The Taylor Garage

Tonight marked another step towards building that seminal rite of passage in the woodworking:  building one’s own workbench.

Today we have a plethora of resources on the ins and outs of workbench design, not the least of which is Chris Schwarz’s book Workbenches:

Not only do we have this book, but several other instructional sources for building our own benches. There have also been several bloggers who have shared their experiences while building their benches (just to link a few).  I’ve been following and reading all I can in preparation for constructing my own bench.

Part of that preparation has been looking for a bunch of wood to use for the bench top.  I’ve made a regular habit of combing Craigslist every couple of days to see if I could find that hidden gem of an ad offering the impossible.  I think I found it.  Tonight I bought (literally) a truck load of southern yellow pine – a Schwarz bench top favorite:

That’s forty-two 10 foot 2x6s and six 12 foot 2x6s.  I got the whole lot (almost 500 board feet) for a ridiculously low price of $125!  There’s probably enough wood in there to build two nice workbenches.  As I was unloading the boards out of the truck, I couldn’t help but wonder if I should build a 10 foot long bench with a 6 inch thick top!

The biggest negative with a score this size is I don’t really have a whole lot of room to store the wood until I can get to actually using.  While there are projects in progress in the garage (especially big ones like the crib), I have resorted to the Wood Zealot’s storage system – my dining room floor*!

*Note – this storage location is wife approved.

Last night I finally got back into the garage after a long hiatus, traveling for Thanksgiving and for work over the past two weeks.

Over the past couple of weeks I’ve really come to realize that woodworking isn’t just a passing interest for me, but something I’ll be spending my time on for quite a while.  We traveled to my uncle’s house for Thanksgiving. It was great to see family for the first time in a while, but I was continuously drawn to noticing the dovetailed kitchen drawers and the rolltop breadbox, wisely using the corner countertop space. I found myself constantly looking at details I hadn’t noticed before.

Then this past week I was down in Dallas for some training. Instead of paying complete attention the whole week, I found myself daydreaming about the projects I have on my “bench” and all the work I have to complete by Christmas. I also spent some time scouring Criagslist for wood (more on that tomorrow) and taking the advice to keep up with what others are doing in their shops.

To be honest, I’m not really sure what I was thinking when I first bought my table saw; I certainly didn’t have a first project in mind.  Somehow I knew that woodworking would keep my interest and be a creative outlet. Two years later, I’m encouraged that I’m fulfilling that inkling.