(Part 3) Top products from r/BeginnerWoodWorking

Here are the basics, I will edit if I think of any more essential tools, but you can go an awfully long way with these.

Hand Tools:

• Hand saw- I prefer Japanese style pull saws, meaning they cut on the pull stroke. My go to utility saw is a Vaughn bear saw, which is a robust package, with several types of interchangeable blades. There are countless types of saws, for different uses, but a fine toothed Japanese saw will get you by for most things.
  
  
• Combination square- A sliding ruler square, perfect for marking and layout. you will also want a speed square eventually, so you might as well get one.
  
  
• Tape measure- Start with a basic 25' tape, and get more as needed.
  
  
• Basic chisel set- Most of the entry grade chisels are pretty much the same, this Irwin set is a pretty good buy. to start with a set of 1/4", 1/2", and 1" are all you really need, but you can never have enough chisels.
  
  
• Block plane- A low angle block plane will get you a long ways breaking corners and trimming pieces. Stanley makes a great, affordable, option. As time goes by you will need a jack plane, but a block plane will do for now.
  
  
• Sharpening equipment- A fine diamond stone like this will get you a long way keeping your chisels and plane sharp. You should do research into sharpening methods as you use your tools more, and build a system that fits you.
  
  
• Hammer- A cheap smooth face hammer. Build a wooden mallet as a starter project.
  
  
• Clamps- You always need more clamps. Big clamps. Small clamps. Weird clamps. I like bar clamps. Harbour Freight has good deals on fair clamps, but don't expect too much out of them. To start with get a couple with ~8" throat, and a couple with ~18" throat.
  
  Power Tools:
  
  
• Cordless drill- If you're willing to spend the money for a good, reliable, tool I recommend Makita, but a Ryobi or Rigid will serve you well if you're just working on small projects. Everyone has their favourite cordless tool brand, and, for the most part, it really is just preference. I highly recommend adding an impact driver and circular saw to whichever system you choose.
  
  
• Circular Saw- If you want to work with plywood or larger sticks, you will want a circular saw, which is the most basic power saw. Most of the major tool companies make fine starter saws, Skil is the original, and is quite cheap, but there are plenty of others, browse a store and see what takes your fancy.
  
  
• Jig saw- A jig saw is used for cutting curves, and you will eventually need it if you build enough things. I prefer Bosch but there are cheaper options. See what feels right to you.
  
  
• Miter saw- You don't need this right away, but if you start doing more projects you will want one. I recommend going right to a sliding compound miter saw, like this Dewalt. You will never need more miter saw than that, and if you get a small one you will eventually end up buying a the real deal.
  
  
• Table saw- Again, you don't need this right away, but eventually you will feel you need the precision and ease that a table saw brings. The Rigid portable table saw is a great saw if you're working in tight quarters and need to pack up, but you'll appreciate the appreciate the stability of a cast iron topped cabinet saw if you have the cash and space for it.
  
  Misc:
  
  
• Drill bits- Get a cheap twist drill set that goes from 1/16" to 1/2" and a basic spade bit set. Later you will want a set of forstners and hole saws.
  
  
• Utility knife
  
  
• Driver bits
  

Here's what I would buy if I were equipping my garage workshop on a budget from scratch today:

• Table Saw - Unless you go for hand tools, this is the absolute core of your shop. Do not buy a new saw for less money than this under any circumstances, because it's false economy and you'll soon outgrow it. You may wish to buy a cheaper used model, in which case you should shop for a Craftsman 113 (aim for a belt drive rather than direct drive) on Craigslist. Spend up to $150 and plan to build or buy a better fence in the first year, which will bring you up to roughly the same capability as the new saws.
  
• Drill and Driver - You need a drill anyway. Everyone does. This is nothing fancy, but it's a tolerable set that should last a hobbyist quite a while, and both batteries and extra tools are cheap. Grab a set of drill bits and a few impact-rated screwdriver bits, or a fancy combo set of both.
  
• Miter Saw - Indispensable for cutting long pieces. You may eventually wish to get a big 12" sliding monstrosity to make wider pieces easier to work with, but you can also do that with a table saw. I suggest an inexpensive variant of the most basic type of miter saw to start, so you've got a good foundation to work from but don't have a ton of sunk cost if you upgrade later.
  
• Circular Saw - You'll use this for breaking down sheets of plywood bigger than your table saw can handle. You can also use it as a stand-in for the table saw for the first few projects. I'm recommending a lightweight cordless model for convenience during these simple, short tasks, but if you work with thick materials you may eventually want a powerful corded one as well - I've got a cordless and then a monstrous 15-lb worm drive saw for heavy duty use. If you just want to split the difference right off the bat and have one tool that's okay for everything and not great at anything, get a basic corded one.
  
• Jigsaw - For cutting curves and small notches. Make sure you get one with orbital motion, but other than that you can go pretty cheap on this because you won't use it that often. However, buy top-of-the-line blades; I really like Bosch blades.
  
• Router - This is a very capable middle-of-the-road router. You'll eventually want to add a plunge base, and might add a lightweight trim router to make edge profiles more easily. You can get accessories to expand on this, or you can eventually dedicate it to a router table and buy new for those other things - the variable speed motor on this is ideal for table use.
  
• Sander - This is the most general-purpose sort of sander, although it's a little on the aggressive side for final sanding. Just hand-sand where you need more finesse until you know what other sanders you might want.
  
• Combination Square - Use this for laying out cuts and holes and stuff.
  
• Speed Square - That blue book will show you tons of neat tricks with this square. Mostly you're going to use it as a short guide for the circular saw, though.
  
• Tape Measure
  
  Edit: Looks like that's about $1,100.00 depending on your local tax rate and how much of it you can slip past untaxed. That's steeper than I expected, but it's also an entire barebones shop for less money than the table saw I really want.

I don't think you'd regret the Kobalt! It's not going to be to the level of the Ridgid or Dewalt (and certainly not a Bosch or SawStop) but as long as you're aware you're getting an excellent saw for ~$200, and not a contractor/professional grade saw, you'll be happy.

If it seemed nice to you in the store that's a good sign. Be aware that with cheaper saws, you sometimes have to do some work to get them to work smoothly: things like greasing slide points, or waxing the table to make sure wood glides on it.

The other thing is that a new, high quality blade makes an unbelievable amount of difference! If you can afford $35 for another blade (no worries if you can't, the one that comes with it will still cut!) a good 50 tooth or 60 tooth combination blade will make an average saw give you some pretty amazing results. I use this one for $35 and absolutely love it: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00008WQ30

If he's going back to school, he won't have time or space to truly use tools, so don't buy those with the intent that he'll use them at school.

​

Get him a subscription to a woodworking magazine or two. My brother got me a subscription to Wood Magazine, and I called it "woodworking porn."

These will have projects he might actually do some day, projects he'll never do but will aspire to, projects he might adapt to something smaller.


They will ALSO (importantly) have info on tools he can dream about buying in the future, or decide he doesn't need. Info on helpful gadgets to buy, jigs to make.

​

I found them VERY inspiring. They were fun to read, they didn't take a long time (wouldn't distract him from the school stuff), the pictures were great, and I got itchy to do stuff.

I learned things far beyond what actually making anything would have taught me (I'm never going to buy a lathe or a bandsaw, but I loved reading about them--and I'm much smarter now).

Many of the same principles (how to care for the tool; how to get things square; others) are actually applicable when I use other tools.

They had plans and cut lists, which were educational to look through, even if I never make that workbench or children's playground. I got a sense of how to construct something sturdily. And what order to assemble (the MOST important part).

​

Get them in print form!

a review of several of them, with recommendations:http://www.mechanicalcaveman.com/best-woodworking-magazine-reviews-beginners-wood-working/

Another review, with a longer list (some of the same names)

Some titles I would personally recommend (most are on those lists):

https://www.popularwoodworking.com/

Woodsmith

Fine Woodworking

Woodcraft Magazine

Family Handyman might be good if he's kind of a fix-it-up person; a slightly different way of looking at it (cabinet inserts more than midcentury modern tables)

maybe get him a bit of a variety--a cabinetmaking one, a straight woodworking one, a "turning" one--to give him exposure to different ways of working with wood.

A.) why are they dropping this on you?
B.) Safety! Safety! Safety! Before you do anything, you need to brush up on safety in both a shop setting and when it comes to tools. Both Hand and Power.
C.) Boxes. Learn how to make boxes. 95% of all woodworking is making a box. Picture Frame??? It's a box without a top or bottom. Dresser??? A box with smaller boxes in it. Well, maybe not 95% but learning to make a box is a pretty good step in being able to take different projects.
D.) Safety
E.) Do you know what kind of tools you will have access too, space to work, how much time these kids are going to have?


You may check out the following Youtube Channels:

• Stumpy Nub
  
• Woodworking for Mere Mortals
  
• Paul Sellers
  
  Some books that might be handy as well:
  
  
• Woodworking Basics - Mastering the Essentials of Craftsmanship - An Integrated Approach With Hand and Power tools
  
• The Complete Manual of Woodworking: A Detailed Guide to Design, Techniques, and Tools for the Beginner and Expert
  
• The Joint Book: The Complete Guide to Wood Joinery
  
• One-Board Woodworking Projects
  
• The Big Book of Weekend Woodworking Projects

I'm completely new to woodworking, too. I did a workbench for my first project.

I bought this cheap B&D Workmate, and built this simple workbench. Got the cheap lumber from Home Depot. The solid core door that serves as the workbench surface is heavy, probably >50lbs.

All I used was a circular saw, drill and a couple clamps. I did it in a day and a half. I know some could do it in like an hour or two, but I literally don't/didn't know how to do anything more than hang a picture on the wall before I built this bench. I was actually very surprised at how easy it was and how well it came together. It actually looks like a real table/workbench! LOL

There's an endless amount of writing on the subject. The book I own is Taunton's Complete Illustrated Guide to Woodworking. Having an abundance of pictures and diagrams really helps to explain to things.

For tools, I agree with u/OSHTechie. Make sure he's really into it before buying tools. If you really must buy tools, make it something that he can use even if he loses interest like a hand drill or a tape measure.

Bill Hylton’s Illustrated Cabinetmaking is only $16 and has hundreds of exploded drawings of furniture of different styles. Not plans with cut lists but the benefit of custom furniture is that it can be sized to fit a specific space and for materials at hand.

If old timey wood working rocks your boat, I highly recommend following Chris Schwarz. He has done a lot to popularize the Roubo bench and other older tools and methods. He also wrote two of the best books on workbenches (https://www.amazon.com/Workbenches-Design-Construction-Popular-Woodworking/dp/1558708405).

There's also a good video about the Roubo workbench at http://www.popularwoodworking.com/video/roubo_workbench_tour

You can follow Chris at:

• http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog
  
• https://blog.lostartpress.com/
  
  His latest research has him investigating Roman workbences (http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/christopher-schwarz-on-roman-workbenches-2) although that's probably not as useful in a home workshop as a Roubo.
  
  If you really want to go off the deep end into traditional woodworking, you also have to check out Roy Underhill's Woodwrights Shop, a show that has been airing on PBS for over 30 years. Chris is a regular guest on there.
  
  http://www.pbs.org/woodwrightsshop/home/
  
  If you couldn't tell, I'm a little bit obsessed by all of this traditional woodworking stuff.

You can use a clear acrylic spray. I have used such things on top of paint and on bare wood before. They work pretty well. Something like this (although I haven't used this particular one)

https://www.amazon.com/Krylon-K01303007-Acrylic-Crystal-11-Ounce/dp/B00023JE7K/ref=sr_1_2?crid=30K139CPKTBES&keywords=clear+acrylic+spray&qid=1556910026&s=gateway&sprefix=clear+acrylic%2Caps%2C399&sr=8-2

R. Bruce Hoadley's Understanding Wood should be required reading, and not just for woodworkers.

For anything else, especially anything specific to joinery, I've found it's basically six of one, half a dozen of the other. A solid foundation of how wood behaves (which you'll get from Understanding Wood) will let you filter out almost all of the bad information yourself, and every book will have bad information. There's value in almost any book that looks like it has value.

The one set of books I'd recommend you definitely not get is Tage Frid Teaches Woodworking; that one is consistently garbage and guaranteed to end in personal injury. Unfortunately, it's also a set that gets recommended in threads like these in a lot of places, because Tage Frid was associated with Fine Woodworking (the magazine, not the practice) for almost three decades and therefore has a lot of visibility.

There is special hardware that allows the tabletop to move as necessary.

Here is one style. With this type, you use a Forstner bit to make a little recess in the apron to allow for a flush-fitting, and then attach as normal. You put them on the 2 opposite sides that do not expand/contract as much (width of the boards), and then leave them off of the 2 sides that expand/contract more (length of the boards).

Looks good, they don't ship to Germany though. I thought about this plane

https://www.amazon.de/dp/B000LFTOE2/

And these sharpening stones, although I worry they might be too small?

https://www.amazon.de/DMT-Diamond-Whetstone-Mini-Diamantstein-extrafein/dp/B00004WFTD/

This?

The Woodbook https://smile.amazon.com/dp/3822817422/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_PSn1CbJ68ZMZ1

https://www.amazon.com/Woodworking-101-Skill-Building-Projects-Basics/dp/1600853684/ref=sr_1_2

The projects get quite complex by the end of the book, so once you complete them you'll have a lot of skills

Marking Gauge

Contour Gauge

Pull Saw

There's a shaping thing I see advertised a lot on the WoodWorkWeb Youtube channel, except today when I want to find it. But it's a bunch of straight edges that are held together with wing nuts and you use to to replicate odd shapes for cutting to fit.