Bill Tindall

The picture shows my shop workbench area. Stationary power tools are in the background as well as an open area for assembly and storage of pieces in progress. In this shop I build furniture (over 50 pieces to date), house parts ( cabinetry, trim and doors for this house and parts of daughters) and do maintenance of house and farm equipment.

This bench work area shown in the picture is 9 x 11' and the bench is 3.5 x 7' because that is how the size of the lumber worked out. It is covered with a replaceable sheet of off-white Masonite kind of stuff to provide a light colored durable and cleanable work surface. Two quick release metal vices are mounted on the bench as well as a full sized machinist vice. Overhead are 16 x 4' fluorescent lamps to provide 200 ft candles of illumination at the bench surface. There are unfortunately no windows in this shop(basement). Chisels live in a rack that typically sits on the bench. The bench is large enough that it usually accommodates tools for work in progress.

Three floor to ceiling shelf sections behind the bench (as seen in the picture) provide "at-hand" storage. Starting on the left shelf unit the top is devoted to paper materials and sand paper, next are router bits and drills and below a extensive assortment of nuts bolts and nails sufficient for farm, home and furniture needs.

The next shelf unit mostly contains hanging small hand tools (screw drivers and the like) up top, sharpening stuff, files and the like in the middle and misc. on the bottom. The unit to the far right central to the work area has misc. up top including screws and small bolts and fasteners, measuring tools on next shelf, then marking aids, next are planes and scrapers, then adhesives and tape, and Misc. below. Saws hang from the side of this shelf unit. Clamps are hung from the left wall.

There is a shelf under the bench where corded tools live and a drawer under the bench for small bits of things. Around the corner to the right and out of view is a shelf for finishing materials and house and farm maintenance supplies. It is a long trip to town so I keep on hand more maintenance materials than most.

The whole affair is a product of evolution. But nearly everything I need to work at the bench is within arms reach and I don't need to open anything to get at it.