The Build-Out Has Begun!

[T.J.]

The build-out has begun!

(You may or may not remember my moving post. here it is for reference .)

I'm doing some groundwork this time that I've never taken the time to do in previous shops. Namely, painting my walls. In recent years, I've been a little intrigued by not only the reflective utility of doing this but also the overall look and feel of a shop which incorporates some paint. I won't be painting everything in the end, but I think I'm going to paint a few things strategically. I think I'll enjoy the "finished" look on some things.

I'm going to stop the plywood about halfway down on most of this wall since my cabinets will be in front of the lower section. No real reason to spend the money to go all the way to the floor. In addition, the existing flush-mounted outlets are low and I'll need some space there to do some additional wiring later. I'll make these outlets work for me for the moment, but I'll need to bring those up above the cabinets at some point. Later this year probably.

I've also opted for 1/2" plywood on the walls instead of 3/4". I realize 3/4" was just overkill for the purpose its serving. 1/2" is plenty for good holding power when hanging stuff.

In this shop, I'm also using LED shop lights for the first time. I love them already for a couple of reasons:

1. Obviously, they're super bright. 
2. They're also really light making them easy to mount myself.

These photos show about 40% of the new space. The rest is just full of cabinets and drawers all over the place at the moment. My current focus is getting this side in shape so I can install the shop cabinets and, in turn, make room to bring in the rest of my stuff from storage.

ALSO: I had an electrician put in 4 220v outlets in various places: one for a welder near the roll-up door, one *ON THE CEILING* with a twist-lock outlet wired to my soon-to-be-restored Powermatic 180 planer, one for a forthcoming compressor and one more shared by my jointer and table saw. It was expensive as hell, but I'll know it was done right. (The electrician even wired the plug onto my planer's 5hp motor for me, with a twist-lock.)

Dare I say this may end up being my favorite shop so far (and it's not even my biggest).

[rick4212]

Great shop. I live in conway, where outside little rock do you live?

[T.J.]

Great shop. I live in conway, where outside little rock do you live?

I'm in Roland. Near Maumelle.

[rick4212]

TJ wrote:
I'm in Roland. Near Maumelle.

My daughter and her husband bought some land in Roland and will be building there soon. Beautiful area. I’m a physical therapist and do Home health and Roland is in my area of service. PM me if you ever need a hand.

[T.J.]

It's been a while, but here's how things have shaken out:



I'm still working on the other (right) side - slimming down my storage area, adding lights and making a space for my big PM 180 planer (it needs several things before I can get it running).

But in its current state, I'm quite productive and have a TV console and two Danish modern-inspired bookcases in progress.

[MarkSingleton]

Significant progress!!!

Looks very good.

[T.J.]

Significant progress!!!

Looks very good.

Thanks, Mark!

I've been pretty amazed at how much more productive I've been in this new shop than any shop before. I think its the fact that the space is roomy enough for all my machines with reasonable clearance, but not so roomy that everything's too spaced out. Plus, this one is just 10 feet from my back door with a covered walkway. Super convenient. I'm also forced to put my lumber storage in here as well, so its super easy to see what I have and quick to access it.

[Stwood_]

Lookin really fine TJ.

[Cian]

It's been a while, but here's how things have shaken out:

[BrokenOlMarine]

When I had the new shop built to accommodate the chair, we put ply on all the walls, painted the walls and ceiling white, and went with plenty of LED lighting.  Never regretted it.  Plenty bright, and with the ply on the walls, don't have to find studs to hang things. 
  My contractor was also a wood worker and put my plugs around the shop at about forty inches off the floor. There were a couple put overhead, one for the garage door opener and one for the jet air filter on the ceiling.  He also wired in a pull down reel plug over the bench.  Weeks of preplanning paid off.