Public/co-op woodworking spaces/workshops in London?

[henrykirby]

Hi all,

I'm moving into an unfurnished flat in a few weeks and would love to make a couple of items of furniture rather than buy. I'm a complete woodworking novice, so before I even begin to think about making a home-worthy dining table or desk, I wanted to ask a couple of (apologies if very obvious) questions.

I live in London and wondered if anybody knows of any good public woodwork spaces/workshops. I don't have my own equipment or a workspace, and with London being so vast, I assumed there must be some kind of space for people in my position?

My plan is to make a couple of smaller prototype pieces that could/probably will go a bit wrong, so when I actually get round to making the real deal, I'll have a bit of experience and hopefully avoid repeat mistakes. I'd also start on cheaper wood and then hopefully get hold of a better quality hardwood when the time comes.

Any tips to get me off the ground would be much appreciated.

Best,

Henry

 

[MattRoberts]

Hi there, you can check here : http://menssheds.org.uk

Most of them tend to be for older gents I think - does that fit?

 

[Sir Percy]

https://london.hackspace.org.uk/ here, you're sort of left to your own devices, including being let loose on the power tools. I think they've got a table saw, band saw & planer/thicknesser. Check the website for subscription details.

http://www.camdentownshed.org/ smaller space, frequented by older guys as MattRoberts says. If you don't mind a bit of robust language from an old ex-chippie, there's advice to be got from them. Fairly well-equipped. You may be able to leave WIP on the premises, but check first.

http://www.blackhorseworkshop.co.uk/about/ Never been to this one.

North / East London. Pretty sure there'll be something similar in your area if you live elsewhere.

 

[Sir Percy]

You may be able to leave WIP on the premises, but check first.

Maybe that's something to think about - if your pieces are going to be on the scale of a dining table / desk, consider transport, and transportability of the materials and finished work. Make some flatpack furniture? :wink:

 

[Paddy Roxburgh]

I have recently had a couple of people speak highly of the Black Horse Road workshops (Walthamstow), never been there myself but from what I've heard it is a good place.
Paddy

 

[henrykirby]

Thanks for all the suggestions! The Walthamstow one looks promising, and the shed one has a workshop in Camden, so I might check it out.

While I've got you guys here, can anyone suggest places that are worth looking at for second-hand hand tools? Or is it best to buy new?

 

[Roughcut]

Thanks for all the suggestions! The Walthamstow one looks promising, and the shed one has a workshop in Camden, so I might check it out.

While I've got you guys here, can anyone suggest places that are worth looking at for second-hand hand tools? Or is it best to buy new?

Ebay

 

[Paddy Roxburgh]

Check out the for sale section in this forum. What tools are you after?

 

[henrykirby]

Right now, I don't really know. I think I may have jumped the gun a little in looking for second hand ones to buy. Looking at these public workshops, there are tools there to use.

If I do buy tools straight off the bat (is that a good idea?) my goal is to make a dining table, so I guess start with the basics: rip saw, tenon saw? What are the other essentials? Chisels for joints? I'm a complete novice, so I may be getting ahead of myself!

But part of me thinks I should just start of with what's at the workshop and then get the gist of my requirements as I go along.

 

[MattRoberts]

It's an ambitious project to start with - would it be better to scale down and practise technique on something like a side table?

 

[BearTricks]

I think if you're sharing a space you'd probably want to bring along things that will need sharpening frequently, and maybe a method to do that. I don't know if those shared spaces have communal chisels and planes, but if they do it will almost definitely be a point of contention as to the best method of sharpening etc.

It would probably be less hassle for you to have your own if you plan on spending a couple of hours making traditional joints because you'll be hogging them and sharpening constantly. Everyone there would probably appreciate more tools to use anyway.

You could get by with a ripsaw, crosscut and tenon for a dining table, as well as some basic but decent quality chisels. You could do the entire thing on a tablesaw and bandsaw though depending on what type of joinery you decide to use. I'd just turn up and see what they recommend.

Post some threads on here in the buying advice section if you're looking for something specific. There are a lot of very good cheap tools, and a lot of terrible ones. Some of the best chisels you can buy for the money are from Aldi and Lidl, but that doesn't mean that all Aldi and Lidl tools are good. You can get most of what you need, particularly in hand tools, from Ebay and car boot sales if you know what you're looking for.

If you find a picture of a dining table you like, I'm sure someone on here could give you a list of the tools you'd need to make it.

 

[henrykirby]

@BearTricks - thanks a lot for all of that, really useful stuff. If I can get by with your suggestions then I might go ahead and buy my own tools after a couple of visits to the workshop.

@MattRoberts - I should have said: I do plan on making a couple of smaller prototypes first. I'll almost certainly make some errors, so a couple of dry runs on something smaller would hopefully iron out the creases.

I'm still undecided on an exact plan for the table, but will share a couple of photos of the type of thing I'm aiming for.

Thanks guys.

 

[MattRoberts]

Henry, if you're able to get down Gatwick way, you're always welcome to visit my little workshop. Cheers