Is woodworking in the UK too expensive for a hobby?
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When I was younger, living in a rented flat or in my first house with no spare cash, most of my woodwork was from salvaged timber from skips etc. This included:
- lots of shelves
- freestanding bookcases
- a double bed (parts of which were later reused to make a single bed)
- a wooden attaché case
- a jewellery box
- a workbench.
Not just nick-nacks!
I had a few hand tools and a B&D electric drill.
I now have a lot more tools and experience but still like using quality timber which others have thrown away.
- lots of shelves
- freestanding bookcases
- a double bed (parts of which were later reused to make a single bed)
- a wooden attaché case
- a jewellery box
- a workbench.
Not just nick-nacks!
I had a few hand tools and a B&D electric drill.
I now have a lot more tools and experience but still like using quality timber which others have thrown away.
Ttrees
Iroko loco!
More skip scavenging today
I had to climb inside this one
Some iroko, a nice ash plank, some red skirting that is way finer and looks to be harder than the meranti I have,
Maybe sapelli but I see no ribbon figure.
And some other very strange bland light timber that has opposing grain an inch apart on this narrow board.
Not an inch down the length but the width.
I have never experienced this apart from stock that has visibly changing grain.
Maybe once I surface it all it will be more apparent.
Wouldn't mind some potshot ID.s please :wink:
I haven't even got around to surfacing the last batch yet, just de-nailed and put against the wall.
Nearly all my iroko sawn into mostly square stock, getting some floor space back again
It must be about this time again when I either find a motherload of timber or another machine lands my way(hammer)
I must say even having the space is like a gift though.
Gonna start making stuff again soon
And to think I was marking out timbers, and nearly gonna sort them out into groups from this and that place :shock:
Nice idea, but I've completely lost count on the amount of skips I've got this stuff from
I might be able to remember where most of the meranti came from and other species...
But the iroko I wont even bother to try and think as a lot of it is identical.
There is hope for the skint
Check your local hotels ,pubs,shops and houses needing renovations folks.
Love to hear opinions on these species
Iroko thrown in for contrast
Thanks
Tom
I had to climb inside this one
Some iroko, a nice ash plank, some red skirting that is way finer and looks to be harder than the meranti I have,
Maybe sapelli but I see no ribbon figure.
And some other very strange bland light timber that has opposing grain an inch apart on this narrow board.
Not an inch down the length but the width.
I have never experienced this apart from stock that has visibly changing grain.
Maybe once I surface it all it will be more apparent.
Wouldn't mind some potshot ID.s please :wink:
I haven't even got around to surfacing the last batch yet, just de-nailed and put against the wall.
Nearly all my iroko sawn into mostly square stock, getting some floor space back again
It must be about this time again when I either find a motherload of timber or another machine lands my way(hammer)
I must say even having the space is like a gift though.
Gonna start making stuff again soon
And to think I was marking out timbers, and nearly gonna sort them out into groups from this and that place :shock:
Nice idea, but I've completely lost count on the amount of skips I've got this stuff from
I might be able to remember where most of the meranti came from and other species...
But the iroko I wont even bother to try and think as a lot of it is identical.
There is hope for the skint
Check your local hotels ,pubs,shops and houses needing renovations folks.
Love to hear opinions on these species
Iroko thrown in for contrast
Thanks
Tom
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user 26792
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This is quite an interesting topic and I echo the sentiments expressed earlier in that it can be as expensive or as cheap as you would like it to be which is the same as any hobby or activity. I have recently reignited a flame for woodworking and began researching and building. My projects so far are:
Wooden fence for rental property made from pallet wood which was free.
Shoe cabinet made from exterior plywood which cost a total of around £150 including handles and finishing products, the stuff in argos and ikea were considerably smaller and cost just as much
I'm quite lucky in that my dad and grandad both spent a few years picking up hand tools and power tools as they like to DIY stuff when possible, so I do have a handy little arsenal to utilise however I think for quite a large number of projects I could get away with a some measuring tools, a Jack Plane, Hand Saw, Hammer and Chisels and Abrasive paper, which I could pick up at the car boot for £20.00 total. Refining those items pick up a Granite Chopping board from B&M for £8 and you can true your plane and chisels. This bloke on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYMYGW ... fwkqP9I5yg has some quite interesting points and he pretty much hits the nail on the head in some of rants.
As a result of watching his channel, Paul Sellers and a couple of others it reaffirmed my gut instinct to work on my skills and train my eyes for details and to work with hand tools. The stuff I've seen of the Americans they seem to love big workshop power tools which is fine if you plan on turning it into a business but that will run up to the thousands for the basic stuff. This can also be pointless because if you don't have the basic skills then it's pretty pointless. It's like teaching a child to use an electric bike before they can actually use their legs to walk (crude example).
I use CAD software to design and plan things so that I know exactly how much timber I'm going to need because quite honestly sometimes I look at plans and think WTF, so for my thought process I just find it a lot easier to things myself and go from there.
Wooden fence for rental property made from pallet wood which was free.
Shoe cabinet made from exterior plywood which cost a total of around £150 including handles and finishing products, the stuff in argos and ikea were considerably smaller and cost just as much
I'm quite lucky in that my dad and grandad both spent a few years picking up hand tools and power tools as they like to DIY stuff when possible, so I do have a handy little arsenal to utilise however I think for quite a large number of projects I could get away with a some measuring tools, a Jack Plane, Hand Saw, Hammer and Chisels and Abrasive paper, which I could pick up at the car boot for £20.00 total. Refining those items pick up a Granite Chopping board from B&M for £8 and you can true your plane and chisels. This bloke on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYMYGW ... fwkqP9I5yg has some quite interesting points and he pretty much hits the nail on the head in some of rants.
As a result of watching his channel, Paul Sellers and a couple of others it reaffirmed my gut instinct to work on my skills and train my eyes for details and to work with hand tools. The stuff I've seen of the Americans they seem to love big workshop power tools which is fine if you plan on turning it into a business but that will run up to the thousands for the basic stuff. This can also be pointless because if you don't have the basic skills then it's pretty pointless. It's like teaching a child to use an electric bike before they can actually use their legs to walk (crude example).
I use CAD software to design and plan things so that I know exactly how much timber I'm going to need because quite honestly sometimes I look at plans and think WTF, so for my thought process I just find it a lot easier to things myself and go from there.
Phil Pascoe
Established Member
I started buying tools and having them given as birthday and xmas presents fifty years ago, and very rarely buy tools now - apart from having a third sheet sander, a 18v drill and my jigsaw all pack up within a few months. The saw and the sander were twenty years old and well used, so I can't complain. Most of my turnery is done for enjoyment with wood acquired one way or another (I got thirteen good sized oak blanks out of £20 of firewood, and the offcuts for the stove would have cost me £20 had I bought them by the bag), but bench work is done to save money so effectively is cost negative.
Sine the OP is in London, he might like to try LASSCO (in Battersea I think) which is a huge recycling/architectural salvage place. I got marvellous teak to refloor my home from there. Overall cost including installation was comparable to new (a bit cheaper), but far better quality and seasoned for 150 years. I am still using the surplus for jigs, chopping boards etc. And small pieces are normally also available. Teak, mahogany, pine and oak are usually available as ex floorboards.
Ttrees
Iroko loco!
Hi AndyAndyT":1hrtuhkn said:
I'm across the pond in a big town/small city
You'd think they'd be happy bout me freeing space up for them, but more often than not, past the gates is enough to set them off with the health and saftey lark, designated for landfill, request it at the gate, even though you have to see whats in the skip to begin with.
Best done when they go home in my experience
I was thinking of making a t-shirt with timber exchange scheme, and the recycle logo on it
Wood waste for Waste wood
It might give the cops a laugh if they see me entering a site after hours
I'm sure they see me and know what I'm after anyways, armed with a saw nail bar and a rope
I'm fairly blatant about it, and if asked I'd respond with rants about the real crime going on ....
The illegal logging going on in Ghana, the Ivory coast, Cameroon and the fact theirs blood on these hardwoods
and all I'm trying to do is salvage what little I can from these rotten old door frames
I could go on
Any clue to what these species are ?
I'm surprised I have not stumbled across this stuff before
Tom
