As with many hobbies, it’s not easy to delve into your passion for woodworking without first putting together a collection of a few indispensable tools. Experienced woodworkers may own a plethora of equipment, running the gamut from industrial-sized table saws to small drill bits. Such an immense collection of devices is enough to take up an entire garage-sized woodworking shop.
However, when you are assembling your own basic woodworking kit, a much more modest collection of tools should suffice. Only some basic equipment is required by beginners to complete simple tasks, and they can always expand depending on how far they are willing to hone in on their woodworking skills. The basic equipment that you require for a workshop toolkit can be separated in to five unique categories:
Measuring Tools
your workshop toolkit should incorporate some basic measuring tools to help you lay out the cuts you are going to be making in your wood pieces. These measurements should be at the proper angles and extremely accurate, especially when you need to join those wood pieces later on. Framing and combination squares are pretty useful, in addition to a folding ruler, marking gauge, and sliding bevel. A steel tape and compass also help immensely in measuring lengths and angles accurately.
Cutting Tools
If you aspire to cut intricate shapes in your wood, you need more than a basic saw. As a rule of thumb, the more saws you own, the more projects you can complete and the more versatile you can be. A specialized saw for crosscutting is vital, and a coping saw or a back saw can also afford you more options.
While a hack saw may prove its worth one day, it’s primarily intended to be used with hard materials and metal, making it somewhat of an extravagance. You should also have needle-nose pliers and slip-joint pliers on hand as well. A pair of diagonal cutters is also essential.
Shaping Tools
Be it any woodworking situation, shaping tools prove handy. A smooth plane is also a necessity and wood chisels are also crucial to rendering detail to the wood. Hand scrapers are not must, but a bonus. You also need both flat and round rasps, low-angle block plane, and a utility knife.
Joining Tools
You may not need any joining tool at all, depending on your projects. However, if your project entails joining together myriad pieces, it’s inevitable that a couple of joining tools will come in handy. You also can’t imagine to finish off projects without a screwdriver or two, wooden mallets, pipe clamps, bar clamps, finish hammers, and claw hammers. A bench vice also helps to tightly join wood pieces, and doweling jig and a nail set are also important.
Safety Equipment
Safety comes first. You’ll need to wear safety glasses and a face shield to protect your face and eyes from flying objects and sawdust that could wreak severe damage. When working with loud devices, it is prudent to invest in some kind of ear protection, such as ear plugs. If your project is generating volumes of dust, wear a dust mask to safeguard your respiratory system.
