The Basic Shop

Last Updated: January 11, 2003

Never let it be said that I am incapable of finishing a project! On July 4, 2002 I managed to complete what was finally a woodworking project of over 10 years duration. This project (showcased herein) was the Basic Shop: a simple, portable and practical workshop for woodworking. The plan for the project is described beginning on page 60 of the Nov 1991 issue of Popular Mechanics.

The project began more or less in late 1991 when I still had a subscription to PM (I eventually had to drop my subscription when the bikini-clad women writhing around on power boat images replaced actual content). I wasn't able to actually purchase materials and begin construction until 1997 or so (after acquiring the requisite tools). After that I generally worked in spurts with long hiatuses in between, the longest immediately after I finished construction (mid-2000, when I moved and began graduate school) and prior to finishing the project in mid-2002.

While I adhered to the plan fairly closely, I did need to make some modifications, described in this series of photo captions (8 slides). Excuse the lighting and distracting background—the basement of our apartment doesn't make much of a gallery.

The Basic Shop (pictured here) consists of a Black & Decker Workmate 550, a toolchest, and a pair of sawhorses (a 3 piece design, not the one listed in the mag—contact me at denicola@nacresky.com if you'd like to know where I got the plan). In the magazine the Basic Shop is later built upon, resulting in the Intermediate Shop (involving a dedicated work space and benchtop tools), and the Advanced Shop (more tools, particularly for preparing your own lumber). Assuming each of those phases also takes 10 years, I'll be ready to go by the time I'm 55...