Starting out power tools

[seanash]

Hi everyone.
I have a budget of £1200 to get myself a planer/thicknesser / jointer and a router table and router.
I'm new to the hobby but I don't want to have to upgrade within a year, I'm looking for equipment that will get me going and not hamper my progress with poor quality results.
I was looking at a titan planer thicknesser and the bosch 1181 table with a fixed router.
Any advice at all on these purchases would be great and I would really appreciate your guidance.

 

[MARK.B.]

don't forget dust/chippings extraction as all of those machines will kick out large amounts of the stuff

 

[seanash]

Absolutely, I'm looking forward to making a mess. We have hens so sawdust is always handy for the hen house. They keep me fed with eggs so it's the least I can do!
The first project I'm looking at is to make my own bench that houses the table saw and the router.

 

[seanash]

I meant to add that I'm looking at smaller scale projects to start out with but looking to build some furniture for the house. Items like bookcases, side tables etc.

 

[seanash]

What is the more important item to focus my budget on?

 

[Ttrees]

A solid timber workbench free of clutter would be my preference, that and a good bandsaw.
Could get a nice 20" machine for that money, and it wouldn't be as dusty as the other machines.
Would likely need a decent supply to run such a machine, as with other dustier equipment plus extraction.
But, If you looked for cheaper three phase bandsaws which are dual voltage (240v), you could buy a hundred quid VFD to run from household 13a plug, and get away without needing extraction, since bandsaws suck most of the dust into the machine.

All the best
Tom

 

[MARK.B.]

A decent extraction system will not only keep the mess under control it will help to keep your lungs happy down the line.Do you own a Table saw or bandsaw ? if not you might want to consider getting one so you can cut your timber down to size unless you buy it in pre cut but that will work out more expensive .

 

[seanash]

Hi lads. I have an erbeur table saw that I bought to build a polycrub, a windproof poly tunnel basically.
I wasn't sure whether to upgrade the table saw and look at get a dado cutter or get a routing table for that purpose.
I also have a bandsaw, but it's of very poor quality, a Parkside. It was an impulse buy out of lidl.
What's your thoughts, should I upgrade these? Are the planer thicknesser and routing table less important than I think. Money isn't tight, but I also don't want to be frivolous giving the current ongoing economic situation.

 

[bp122]

To simplify, if I were in your shoes I'd do this:

1. Bandsaw (good capacity and solid one like @Ttrees said, not the kind you get for under £150 if you don't want to upgrade) is almost essential for unless you want to cut timber by hand.

2. Planer / Thicknesser, preferably something free standing (A scheppach one is on sale on the forum) - although in theory you can do this by hand for small stuff in small qualities for now anyway. If you are tight on budget, save this for later.

3. A 1400w / 2100w router (1/2" or 1/4“ collet) but with quality cutters (Wealden etc, buy only want you need and not a full box set)

4. Dust extractor for the router (and Sander in the future when you get one, which you will)

5. Chip extractor for the p/t and bandsaw

6. A good vise (52 1/2 or something similar with quick release)

7. Workbench - look in the local Facebook / Gumtree for a solid Dining table that someone is throwing out, brace it every which way and you'll have a solid workbench until you make one for yourself later. You can integrate your router into this if you are in a hurry until you build one. Saves space as well and gives you a larger area than any router table on the market for that money.

Hold off on buying a table saw or and other tools until you know what you need / want.

Hope this helps.

P.S: dust and chip extraction is not optional if you are using power tools!

 

[bp122]

Hi lads. I have an erbeur table saw that I bought to build a polycrub, a windproof poly tunnel basically.
I wasn't sure whether to upgrade the table saw and look at get a dado cutter or get a routing table for that purpose.
I also have a bandsaw, but it's of very poor quality, a Parkside. It was an impulse buy out of lidl.
What's your thoughts, should I upgrade these? Are the planer thicknesser and routing table less important than I think. Money isn't tight, but I also don't want to be frivolous giving the current ongoing economic situation.

If these tools are serving you, don't get rid of them.

Used tools are the way to go if you are on a budget.

The kind of table saws that allow dado cutters will cost the entirety of your budget combined with a chip extractor. For your situation, a good router with great cutters will serve you better.

 

[bp122]

Not trying to be judgemental here by any means, but it seems like you are in that stage of the hobby where you want to get everything now.

As someone who was in your shoes only a few years ago, I'd take a breather, sleep on this for a week. Research thoroughly as to what people have in their workshops and what they use them for.

You can get everything you want now, but none of them will be satisfactory or even fit for purpose. Instead, get the tool which does the most but of good quality. Do things with it for a while, and only then look to buy something else. This way you will spend wisely but have fewer regrets.

Apologies if this has offended you.

 

[seanash]

That's some great advice lads and exactly what I'm looking for. Thank you very much for your time taken in doing that.
I'm on nights just now so if we are quiet I will be trawling the ads.
I can't wait to get home and get started with this.

 

[seanash]

Bp122 you have certainly not caused offence, all advice is greatly received. I'm cautious of spending money on the wrong pieces of equipment and with delivery times together with my location and my time spent away from home it can be difficult to feel like im not wasting time waiting on a delivery truck.
Only I would pick a hobby that requires a resource that the land mass I live on has none! I'm in orkney btw.

 

[bp122]

Good luck, mate.

I wish I had asked the question here before I started buying things when I did. There is a lot of experience here, I have found the advice from people here very helpful.

 

[seanash]

I'm certainly finding it useful so far. It's invaluable. I really appreciate it.

 

[recipio]

Aim to extract every tool you buy or your workshop will be covered in a layer of dust. A new extractor with ducting is within your budget. After that a secondhand table saw and P/T are well neigh essential. A dado head is a good tool ( despite all the paranoia about them ) but if buying online they are nearly all American with a 5/8" arbour so your saw must have a long arbour to take them. That means having to source blades with a 5/8" hole. Woodworking has a long learning curve.

 

[seanash]

I think I might have underestimated the amount of dust etc and the need for extract and collection, that seems to be the common theme here. Any links or ideas on the size of kit I would need in a shop 20m3 with the above equipment installed?
I've been having a look at gumtree and the like at used equipment and researching those options.
I know I'm just starting out and it certainly does seem like there is a lot to learn and mistakes could well be made!

 

[recipio]

I think I might have underestimated the amount of dust etc and the need for extract and collection, that seems to be the common theme here. Any links or ideas on the size of kit I would need in a shop 20m3 with the above equipment installed?
I've been having a look at gumtree and the like at used equipment and researching those options.
I know I'm just starting out and it certainly does seem like there is a lot to learn and mistakes could well be made!

You will need at least a 1.5 KW extractor with a cartridge . They come as a standard extractor or with a turbo separator. Considering what they do they are not badly priced and should be around £600 + last time I checked. No need to get into four figures. It's easier to install dust extraction from the very beginning rather than attempt a retrofit and you will be more likely to use a clean workshop than one that looks like a sandstorm in the Sahara.

 

[Sideways]

I just saw an old but very clean Sedgwick PT (classic 10x7" planer thicknesser) sell for £800 something on ebay. That's a £3,000+ machine new.

With a PT, you can prepare all the lumber to build a solid wood workbench.
With a handsaw, and couple of handplanes, a power drill and some chisels you can build that bench. You'll need some measuring and marking tools too though. (£100 odd)
If you buy a PT, you will need a bag type dust extractor. They make too big a volume of chippings for a hoover to swallow. (£100 used). It will leak fine dust. You'll still need to wear a dust mask when you use it but if you don't have this, you'll be working in a snowstorm and the machine will mash the chips that should have been sucked away into the newly planed surface of your wood.

A £100 worth of router will help and then do a whole lot more for you.
For heavens sake don't waste money on a router table. They are the biggest ripoff in the woodworking world. If you EVER come to need one, you can make one from scraps and a couple of clamps.
For cutting stuff down. Buy a cheap tracksaw to start with and eventually add a table or bandsaw.

That's about your £1200 budget

There's a logic here.
A few handtools are absolutely essential so you have to spend some of your budget on them. But good used middle of the road hand tools aren't expensive.
A PT is used at the start of jobs to prepare the stock to size. The machine will save a fair bit of sweat and will help you achieve accuracy that will be hard to achieve as a beginner. In that regard, it will also save you time and waste. It's a cheat. Really you should develop the skills by prepping wood by hand, but hey !
If you buy a good used version of something expensive, it will either last you for life or hold most of it's value if you give up and sell it on.
If you buy a machine, then the moment you try to use it, you'll realise that you need dust extraction. The extraction needs to be the right type for the machine. It's not all the same.

Powered sawing is nice, but to get started, you can saw by hand or using a cheap power tool.

A router is arguably the one power tool that is so versatile that it will enable a whole lot of stuff that you can't do any other way. It's a good buy early on. But you need to read up and learn about it. Buy good used at £100 to £150 price point.

Router tables are a way to waste money. You can drop £1000 on one in a few years time. As a beginner, you don't need one. You only think you need one because you've been watching youtube videos by people who are making them to get advertising revenue. Don't be suckered. You can improvise one in half an hour and can have some fun building one if you think you need one.

 

[Jameshow]

If I had your money I would go for

Bandsaw £300

Table saw £300

P/T £300

Router+table £150

Cordless drill etc £150

Going for a/h you will get decent quality good hobby / light trade.

If new then you'll get diy level machines.

I'd avoid titan p/t table saw and bandsaw tbh.