The shop begins to take form

So we've been in the new house for a little over two months now. In that time I've painted two rooms, hung curtains, replaced a light fixture, done a little weather proofing and dispersed a couple feet of snow. Getting to the basement and setting up shop always lost the battle of priority until this past Saturday when I finally had some time to make a little progress down there.

On moving day the basement became the catch-all for anything we couldn't quickly find a home for. We were paying movers by the hour and all I really wanted was our stuff off their truck before they started to get tired and slow down. This was the result.

Little by little I was able to organize and redistribute the chaos. The extra washer and dryer were sold. A china cabinet and a couple of bureaus were relocated and repurposed as basement storage. Bins were stacked and other items were moved to the garage. Finally, I was able to create a little space and uncover my work bench.

I've still got plenty of work ahead of me, but it's all more manageable now. For starters, I need some storage for the home owner type tools and the shop tools. The concrete walls don't easily lend themselves to hanging stuff. Down the road I may finish them with stud walls, but for now they are going to remain bare. Surprisingly, I've got two more unused bureaus.

This one will hold the general purpose tools, but it needs a little love. The drawers are too large to keep wrenches and screw drivers and drill bits, etc organized, so I am going to add sliding trays to the top drawer and then fit to purpose the bottom drawers with what doesn't fit in the top.

With that added weight, they'll need some better support. You can see here the wood runners are much slimmer than the grooves they fit in and the drawers droop down when pulled out. I'll try replacing them with wider runners.

On the sides, the de-laminated veneer is no longer providing any support. The whole thing racks if you look at it from an angle for loo long. Thin plywood should be a decent replacement

The feet and bottom molding are a bit rotted. I'll cut the feet off, maybe replace them with casters and put new trim all around the bottom. Some sanding and paint will finish it up.

This little honey is slated for the finer tools. I haven't planned drawer usage yet. I'll start that after learning what the first bureau can teach me.

It will be nice to get the tools unpacked and organized, but these two pieces are the just beginning. Also in the plans are a wall to separate the shop from the  storage and laundry areas, a finished ceiling and upgrading lighting, a lumber rack, a base for the drill press and a better work bench. Oh, and I've got to get the table saw out of the garage and down the bulkhead.

I'll keep you posted as I make progress on the first bureau. Until then, thanks for reading.

Jim