Almost 2 weeks since the last post, I must make a better effort. The workshop is now finished. Well, work on the basics is finished. The floor had its final coat of epoxy resin paint, and this looks really good and sturdy. The dust extraction system is installed, with all its outlets, and the wiring to each of the blastgates is in place. The only thing left here is to glue the microswitches to each gate (couldn’t do that, as I have until tonight not found the superglue). The drawers and cupboards are mounted in the clean room, and a 80cm deep kitchen worktop is placed across the top to create a really nice big workspace for finishing and decorating.
The base for the lathe is complete, this time with a recess for my feet and about 2″ higher than previously, as I’ve always found my lathe to be a little on the low side. The mobile set of drawers is mounted on the base with the castors, and has a plywood top and some shelves at the back mounted. The only thing left there is to screw down the Tormek, and to find all the bits and pieces of the various jigs for it.
I have mounted a flexible curtain rail around the space where the lathe will go and the curtain is on it. However, the mounting arrangements are not satisfactory. I suspect I will have to fix this some time soon. I have also mounted my dual LED worklight, this time on a rail so that I can slide it across the window, which will give my much more flexibility with regard to the actual place I am lighting up with it. Since this is now plugged into a socket (previously it was wired together with the main workshop lights) I will probably have to find a small power switch for it.
So what’s left to do:
- I don’t have any tool racks yet in the workshop. I haven’t figured out where exactly they will be best placed.
- The lathe hasn’t been reassembled. This evening I got the two feet out of the garage, but I will need some help with the main body.
- The engineering lathe has not been assembled. The kitchen block on which it will sit, is in the workshop and is gathering tools, but again I’ll need help for the main body and the milling attachment.
- The radial arm saw will need a new table, from scratch, with a new fence and a proper dust extraction hood.
- I need to replace my old chop saw with a better one. This will then have the sit next to the radial arm saw.
- I haven’t got a woodworking work bench. I have some of the wood, but I’ll probably need more and then need to build it.
- There’s no distribution pipes for compressed air yet. This will need a few outlets around the workshop and also in the clean room (with a separate pressure reducer and cleaning unit, as I will want to use it for airbrushing).
- I need a few more tools: a proper bandsaw, the above mentioned sliding compound mitre saw and a pillar drill. And probably a small planer/thicknesser. I am not currently considering a table saw, as I can’t really see the use of it, but that may change.
Right now, it’s off to bed, and then we’ll see what tomorrow brings.