# My little spare bedroom man-cave



## Trizza (Oct 1, 2011)

After moving into our new place I managed to talk the missus into letting me have the smallest bedroom as my workshop - its a pokey little thing, 2.2m*3.5m (about 7.2' * 11.5'). I've taken a break from building my ML Midge for a few weeks while I complete a bunch of storage projects so I could get all the boxes of tools and stuff off the floor and organise it a bit!

Now, the shop serves multiple purposes. Its my study, so my computer lives in here. It is my woodworking shop, so all of my woodworking gear is stored in here along with my bench. It houses my lathe and my mill, and I use it for building RC planes, too. Its definitely a man-cave!

Here's my woodworking wall - my sawtill, plane cabinet, and a crappy bench I knocked together in a hurry for use on the balcony of our old apartment. I'll have to build a better one some time soon. Lumber that may be used soon leans against the wall, the rest I keep in our storage room. I mostly build guitars so the scale is quite small for all of this stuff. Since I work indoors I have to keep the area meticulously clean, so the brooms and bin are right at hand. When planing I put the bin near the end of the work so shavings can be emptied into it just by flicking them out while I plane. I use a building board on the woodworking bench for building planes.






My PC and my Sieg SX1L mill - the drawers are full of tooling and accessories for lathe and mill:





My Sieg SC3 lathe, with shelving above it storing lots of misc things. My main guitar hangs around in here too.





And my random storage corner - I have to find a way to organise this lot. For now this is where misc power tools are kept, as well as my books and magazines and consumables. A shelf runs all the way along that wall, where I keep lots of other miscellaneous stuff. 





I use a cheap foam wine bottle holder as my metal storage, it isn't terribly space efficient but it does work well:





And finally the ever-present shop supervisor. I believe she fancies herself the site manager - nothing escapes her attention!


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## Tin Falcon (Oct 1, 2011)

Looks like you have a nice little shop/man cave there. my shop is about twice that size but looks like you have more actual floor space. And I see you have the compulsory shop cat. 
Tin


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## pcw (Oct 1, 2011)

playing guitar while watching the cnc mill makes parts. now that's a way of doing it!
Pascal


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## Mosey (Oct 1, 2011)

TR,
Did you think we didn't want to see the planes?? How about some pictures of them, as well?
Mosey


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## HS93 (Oct 1, 2011)

Trizza  said:
			
		

> After moving into our new place I managed to talk the missus into letting me have the smallest bedroom as my workshop - its a pokey little thing, 2.2m*3.5m (about 7.2' * 11.5'). I've taken a break from building my ML Midge for a few weeks while I complete a bunch of storage projects so I could get all the boxes of tools and stuff off the floor and organise it a bit!
> 
> Now, the shop serves multiple purposes. Its my study, so my computer lives in here. It is my woodworking shop, so all of my woodworking gear is stored in here along with my bench. It houses my lathe and my mill, and I use it for building RC planes, too. Its definitely a man-cave!
> 
> ...



did you use secret nailing to hold the cat down ? or was it as norm would say A few Brads   

Peter, who actually likes cats , but they can be a bit stringy


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## Trizza (Oct 2, 2011)

Mosey  said:
			
		

> TR,
> Did you think we didn't want to see the planes?? How about some pictures of them, as well?
> Mosey



Well I figured you lot would be more into the metalworking machinery  My collection is small but useful:




A Bedrock pattern No 6, Bedrock pattern No 4, Bailey pattern No 4, Union X8 (my pride and joy), Record #043, Marples M44, Hock plane kit and a little block plane. I've spent many a happy hour working with these guys. I hated woodworking until I discovered the joys of hand tool work, and I'd be very reluctant to return to machine tool woodworking..



			
				HS93  said:
			
		

> did you use secret nailing to hold the cat down ? or was it as norm would say A few Brads


She comes with her own proprietary fastening system. Care must be taken with it, it can easily cause damage to human flesh!


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## Trizza (Oct 2, 2011)

pcw  said:
			
		

> playing guitar while watching the cnc mill makes parts. now that's a way of doing it!


I like that idea! I'll have to convert the mill to CNC some day, I think.


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## mattinker (Oct 17, 2011)

Nice to see your space. A little thing, I learnt a long time ago that planes should be put down on their side, blades in the air! I'm finicky, but it's an old engrained reflex, it makes me wince to see them!

Regards, Matthew


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## Trizza (Oct 17, 2011)

mattinker  said:
			
		

> Nice to see your space. A little thing, I learnt a long time ago that planes should be put down on their side, blades in the air! I'm finicky, but it's an old engrained reflex, it makes me wince to see them!



Don't worry - these were all pulled straight from the cabinet for the photo so the irons were all retracted. I never put them in the cabinet with their irons set for use. When in use I always place them side down!


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## makoman1860 (Nov 2, 2011)

Hello,
 I like the bedroom shop, I have had to do that for years, with the wife always giving me the evil eye for the stray metal chip. As a interesing side note, I know many machininsts that are also wood workers....who prefer hand tools ( like myself) I wonder why? Polar Opposites of a similiar art?
-Aaron


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## Omnimill (Nov 2, 2011)

Nice space, is your little mate a Bengal?

Vic.


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## Sshire (Nov 2, 2011)

Love your shop. Great use of space. 
The old "rule" about putting planes on their side is illogical. The planes are meant to cut wood. They are on a wooden bench. Laying them on their sides exposes the blades to damage from another tool on the bench, bench dogs( which are essential when planing) and reveals a really nice sharp edge to cut oneself. 
When I'm working wood, my Lie-Neilsens and Bedrocks are always set gently with the blades down. Just sayin'
Stan


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## barney_leadhead (Nov 2, 2011)

Like to see indoor workspaces and I admire you for doing woodwork inside and managing to keep your area clean.

I'm looking to make some space in my room/office/den for a small workbench to take my small bench drill and one of my small lathes but I need to clear out some of my excess stuff/junk first.

My late Great-Uncle had his Pittler lathe in his former dining room and a small bench in the corner but he was living on his own by then after losing his dear wife a few years earlier.
Used to make me smile when I'd visit and he was doing some machining operation with a lovely open fire in the hearth.


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## Trizza (Nov 3, 2011)

makoman1860  said:
			
		

> As a interesing side note, I know many machininsts that are also wood workers....who prefer hand tools ( like myself) I wonder why? Polar Opposites of a similiar art?


I dunno - there's something soothing about working quietly with hand tools. Its relaxing. No motor whine or safety goggles required. Very different from eg parting off steel in the mini lathe!



			
				Omnimill  said:
			
		

> Nice space, is your little mate a Bengal?


She's an ocicat - another extremely social spotted cat. She'll happily play fetch all day long, so she often brings me a ball and leaves it at my feet while I'm working at the lathe or mill.



			
				barney_leadhead  said:
			
		

> I'm looking to make some space in my room/office/den for a small workbench to take my small bench drill and one of my small lathes but I need to clear out some of my excess stuff/junk first.
> 
> My late Great-Uncle had his Pittler lathe in his former dining room and a small bench in the corner but he was living on his own by then after losing his dear wife a few years earlier.
> Used to make me smile when I'd visit and he was doing some machining operation with a lovely open fire in the hearth.


There are a lot of advantages to having an indoor shop, but you do have to be pretty OCD about cleanliness. Its not pleasant to step on metal chips when you walk around barefoot in the morning! But it sure is pleasant to have a room thats always warm, within a few steps from the bathroom & sauna and a few more steps from the coffee maker.


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## /// (Nov 3, 2011)

Trizza  said:
			
		

> She's an ocicat - another extremely social spotted cat. She'll happily play fetch all day long, so she often brings me a ball and leaves it at my feet while I'm working at the lathe or mill.



Mate that is awesome. That makes the third cat I know of that plays fetch.
I have a <12mo Bengal that taught me how to play fetch. I was just sitting watching TV one night when she came bounding up the stairs with a toilet roll tube and dropped it at my feet... I was shocked... crazy
Threw it and she chased it, fought it, and then brought it back.
I now throw an old film canister, easier for her to pick up and I can throw it further, even down the stairs.
A friend of mine also has a Bengal, it doesn't fetch, but he recently added an Abyssinian to the family and yep... it's a fetcher!

Oh and great workshop too.
I live alone, which sucks, but does have it's advantages.... I also get to use the spare room!
So many advantages, but best of all, never had an issue with rust.


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## Trizza (Nov 3, 2011)

///  said:
			
		

> Mate that is awesome. That makes the third cat I know of that plays fetch.
> I have a <12mo Bengal that taught me how to play fetch. I was just sitting watching TV one night when she came bounding up the stairs with a toilet roll tube and dropped it at my feet... I was shocked... crazy
> Threw it and she chased it, fought it, and then brought it back.
> I now throw an old film canister, easier for her to pick up and I can throw it further, even down the stairs.
> A friend of mine also has a Bengal, it doesn't fetch, but he recently added an Abyssinian to the family and yep... it's a fetcher!



Bengals and Abyssinians are beautiful cats  The Ocicat breed is a cross between Aby and Siamese with some American Shorthair thrown in - hence their crazy social manner. Our cat's favourite fetch toys are those little sponge balls that are dimpled like golf balls. She talks (can't say meow, Ocicats don't meow they bark and bleat) with it in her mouth making a very distinctive sound as she approaches to drop the ball on your face while you're trying to sleep. She also walks on a leash and responds to her name. Absolutely obsessed with humans - she follows us EVERYWHERE, whereas our other cat just comes to us for food and a scratch once in a while. Dog in a cat suit, we say! If I'm working up a heavy sweat when ripping or flattening some lumber I'll often take my sweat-soaked shirt off and toss it into the corner - within 5 minutes she'll have found it, arranged it into a neat nest and curled up in it. Weird critter.


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## Omnimill (Nov 3, 2011)

This is our Bengal






 ;D

Vic.


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## Trizza (Nov 3, 2011)

Beautiful! Does it help you out around the workshop?


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## Omnimill (Nov 3, 2011)

Nah, talks a lot though ... :big:


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## Mosey (Nov 5, 2011)

I too am pleased to have a supervisor of my shop. She loves to play with shiny, curly chips, and she occasionally east them and then barfs them up. SWMBO does not like that at all, so my orders are Sascha stays, the chips go! So, vacuuming up the chips is a daily routine. She likes to stroll though the basement shop on her way to deep hiding places where she can watch the mousies and keep warm. Likely, behind the water-heater.


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## dalem9 (Nov 5, 2011)

I once had a cat that use to go hunting with me .she once caught a rabbit running behind me what a site. Dale


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## Tin Falcon (Nov 5, 2011)

now this thread has gone to the cats. I know what you mean about dogs in cats clothing . I had a wonderful mutt cat for many years. His mother showed up on a farm belonging to friends. the kids named her candy. Well candy had a litter of kittens then passed away. the kittens were bottle fed and named by a 3 year old and a five year old.the kittens were butterscotch, licorice , gumdrop. and taffy Butterscotch the Orange tabby came to live with us when he was about of a year old he grew up with a couple of Chesapeake bay retrievers, he did not know he was a cat. I was his favorite pillow. He was my best buddy for many years. 



> She loves to play with shiny, curly chips, and she occasionally east them


Our cats have a taste for delrin chips long and stingy I need to put them in the trash or the cats will eat them. 
Tin


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## Trizza (Nov 5, 2011)

I've often wondered what would happen if our cats ate some metal chips. I'm always paranoid about it and try to sweep up any that have fallen on the floor ASAP - which is probably for the best anyway I guess.


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