Workspaces

If you like bicycles or woodworking you probably really like tools. It seems like those who gravitate toward mechanical avocations love gadgets of all kinds. It goes without saying that if you own a bicycle you must also own at least a few tools. The same goes for woodworking. (By the way, it is NOT true that I merely pretend to be a woodworker just so I can collect the tools.)

So, I’ll take it for granted that you have tools. But that’s only half the story. You also need a place to use those tools, whether it’s in your apartment living room, or in an air-conditioned multi-thousand-dollar workshop. For tool lovers, having a good workspace and storage space for your tools is a premium. One of my “as yet unattained goals” is to create separate workspaces and tool sets for the different types of work I do.

First, there’s the mechanic stuff. Since I don’t do much work on my automobiles anymore, the mechanic work is generally related to yard and gardening equipment. There’s always a need to maintain, service and adjust the lawn mower, weed eater, edger and other gardening tools. This is messy work which is best accomplished with good floor space and a sturdy workbench. The tools required are simple SAE mechanics tools – stuff like sockets, wrenches, pliers, hammers and cold chisels. About the only power tools required are a hand drill, a bench grinder for sharpening, and perhaps an air compressor.

Secondly, there’s the home carpentry work. The carpentry work I do is pretty self-explanatory, consisting of whatever work is required to maintain, repair and improve the house and other structures on the property. As any homeowner can verify, there’s always something that needs to be fixed … whether it’s framing, finishing, painting, wiring, plumbing, or masonry. It can be something as simple as a sticking door, a broken sprinkler valve, or an overflowing toilet. Or it can be as major as a house addition, a backyard shed, or a workshop.

The workspace for handyman carpentry will usually be wherever the work is, but one essential is what I call a “staging area”. That’s an area, like the garage, where temporary benches can be placed, where my miter saw can be set up and available, or where a door can be laid across sawhorses for planing or painting. The tools needed include a toolbelt with general handtools (tape, hammer, nailsets, pencil, etc), power tools, and special purpose tools for wallboarding, plumbing, and electrical work. All these tools should be segregated and readily available. You can never have too many carpentry tools.

Thirdly, there are bicycle tools. Now, the main thing you need to know about working on bicycles is that any tool that works on a bike won’t work on anything else. Every bike tool is unique, from crank removal tools to spoke wrenches. Your bicycle tool collection will by necessity be separate from your other tools, and therefore should be kept in a separate toolbox. The work area consists of a general bench and a floor stand for the bike.

Lastly, there’s my handtool woodworking addiction. After several years of messing with woodworking handtools I’ve come to the conclusion that this habit-forming activity is one part woodworking and one part tool collecting. The number of tools and the amount of workspace can vary over a wide spectrum, from a simple toolkit and a bench to a massive shop stocked with every archaic hand tool that had ever been known to man. For me, the challenge is to start with nothing and to hand make nearly everything I need to work wood simply and elegantly. The one tool that is an absolute necessity is a sturdy bench. Almost equally important is a good tool box. So, why not combine the two? One design in the back of my mind is a bench which surrounds and contains the toolbox. The toolbox could be removed from the bench for transport, but would normally reside under the benchtop and provide stabilizing weight for the bench. (We’ll see how that goes).

Right now, my entire work area consists of about one-third of a two-car garage. And the surprising thing is that it works! The secret is being really creative with storage and being really adaptable with the work area. So, I’ll dream of the day when I can walk across the back yard to a spacious building with separate storage and work areas for all my interests. But in the meantime I’ll continue to do what most of you are doing – using what you’ve got and having a blast!