Power Tools!!!

[OzarkSawdust]

OK...the boat sold already and I have a little scratch to put into the shop.

I like my King scroll saw, I like my DeWalt sliding miter saw, I have a decent benchtop drill press, I have a router table but a top adjustable plate might be nice.

 I'm...OK with my Kobalt job site table saw, but an upgrade could be in the mix. Just not a $1500 - $4000 one...unless I hit the Powerball.

That said...what would be the 3 or 4 pieces of equipment that would be the biggest benefit/versatility you would add to your shop...in order of importance.

 

[OCtoolguy]

I have a Ridgid occillating spindle sander that I use a lot. Also a Harbor Freight 4 x 36 belt sander. I have 2 ROS sanders, 2 Dremel's, and a 14" Delta band saw. I would not want to have to lose any of those tools. I would have to say that the bandsaw is one of my favorite and used tools. I very seldom ever use my Dewalt miter saw. It's way to big and heavy and sits under my bench. I have a Delta planer but have not used it much so it could go. I'd like to have a small handheld rechargeable trim router. I think that would come in handy if it was easy to use. You've got a great scroll saw. I have 2 Ex's and would not want to lose either one. Have fun, buying tools is always a great way to spend the day.

 

[dgman]

Planer, jointer, dust collector, 1” x 30” tabletop sander. Oscillating spindle sander, 6”x48” stationary belt sander with 8” or 9”disk sander, drum sander. I know, more than three.

[OzarkSawdust]

21 minutes ago, dgman said:

Planer, jointer, dust collector, 1” x 30” tabletop sander. Oscillating spindle sander, 6”x48” stationary belt sander with 8” or 9”disk sander, drum sander. I know, more than three.

That's a lot of dust from all those sanders...LOL.

[barb.j.enders]

Another boat!!  LOL

[OCtoolguy]

3 minutes ago, barb.j.enders said:

Another boat!!  LOL

BOAT stands for "bring out another thousand". It's a hole in the water where you throw your money. Two happiest days in a boat owner's life, the day he buys it and the day he sells it. RV's are very similar.

 

[barb.j.enders]

Just now, octoolguy said:

BOAT stands for "bring out another thousand". It's a hole in the water where you throw your money. Two happiest days in a boat owner's life, the day he buys it and the day he sells it. RV's are very similar.

 

I know - sold a boat last season and bought another at the end of this season.  For us, BOATS also means Bruises Of All Types & Sizes!!  This is ours coming out of the water this year.

[dgman]

12 minutes ago, OzarkSawdust said:

That's a lot of dust from all those sanders...LOL.

That’s what the dust collector is for!

[OCtoolguy]

19 minutes ago, barb.j.enders said:

I know - sold a boat last season and bought another at the end of this season.  For us, BOATS also means Bruises Of All Types & Sizes!!  This is ours coming out of the water this year.

Wow! That's a big hole in the water.

 

[OzarkSawdust]

50 minutes ago, barb.j.enders said:

Another boat!!  LOL

Yes Barb...I've already got my eye on one...LOL. But smaller this time. I like to fish, and my wife doesn't go fishing any more, so I'm looking at a Twin Troller. The idea is to pull it behind me 5th wheel and head back to the bayou of Louisiana and other places.

That's some cruiser you got there. You could do The Great Circle Route on that. 

Edited November 24, 2020 by OzarkSawdust

[new2woodwrk]

If it were me, and I'm so jealous it's not LOL, in order of importance to me (I have most of the tools I need)

1. If you don't have a shop wide dust control system that would be #1 - I have the HF 3 hp and it's incredible! Run ducting through out to every machine
2. Portable A/C system
3. Ceiling Track system - Rockler - isolates the dust makers
4. Drum Sander
5. Rigid Oscillating Spindle sander
6. Router Lift table
7. Band saw
8. Good drill press (i have 2 cheapies)
9. The wife and I on the vacation of a lifetime!

Best of luck with your decision.

[barb.j.enders]

12 hours ago, OzarkSawdust said:

Yes Barb...I've already got my eye on one...LOL. But smaller this time. I like to fish, and my wife doesn't go fishing any more, so I'm looking at a Twin Troller. The idea is to pull it behind me 5th wheel and head back to the bayou of Louisiana and other places.

That's some cruiser you got there. You could do The Great Circle Route on that. 

We could if we lived on a lake that opened up to the loop!

[barb.j.enders]

13 hours ago, octoolguy said:

Wow! That's a big hole in the water.

 

It certainly is!!

[OzarkSawdust]

4 hours ago, new2woodwrk said:

If it were me, and I'm so jealous it's not LOL, in order of importance to me (I have most of the tools I need)

1. If you don't have a shop wide dust control system that would be #1 - I have the HF 3 hp and it's incredible! Run ducting through out to every machine
2. Portable A/C system
3. Ceiling Track system - Rockler - isolates the dust makers
4. Drum Sander
5. Rigid Oscillating Spindle sander
6. Router Lift table
7. Band saw
8. Good drill press (i have 2 cheapies)
9. The wife and I on the vacation of a lifetime!

Best of luck with your decision.

The only vac I see is the 2 HP 97869_W3.jpg (1200×1200) (harborfreight.com). Ts that it, or is there another (better) one?

How loud is it?

 

Edited November 24, 2020 by OzarkSawdust

[Bill WIlson]

Bandsaw and planer - to mill your own thin stock

Rigid Oscillating belt/spindle sander - that thing is just too handy

[WayneMahler]

Dust Collection System ( safety first ), Thickness planer, Band Saw with larger re-saw capabilities. 

[new2woodwrk]

1 hour ago, OzarkSawdust said:

The only vac I see is the 2 HP 97869_W3.jpg (1200×1200) (harborfreight.com). Ts that it, or is there another (better) one?

How loud is it?

 

Yes that's it - I bought it so long ago forgot the HP sorry.

Loudness is a relevant perspective - after 40 years of rock and roll, my ears are probably a bit more worn than most.

However, when it is on (when ever I use any saw) I do have to turn the radio up so for me it's not terribly loud.

I have a Wen 3410 3 speed, and if you have one of those the HF is 3 times louder. I have mine stuck in a corner which I think baffles it slightly

[oldhudson]

I think the top of the list would be dust collection, but perhaps you just didn't mention that. Just as I'm sure there are other tools that you have but didn't mention. Band saws and pretty handy and I love my compact router. I find myself going to that before picking up the big router. You didn't mention a lath. I think a router lift is a pretty big investment unless you use it quite a bit, but that said there are lots of videos of people building there own lifts. I don't have one because my router table gets collapsed and hung on the wall when not in use. I need the floor space. And I haven't made mortise and tenon joints since I purchased my DowelMax. And while were on the subject of joinery, do you have a pocket screw system? Another item you didn't mention, that you may have, is a good work bench. On the finishing side, while I haven't used it a lot, when I've used it my HLVP sprayer has been great. But maybe on this forum you'd maybe think about an air brush? Finally, don't for get good lighting. I replaced my florescent bulbs with LED's... really helps my old eyes.  

[oldhudson]

16 hours ago, barb.j.enders said:

I know - sold a boat last season and bought another at the end of this season.  For us, BOATS also means Bruises Of All Types & Sizes!!  This is ours coming out of the water this year.

I don't know about that boat business. I wait till winter to fish. Drive out to my favorite spot, cut a hole in the ice, drop a line in, sit down and open my flask.

[kmmcrafts]

3 hours ago, OzarkSawdust said:

The only vac I see is the 2 HP 97869_W3.jpg (1200×1200) (harborfreight.com). Ts that it, or is there another (better) one?

How loud is it?

 

That's the one I have.. I suppose it depends on what you think is loud, LOL.. I never had any other model or never been around one of the other ones.. so I thought it wasn't too bad for noise considering it is a big blower and motor etc.. But one day my local lumber supplier was running a CNC on display in their show room.. sat there talking to the guy running it and when the project was done carving he went over and shut off the dust collector.. it sat right behind me where I was standing and I didn't even realize it was on.. It was some small Jet model that he had there and he said they don't make that particular model anymore but it is the quietest one he's ever seen.. 

Just to put into perspective.. The shop vac I have is louder than the DC.. but maybe not by a whole lot.. I bought the DC hose kit from HF as well and so I have the DC all the way at the other end of the shop so the noise isn't too bad.. But then.. I only run it for the planer and badsaw with the planer running I don't hear the DC, LOL

[OzarkSawdust]

4 hours ago, WayneMahler said:

Dust Collection System ( safety first ), Thickness planer, Band Saw with larger re-saw capabilities. 

" larger re-saw capabilities" ? What size, what should I look for? I've never owned one before.

 

[OzarkSawdust]

4 hours ago, new2woodwrk said:

Yes that's it - I bought it so long ago forgot the HP sorry.

Loudness is a relevant perspective - after 40 years of rock and roll, my ears are probably a bit more worn than most.

However, when it is on (when ever I use any saw) I do have to turn the radio up so for me it's not terribly loud.

I have a Wen 3410 3 speed, and if you have one of those the HF is 3 times louder. I have mine stuck in a corner which I think baffles it slightly

How do you like the WEN 3410? I saw those and was thinking (dangerous) if it sucks air/dust in the filter end, and blows clean air out the grill. I could hang it in the middle of the shop and point it towards the end and it would circulate air around the shop as well as clean it. 

Shop photo almost two yrs ago right after it was spray foamed, NOT that clean any more LOL. But you can see the 9ft walls and high ceiling of the metal building. A little circulation of the warm air that rises to the top would really feel good this winter! 

[OzarkSawdust]

3 hours ago, oldhudson said:

I don't know about that boat business. I wait till winter to fish. Drive out to my favorite spot, cut a hole in the ice, drop a line in, sit down and open my flask.

Mentioning "fishing" and "ice" in the same sentence is just wrong! 

[OzarkSawdust]

3 hours ago, oldhudson said:

I think the top of the list would be dust collection, but perhaps you just didn't mention that. Just as I'm sure there are other tools that you have but didn't mention. Band saws and pretty handy and I love my compact router. I find myself going to that before picking up the big router. You didn't mention a lath. I think a router lift is a pretty big investment unless you use it quite a bit, but that said there are lots of videos of people building there own lifts. I don't have one because my router table gets collapsed and hung on the wall when not in use. I need the floor space. And I haven't made mortise and tenon joints since I purchased my DowelMax. And while were on the subject of joinery, do you have a pocket screw system? Another item you didn't mention, that you may have, is a good work bench. On the finishing side, while I haven't used it a lot, when I've used it my HLVP sprayer has been great. But maybe on this forum you'd maybe think about an air brush? Finally, don't for get good lighting. I replaced my florescent bulbs with LED's... really helps my old eyes.  

All good ideas...thanks. I think dust collection is something I need to look at. I've put off spending $ on it for cooler toys. A band saw is probably high on my list. I think it would be great making trinket/jewelry boxes and a bunch of other stuff. If I had a compact router I might use it a lot more for nice touches. My big DeWalt is setup in the table and I just don't want to mess with taking it out for a small job. Don't have a lath, thought about a mini to try making pens etc. Maybe down the road I will. I do have Kreg stuff for pocket screw joints, very handy! I built a couple of good benches, and will build more as I get other tools. I've got about six 4' florescent lights with the LED bulbs scattered all over the shop! A must have! I've thought about some kind of sprayer/air brush, is it a PIA to clean every time? I do need to build an enclosure to spray in. Thanks for the great ideas.

[OzarkSawdust]

2 hours ago, kmmcrafts said:

That's the one I have.. I suppose it depends on what you think is loud, LOL.. I never had any other model or never been around one of the other ones.. so I thought it wasn't too bad for noise considering it is a big blower and motor etc.. But one day my local lumber supplier was running a CNC on display in their show room.. sat there talking to the guy running it and when the project was done carving he went over and shut off the dust collector.. it sat right behind me where I was standing and I didn't even realize it was on.. It was some small Jet model that he had there and he said they don't make that particular model anymore but it is the quietest one he's ever seen.. 

Just to put into perspective.. The shop vac I have is louder than the DC.. but maybe not by a whole lot.. I bought the DC hose kit from HF as well and so I have the DC all the way at the other end of the shop so the noise isn't too bad.. But then.. I only run it for the planer and badsaw with the planer running I don't hear the DC, LOL

If I get one, I may rearrange part of the shop to put it in a corner and build a sound screen in front of it. The spray foamed walls should absorb some of the sound. Are you using the stock bags, or a barrel to catch the dust/chips? I've also seen, on You Tube, some folks making a barrel with a Dust Deputy before it goes into the stock dust collector.