# is it possible to woodwork without 20k in tools?



## kleptic (Jan 24, 2008)

I have a jigsaw, circular saw, corded and cordless screw gun, and an orbital sander. I plan on getting a bosch combination plunge/fixed base router soon. I'm wondering though. Is it even possible to do much woodworking without having a full shop of all the huge tools like tablesaw/planer/jointer/bandsaw/etc

I don't really have room for a lot of huge tools and I will probably be working outside most of the time so I will be moving them outside to work.

I guess I'm wondering what tools are required and if there are any shortcuts or cheaper ways to do the jobs these huge machines do.

Over the years I'll be able to get some more equipment but in the mean time I would like to see what I can do without.

I just made a couple bookcases and I plan on making a king size platform bed with drawers in it. I also want to make a liquor cabinet and a couple computer desks. eventually I would like to get more advanced though.

so I kind of rambled but any advice will be greatly appreciated.

thanks
Kyle


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## curiousgeorge (Nov 6, 2006)

Hello, Kyle. Welcome to the forums.
If you think about it, how was it done before the industrial revolution and power tools? By hand! So, you see, all of these expensive "POWER" tools are not really necessary. So, with just a good supply of the basic hand tools you could build just about anything. Now. Having said all that historical BS, you would be surprised at what can be accomplished with a circular saw, router, and the basic hand tools. There are some good craftsmen who make some fine furniture out there with less than that.
Check out this site:
http://sawdustmaking.com/


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## nzgeordie (Oct 22, 2006)

Heck yes, Kyle! Look under Tools and Woodworking and you'll see a $20 plane I picked up and refurbished. All it cost was some time and effort. Now the shavings just curl off it  If you've got the basics, you can turn out some beautiful work without expensive power tools.


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi Kyle

Woodworking it just like any thing you want to do  it takes money.

Let's take racing cars (drag racing) anyone can run in the 16s but if you want to run in the low 9s well it takes more money,, when you get into woodworking you are running in the 16s and the more you get into it the more you want to run in the low 9s...just like the big boys  many don't get into the 10s until then drop the big bucks for more equipment ... same thing is true for anything you want to do...it takes bucks and time..


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## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

Kyle, There are many jigs and fixtures you can build that take the place of spending big bucks. Power tools does not mean better, but it usually means easier and faster. Perhaps the single most important tool you can own is a bench that is easy to clamp to. A handsaw will cut wood the same or better than a power saw IF the material is held firmly in place and you have learned how to use the saw properly. Hand cut dovetails are usually superior to dovetails that have been routed but at the cost of much more time. Most of us opt for the easier use of power tools so we can complete our projects quickly. We are not trying to create museum quality furniture, we are trying to build functional, useful items with a fair amount of quality.


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## fibertech (May 7, 2005)

Kyle, You have a great start. Pick up a couple of woodworking magazines at your local grocery store and you will see numerous projects that are exclusively done by hand or small power tools. You found us here and you will find tons of information. Most of us are hobbyists and many people are very advanced. Turn on PBS on Saturday afternoon and if lucky, you will see Bob and Rick (the 2 guys at the top of this page). Get a router, use what else that you have and build a table for the router and you will be amazed. Stick with it. Post lots of pictures and Harry with be your friend for life. -Derek


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## Hamlin (Dec 25, 2005)

Welcome to the router forums Kyle. To answer, yes it is. The most important tools any type of worker has is, their brain and hands. Patience, ingenuity, one can do anything.


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## vapochilled (May 2, 2007)

It's actually better to not start with 20K of tools, you'll hurt yourself and you probably wont understand what is happening to the wood!
Take a cheap $30 plane and make it sharp and true, then have at a piece of old 2x6 pine! You will learn much, you'll Learn to "feel" what the wood is doing.
Take a hand saw, mark some straight lines on the wood and cut those lines........straight! It takes years to build the skill to all this by hand, power tools simply speed up the proccess, but they don't teach as well as by doing it by hand. 
If your doing woodwork as a hobby, there's no rush right? learn slow, make mistakes with cheap tool. dropping a $4 chissel is a lot less painful than plunging a mortising machine into a piece of wood that has a hidden nail in it! lol


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## Drugstore Cowboy (May 17, 2007)

Contrary to what many woodworking magazines and forums might lead you to believe -
Actually very little is *required*.
And -- *no* -- it does not take a lot of money
As evidence I invite you to visit most any museum or antique store and observe some EXCELLENT examples of the very items you mentioned built with little more than a chisel, a draw knife, a plane, a hand saw and a brace and bit.

Beyond that you get into the realm of things that are *desired* and *preferred.*
There are all kinds of things that make various jobs go easier, faster etc.
And when you get into that realm you can spend a FORTUNE.
Mind you - there are a *lot* of things I desire and prefer  just like anyone else. 

It sounds like you have a pretty good start.
The only thing I would add would be a router -- and not because that is the topic of this site but because it does make it easier to round over corners etc.

Beyond that -- as has already been mentioned -- the most important 'tool' in a woodshop -- is the craftsman. To me it is much more valuable to spend time and energy learning skills than money buying bells and whistles.


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## Dr.Zook (Sep 10, 2004)

Welcome to the Router Forums Kyle.


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## klpauba (May 17, 2007)

I was faced with the same problem. I picked up a guide system for the circular saw and now don't have the need for a table saw. You can use about any saw that you have (I have a PC with brake). I added an option for a router to slide on the guide rail and it works great (I picked up a DW621 for that). I shopped on Craigs list and found a very reasonable planer. I'll be building a sled until I can afford a jointer. I've been making some pretty nice cabinets for the shop and learning a lot on the way. By saving the money by being a DIYer, I will be able to afford more tools as time goes on.


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## kleptic (Jan 24, 2008)

thanks for the responses, its good to hear that I can actually accomplish some things without a dream workshop. After watching the woodworking shows on the DIY network and seeing tools I know most people even with a big shop don't even have I got kind of down thinking I wouldn't be able to make the things I want to make. I'll keep at it though and let you all know how my projects end up.

A couple people mentioned planing by hand. is that really viable or do most people consider it crazy? I've never even tried it so I have no clue the amount of work it would take to hand plane. also are hand planes inexpensive? if they are too expensive it probably doesn't make sense to get them and just save for a machine.


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## reikimaster (Sep 29, 2005)

I don't have a dream shop. The power tools that I have, I've kind of gathered over time. I do seem to have several saws. Circular saw was the first power saw and it STILL gets used a lot. Then I got a table saw. Not a GREAT one, but so far it's ok. Then a band saw. Small one. And then recently I got a sliding compound miter saw. Again... YEARS of gathering.  I also have hand saws. Crosscut, back saw, and a few japanese saws. Just 2 years ago I got a small bench drill press. I have chisels and hand planes too. My wife bought me this:
http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=4656
and I love it. Probably takes less time to just go ahead and hand plane something than it does to set up a machine to do it. Now if you have a LOT of planing to do... then the machine would make it easier and faster (maybe) but .... "better"?... I think would be a subjective call. I get a great deal of satisfaction from "feeling" the wood. How is the grain running? How hard is this piece of maple? How is this maple planing when compared to this OTHER maple or that piece of southern yellow pine? 

I have 2 routers. For me that's kinda where this whole adventure started.

Yeah I watch the wood shows too. It's funny to watch David Marks make a "simple, yet elegant" little table and then use an $8,000 band saw to resaw something or $500 worth of clamps to hold it together. 

You'll also find that you can make jigs to help you do thigs with your smaller collection of tools. The guys that have tens of thousands of dollars invested in power equipment may be able to get it done faster, but you're not a production shop so you take your time and you put some of YOU into whatever you're making.

well... that was probably a bit OVER my 2 cents, but.....keep the change


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## jerryc (Nov 27, 2007)

Kyle,

I agree with others who say you don't have to go the high cost power tool way.
I found this out when I was deep into wood turning (still do some). The guy that taught me was an expert, had written a book on wood turning. But he talked of a guy he had seen in Tunisia, using a pole lathe and one skew chisel yet turning out work the expert would have been proud of.

Two basic tools you can't do without are a bench. Your first one can be rough because you will probably redesign it as your skills and need increase. Next are clamps. Everyone says you can't have too many. Most of my hand clamps are home made from scrap and constructed in spare time between jobs.

A couple of good hand planes bought second hand will give you a good start and don't forget you will need to sharpen them. The Scary Sharp method is relatively inexpensive. Sharp tools are the backbone of good work.

I am a believer that your first stationary machine should be a good bandsaw. It is versatile and will do most of what you want. Properly adjusted it can rip wood as smoothly as a table saw, yet can cut curves to match a scroll saw. I have blades from half inch down to one eighth. Blades are relatively cheap and when they are no good for cabinet work they can cut firewood.

I don't do much sanding, it's noisy, dusty and expensive. A well planed piece of timber needs only a sanding block which is very cheap ( it also gives you a little exercise and so cuts gym costs.)

I could rattle on but full advice on setting up would be article length.
Gather advice, good advice is cheaper than bad tools, limit your spending and get the best out of a few tools (like the Tunisian woodturner

Jerry


Everyone is entitled to my opinion


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## mjeisenbaugh (Mar 3, 2008)

Ok Kyle,
You asked the 20k question that could become the million dollar qustion as well! But there is a simple answer to what you ask!
When people like you, and I as well as everyone else that's a member on this sight decide we want to create things, it boils down not in what you have for tools, but how to use them as well! Me personally I like to make custom made shadow boxes and frames of different sorts. 
Though I have a Rigid brand router, compound miter saw, and a few othe power tool from Rigid (OK Im a big fan of thier LIFET TIME WARRANTY ON PARTS, AND SERVICE) they are just power tools alone. What you need to concern yourself with is if you plan to use the tools you have often, what are you using them with?
What I mean by this is simple, if you have a a say RIGID brand router it is only as good as what brand of router bits you buy. I've come to like the lasting sharpness of PORTER CABLE router bits vs the ones you can get from cheap imports that only last a few times before needing sharrpning often and then later can not be used anymore, it's the old saying you get what you pay for!
The next important tool you just can not buy is knowledge and skill! One thing I'm learning still is ask questions in this forum, and do a lot of test runs that are inexpensive first, learn from mistakes and ask questions.
I can understand you outdoor workshop as well! I use what is called the STANELY FAT MAX work table deluxe, it is very versitile in many ways, it even has power outlets that can be hooked to one extenstion cord alowing you to hook up multible power tools. it doubles as a dolly to cary tool boxes, and bags, but also doubles as work mate bench with adjustable clamping abillity. Next I bought folding table legs, and some maple plywood from HOME DEPOT for under $25 and made two tables to work on but can store easy. 
Yea you will spend a few bucks here and ther, but if your in a hurry to start up a biz with it, well it takes money to make money, but if you just want to start small, search out what you need for that job and go from there, and worry about getting the other stuff later as the projects progress.

Special note check postings of others often on this site, you will gain a lot from just a few notes of wisdom!

Good luck, Michael


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