker space. I may be spoiled, but my guild has 6 SawStop cabinet table saws, router tables, drill presses, bandsaws, jointers, planers, lathes, a range of Lie-Nielsen planes, etc. A year of membership with shop privileges (after a safety course) is $200.
Wow, where do you live? The makers spaces I toured when I lived on the edge of Silicon Valley didn't even approach that kind of woodworking shop. I recall being dissapointed by one shop's one table saw and the guide's answer about what they did to keep it making clean, accurate cuts. IIRC, that was at the place with the best woodworking tools.
@@ardemus Did you try Makernexus in Sunnyvale? While not having what @chestergregg8668 has, the tools are really great and people there, including me, have made some great furniture pieces. While a monthly membership is not free, it's so worth it.
The Dallas Makerspace has 2 Sawstop table saws and other typical power tools, with a monthly charge of $60, and some lower fees for special categories like retired/disabled for $40/month. But, the woodworking space is just part of what they have. They have a number of classes, some free, some with nominal fees. The power tools are having an interlock installed, so only members who took the appropriate safety class can use the tools. But, it's a big metro area, this is the closest (maybe only) Makerspace, and not the fastest place to get to. The last time I went to the area, I took 4 separate freeways/tollways to get there, and my city touches the city that has the Makerspace (Carrollton).
@@johnhaller5851Wow, the places I looked at in the bay area, a decade ago, were 4 times that each month. They were much more than the annual cost for @chestergregg8668's guild! Though a guild sounds more like what I'd want anyway: a community funded, community owned, non-profit. IRRC, the makers spaces were all for-profit businesses.
One should remember that for thousands of years fine woodworking was performed without electricity, specialty tools, and modern process advances. Sweat, elbow grease, and proper techniques. What does it cost to be a woodworker? Determination to learn the skill and craft. A tape measure, some decent handsaws, a few planes, chisels and mallets. All joinery can be done without hardware, without mechanical fasteners and certainly without electricity. Look at the centuries old Japanese buildings still standing that don’t have a single nail in them for evidence.
He didn’t say dont buy it, just dont buy it until you need it. This is a great way of avoiding buying those tools which you end up never using. You’ll save yourself a lot of money this way.
@@mrfirestop415that isn't "don't do it" it is more " wait till you need a tool for a job, THEN buy it " which means that you shape your tool collection to your actual needs and work type
Loved this video honestly. Hit right at home. 7 years ago my wife bought me a miter saw. Then I bought a table saw. The rest is history. I’m a full time woodworker now and love everything about it. I have everything from sawstop to festool to lie Nielsen. And everything I got essentially for free cause I saved all of my profit from side projects and now I’m here. I can’t emphasize enough how much this video hit to heart to the point I have a tear in my eye. Now it’s how I provide for my family and how we take our vacation every year. Thank you encurtis!
Hobbyist shop: jobsite table saw. foldable outfeed table. Circ saw or a jig saw. And drill driver set. That's all you really need. Another good resource is Steve Ramsey. He has a list of tools for under $1,000 all-in for beginners. But the key is you don't have to buy it all in one shot. It's an additive (never mind addictive hobby)
You don't need the jointer; worked for years without one. I flatten the initial face using the planer with a sled. Edges done with an L fence on tablesaw or hand plane.
You don’t NEED a jointer, and I went years without one, but got a 6” bench top model and it was a game changer. Speed, accuracy, not having to run through complex setups with other tools, totally worth it
I'm starting in woodworking. Inherited a lunch box thicknesses Second hand band saw NZ$250 Plastic handle chisels - gift Wetstones... From kitchen Hammer - eastwing, had it forever Mallet - made it myself from offcuts You get the idea… Don't be in a rush Buy it when you need it. Nothing wrong with second hand.
I've had this conversation with many people that come to me shop and see all the second hand machinery and hand tools I use. My Grandfather used to say "Machinery doesn't make you a woodworker. However, a woodworker can make a machine do things it wasn't intended to do." He also said "A true craftsman is someone who can make a mistake look intentional." lol
My first wood working project was a coffee table for my mother-in-law. The only power tools I had at the time was a circular saw, palm sander, and drill. I bought a $20 pocket hole jig and a few clamps from Harbor Freight and built it out construction lumber. 10 years later and it is still in her living room.
@ENCurtis I'm walking this path right now... so happy you made this video. There are a LOT of costs I've come across... The right guage extension chord, lighting, shop vac (even a good BROOM is expensive). If you live in an area where used tools are scarce or in Canada your shipping costs can be as much as some of the tools. IF you work in a power supply limited area all you may opt to go battery powered for tools, which doubles or triples the cost once you factor in batteries. - Clamps were well north of $100 for me assuming you get 4+ with two even them being long enough to do larger pieces. - Dust mask? Organic filter (if your workspace has real poor ventilation), saftey gear, expendables. - How bout a finishing saw blade? Are you really going to cut using the framing saw blade that came with the $150 hand saw ;)? - Up in Canada I don't know what's going on with finishing products/paint but they're 50% more than just a couple years ago. - Hardwood costs are also way up there, i've been trying to just make a decent mallet not out of softwood for ages. - The #1 limiting factor though is SPACE if your living near a big city, which most people are. - How about router bits! They aren't all that cheap if you're buying them 1 at a time. Long story short, I'm lucky to be able to go down this road but I do feel the reality is that this hobby is out of reach for 90% of people, especially those in their earlier stages of their carreer/life. It might be better to just call out woodworking as a hobby for those privliged enough to be able to start off on it. Who knows how many tried and got discourged by costs halfway through thinking it was a budget friendly hobby!
This video is why I watch your channel. I am lucky that 95% of my equipment was inherited from my great-grandfather down to my Dad. Most everything else came from social media and Harbor Freight. In truth, I didn't become a woodworker until late in life; before that, I was a carpenter on my best days. Maintaining and repairing our farm and uncles' and family friends' places is where I got my basic skills growing up. You don't realize how important these types of videos are, from respected craftsmen, for young boys and girls who have an interest in woodworking. I promise you there was no one doing what you do when we got our first black and white TV in 1954 when one station came on the air that we could watch..
I've been a hobby woodworker for about 4 years. I recently upgraded my table saw from the Hercules table saw I started with to a Delta 36-725t2. I made things with the Hercules, but it had its limitations. Over the course of time I've made lots of tool purchases and upgrades, but you can get started theoretically with a circular saw and a drill and a couple squares as I did.
I've been refinishing furniture for about a year now. I recently realized a few things that have brought the prices down. First, the price of wood right now is out of my budget, but most used furniture has wood parts or are all wood. I buy them for the wood, take what I need for parts and repairs and scrap the rest. If they are really clean, I keep the back boards for the next dirty one I come across. The second one is that most hardware stores sell wood that has warped or cracked. Mine will bundle different sizes of damaged wood and throws in a 2 x 4 or larger. Craigslist is a great place for used tools and Dollar Store and Big Lots are good for brushes and other small items. Hope that helps someone.
I would remove the jointer from the list. I get by happily with a sled for the planer. My version doesn't use glues or tape or any other sticky thing and is quick and easy to set up. In some ways it works better than a jointer.
I would agree. I did finally buy a used 6” jointer for $300 a couple years ago and have gotten a lot of good use out of it. But I still use my planer to flatten wider boards. Could I live without it? Yeah, I could. I encourage people to purchase major tools used when starting out-table saws, planers, jointers, band saws, etc. Go new as the opportunities and needs arise down the road.
Honestly don't need either when first starting out. Sure, they'll pay for themselves in the cost of wood over time, but for those first handful of projects, already flat boards from the big box store is even cheaper.
This brings back memories! I've been working for over 30 years and still look for garage sale tools and used tool deals although my shop is very complete now. But to give an example, a friend who is setting up a new shop just got a 3 hp Unisaw at a local town auction for $80, and had it cleaned up and running with only one day of sweat equity. Love the channel Erick, I need more design and theory and things.
Very nice reminder. Being "rich" is being content with what you have. But gone are the daze (!) when I bought really nice old handtools at tag sales and used a funky old skilsaw upside down in a piece of ply as a table saw (so lucky I didn't sever any hands). Now I'm grateful to say I have a large well-tooled up shop (including a Shaper Origin!!). But I still remember the excitement of my first forays into "making something" so long ago. Thanks again for keeping things sensible.
Sadly lot of channels are mostly affiliate link harvesting at this point. When you see half a dozen "cheap" domino alternatives that still cost several hundred dollars, or "you don't need a (of course Festool, like there are no capable much cheaper alternatives on the market) tracksaw, just this track thingy for 199.99$. Yeah, pumping FOMO. But there are still some channels I love.
I appreciate that you're not pulling your punches with this video Eric. If you shop around, look through discount bins, look online, etc.. you can get a lot of the tools for a fraction of the price. It's always the bigger the tool, the more likely that you'll be stuck paying the full price. I hope others see this comment and understand that if you're patient and shop around, you can totally get everything you NEED for a fraction$.
For resawing, before I got a big bandsaw, I built a Roubo-style resaw. I think it cost me 60 bucks all in. I've used it to break down a lot of 4X oak and sycamore material into 2X lumber. Bonus: Good upper body workout. It is surprisingly accurate and efficient. I bought a roll of nonslip drawer liner stuff from the dollar store to use as a sanding mat. Very grippy and stows away easily.
Thank you for this comment. I don't have a bandsaw and all the local maker places in California are expensive for shop space. I am going to build one of these for my small shop.
I have been watching you for a while, and I have to say. You have been my hero in my new experience of woodworking. Now I do woodwork, but I think I'm not good enough. This video is going to be another motivation for what I do now because this is what my situation is. A budget garage shop. Thank you so much for the hard work you do. I know it is not easy, thank you again.
I started in the pandemic and loved your videos. My tools were a WORX Pegasus work table, $70 Circular Saw, Bosch Router Table, Makita Palm router, 2 hand planes, cheap chisels, palm sander, 2 Bora 50 inch clamps, Bora NGX tracks and $250 Ender 3 3D Printer which I used endlessly to make jigs, small clamps, router bases, track saw base, etc to fill in all the gaps. NO table saw, NO planer, NO jointer, NO miter saw.
Totally agree. Having basic tools can teach you tricks and workarounds. As you progress and hopefully start to make money, it’s okay to invest in fancy expensive tools because the primary purpose of those fancy tools isn’t for UA-camrs, it’s to save you time. If you’re an aspiring business owner then you need to realize that those expensive tools are what they are in order to save you time and time is money. So if you’re starting out, regardless if you are starting with power tools, a hand craft woodworker, or hybrid, none are right or wrong, regardless of what some purists say, start basic.
I do think that floor space and making the most efficient use of it is always a challenge. But a necessity to add to your list would need to be dust collection. I was surprised you didn’t have any in your video.
This is one of the stumbling blocks people encounter at some point in their “journey”. I also treated this as an afterthought until I saw a video by Xyla Foxlin in which she described how she had to sleep sitting up for weeks because wood dust from a rare species had seriously effed up her lungs. You can sort of get away with using a dust mask, but you’ll still have to clean the whole room all time, and that can take the fun out of it and make the costs pile up. The barrier to entry into woodworking is indeed very low and I would still encourage anyone who is interested, but it just isn’t a cheap hobby.
@@mm9773 When i was a grade school aged kid, a family friend had a machine woodshop in his basement that was utterly fascinating to me. He worked exclusively in black walnut. I remember writing my name in the brown dust that covered every exposed surface in his shop, including the underside of his bench. Zero dust collection in the shop. I'd bet if that bench is still around my name is still in the dust... That guy ended up suffering chronic bronchitis and alveolitis by the time I was in highschool. It was so bad he had to drag around an oxygen tank and could no longer do woodworking, let alone climb down and up the stairs to his shop. Less than 10 years without dust collection, friends. If your boogers are the color of the wood you're working, start that cumulative dust inhalation clock.
Before I moved into my house, every tool I owned fit in 2 tools boxes on one shelf in a cabinet. Just things like a hammer, handsaw, some very cheap chisels, rubber mallet, cordless drill, level and a box cutter. I would love to see what you could do with very basic DIY tools like these. This video served as a reminder of all the tools I've bought since I moved here. It's also reminded me of all the things I've learned over the last couple of years about woodworking. Thanks a lot for the lessons!
My first work bench was a washing machine. So i couldn't do my wood working thing while doing laundry. The point is we can do what we want with what we have, at least to a point. Thanks for the video illustrating this. Something I do when I find myself complaining about not have fancy enough power tools is think about the masterpieces made before 1800. The master craftsmen got it done without any power tools, and did it with style! We should not give ourselves excuses for not doing good work.
Those prices were for brand-new items. Everything listed could be purchased at a fraction of the price at FBMP, including garage sales, auctions, and Craigs List. I've asked friends online if they knew where to get a few shop tools; most times, they are eager to get rid of whatever they have or know someone who does. Beautiful work, by the way.
I don't even have a shop! I do my woodworking on the back patio, using handtools and jobsite tablesaw on rolling stand. I've built furniture and cabinets and decorative trinkets. It can be done without the expensive stuff!
I rarely ever bought my tools new. Almost everything I have came from garage sales, Craigs List, etc. I clearly remember paying $2.50 for a Stanley #5 Jack Plane - completely rusted - took me 2 weeks to restore it. I still use that plane today. It works like new. Used hand saws were a couple bucks. Same for used chisels. All my power tools were purchased used. They are still working for me just fine today.
Agreed. Most of my tools current set of tools were purchased used. When I first started I bought a new table saw and band saw, both bought on sale at Sears, thinking I couldn't do anything without them. My lathe, a Harbor Freight Jet clone, was purchased new as well with a 20% off coupon. I bought a $1500 scroll saw used for $300 on Craigslist. My drill press came from CL as well. Eventually I migrated to mostly hand tools and like yourself I paid little to nothing for most of my used planes, braces, saws, etc...
$2.50 for a Stanley #5 Jack Plane is a stunning deal. Even back in the day they tended to go for $10-$20 Now I hardly see them. But I have seen some no name #5 sized planes. I just got a basket case for $1. Now I only buy wrecked planes to see if I can get them to make a shaving.
This was a great discussion. I have a well appointed two car garage sized shop. I manage to work without a jointer or resaw bandsaw. This video talked from a funding perspective--my woodworking journey is influenced by a network of woodworkers and space constraints. I am heating my shop with an electric/oil bath heater. For safety and sanity, I am upgrading to a heat/cool mini-split. I want to get back to projects, but the environment needs to be secured to maintain temperature and humidity.
Glad you made the comment about buying this second hand. I picked up a 6" jointer and dust collector for $300 off Facebook. Slow and steady you can get your tools you need if you have patience.
I remember doing projects with 2 clamps, one handsaw, a circular saw i bought for 8 dollars on craiglist, and cheap chisels. Made an argyle pattern cutting board that way. Now I have access to a full shop, but youd be suprised what you can do with not much in the way of tools.
That jointer's a luxury when you've already got a handplane, a router and a tablesaw on the list. Same with the circular saw when a disposable hardpoint handsaw does the same job (as would your router.) Hehe understand it's hard to think basics when you're used to all the frills, but your list sets the entry price far higher than it needs to
I started out with a plastic Black & Decker circular saw my dad gave when we bought your first house and my YOU TUBE was PBS with Norm Abram. If you want to see how to do wood projects watch some of his early shows.
Second hand is the way to go! 😎 I bought my Harbor Freight workbench on OfferUp for $20. My 6" jointer from FB Marketplace for $40. I use a ShopSmith that my wife's Grandpa passed down after he passed away, so free aside from the loss of a family member. My Delta lunchbox planer came from a pawn shop for $80. Used hand planes; I have a 4, 5, 6 and 7, paid $40 at most for each and restored them myself. 😎 It can be done.
I think the ShopSmith covers 2 of the key issues of this video... Money and Space. If you take your time and are patient you can find an awesome deal on a used ShopSmith system for not much money. I built what I call "My Workshop on a Wall" in my garage with used ShopSmith equipment. For the grand total of $1200 I have a Table saw/Drill Press/Disc Sander/Lathe/Surface Planer/4" Jointer/Band saw/Belt Sander/Dust Collector and a ton of tools the person was selling with it. It all literally takes up only 8' of my garage wall. Do I want all the tools Encurtis has in his shop? SURE!!! Do I need them... No.
I'm stubbornly trying to do my work with a miter saw and contractor table saw, 2 drills and a jig saw, plus a handful of handtools. I have a wish list that I add to and then ignore. Working like this means having to solve problems and swap time spent for the convenience of bigger priced power tools. I'm still learning and maybe down the road I'll need power tools when my arthritis wins the battle.
When starting a hobby woodshop, Craigslist/Marketplace is your best friend. Used machinery will save you at least half usually 2/3 of the new price and you'll likely meet a few characters along the way. Enjoy the journey.
Maybe it's just my local area, but I almost never see used machinery costing less than 75% of current new prices for sale on the various Internet marketplaces.
@@balzac_jones the deals don't come by every day. But if you look long enough you'll find them. My tablesaw I bought for $20 without a motor. I got a motor for it for another $20 and a switch cost me another $10. So $50 all in. It's a vintage Craftsman cast iron top contractor's saw.
For 5 years, I was building furniture and cabinets for my RV (that we were living in at the time) with only a $299 Ryobi kit, a measuring tape and a carpenter's square. They were stored in my workbench (which was a large plastic outdoor storage box) which also held any lumber small enough to fit in it. The rest of my lumber was stored under the RV (out in the open). I could only work from 4pm - 8pm during the week (after work and till quiet hours for the RV park) and could not work at all on the weekend except during the winter.
I definitely resawed by hand on my first bigger furniture project, then used my trim router to flatten my terrible resawing on a router sled, and did the rest with the table saw and trim router, a vintage Stanley no. 4 (which my great grandfather happened to use during his carpentry career), a cheap panel saw, and a DeWalt random orbit sander. I'd saw the minimum viable (mostly) power tool shop is probably about $1000-1500, as long as you are willing to so some of the stock prep by hand. I've built dozens of pieces and only recently got a lunchbox thickness planer. Great video.
Good video and good to see push back against the pricey tools. I would definitely remove the jointer - no need as a sled and plane will joint wood just as effectively. Also you would almost never need the flex shaft and rasp so drop that. Put the $1100 towards a shop vac, quality filter, ear protection, better quality plane, jig saw, a good quality table saw blade, basic router bits you will need. ( do not buy a "set" of useless bits - you will never use most of them), hand rasp, several rulers, bevel square, better quality chisels, and maybe a hack saw, metal file, and grinder. Consider a dado blade but you can get away without one (if your saw can handle one - check your saw brand before buying to see if it will handle a dado blade). You don't need a doweling jig if you cut your own mortise and tenons which is easy with a drill, chisel and table saw (and is a skill you should learn). . Pretty much every other jig you-tubers and advertisers are trying convince you that you must have can simply be made if you really want them.
Nice video! Let me start by saying I agree with your assessment of what a new woodworker today would need to start as a hobbyist. However, setting aside the limitations of time, that list could be a whole lot less expensive. There was a time in this world before electricity and before power tools, when craftsmen, professionals and hobbyists, turned out beautiful wooden projects. A hammer, a hand saw, a jack plane, a couple of chisels, a couple of files and rasps, a hand auger and bits, a square, and a ruler were the fundamental items needed to make something out of wood. Very time consuming for sure but very doable. Today’s newbie, in any field, is generally impatient and wants to be able to make things just like the woodworkers on you tube, right from the git go. They assume that it is the tools and not the craftsman that makes the difference. And, as you know, that is just not the case. There is no substitute for experience, practice, and knowledge. If you are just starting out as a woodworker, learn to be patient first of all. Second, start out with simple things and when they turn out less than you wanted, learn why, and work on doing things better next time. America’s pawn shops are packed full of nearly new tools, sold off by frustrated newbies who want perfection but lack the fortitude to stick with things until they master them. Start with a rudimentary set of tools and master them before you go out and spend thousands and thousands of dollars on tools and equipment. It’s 10% the tools and 90% skills and ability that get you where you want to go. Master the skills and the tools will eventually come along out of necessity. Remove time from the equation. If you find joy in working with wood, and in making things, it shouldn’t matter if a process or project takes 15 minutes or 15 hours. Enjoy the time spent, and constantly work on refining your skills and craftsmanship. Use the tools you have or can afford, and learn how to make them work to your level of satisfaction. You would be amazed at what you can actually make with a bare minimum of tools.
Thanks for doing this. I got into ww about a year and a half ago and have been accumulating the necessities over this time. I’ve found that the best way to go about it is to think hard about what you need to get your current project accomplished, and as you go from project to project you start to build a decent arsenal of tools. I’m now at a point where I already have what I deem to be the bare necessities and can get just about anything done if I get creative in utilizing what I have. Last few months I’ve been acquiring the stuff that makes it more convenient and quicker. But for the folks at the beginning of the journey… spend some time getting creative with the bare minimum and it will make you a better craftsman.
Absolutely amazing video on this. For me, since I had 80% of these tools from work, the hardest thing to overcome that I kept blaming on my tools was really the "good enough" attitude we get from framing, most siding applications, etc. Overshoot the blade 1/32nd? Use a fat pencil isntead of a knife? Tape sagging? All these things I had to retrain, or at least show more care in than when you're trying to strike that balance of pushing a project forward "within tolerance".
This was good stuff. I'll also add that if you have a makerspace in your community, you may find the membership fee more tolerable than building your own shop, ESPECIALLY if you don't have a space that could be a shop. In my case, it's $125 a month, but usually they have volunteer programs to offset or replace the expense. In my case, I clean the bathrooms once a week. I know, ridiculous, but I love a clean bathroom and I don't mind cleaning them. It takes me about half an hour a week, which is a pretty good hourly rate for my free membership!
Hello Eric, Feel free to delete this comment because i will talk about either content creator. So minimum amount is addressed in Paul Sellers Blog, with a full guide to hunt for tools, in the same style Rex Kruger devote his channel to the minimum cost woodworking. Rex also made a specific platform to source wood working tool for a decent amount. At the beginning you need two chisel, (let s say 3/8th and 3/4), a hand plane (4 or 4 and half) a decent dovetail saw and a large hardened teeth saw for big rip. and there you go.
Beat me to it. This patron maybe needs to watch Paul's YT channel as well as this one. Or Roy Underhill's old TV show. A lot can be done with just a handful of cheap tools, albeit at a pace that would be way too slow for a pro.
@@barryomahony4983 yeah definetly, but the question was from an amater stand point. for pro the computation boils down to : (tool cost - how many ours will this tool save you multiplicated by your hourly rate) and do you have a customer project with the revenue to support this investment.
I'm glad you mentioned second hand tools. The only "big" tools that I have bought new are my table saw, lathe, and bandsaw. My jointer, miter saw and planer are either second hand or factory reconditioned. I will admit that I do a lot more turning than furniture making, so I splurged on the lathe and the band saw, since I use those more than anything. But I'm able to put out some fairly nice stuff with my not necessarily name brand (Ryobi and Rigid) and second hand tools. I would also suggest checking out antique stores and estate sales for hand tools. I have a set of 6 handscrew clamps 2 ea 10", 8" and 4" that I picked up at an antique store for $50. The same with my hand planes and some of my chisels. The planes took a little work to get cleaned up and back in working condition, but they work and a couple of them are real antiques.
Planer Thicknesser used: 300£ Table saw....around 500£ Stanley Nr. 5: 40£ Luban block plane: 60£ Trim router: 60£ Chisels, probably would get 3mm, 6mm, 1 inch... used maybe 30£.... Engineers square: used 15£ Measuring tape: mine was £40 because its Hultafors but could just be 5£... Marking gauge: (most important tool there is in my humble opinion: 40£ Electric drill....maybe 50£ ? Marking knife...1£ ??? = 1106£ ( Something like that... )
When I started I had a router two router bits , a straight edge, framing square,tape measure, pencil, cheap skill saw, and a cheap mitre saw. I built bedside tables with those tools 30 years ago. I now have a shop that rivals a UA-camr’s shop. I still use those bedside tables.
I got a laguna fusion 2, a rigid standing jointer, a dewalt shelix planer, a harbor freight dust collector, and and old cnc with a laptop that has aspire (3.0) all for $900. I know this is beyond a rare deal, but is also why I say start with used. You can find amazing deals because someone else is either upgrading or getting out of the craft. Then when you do the same you can pay it forward while not getting screwed. Really helps others get into the craft.
Electric tools for working with solid wood and making fine furniture are expensive especially if you want to do it fast and precise. If someone have time/patience and not much money i would recommend starting with "Paul Sellers all hand tools" option. Lot's of cheap and good quality second hand tools around. There you can spend maybe up to a 1000 dollars (euros) for everything, including screws. Then with time you can get routers, circulars saw, ecc. P.s. If you want to save money from gym just ripsaw long boards with hand or frame saw. 😁
I really appreciated this video. After many years, I’m finally putting my shop together. Trying be as purposeful as I can with my purchases and this is a good guide. A planer and jointer are coming up as my next major purchases.
Really good video, Erik! The minimum requirement to start making good furniture, or whatever you make, is surprisingly small, as you say! Thanks for addressing this super important topic! Oddly enough, being stuck at home during the 2020 Pandemic was a big deal for me. It kick-started my woodworking hobby after decades of half-ass making things out of wood. I started with a minimal tool set and was able to make my first woodworking workbench (Rex Krueger’s Joiners Bench pattern) with handmade dovetailed drawers. My only power tools were a circular saw and a pair of DeWalt drills; hand tools included a Crown dovetail saw, a set of DeWalt chisels, a hammer and mallet, a Wood River 5-1/2 jack plane and a block plane, and miscellaneous home handyman tools like pliers and screwdrivers. A cheap Rockler vise and a pair of holdfasts were essentials, as well as some sharpening stones and some F-clamps. By adding a GOOD panel saw (7 TPI, rip cut) and a used DeWalt table saw, I gained the capability to resaw rough lumber that I flattened and squared with my hand planes, and I made some really good bookshelves, tables, etc. I have much better chisels and a few more planes now, but the only power tools I’ve added to my shop are a thickness planer and a bandsaw, which make milling lumber much faster so I can get on to building furniture.
I am glad to be reminded that we all started small with a limited budget! I have acquired half my tools from estate sales, rummage sales and people moving! I can’t pass up a good deal to expand my shop!
Here are my summary of journey. I started woodworking 3 years ago with just 3 power tools (1) black and Decker Circular saw (2) Black and decker palm sander (3) Ryobi drill. For me I pick up the project and see what my shortcomings are and then buy something. Its much easier to justify tool purchase. First tool I bought was a miter saw because I was making accent walls for my house and a play house for my kid. It did a great job in making cross cut just accurate enough for my purpose. Then I set a goal to replace furniture in my house with custom handmade furniture in the next 10 years from hardwood (not 2x4s). First issue I ran into is to make simple rip cuts and felt the need for a table saw and bought a jobsite kobalt one from FB marketplace for just 100 bucks. Very quickly found out that accuracy was just not there for the pieces I wanted to build. I decided to go for a Ridgid R4560 saw but it was quite big so need to sell miter saw since most of the miters which I wanted to do, can be done on table saw. Since then I have invested in a good planer (purchased a cheap one from FB, sold it to fund good one), table top jointer (which I am thinking of selling), makita corded track saw (which surprisingly see a lot of use), heavy duty router and a trim router, Drill press, grizzly bandsaw (upgrade from 1/3 hp wen table top version), biscuit joiner (which i sold). All these made over course of 3 years and it is still evolving. If I think I am going to use a tool because my favorite youtubers are using it, I go to FB and look for good deal, use it for few months and if really need it then upgrade.
I finally got electricity in my shop. I used it for 4 years before that. Little by little, I've added things here and there. Just put in my dust collection system, which was my largest purchase. All in all, I've dropped several thousand dollars on my hobby, but it's been spread over 7 years. Now I'm just more comfortable in my space (having heat is a godsend), more accurate with my cuts, and most importantly, more knowledgeable thanks to learning from channels like yours, and doing the work.
Keith Johnson produces quality work out of a 2 car garage. He does have expensive tools but the organizational prowess of tool placement is really impressive
Never forget to check your local pawn shop for tools. Our local shop gives a 30 day return policy on all used tools. You can find some decently servicable tools at pawn shops. I started woodworking in '07 building an arcade cabinet using a used 3hp router and used Skil saw.
@@skippylippy547 Because the barbers cut each other's hair. If one has a good haircut then he got his cut by the one with the bad one, which is the guy you want cutting yours.
I made an aviator-style coffee table with a big drawer. My workshop was my living room in a small 2-room apartment. The only tools I had were an old jigsaw, a Bosch Blue 12v cordless drill, a box cutter, clamps and a laptop with FreeCAD. The table looks like the 600 bucks tables you can buy and it's still solid and stable after 12 years and kids jumping on it. Good tools make some of the work more fun and more efficient. But when you are motivated and creative, the barrier for entry is very low.
Harbor freight will knock down that list in half. Bauer brand is good. I bought a set of 6 chisels for $10, did have to sharpen them and straighten them but they are great!
Another great video and another great peice. I got most of my tools second hand or as gifts from other makers/my parents. I have been able to accumulate a really good set up for what I would consider very reasonable investment. Also, the last WWBS episode yall did talking about stress came at a great time for me. I'm finishing up a custom bedframe for a client and the stress of wanting to meet their expectations was really getting to me. Hearing how you still deal with that after all these years of making fantastic pieces really helped bring me back down to earth.
It took me almost 15yrs to upgrade my Craftsman 113 to a Sawstop. You don’t need expensive tools. If you get the chance to upgrade something that is important to you, go for it! I love my Harbor Freight mitre saw and my Bosch router is going on 10 years strong. Only buy tools as you need them.
You said it early on that you can make it this hobby as expensive or as affordable as you want it to be. I’ve also found if you join a woodworking club, you will see all kinds of deals pop up for tools. Rather recently, an estate sale occurred for a woodworker. The hand tools didn’t sell. They literally gave away all kinds of hand tools (chisels, hand planes, etc). If budgets are tight, you can do it for even much less. A few years ago, there was a used dewalt 735 planer with Shelix head installed that sold for $200; yes, it sold fast but these kinds of deal happen.
Those wooden Jorgensen clamps are awesome. I vertically clamp slabs upright and clamp the clamp to my bench, making it easier to hand plane or sand live or squared edges on their side. I don't have a fancy work bench. Harbor Freight and Menards are my favorite! Deals to be had there.
It's been many years. But I don't own a hand plane that I bought new. You used to be able to go garge sales, flea markets. Pick up a used STANLEY hand plane for $10.00. Spend some time tuning and sharpening , you've got a good tool.
I think that watching the used market is where it's at. I started off buying some cheaper new tools, job site table saw, benchtop jointer, 9" bandsaw. I quickly learned that just with some patience I could find really good deals on used tools. So far in the past 3 years I've gotten a 1.5hp Powermatic table saw with 52" fence for $350. I picked up a 6x48" 1hp Jet jointer that had the Byrd Shelix head in it for $500. I also got an older Craftsman 2.5hp 18" bandsaw for $300, it needed about $100 in parts but it's amazing! My first advice to most people is to be patient and watch the used markets.
Hit the flea markets!! Last month I walked out my local flea market with a slightly used Porter Cable laminated trim router with around a dozen bits most unopened including a few Whitesides and CMT’s. A nice American made Stanley knockoff #5, a set of 4 chisels and a brass wheel marking gauge for $90! For once I was happy my wife dragged me shopping. Lol...
My list of must have tools is different from yours. I professionally built furniture my first 25 years without an electric jointer. I use a used $50 Stanley #7 to joint panel glue ups. What I find essential is a mid-sized plunge router with both 1/4 and 1/2 inch collets and an edge guide. A small benchtop router table can be made from a half sheet of plywood and it will get you by. A half dozen 6 foot pipe clamps are essential for me to do large glue ups. A half dozen more 2 to 3 foot pipe clamps make smaller glue ups more manageable. A Port-Align drill guide substituted for a drill press and while not essential, it sure is handy. I've been a professional woodworker for over 50 years. Right now I'm laid up sick with a bad cold. I don't normally watch UA-cam woodworkers, but I'm bored and stumbled on you channel. I've been binge watching and am really enjoying your work. I like your honest approach to the craft and appreciate your design esthetics. Thanks for entertaining me until I'm well enough to get back into the shop. Love the coffee mug, it's what pulled me in to watch in the first place.
I'll say that I'm definitely jealous when I see all the shiny expensive tools, and how easy they make it look, but, I also understand that everyone at the top started off at the bottom and worked their way up.
Also, pertaining to that Grizzley Jointer, you have to add another $75 - $150 for shipping from Springfield Missouri. Unless you plan on picking it up yourself. I think they used to have a store in Scranton, PA, but not anymore. I bought a Porter Cable bench top jointer that I could make an in-feed and out-feed extension for but it works well for me.
I bought some of my tools cheap from a pawn shop. There are several pawn shops around where I live but there is one that isn't trying to get rich from you. EZ pawn is the name of it, for instance I bought a Skil router table with the router in it for $35. I bought a Ryobi miter saw for $20, it's not a sliding miter saw but it does ok. Sometimes you can talk them down just a little to make it even cheaper than the price it's marked for. My point is that they may not be the best tools but you can find them cheap to get started and you can always upgrade later. When I got started just over a year ago I didn't have much money to start with but I kept at it looking for deals wherever I could think to look. Best advice is to only get the tools you need and slowly work your way up from there. You don't have to start with everything someone else started with because not everyone started the same way. Have a little patience but be vigilant and before you know it you will have several tools to work with. Stay safe and have fun 💯😁
EVERY successful social media page with fancy tools/shops started with the most modest of tools. It's important for folks to not compare your beginnings with someone else's middle and end. That goes for woodworking and just about every other aspect of life.
Also to add, you can use some of these tools for other things besides wood working! For the little bit of leather work I do, I use my chisels, clamps help with bringing back the piston on brakes, utility knives are used for boxes and cords, screw drivers for home repairs and vehicles. Sure you'll need wood working specific tools but a lot of the tools can be use elsewhere so you're really getting more out of them than just for woodworking. My dad had this big 2 inch chisel for scraping stuff off the floor and the sidewalk, he never did anything in the world of wood working. Just thought I'd throw it out there that most tools can be used for other things.
Very good video Been woodworking for over fifty years. I can only tell that when you're young starting out AKA New Yankee workshop My Shop is full of Delta Machinery The thought process was I can be as good as Norm with one of those. I think that thought process is true today. Your video was spot on and well done. The one most important tool that you left out was Talent And you can't put a price on that Again a well done video and for the beginner he or she had to get a lot from it thanks
First off, there are Wonderful UA-cam channels that offer up "budget" woodworking tips (Rex Krueger for example, tons of others) so I feel that niche is filled. Second; holy moly! I get sticker shock when I visit Woodworkers Source and see what my little jointer is selling for now. I recently upgraded it with a helical head - after 20+ years: another holy moly moment! But hey, my $2800 550 motorcycles are now pushing $10K+ so.......and don't get me going on cameras. sigh. I'll second the notion that you buy tools as needed. In about 30 years you'll have some very nice kit. Lastly; Fine Woodworking editors went to Pakistan many years ago to see how woodworkers did it over there. They were properly shamed. Back alley, don't recall any power tools and certainly nothing high end or even Harbor Freight- and they did awesome stuff. We're spoiled for sure.
I started with a corded circular saw from Walmart, a 7.6 volt cordless drill , a cheap router and cheap miter saw , all in less than 300 dollars . And I pretty much remodeled my 1st house with those tools
I recently got into luthery this year and I started by building a tele body first and got most of it done with a router, drill, jigsaw and orbital sander. I got a cheap harbor freight spindle sander later and a couple of hand carving tools and made my own router table later on. No planer or jointer and I made a few router sleds and jigs out of mdf. Most of the lumber I've gotten has been relatively well within dimension also and the yard by my house will make them s4s for a little extra. It's specific for luthery not needing a tablesaw really much at all.
My hobbyist woodworking space has evolved over time. My biggest limit is space - my driveway. It measures 11 ft x 24 ft. I currently have a 10 ft x 20 ft Costco carport to cover the space. Inside that, I have three work benches that I built from reclaimed lumber. One of the benches has a tool cabinet that I built from reclaimed lumber. My tool list is the culmination of 15 years of purchases. I have a dual voltage table saw with a router table addition, a benchtop drill press, a 14 inch bandsaw, a table top belt sander, a 12 inch scroll saw, a miter saw with mobile base, a palm router, circular saw, 2 orbital sanders (5inch and 6 inch), and 3 hand drills. I work primarily with reclaimed pine and fir wood. This limits my projects, but my projects are typically outdoor based. The most important take away is just start and grow from there.
Antique shops and malls are good for used hand tools, like chisels and hammers. I have a 10x14-in piece of 3/8-in glass I put sandpaper on and use an inexpensive plastic chisel guide to sharpen them. Works great. Very low-cost.
Bought almost all of my tools used from retired guys who couldn’t use them anymore or from people who recently upgraded their tools. I have a cast iron contractor table saw a 14” band saw dust collector drill press mitre saw thickness planer a collection of planes and chisels squares. I love my Dowel max jig I got used for $50. Plus a big selection of handheld power tools. I’d say I easily got all of it for less than that jointer from grizzly. You just have to be patient and wait for the deals to come along.
I didnt even have a table saw for atleast 2 years into woodworking I only had a handsaw I bought at a antique store including hand planes and chisels and a few other things here and there. I only spent maybe $200 on basic handtools and made some pretty decent tables, picture frames and a jewlery box I used to propose to my wife.
If I had to add one piece of advice to beginning wood workers I'd tell them to explore all the options for sharpening hand tools. Having plane blades, chisles, etc. Very sharp will greatly improve your accuracy and enjoyment using them. sharpness is the difference between an operation being rewarding and a pain in the ass.
Imo, the biggest issue isnt cost, it's space. Most people don't have the room for all the cool tools. That said, don't let that stop you. I teach a class of 6th and 7th graders and we use mini workbenches I built and hand tools and make amazing and fun projects. Don't let space or money be your barrier to entry, the only limitation is your imagination and creativity. Now get out there and build something! You will never regret it!
Pep talks like this are well-intentioned and not wrong, but they can be counterproductive without further explanation. Yes, the barrier to entry is very low, but people usually get discouraged a little further down the line, not at the entry. At the moment, my biggest limitation isn’t my imagination and creativity, but finding the time to prepare the material for what I’m building with the tools that I have. It’s OK, it will happen and it will be great, but I really had to learn to manage my expectations with regards to realistic time frames, motivation, that kind of stuff. There are some real stumbling blocks along the way, depending on what you’re trying to make, and when someone comes along and tells you that you’re only limited by your imagination, it can sound a little hollow.
@@mm9773 so....i agree 100% with what you have to say. The number one thing that helped me along my journey was having other craftsman to ask questions and get advice from. If I can help in any way please do not hesitate to ask.
Tools, second hand, garage sales, and here in WNY we have a Community Owned tool bin/library, where for $50/year we have access to hand tools, lawn equipment, & some contractor stuff at no cost.
the cheapest way to get tools is antique hand tools from yard, garage, estate sales. Learn how to tune, sharpen and use them. This will get anyone started. It is exactly how I started, as interest and skills increase. I feel going the power tool route you have to consider a place to keep and use them. a set of hand tools can be kept in an old foot locker until a chest can be built.
The cost of tools is a common discussion across the board for anyone who uses them. Mechanics have a saying about the cost of tools being "cry once, or cry several times". Buy cheap and you will have to repurchase those cheap tools over and over. Buy good quality and pay more initially but only once. Pick your burden. I personally have thousands of dollars in tools (mechanic tools and carpentry) I have no use for a $80 hammer. But I do have $300 torque wrenches. I have cheap chisels. I have cheap circular saws but I also have nice circular saws. I have worked primarily as a handyman. When I paint I use $25 brushes. I also use premium roller sleeves. I pick and choose by practicality and I have used hand tools my whole working career. I can discern good tools from junk. I have a 30 year old belt sander that is still going strong. Do you need to pay top dollar? No. But you do need to know what good quality is. Yes!
The first 500 people to use my link skl.sh/encurtis11241 will get a 1 month free trial of Skillshare premium!
Where do your coffee mugs come from and can I get one?
I really like Your carving videos - they are the reason why I subscribed to Your channel.
The Art and carving make your videos unique, and make You to stand out from a myriad of other woodworkers, for me at least. P.S. That whisky cabinet is gorgeous, by the way.
@@JSarmat86 gorgeous and done with simple tools! Agreed on the carving.
One thing missing from the video i feel, is how long it actually took you.
This easily looks like 60-80h invested. Maybe even more.
I guess its hard to say since you are also making a video .... One of the reasons i do not have woodworking channel is that I don't have time (nor the knowledge) to film everything, edit it etc.
it is however, a great way to just be doing things you like once YT is creating an income. And this changes the game obviously. Because now you can invest for example a week's work in just one piece because the profit is coming from the video.
@@Coen80 you are correct. There is way more time involved building this cabinet than a 30 min YT. I suppose I may have built YT channel in my woodworking years. It could be another income stream if you have a very active YT channel. But I chose woodworking over a desk job for a career as I don’t like to sit. So filming, editing, overdubbing etc sounds like way too much sitting behind a computer screen. Also not a huge fan of computers anyway. I am to old school. But I do watch a few YT Chanel’s, only the ones that I think are honest humans.
I grew up in a former soviet union and all tools I had were hammer, hand saw, a dull chisel and a knife - this is how I started… I later acquired a plane and a drill… this is how I did most of my woodworking… I didn’t make anything fancy - just utilitarian pieces for everyday use… that look reasonably nice… so, do I appreciate all tools I have now - yes… but can I make same quality furniture with a fraction of what I have now - absolutely… it may take longer and cause some frustration… but it also forces you to think out of the box and be more creative… and this is in my opinion a fast track to gain experience 😉
One thing I've learned: Time is money, so saving one means spending more of the other. You could start making things with little more than a panel saw and some sandpaper if you're willing to spend a lot more time working on it.
Along that same track, you need to ask yourself what part of woodworking do you enjoy? I don't have a table saw, but I can make the same kinds of cuts with a circular saw and a straight edge. However that does require more time to setup to make sure the straight edge is in just the right place, and if you're making a lot of cuts you end up spending the majority of your time doing that setup.
I've found that I would rather spend ten minutes cutting and 30 seconds on setup than the other way around, but others may feel differently, and that will determine the tools that you will want to buy.
I am a computer programmer, I started in the 1980s. I read articles by programmers from the soviet union who began programming on simple computers with 1024 or 2048 *bytes* of memory, not kilobytes or megabytes. Limited resources meant that they had to do everything with almost nothing, and gained great skill that way.
That saw is 599 I hate people that say you don’t need that but I am using it if you could make nice stuff without those tools that you said you don’t need then why don’t you do it without it and tell me how long it takes if it take you 8 mo to make a table then you can’t make money to buy more tools
I think something is missing in this thread, the word hobbyist. I don't plan on making $$ from a hobby.
That's what woodworking is all about. Do you need a $4000.00 table saw? Absolutely not.
Rex Krueger's woodworking for humans series builds up from very few tools to building your own tools and picking up new ones as you grow. it's all hand tools and about as cheap as you can get i think.
yep !
And as someone with a tiny shop in my basement, hand tools are way less noisy/dusty and they take less space :)
Rex is good, but he is also not really teaching "fine" woodworking. I feel like everything in life cost money. If you are going to do a Rex Kruger project, it would be great, but dont expect a David Charlesworth result. Same with James Wright. I really like his stuff, but some of his techniques and the lack of technicality for the tools and results doesn't sit well with me. The point is, if you want to do good work, it takes time and/or money. You can always compensate one for the other, but you are not going to be building fine furniture if you are using an off the shelf stanley handyman no 4. Yes you can spend 20 hours and have it perform fantastic, but what is your hourly rate worth? Cheap isn't always the best way to go or even start. If it's a necessity, then so be it, but it would not be my choice. You pick up all sorts of bad habits.
@@MintStiles Then watch Paul Sellers. He teaches finer craftsmanship than pretty much anybody else on UA-cam and all you need is a handplane, chisels from Aldi, a handsaw and sharpening stones. Yes, it will take time and labor, but it's proof you don't need $3000 worth of tools to make something good.
@@Raiver-of-Eridu Paul Sellers is a production hand tool woodworker. Good teacher, lots of interesting techniques, but he is by NO MEANS authority. I know for a fact that his team or himself removes comments in regards to techniques not consistent with his in comment sections. For example, he seem to hate it when people mention the usage of chip breakers to control tare-outs and will remove any comments to that effect. His hand planes tunings are honestly mediocre at best. While I have plenty issue with Rob Cosman and his pushy sales, his planes are in far better service specs. To a novice, he will seem like a God (or the best UA-cam has to offer). To a seasoned veteran, his approach is a bit idiosyncratic and his tools just okay.
@@Raiver-of-Eridu To add to what I just said, I am not saying that he is bad, it's just that he isn't the God everyone seem to make him out to be. To illustrate, a properly tuned plane is perfectly flat (or tip to tip convex by no more than 1/2 of thou or so) and square on the sides. The hard edges are rounded, but there are no additional removal of material on the sides. Or no blade should be stropped on the flat side. You will still end up with a sharp tool, but it will be a chisel that will rise with your cut, become progressively hard to remove a burr, and not a reference edge. Just to point out some issues as hard evidence. Finally, eschewing power tools for the sake of using hand tools is silly. Some work require calories, and that's the bottom line.
Every garage should come standard with an ENCurtis
Yes!!!
Way too expensive in beard maintenance.
Yes, but he's priceless.......as in way above my pay grade. LOL
😂
HONESTY...yes, we need him and all the other Makers that help us hobbyists keep it simple.
I worked for years in a small outbuilding with no electricity (or very rarely with a 100' extension cord hanging out the window) - my entire dining room is outfitted with pieces made primarily with hand tools. Mind-blowing pieces have been created for centuries without fancy tools - they just speed up the process and give you convenient precision, but they're ultimately just a great shortcut for a hobby woodworker, not a mandatory thing. That metric changes if you're trying to make a living at it (time is money and all that), but I've found it's amazing what you can make with a very limited amount of tools if you're willing to hone those skills and trade time and effort for smaller budget and space. None of that is to say that you shouldn't have those cool tools, but not having them shouldn't be an impediment to enjoying the craft.
The best advice for the budget conscious woodworker is to see if there's a local woodworker's guild or maker space. I may be spoiled, but my guild has 6 SawStop cabinet table saws, router tables, drill presses, bandsaws, jointers, planers, lathes, a range of Lie-Nielsen planes, etc. A year of membership with shop privileges (after a safety course) is $200.
Wow, where do you live? The makers spaces I toured when I lived on the edge of Silicon Valley didn't even approach that kind of woodworking shop. I recall being dissapointed by one shop's one table saw and the guide's answer about what they did to keep it making clean, accurate cuts. IIRC, that was at the place with the best woodworking tools.
@@ardemus Did you try Makernexus in Sunnyvale? While not having what @chestergregg8668 has, the tools are really great and people there, including me, have made some great furniture pieces. While a monthly membership is not free, it's so worth it.
Bargain, wish I had that nearby
The Dallas Makerspace has 2 Sawstop table saws and other typical power tools, with a monthly charge of $60, and some lower fees for special categories like retired/disabled for $40/month. But, the woodworking space is just part of what they have. They have a number of classes, some free, some with nominal fees. The power tools are having an interlock installed, so only members who took the appropriate safety class can use the tools.
But, it's a big metro area, this is the closest (maybe only) Makerspace, and not the fastest place to get to. The last time I went to the area, I took 4 separate freeways/tollways to get there, and my city touches the city that has the Makerspace (Carrollton).
@@johnhaller5851Wow, the places I looked at in the bay area, a decade ago, were 4 times that each month. They were much more than the annual cost for @chestergregg8668's guild! Though a guild sounds more like what I'd want anyway: a community funded, community owned, non-profit. IRRC, the makers spaces were all for-profit businesses.
One should remember that for thousands of years fine woodworking was performed without electricity, specialty tools, and modern process advances. Sweat, elbow grease, and proper techniques. What does it cost to be a woodworker? Determination to learn the skill and craft. A tape measure, some decent handsaws, a few planes, chisels and mallets. All joinery can be done without hardware, without mechanical fasteners and certainly without electricity. Look at the centuries old Japanese buildings still standing that don’t have a single nail in them for evidence.
wise advice from a woodworking friend... don't buy a tool until you can't complete a job without it
That's a great way to hold yourself back!
Encouragement never starts with the word "don't".
He didn’t say dont buy it, just dont buy it until you need it. This is a great way of avoiding buying those tools which you end up never using. You’ll save yourself a lot of money this way.
@@mrfirestop415that isn't "don't do it" it is more " wait till you need a tool for a job, THEN buy it " which means that you shape your tool collection to your actual needs and work type
Buying tools "you" never use is a "you" problem.
I don't need advice about "your" problems.
@@mrfirestop415 Advice about other people's problems is not what is being given, actually, but you do you.
Loved this video honestly. Hit right at home. 7 years ago my wife bought me a miter saw. Then I bought a table saw. The rest is history. I’m a full time woodworker now and love everything about it. I have everything from sawstop to festool to lie Nielsen. And everything I got essentially for free cause I saved all of my profit from side projects and now I’m here.
I can’t emphasize enough how much this video hit to heart to the point I have a tear in my eye. Now it’s how I provide for my family and how we take our vacation every year.
Thank you encurtis!
Your comment was very encouraging to read. I'm starting out with a good set of tools. What platform would you recomend to sell your work off of?
Hobbyist shop: jobsite table saw. foldable outfeed table. Circ saw or a jig saw. And drill driver set. That's all you really need. Another good resource is Steve Ramsey. He has a list of tools for under $1,000 all-in for beginners. But the key is you don't have to buy it all in one shot. It's an additive (never mind addictive hobby)
You don't need the jointer; worked for years without one. I flatten the initial face using the planer with a sled. Edges done with an L fence on tablesaw or hand plane.
And it seems to me that just doing it with the planer and a sled takes up a lot less space too
YES!!!!
50 years without a jointer, 30 years without a thickness planer.
He seems to think it's essential equipment. It's like he's never heard of a hand plane. My whole tool chest has about the same volume as that jointer.
It's a big waste of money when you can use a router and router table to do the same work and get more uses out of it. Or just use a hand plane.
You don’t NEED a jointer, and I went years without one, but got a 6” bench top model and it was a game changer. Speed, accuracy, not having to run through complex setups with other tools, totally worth it
25:35 Huckleberry footage begins. He deserves his own comment for being such a good boy.
I'm starting in woodworking.
Inherited a lunch box thicknesses
Second hand band saw NZ$250
Plastic handle chisels - gift
Wetstones... From kitchen
Hammer - eastwing, had it forever
Mallet - made it myself from offcuts
You get the idea…
Don't be in a rush
Buy it when you need it.
Nothing wrong with second hand.
I've had this conversation with many people that come to me shop and see all the second hand machinery and hand tools I use. My Grandfather used to say "Machinery doesn't make you a woodworker. However, a woodworker can make a machine do things it wasn't intended to do." He also said "A true craftsman is someone who can make a mistake look intentional." lol
My first wood working project was a coffee table for my mother-in-law. The only power tools I had at the time was a circular saw, palm sander, and drill. I bought a $20 pocket hole jig and a few clamps from Harbor Freight and built it out construction lumber. 10 years later and it is still in her living room.
@ENCurtis I'm walking this path right now... so happy you made this video. There are a LOT of costs I've come across...
The right guage extension chord, lighting, shop vac (even a good BROOM is expensive). If you live in an area where used tools are scarce or in Canada your shipping costs can be as much as some of the tools. IF you work in a power supply limited area all you may opt to go battery powered for tools, which doubles or triples the cost once you factor in batteries.
- Clamps were well north of $100 for me assuming you get 4+ with two even them being long enough to do larger pieces.
- Dust mask? Organic filter (if your workspace has real poor ventilation), saftey gear, expendables.
- How bout a finishing saw blade? Are you really going to cut using the framing saw blade that came with the $150 hand saw ;)?
- Up in Canada I don't know what's going on with finishing products/paint but they're 50% more than just a couple years ago.
- Hardwood costs are also way up there, i've been trying to just make a decent mallet not out of softwood for ages.
- The #1 limiting factor though is SPACE if your living near a big city, which most people are.
- How about router bits! They aren't all that cheap if you're buying them 1 at a time.
Long story short, I'm lucky to be able to go down this road but I do feel the reality is that this hobby is out of reach for 90% of people, especially those in their earlier stages of their carreer/life. It might be better to just call out woodworking as a hobby for those privliged enough to be able to start off on it. Who knows how many tried and got discourged by costs halfway through thinking it was a budget friendly hobby!
This video is why I watch your channel. I am lucky that 95% of my equipment was inherited from my great-grandfather down to my Dad. Most everything else came from social media and Harbor Freight. In truth, I didn't become a woodworker until late in life; before that, I was a carpenter on my best days. Maintaining and repairing our farm and uncles' and family friends' places is where I got my basic skills growing up. You don't realize how important these types of videos are, from respected craftsmen, for young boys and girls who have an interest in woodworking. I promise you there was no one doing what you do when we got our first black and white TV in 1954 when one station came on the air that we could watch..
Carpenters and cabinet makers made superb furniture before electricity was discovered.
I've been a hobby woodworker for about 4 years. I recently upgraded my table saw from the Hercules table saw I started with to a Delta 36-725t2. I made things with the Hercules, but it had its limitations. Over the course of time I've made lots of tool purchases and upgrades, but you can get started theoretically with a circular saw and a drill and a couple squares as I did.
I've been refinishing furniture for about a year now. I recently realized a few things that have brought the prices down. First, the price of wood right now is out of my budget, but most used furniture has wood parts or are all wood. I buy them for the wood, take what I need for parts and repairs and scrap the rest. If they are really clean, I keep the back boards for the next dirty one I come across. The second one is that most hardware stores sell wood that has warped or cracked. Mine will bundle different sizes of damaged wood and throws in a 2 x 4 or larger. Craigslist is a great place for used tools and Dollar Store and Big Lots are good for brushes and other small items. Hope that helps someone.
I would remove the jointer from the list. I get by happily with a sled for the planer. My version doesn't use glues or tape or any other sticky thing and is quick and easy to set up. In some ways it works better than a jointer.
I would agree. I did finally buy a used 6” jointer for $300 a couple years ago and have gotten a lot of good use out of it. But I still use my planer to flatten wider boards. Could I live without it? Yeah, I could. I encourage people to purchase major tools used when starting out-table saws, planers, jointers, band saws, etc. Go new as the opportunities and needs arise down the road.
A Plane and Winding Sticks. Takes a while to begin with but the more you do it the quicker it gets..and its sooo satisfying!
Honestly don't need either when first starting out.
Sure, they'll pay for themselves in the cost of wood over time, but for those first handful of projects, already flat boards from the big box store is even cheaper.
Also places like Rockler sell S2S lumber and most lumber yards can joint edges for you for a fee. So I'd agree with pulling the jointer
This is waaay to sophisticated. No beginner need a lot of this list. Steve Ramsey is the guy to follow when you get really started.
Woodworking for mere mortals
This brings back memories! I've been working for over 30 years and still look for garage sale tools and used tool deals although my shop is very complete now. But to give an example, a friend who is setting up a new shop just got a 3 hp Unisaw at a local town auction for $80, and had it cleaned up and running with only one day of sweat equity.
Love the channel Erick, I need more design and theory and things.
Very nice reminder. Being "rich" is being content with what you have. But gone are the daze (!) when I bought really nice old handtools at tag sales and used a funky old skilsaw upside down in a piece of ply as a table saw (so lucky I didn't sever any hands). Now I'm grateful to say I have a large well-tooled up shop (including a Shaper Origin!!). But I still remember the excitement of my first forays into "making something" so long ago. Thanks again for keeping things sensible.
Sadly lot of channels are mostly affiliate link harvesting at this point. When you see half a dozen "cheap" domino alternatives that still cost several hundred dollars, or "you don't need a (of course Festool, like there are no capable much cheaper alternatives on the market) tracksaw, just this track thingy for 199.99$. Yeah, pumping FOMO.
But there are still some channels I love.
I appreciate that you're not pulling your punches with this video Eric. If you shop around, look through discount bins, look online, etc.. you can get a lot of the tools for a fraction of the price. It's always the bigger the tool, the more likely that you'll be stuck paying the full price.
I hope others see this comment and understand that if you're patient and shop around, you can totally get everything you NEED for a fraction$.
For resawing, before I got a big bandsaw, I built a Roubo-style resaw. I think it cost me 60 bucks all in. I've used it to break down a lot of 4X oak and sycamore material into 2X lumber. Bonus: Good upper body workout. It is surprisingly accurate and efficient. I bought a roll of nonslip drawer liner stuff from the dollar store to use as a sanding mat. Very grippy and stows away easily.
Thank you for this comment. I don't have a bandsaw and all the local maker places in California are expensive for shop space. I am going to build one of these for my small shop.
I have been watching you for a while, and I have to say. You have been my hero in my new experience of woodworking. Now I do woodwork, but I think I'm not good enough. This video is going to be another motivation for what I do now because this is what my situation is. A budget garage shop. Thank you so much for the hard work you do. I know it is not easy, thank you again.
I started in the pandemic and loved your videos. My tools were a WORX Pegasus work table, $70 Circular Saw, Bosch Router Table, Makita Palm router, 2 hand planes, cheap chisels, palm sander, 2 Bora 50 inch clamps, Bora NGX tracks and $250 Ender 3 3D Printer which I used endlessly to make jigs, small clamps, router bases, track saw base, etc to fill in all the gaps. NO table saw, NO planer, NO jointer, NO miter saw.
Totally agree. Having basic tools can teach you tricks and workarounds. As you progress and hopefully start to make money, it’s okay to invest in fancy expensive tools because the primary purpose of those fancy tools isn’t for UA-camrs, it’s to save you time. If you’re an aspiring business owner then you need to realize that those expensive tools are what they are in order to save you time and time is money. So if you’re starting out, regardless if you are starting with power tools, a hand craft woodworker, or hybrid, none are right or wrong, regardless of what some purists say, start basic.
I do think that floor space and making the most efficient use of it is always a challenge. But a necessity to add to your list would need to be dust collection. I was surprised you didn’t have any in your video.
As he wrapped up I thought “Wait! What about at least a shop vac?” Dust mask too.
This is one of the stumbling blocks people encounter at some point in their “journey”. I also treated this as an afterthought until I saw a video by Xyla Foxlin in which she described how she had to sleep sitting up for weeks because wood dust from a rare species had seriously effed up her lungs.
You can sort of get away with using a dust mask, but you’ll still have to clean the whole room all time, and that can take the fun out of it and make the costs pile up. The barrier to entry into woodworking is indeed very low and I would still encourage anyone who is interested, but it just isn’t a cheap hobby.
@@mm9773 When i was a grade school aged kid, a family friend had a machine woodshop in his basement that was utterly fascinating to me. He worked exclusively in black walnut. I remember writing my name in the brown dust that covered every exposed surface in his shop, including the underside of his bench. Zero dust collection in the shop.
I'd bet if that bench is still around my name is still in the dust...
That guy ended up suffering chronic bronchitis and alveolitis by the time I was in highschool. It was so bad he had to drag around an oxygen tank and could no longer do woodworking, let alone climb down and up the stairs to his shop.
Less than 10 years without dust collection, friends.
If your boogers are the color of the wood you're working, start that cumulative dust inhalation clock.
Before I moved into my house, every tool I owned fit in 2 tools boxes on one shelf in a cabinet. Just things like a hammer, handsaw, some very cheap chisels, rubber mallet, cordless drill, level and a box cutter. I would love to see what you could do with very basic DIY tools like these.
This video served as a reminder of all the tools I've bought since I moved here. It's also reminded me of all the things I've learned over the last couple of years about woodworking. Thanks a lot for the lessons!
My first work bench was a washing machine. So i couldn't do my wood working thing while doing laundry. The point is we can do what we want with what we have, at least to a point. Thanks for the video illustrating this. Something I do when I find myself complaining about not have fancy enough power tools is think about the masterpieces made before 1800. The master craftsmen got it done without any power tools, and did it with style! We should not give ourselves excuses for not doing good work.
Those prices were for brand-new items. Everything listed could be purchased at a fraction of the price at FBMP, including garage sales, auctions, and Craigs List. I've asked friends online if they knew where to get a few shop tools; most times, they are eager to get rid of whatever they have or know someone who does. Beautiful work, by the way.
I don't even have a shop! I do my woodworking on the back patio, using handtools and jobsite tablesaw on rolling stand. I've built furniture and cabinets and decorative trinkets. It can be done without the expensive stuff!
I rarely ever bought my tools new. Almost everything I have came from garage sales, Craigs List, etc.
I clearly remember paying $2.50 for a Stanley #5 Jack Plane - completely rusted - took me 2 weeks to restore it.
I still use that plane today. It works like new.
Used hand saws were a couple bucks. Same for used chisels.
All my power tools were purchased used. They are still working for me just fine today.
Agreed. Most of my tools current set of tools were purchased used. When I first started I bought a new table saw and band saw, both bought on sale at Sears, thinking I couldn't do anything without them. My lathe, a Harbor Freight Jet clone, was purchased new as well with a 20% off coupon. I bought a $1500 scroll saw used for $300 on Craigslist. My drill press came from CL as well. Eventually I migrated to mostly hand tools and like yourself I paid little to nothing for most of my used planes, braces, saws, etc...
$2.50 for a Stanley #5 Jack Plane is a stunning deal. Even back in the day they tended to go for $10-$20 Now I hardly see them. But I have seen some no name #5 sized planes. I just got a basket case for $1. Now I only buy wrecked planes to see if I can get them to make a shaving.
This was a great discussion. I have a well appointed two car garage sized shop. I manage to work without a jointer or resaw bandsaw. This video talked from a funding perspective--my woodworking journey is influenced by a network of woodworkers and space constraints. I am heating my shop with an electric/oil bath heater. For safety and sanity, I am upgrading to a heat/cool mini-split. I want to get back to projects, but the environment needs to be secured to maintain temperature and humidity.
Glad you made the comment about buying this second hand. I picked up a 6" jointer and dust collector for $300 off Facebook. Slow and steady you can get your tools you need if you have patience.
I remember doing projects with 2 clamps, one handsaw, a circular saw i bought for 8 dollars on craiglist, and cheap chisels. Made an argyle pattern cutting board that way. Now I have access to a full shop, but youd be suprised what you can do with not much in the way of tools.
That jointer's a luxury when you've already got a handplane, a router and a tablesaw on the list. Same with the circular saw when a disposable hardpoint handsaw does the same job (as would your router.) Hehe understand it's hard to think basics when you're used to all the frills, but your list sets the entry price far higher than it needs to
He's just trying to be honest. You can get by with less. People do. There's people with more too.
I started out with a plastic Black & Decker circular saw my dad gave when we bought your first house and my YOU TUBE was PBS with Norm Abram. If you want to see how to do wood projects watch some of his early shows.
Second hand is the way to go! 😎
I bought my Harbor Freight workbench on OfferUp for $20. My 6" jointer from FB Marketplace for $40. I use a ShopSmith that my wife's Grandpa passed down after he passed away, so free aside from the loss of a family member. My Delta lunchbox planer came from a pawn shop for $80. Used hand planes; I have a 4, 5, 6 and 7, paid $40 at most for each and restored them myself. 😎
It can be done.
I think the ShopSmith covers 2 of the key issues of this video... Money and Space. If you take your time and are patient you can find an awesome deal on a used ShopSmith system for not much money. I built what I call "My Workshop on a Wall" in my garage with used ShopSmith equipment. For the grand total of $1200 I have a Table saw/Drill Press/Disc Sander/Lathe/Surface Planer/4" Jointer/Band saw/Belt Sander/Dust Collector and a ton of tools the person was selling with it. It all literally takes up only 8' of my garage wall.
Do I want all the tools Encurtis has in his shop? SURE!!! Do I need them... No.
I'm stubbornly trying to do my work with a miter saw and contractor table saw, 2 drills and a jig saw, plus a handful of handtools. I have a wish list that I add to and then ignore. Working like this means having to solve problems and swap time spent for the convenience of bigger priced power tools. I'm still learning and maybe down the road I'll need power tools when my arthritis wins the battle.
When starting a hobby woodshop, Craigslist/Marketplace is your best friend. Used machinery will save you at least half usually 2/3 of the new price and you'll likely meet a few characters along the way. Enjoy the journey.
Yes, that's a fact! 👍
Have a shop full of great second hand gently used equipment. Let someone else take the hit 😊
Maybe it's just my local area, but I almost never see used machinery costing less than 75% of current new prices for sale on the various Internet marketplaces.
If I pay ten cents on the dollar it's a lot.
@@balzac_jones the deals don't come by every day. But if you look long enough you'll find them. My tablesaw I bought for $20 without a motor. I got a motor for it for another $20 and a switch cost me another $10. So $50 all in. It's a vintage Craftsman cast iron top contractor's saw.
there are very few woodworkers on you tube that have actual skills or knowledge, most are just there to sell tools and make money doing so
yeah, I hate making money. I just steal all my food.
For 5 years, I was building furniture and cabinets for my RV (that we were living in at the time) with only a $299 Ryobi kit, a measuring tape and a carpenter's square. They were stored in my workbench (which was a large plastic outdoor storage box) which also held any lumber small enough to fit in it. The rest of my lumber was stored under the RV (out in the open). I could only work from 4pm - 8pm during the week (after work and till quiet hours for the RV park) and could not work at all on the weekend except during the winter.
I definitely resawed by hand on my first bigger furniture project, then used my trim router to flatten my terrible resawing on a router sled, and did the rest with the table saw and trim router, a vintage Stanley no. 4 (which my great grandfather happened to use during his carpentry career), a cheap panel saw, and a DeWalt random orbit sander. I'd saw the minimum viable (mostly) power tool shop is probably about $1000-1500, as long as you are willing to so some of the stock prep by hand. I've built dozens of pieces and only recently got a lunchbox thickness planer. Great video.
Good video and good to see push back against the pricey tools. I would definitely remove the jointer - no need as a sled and plane will joint wood just as effectively. Also you would almost never need the flex shaft and rasp so drop that. Put the $1100 towards a shop vac, quality filter, ear protection, better quality plane, jig saw, a good quality table saw blade, basic router bits you will need. ( do not buy a "set" of useless bits - you will never use most of them), hand rasp, several rulers, bevel square, better quality chisels, and maybe a hack saw, metal file, and grinder. Consider a dado blade but you can get away without one (if your saw can handle one - check your saw brand before buying to see if it will handle a dado blade). You don't need a doweling jig if you cut your own mortise and tenons which is easy with a drill, chisel and table saw (and is a skill you should learn). . Pretty much every other jig you-tubers and advertisers are trying convince you that you must have can simply be made if you really want them.
Nice video! Let me start by saying I agree with your assessment of what a new woodworker today would need to start as a hobbyist. However, setting aside the limitations of time, that list could be a whole lot less expensive. There was a time in this world before electricity and before power tools, when craftsmen, professionals and hobbyists, turned out beautiful wooden projects. A hammer, a hand saw, a jack plane, a couple of chisels, a couple of files and rasps, a hand auger and bits, a square, and a ruler were the fundamental items needed to make something out of wood. Very time consuming for sure but very doable.
Today’s newbie, in any field, is generally impatient and wants to be able to make things just like the woodworkers on you tube, right from the git go. They assume that it is the tools and not the craftsman that makes the difference. And, as you know, that is just not the case. There is no substitute for experience, practice, and knowledge.
If you are just starting out as a woodworker, learn to be patient first of all. Second, start out with simple things and when they turn out less than you wanted, learn why, and work on doing things better next time. America’s pawn shops are packed full of nearly new tools, sold off by frustrated newbies who want perfection but lack the fortitude to stick with things until they master them. Start with a rudimentary set of tools and master them before you go out and spend thousands and thousands of dollars on tools and equipment. It’s 10% the tools and 90% skills and ability that get you where you want to go. Master the skills and the tools will eventually come along out of necessity. Remove time from the equation. If you find joy in working with wood, and in making things, it shouldn’t matter if a process or project takes 15 minutes or 15 hours. Enjoy the time spent, and constantly work on refining your skills and craftsmanship. Use the tools you have or can afford, and learn how to make them work to your level of satisfaction. You would be amazed at what you can actually make with a bare minimum of tools.
Thanks for doing this. I got into ww about a year and a half ago and have been accumulating the necessities over this time.
I’ve found that the best way to go about it is to think hard about what you need to get your current project accomplished, and as you go from project to project you start to build a decent arsenal of tools. I’m now at a point where I already have what I deem to be the bare necessities and can get just about anything done if I get creative in utilizing what I have. Last few months I’ve been acquiring the stuff that makes it more convenient and quicker.
But for the folks at the beginning of the journey… spend some time getting creative with the bare minimum and it will make you a better craftsman.
Absolutely amazing video on this. For me, since I had 80% of these tools from work, the hardest thing to overcome that I kept blaming on my tools was really the "good enough" attitude we get from framing, most siding applications, etc. Overshoot the blade 1/32nd? Use a fat pencil isntead of a knife? Tape sagging? All these things I had to retrain, or at least show more care in than when you're trying to strike that balance of pushing a project forward "within tolerance".
This was good stuff. I'll also add that if you have a makerspace in your community, you may find the membership fee more tolerable than building your own shop, ESPECIALLY if you don't have a space that could be a shop. In my case, it's $125 a month, but usually they have volunteer programs to offset or replace the expense.
In my case, I clean the bathrooms once a week. I know, ridiculous, but I love a clean bathroom and I don't mind cleaning them. It takes me about half an hour a week, which is a pretty good hourly rate for my free membership!
I built up my clamp collection 1 paycheck at a time buying 1 or 2 clamps with each check.
Hello Eric, Feel free to delete this comment because i will talk about either content creator.
So minimum amount is addressed in Paul Sellers Blog, with a full guide to hunt for tools, in the same style Rex Kruger devote his channel to the minimum cost woodworking.
Rex also made a specific platform to source wood working tool for a decent amount.
At the beginning you need two chisel, (let s say 3/8th and 3/4), a hand plane (4 or 4 and half) a decent dovetail saw and a large hardened teeth saw for big rip. and there you go.
Beat me to it. This patron maybe needs to watch Paul's YT channel as well as this one. Or Roy Underhill's old TV show. A lot can be done with just a handful of cheap tools, albeit at a pace that would be way too slow for a pro.
@@barryomahony4983 yeah definetly, but the question was from an amater stand point. for pro the computation boils down to : (tool cost - how many ours will this tool save you multiplicated by your hourly rate) and do you have a customer project with the revenue to support this investment.
I'm glad you mentioned second hand tools. The only "big" tools that I have bought new are my table saw, lathe, and bandsaw. My jointer, miter saw and planer are either second hand or factory reconditioned. I will admit that I do a lot more turning than furniture making, so I splurged on the lathe and the band saw, since I use those more than anything. But I'm able to put out some fairly nice stuff with my not necessarily name brand (Ryobi and Rigid) and second hand tools.
I would also suggest checking out antique stores and estate sales for hand tools. I have a set of 6 handscrew clamps 2 ea 10", 8" and 4" that I picked up at an antique store for $50. The same with my hand planes and some of my chisels. The planes took a little work to get cleaned up and back in working condition, but they work and a couple of them are real antiques.
Planer Thicknesser used: 300£
Table saw....around 500£
Stanley Nr. 5: 40£
Luban block plane: 60£
Trim router: 60£
Chisels, probably would get 3mm, 6mm, 1 inch... used maybe 30£....
Engineers square: used 15£
Measuring tape: mine was £40 because its Hultafors but could just be 5£...
Marking gauge: (most important tool there is in my humble opinion: 40£
Electric drill....maybe 50£ ?
Marking knife...1£ ???
= 1106£ ( Something like that... )
When I started I had a router two router bits , a straight edge, framing square,tape measure, pencil, cheap skill saw, and a cheap mitre saw. I built bedside tables with those tools 30 years ago. I now have a shop that rivals a UA-camr’s shop. I still use those bedside tables.
I got a laguna fusion 2, a rigid standing jointer, a dewalt shelix planer, a harbor freight dust collector, and and old cnc with a laptop that has aspire (3.0) all for $900.
I know this is beyond a rare deal, but is also why I say start with used. You can find amazing deals because someone else is either upgrading or getting out of the craft. Then when you do the same you can pay it forward while not getting screwed. Really helps others get into the craft.
Electric tools for working with solid wood and making fine furniture are expensive especially if you want to do it fast and precise.
If someone have time/patience and not much money i would recommend starting with "Paul Sellers all hand tools" option. Lot's of cheap and good quality second hand tools around. There you can spend maybe up to a 1000 dollars (euros) for everything, including screws.
Then with time you can get routers, circulars saw, ecc.
P.s. If you want to save money from gym just ripsaw long boards with hand or frame saw. 😁
I really appreciated this video. After many years, I’m finally putting my shop together. Trying be as purposeful as I can with my purchases and this is a good guide. A planer and jointer are coming up as my next major purchases.
Really good video, Erik! The minimum requirement to start making good furniture, or whatever you make, is surprisingly small, as you say! Thanks for addressing this super important topic!
Oddly enough, being stuck at home during the 2020 Pandemic was a big deal for me. It kick-started my woodworking hobby after decades of half-ass making things out of wood. I started with a minimal tool set and was able to make my first woodworking workbench (Rex Krueger’s Joiners Bench pattern) with handmade dovetailed drawers. My only power tools were a circular saw and a pair of DeWalt drills; hand tools included a Crown dovetail saw, a set of DeWalt chisels, a hammer and mallet, a Wood River 5-1/2 jack plane and a block plane, and miscellaneous home handyman tools like pliers and screwdrivers. A cheap Rockler vise and a pair of holdfasts were essentials, as well as some sharpening stones and some F-clamps. By adding a GOOD panel saw (7 TPI, rip cut) and a used DeWalt table saw, I gained the capability to resaw rough lumber that I flattened and squared with my hand planes, and I made some really good bookshelves, tables, etc. I have much better chisels and a few more planes now, but the only power tools I’ve added to my shop are a thickness planer and a bandsaw, which make milling lumber much faster so I can get on to building furniture.
I am glad to be reminded that we all started small with a limited budget!
I have acquired half my tools from estate sales, rummage sales and people moving!
I can’t pass up a good deal to expand my shop!
Here are my summary of journey. I started woodworking 3 years ago with just 3 power tools (1) black and Decker Circular saw (2) Black and decker palm sander (3) Ryobi drill. For me I pick up the project and see what my shortcomings are and then buy something. Its much easier to justify tool purchase. First tool I bought was a miter saw because I was making accent walls for my house and a play house for my kid. It did a great job in making cross cut just accurate enough for my purpose. Then I set a goal to replace furniture in my house with custom handmade furniture in the next 10 years from hardwood (not 2x4s). First issue I ran into is to make simple rip cuts and felt the need for a table saw and bought a jobsite kobalt one from FB marketplace for just 100 bucks. Very quickly found out that accuracy was just not there for the pieces I wanted to build. I decided to go for a Ridgid R4560 saw but it was quite big so need to sell miter saw since most of the miters which I wanted to do, can be done on table saw. Since then I have invested in a good planer (purchased a cheap one from FB, sold it to fund good one), table top jointer (which I am thinking of selling), makita corded track saw (which surprisingly see a lot of use), heavy duty router and a trim router, Drill press, grizzly bandsaw (upgrade from 1/3 hp wen table top version), biscuit joiner (which i sold).
All these made over course of 3 years and it is still evolving. If I think I am going to use a tool because my favorite youtubers are using it, I go to FB and look for good deal, use it for few months and if really need it then upgrade.
I finally got electricity in my shop. I used it for 4 years before that. Little by little, I've added things here and there. Just put in my dust collection system, which was my largest purchase. All in all, I've dropped several thousand dollars on my hobby, but it's been spread over 7 years. Now I'm just more comfortable in my space (having heat is a godsend), more accurate with my cuts, and most importantly, more knowledgeable thanks to learning from channels like yours, and doing the work.
Keith Johnson produces quality work out of a 2 car garage. He does have expensive tools but the organizational prowess of tool placement is really impressive
Never forget to check your local pawn shop for tools. Our local shop gives a 30 day return policy on all used tools. You can find some decently servicable tools at pawn shops. I started woodworking in '07 building an arcade cabinet using a used 3hp router and used Skil saw.
If you go to a place and there are two barbers, always get your hair cut by the one with the terrible haircut.
LOL!
OK, I'll bite - Why get your hair cut by the barber with the terrible haircut?
@@skippylippy547 Because the barbers cut each other's hair. If one has a good haircut then he got his cut by the one with the bad one, which is the guy you want cutting yours.
@@halsonger1317
Thank you!
I suspected that's what you were going to say. I love it.
And it's so true! 👍
I made an aviator-style coffee table with a big drawer. My workshop was my living room in a small 2-room apartment. The only tools I had were an old jigsaw, a Bosch Blue 12v cordless drill, a box cutter, clamps and a laptop with FreeCAD.
The table looks like the 600 bucks tables you can buy and it's still solid and stable after 12 years and kids jumping on it.
Good tools make some of the work more fun and more efficient. But when you are motivated and creative, the barrier for entry is very low.
Harbor freight will knock down that list in half. Bauer brand is good. I bought a set of 6 chisels for $10, did have to sharpen them and straighten them but they are great!
Another great video and another great peice. I got most of my tools second hand or as gifts from other makers/my parents. I have been able to accumulate a really good set up for what I would consider very reasonable investment.
Also, the last WWBS episode yall did talking about stress came at a great time for me. I'm finishing up a custom bedframe for a client and the stress of wanting to meet their expectations was really getting to me. Hearing how you still deal with that after all these years of making fantastic pieces really helped bring me back down to earth.
It took me almost 15yrs to upgrade my Craftsman 113 to a Sawstop. You don’t need expensive tools. If you get the chance to upgrade something that is important to you, go for it! I love my Harbor Freight mitre saw and my Bosch router is going on 10 years strong. Only buy tools as you need them.
You said it early on that you can make it this hobby as expensive or as affordable as you want it to be. I’ve also found if you join a woodworking club, you will see all kinds of deals pop up for tools. Rather recently, an estate sale occurred for a woodworker. The hand tools didn’t sell. They literally gave away all kinds of hand tools (chisels, hand planes, etc). If budgets are tight, you can do it for even much less. A few years ago, there was a used dewalt 735 planer with Shelix head installed that sold for $200; yes, it sold fast but these kinds of deal happen.
Those wooden Jorgensen clamps are awesome. I vertically clamp slabs upright and clamp the clamp to my bench, making it easier to hand plane or sand live or squared edges on their side. I don't have a fancy work bench. Harbor Freight and Menards are my favorite! Deals to be had there.
It's been many years. But I don't own a hand plane that I bought new. You used to be able to go garge sales, flea markets. Pick up a used STANLEY hand plane for $10.00. Spend some time tuning and sharpening , you've got a good tool.
I think that watching the used market is where it's at. I started off buying some cheaper new tools, job site table saw, benchtop jointer, 9" bandsaw. I quickly learned that just with some patience I could find really good deals on used tools. So far in the past 3 years I've gotten a 1.5hp Powermatic table saw with 52" fence for $350. I picked up a 6x48" 1hp Jet jointer that had the Byrd Shelix head in it for $500. I also got an older Craftsman 2.5hp 18" bandsaw for $300, it needed about $100 in parts but it's amazing! My first advice to most people is to be patient and watch the used markets.
This is some of the very best information and experienced opinion I have seen on ut. from a 50 year commercial cabinet and millwork vet
Hit the flea markets!! Last month I walked out my local flea market with a slightly used Porter Cable laminated trim router with around a dozen bits most unopened including a few Whitesides and CMT’s. A nice American made Stanley knockoff #5, a set of 4 chisels and a brass wheel marking gauge for $90! For once I was happy my wife dragged me shopping. Lol...
if you have a router and router table, you can use that as a jointer. It's cheaper and you get more uses out of a router and table than a jointer.
My list of must have tools is different from yours. I professionally built furniture my first 25 years without an electric jointer. I use a used $50 Stanley #7 to joint panel glue ups. What I find essential is a mid-sized plunge router with both 1/4 and 1/2 inch collets and an edge guide. A small benchtop router table can be made from a half sheet of plywood and it will get you by. A half dozen 6 foot pipe clamps are essential for me to do large glue ups. A half dozen more 2 to 3 foot pipe clamps make smaller glue ups more manageable. A Port-Align drill guide substituted for a drill press and while not essential, it sure is handy. I've been a professional woodworker for over 50 years. Right now I'm laid up sick with a bad cold. I don't normally watch UA-cam woodworkers, but I'm bored and stumbled on you channel. I've been binge watching and am really enjoying your work. I like your honest approach to the craft and appreciate your design esthetics. Thanks for entertaining me until I'm well enough to get back into the shop. Love the coffee mug, it's what pulled me in to watch in the first place.
I'll say that I'm definitely jealous when I see all the shiny expensive tools, and how easy they make it look, but, I also understand that everyone at the top started off at the bottom and worked their way up.
Also, pertaining to that Grizzley Jointer, you have to add another $75 - $150 for shipping from Springfield Missouri. Unless you plan on picking it up yourself. I think they used to have a store in Scranton, PA, but not anymore. I bought a Porter Cable bench top jointer that I could make an in-feed and out-feed extension for but it works well for me.
I bought some of my tools cheap from a pawn shop. There are several pawn shops around where I live but there is one that isn't trying to get rich from you. EZ pawn is the name of it, for instance I bought a Skil router table with the router in it for $35. I bought a Ryobi miter saw for $20, it's not a sliding miter saw but it does ok. Sometimes you can talk them down just a little to make it even cheaper than the price it's marked for. My point is that they may not be the best tools but you can find them cheap to get started and you can always upgrade later. When I got started just over a year ago I didn't have much money to start with but I kept at it looking for deals wherever I could think to look. Best advice is to only get the tools you need and slowly work your way up from there. You don't have to start with everything someone else started with because not everyone started the same way. Have a little patience but be vigilant and before you know it you will have several tools to work with. Stay safe and have fun 💯😁
EVERY successful social media page with fancy tools/shops started with the most modest of tools. It's important for folks to not compare your beginnings with someone else's middle and end. That goes for woodworking and just about every other aspect of life.
Like comparing your new guitar skills to Jimmy Paige. Just ain’t fair.
Also to add, you can use some of these tools for other things besides wood working! For the little bit of leather work I do, I use my chisels, clamps help with bringing back the piston on brakes, utility knives are used for boxes and cords, screw drivers for home repairs and vehicles. Sure you'll need wood working specific tools but a lot of the tools can be use elsewhere so you're really getting more out of them than just for woodworking. My dad had this big 2 inch chisel for scraping stuff off the floor and the sidewalk, he never did anything in the world of wood working.
Just thought I'd throw it out there that most tools can be used for other things.
Very good video Been woodworking for over fifty years. I can only tell that when you're young starting out AKA New Yankee workshop My Shop is full of Delta Machinery The thought process was I can be as good as Norm with one of those. I think that thought process is true today. Your video was spot on and well done. The one most important tool that you left out was Talent And you can't put a price on that Again a well done video and for the beginner he or she had to get a lot from it thanks
First off, there are Wonderful UA-cam channels that offer up "budget" woodworking tips (Rex Krueger for example, tons of others) so I feel that niche is filled.
Second; holy moly! I get sticker shock when I visit Woodworkers Source and see what my little jointer is selling for now. I recently upgraded it with a helical head - after 20+ years: another holy moly moment! But hey, my $2800 550 motorcycles are now pushing $10K+ so.......and don't get me going on cameras. sigh.
I'll second the notion that you buy tools as needed. In about 30 years you'll have some very nice kit.
Lastly; Fine Woodworking editors went to Pakistan many years ago to see how woodworkers did it over there. They were properly shamed. Back alley, don't recall any power tools and certainly nothing high end or even Harbor Freight- and they did awesome stuff. We're spoiled for sure.
Paul Sellers as well. Amazing work with just a few handtools. Very few powertools, drill for example.
@@jrkorman Good call! I watch his videos and didn't think of him! Dropped the ball. :(
I started with a corded circular saw from Walmart, a 7.6 volt cordless drill , a cheap router and cheap miter saw , all in less than 300 dollars . And I pretty much remodeled my 1st house with those tools
RIP Huckleberry ❤. All dogs are wonderful
You don’t need a joiner but damn it’s changes everything having one. Just get a bench top joiner. 8 inch cutech
Great video for someone who looking to get into woodworking.
It’s how I’m building my shop. One tool at a time.
I recently got into luthery this year and I started by building a tele body first and got most of it done with a router, drill, jigsaw and orbital sander. I got a cheap harbor freight spindle sander later and a couple of hand carving tools and made my own router table later on. No planer or jointer and I made a few router sleds and jigs out of mdf. Most of the lumber I've gotten has been relatively well within dimension also and the yard by my house will make them s4s for a little extra. It's specific for luthery not needing a tablesaw really much at all.
My hobbyist woodworking space has evolved over time. My biggest limit is space - my driveway. It measures 11 ft x 24 ft. I currently have a 10 ft x 20 ft Costco carport to cover the space. Inside that, I have three work benches that I built from reclaimed lumber. One of the benches has a tool cabinet that I built from reclaimed lumber. My tool list is the culmination of 15 years of purchases. I have a dual voltage table saw with a router table addition, a benchtop drill press, a 14 inch bandsaw, a table top belt sander, a 12 inch scroll saw, a miter saw with mobile base, a palm router, circular saw, 2 orbital sanders (5inch and 6 inch), and 3 hand drills. I work primarily with reclaimed pine and fir wood. This limits my projects, but my projects are typically outdoor based. The most important take away is just start and grow from there.
Antique shops and malls are good for used hand tools, like chisels and hammers. I have a 10x14-in piece of 3/8-in glass I put sandpaper on and use an inexpensive plastic chisel guide to sharpen them. Works great. Very low-cost.
Bought almost all of my tools used from retired guys who couldn’t use them anymore or from people who recently upgraded their tools. I have a cast iron contractor table saw a 14” band saw dust collector drill press mitre saw thickness planer a collection of planes and chisels squares. I love my Dowel max jig I got used for $50. Plus a big selection of handheld power tools. I’d say I easily got all of it for less than that jointer from grizzly. You just have to be patient and wait for the deals to come along.
I didnt even have a table saw for atleast 2 years into woodworking I only had a handsaw I bought at a antique store including hand planes and chisels and a few other things here and there. I only spent maybe $200 on basic handtools and made some pretty decent tables, picture frames and a jewlery box I used to propose to my wife.
If I had to add one piece of advice to beginning wood workers I'd tell them to explore all the options for sharpening hand tools. Having plane blades, chisles, etc. Very sharp will greatly improve your accuracy and enjoyment using them. sharpness is the difference between an operation being rewarding and a pain in the ass.
Imo, the biggest issue isnt cost, it's space. Most people don't have the room for all the cool tools. That said, don't let that stop you. I teach a class of 6th and 7th graders and we use mini workbenches I built and hand tools and make amazing and fun projects. Don't let space or money be your barrier to entry, the only limitation is your imagination and creativity. Now get out there and build something! You will never regret it!
Pep talks like this are well-intentioned and not wrong, but they can be counterproductive without further explanation. Yes, the barrier to entry is very low, but people usually get discouraged a little further down the line, not at the entry. At the moment, my biggest limitation isn’t my imagination and creativity, but finding the time to prepare the material for what I’m building with the tools that I have. It’s OK, it will happen and it will be great, but I really had to learn to manage my expectations with regards to realistic time frames, motivation, that kind of stuff. There are some real stumbling blocks along the way, depending on what you’re trying to make, and when someone comes along and tells you that you’re only limited by your imagination, it can sound a little hollow.
@@mm9773 so....i agree 100% with what you have to say. The number one thing that helped me along my journey was having other craftsman to ask questions and get advice from. If I can help in any way please do not hesitate to ask.
Tools, second hand, garage sales, and here in WNY we have a Community Owned tool bin/library, where for $50/year we have access to hand tools, lawn equipment, & some contractor stuff at no cost.
the cheapest way to get tools is antique hand tools from yard, garage, estate sales. Learn how to tune, sharpen and use them. This will get anyone started. It is exactly how I started, as interest and skills increase. I feel going the power tool route you have to consider a place to keep and use them. a set of hand tools can be kept in an old foot locker until a chest can be built.
The cost of tools is a common discussion across the board for anyone who uses them. Mechanics have a saying about the cost of tools being "cry once, or cry several times". Buy cheap and you will have to repurchase those cheap tools over and over. Buy good quality and pay more initially but only once. Pick your burden. I personally have thousands of dollars in tools (mechanic tools and carpentry) I have no use for a $80 hammer. But I do have $300 torque wrenches. I have cheap chisels. I have cheap circular saws but I also have nice circular saws. I have worked primarily as a handyman. When I paint I use $25 brushes. I also use premium roller sleeves. I pick and choose by practicality and I have used hand tools my whole working career. I can discern good tools from junk. I have a 30 year old belt sander that is still going strong. Do you need to pay top dollar? No. But you do need to know what good quality is. Yes!