Lathe tool rack.

[Nick]

It's a wonderful, but terrifying, sight to see an immaculately tidy and organised workshop. Lovely.

Mine's like a small thermonuclear explosion has gone off.

[Joe]

Join the club, Nick.

I can get mine like Col's but I've only got to do something a simple as put a plug on and it'd back to its usual detonated state.

- Joe

[pwdrive]

I can get mine like Col's but I've only got to do something a simple as put a plug on and it'd back to its usual detonated state.

A bit like this then (my old workbench)

Lawrence.

[Retired]

Hi,

Nice one Nick; look on the bright side though; I'm sure many good things have been made in fallout shelters?

I'm very similar to you Joe in that I always seem to need at least ten tools to knock a nail in but I do clean up as I work; a Poundland plastic dustpan and hand brush are miracle workers when it comes to cleaning up the bulk of the mess I make and it only takes a minute. I simply cannot do any decent work when it takes quarter of an hour to find a tool.

I still have some way to go yet before I'll consider my workshop tidy but it's coming along nicely.

I'm waiting for the cloudburst because I've been outside gloss painting all afternoon and have just finished.

All is not yet lost Lawrence; you still have space for a pot of tea and biscuit?

Kind regards, Col.

[Refugee]

I will have to admit that if with Lawrence on this one.

[pwdrive]

I will have to admit that if with Lawrence on this one.

That looks like a true experimenters work bench....Spot on.

I have a friend who is a carpenter, his name is Malcom otherwise known as Messy Malcom but his workmanship is faultless, he's the only guy I know who can cut masons mitres in kitchen worktops with a Bacho 244 handsaw and get the joint perfect.

Lawrence.

[Retired]

Hi,

WOW Refugee; thanks for sharing the pictures; my worst nightmare but then what suits one doesn't necessarily suit another; the main thing of course is that we all enjoy our hobbies and are not cabbages stuck in front of a telly all day waiting to drop dead.

How sad it is when someone works fifty years then drops dead through boredom shortly after retiring; this happens a lot.

It's time I applied the second coat of gloss to the handrails before another day slips by. I've just checked Ideal World but my Black Magic paint review hasn't yet appeared.

Kind regards, Col.

[Retired]

Hi,

Just a quick update to say the new telescopic ladders arrived rapidly and safely this morning delivery by Yodel and the packaging was undamaged so credit to Yodel for this.

The rubber buffers between rungs were supplied loosely in a plastic bag together with securing screws; these were very easy to attach.

I've seen these ladders advertised many times and have been on the lookout for a set at Rufforth but without luck. At £60.99 delivered these must be an absolute bargain? They feel well made and robust and I'm sure they will serve me well for many years to come.

Compare prices with Screwfix;

http://www.screwfix.com/p/xtend-climb-pr...read/29223

Mine are 3.8m and cost £60.99; Screwfix at the same length cost £219.99. Will these Screwfix ladders be over three times the quality to the ones I bought through eBay?

Kind regards, Col.

       

[Retired]

Hi,

A quick update as I've done a bit more to the workshop today. For many years I've had lots of boxed screws and until recently they have been stacked in cupboards in the garage but now I wanted a good stock of assorted screws in the workshop.

Having now completed the new lathe tools rack I could take advantage of one of the original racks which I've now converted to shallow shelves. I removed the blue velvet lined plywood back and tool hanging rails then used the router to cut the trenches to house the ends of the new plywood shelves. The shelves are cut from 9mm thick plywood offcuts so cost nothing. These shelves were mostly cut narrower than the boxes as this would allow the boxes to be removed easily and I'm too tight to waste material; in fact I just had enough plywood; it's amazing how much plywood is needed for such a small job? I've had lots of timber and plywood offcuts kicking around for many years in case they ever come in handy so now I'm trying my best to make use of them at last.

It took quite a while sorting the boxes out and arranging them in size order but at last I've now got instant access to a stock of the most popular sized screws. There is an equal amount of boxes still in the garage cupboard. You can't have too many screws? I even found a home for the gun nails (brads).

       

At the moment I'm undecided what to use the second original tool rack for which can be seen in the pictures but I'm sure it's going to be useful space?

Hardly anything special and certainly not demanding on brain power but now the new shelves are installed the time and effort have been well worth it. Everything is starting to fall into place and the workshop is taking on a friendly and welcoming feeling; I've enjoyed using a few tools today.

Here's a surprise Colin; the telescopic ladders we both bought through eBay have suddenly shot up in price from £60.99 to £99.99. This also happened immediately I bought the cement mixer which too saw a massive price increase; it looks like my luck is finally changing for the better?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ALUMINIUM-MULT...0446279532


Kind regards, Col.

[camallison]

Maybe the more expensive ladders already have the bumpers installed?

Just received an email from Maplin - they now have those ladders ..

http://www.maplin.co.uk/3.75m-telescopic...newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=13P9-4

Seems like a shipment must have arrived from China.

Colin