How does everyone save for tools

[daddo]

I work my A off doing jobs I shouldn't do or don't want to do anymore, or if it's for a job, I just go get it and take the deduction in April.

I have bought old machines that didn't work, then make them work, clean them up and sell them.

[Bill Wilson]

Sorry Arlin.  That information is classified.  If I told you, my wife would have to kill me.   

I am no longer married.  The tools did have something to do with that!  It was more that tools, obviously, but they were a factor.

Actually, my wife is pretty good about letting me get what I want.  I have no complaints, whatsoever.  For many years though, money was too tight and I had to scrimp and save for a long time to even be able to free up $20 or $30 for stuff like blades & other incidentals.  Funds for major tool purchases were usually pooled together from birthday/Christmas/Father's day gifts.  Even at that, most of my stationary power tools were not expensive, on the relative scale.  Now that the kids are grown, house is paid for, etc, money for tools is a little easier to come by.  I squirrel away any extra cash I might accumulate between paydays and have built a little bit of nest egg for tools & supplies, so that these days, if I want another router, I just go and get it.  I don't make any "big" purchases without consultation with the wife.  My new scroll saw, that I bought  a couple years ago, cost more than any 2-3 of my older, stationary machines combined, but like before, I pooled cash from birthday/Christmas/Father's Day gifts, plus $$ from the sale of my old scroll saw and didn't have to dip into our regular monthly funds at all.  I've been accumulating tools for 40 years and I have most everything I need or want these days.  I may look to upgrade a couple of my older tools before I retire, so that I'm pretty much set at that point, but that's still a few years away.  I don't have any other hobbies, so WW'ing is the only thing I have to spend $$ on, besides the grandkids. 

[®smpr_fi_mac®]

My wife allots me $50 out of every paycheck to put into my shop. We came to this agreement because she knows that I'll need a few thousand to get it where I *want* it but can make do with $100 a month until we get some debt we've been knocking down (scheduled to be gone in two years!) and then I'll be able to start making big purchases to make it a real shop.

That $50/paycheck goes into setting up the shop--lighting, wiring, lumber for storage cabinets, etc. When there's something she wants me to build, I tell her the price of the lumber and whatever supplies/tooling needed and she tells me to go buy it.

I have all the stationary tools that I *need* but there are a few that I *want* such as a 12-16" jointer, an edge sander, and a big drum sander. Maybe a mortiser. And a 20+" band saw. And a SawStop.

Those will come in time, though.

Due to dumb luck I make a lot more than her, but she's better with money, so I listen to her. It's worked out so far!

[Arlin Eastman]

Think of all the tools we have today, and then I look back at what father and grandfather had which was very minimal, they both did a lot with very little. So ask yourself before buying that tool, do I really need it, how would I do it without it?

Sometimes old tools wear out or break down like my Grinder.  I am afraid it might catch fire since it gets so hot after a few minutes of sharpening.

[Arlin Eastman]

You need more than one wife to get change from.

  I think one is enough don't you. 



O thinking here will your wife help me. 

[GlenS]

I purdy much make everything for my Wife. Diane is a wonderful Woman & I could never find another one that will put up with me. So when I'm looking at something I tell her what it is & does. She always asks if a need it. I usually say I don't really "need" it but it will make "whatever" easier. Her response is usually give me a couple weeks or not right now. Either way her judgment is never questioned.

Without her I have nothing & more importantly I am nothing.

[Edwin Hackleman]

I work my A off doing jobs I shouldn't do or don't want to do anymore, or if it's for a job, I just go get it and take the deduction in April.

I have bought old machines that didn't work, then make them work, clean them up and sell them.

Exactly what I do with chain saws. I fix saws that supposedly don't run and are sold as non-runners for about one-fourth the price of a new chain saw. My labor and a few parts converts them to almost new equipment. I work on only high-end saws that are worth fixing.

It's a great hobby. However, seldom do I sell them again because I hate to give them up. It seems that most people would rather pay somewhat less and get burned by Wally World junk that dies quickly. That's our society today.

[wood2woodknot]

I have always tried to limit personal spending to a small set amount each week. If there is any leftover, it goes into my slush fund. Sort of like taking the change out of your pocket each night. Any extra cash from yard sales, odd jobs, birthday and Christmas presents go in the slush fund. After I turned 70, my annual RMD goes in the fund. I use the slush fund for hobbies, personal "extras" and minor family expenses that are out of our regular budget. I try not to take out more than I put in so the fund keeps growing.

[ianab]

Sell something that you make. As long as you are covering the cost of the materials it doesn't really matter if you only make $5 an hour on your "hobby". Spend a weekend, $50 of materials, and sell something for $100, that's $50 left in the tool budget. 

Heck I'm having to be careful because I'm almost making a profit and will have to declare it on my tax return. Not a big amount, but when you make start making some $500+ pieces and have to provide actual invoices to get paid, it adds up. Having to actually start some accounting here 


I mean for example, friend of my wife wanted an outdoor table of a specific size for her Kindergarten. I have been milling some Port Orford Cedar, and they like that in the pre-schools because it's durable without chemical treatment. So I plane some up and build this, more carpentry than woodworking, but it was delivered yesterday, with a bill for $250 (discount for friends, plus items over $300 needed official approval) 

I'm out some sawmill running costs, gas etc, a pack of stainless wood screws, and the time it took to turn a standing tree into this. Expenses maybe $100? Woohoo, that's my new sander paid for. 

   

Another guy wanted a a surfboard shaped cutting board to give to a retiring workmate. A few short contrasting boards glued up, band saw into a surfboard like shape, and routed / sanded smooth. Told the guy $70 and he paid me $90. It was a pretty neat board. 
 

PS if the table wasn't for a friend I would have charged more, and still sold it. 

PPS be careful, you might get more orders than you really want... Then it becomes a job. 

PPPS I'm pretty certain I'm not taking work away from serious woodworkers trying to make a living with the stuff I'm building. It's rustic / salvage and recycle around here.

[packerguy®]

It's different now for me because I'm in business so when I get a tool, it fits a need and the money is there for it (I plan ahead for capital spending yearly)

But when I first got into the hobby, I had really cheap tools.... $100 benchtop toy tools. It's funny when people find out you can make stuff the come out of the woodwork. I made tons of stuff, and instead of getting caught up in charging a market rate like a businessman (which i wasn't at least he time) I would charge materials plus enough for a tool I wanted. I acquired a 6" jointer, 14" bandsaw, a dust cllector, my first benchtop planer and a contractor saw that way plus lots of other little stuff.