Wood Working for Beginners and Wood Working Tools Guide

Wood working is a wonderful hobby for the people of all ages. I engaged in this activity when I was in college. At the start, I thought it was simple and just about using tools such as saws, nails and hammer, but I was totally wrong.

I had to learn a lot about wood working skills and wood tools, and I think every wood worker at first should gather knowledge about it. Therefore allow me to let you know about the wood working skills and the tools that every wood worker needs to know before starting a woodshop project.

A little space in your house where you can make loud noises while working with tools is the first thing which is needed on your journey of wood working. As size of the space does not matter much, you can also use a full or half garage where any loud noises won’t disturb others.

Then talk with different woodworkers on how to do a project and you’ll find different answers, and they’re all absolutely right because everyone has different methods to complete a woodshop project.

To begin with, in your wood working project plan some lists should be included. Lists of: woodworking hardware, the amount and the type of wood required, the required hand tools and power tools to complete the project.

Tools You will Need To Get Started:

At first you need to take suggestions from the people who are expert in this field. You will find different opinions in buying the tools from woodworkers. Some woodworkers will suggest you to just buy basic hand tools to begin – a hammer, a handsaw, a set of chisels, clamps, drill, nails, measuring tools and some screws whereas other will recommend to get a workshop-full of hand tools, power tools, and all kind of accessories.

Actually both are right; it depends on you, your budget and your situation because tools are not that cheap. So buy the best product you can afford that time.

Essential Hand Tools Every Woodworker Needs:

To develop your skills and increase your versatility hand tools are essential.

1. A Solid Wooden Workbench: A woodshop just seem incomplete without a woodworking bench. If you’re on a tight budget you can get it as it is used to protect wood of different sizes and shapes so you can saw, drill very nicely and efficiently without it moving.
2. Hammers: There are different type of hammers with different sizes and uses. Hammers are a must in woodshop. The work is to drive a chisel down, hammer down nails as well as to knock joints together. I do prefer claw hammer with a smooth, slightly rounded finish head. Choose one which is lighter and suitable for you.
3. A 3-piece set of chisels of different sizes: Needed to cut joinery grooves, chop corners, shave uneven surfaces, and scrap glue and caulk and carve wood. It is used in every project.
4. Hand & Table saw: Hand saw is used in smaller projects for making quick cuts which need not to be perfectly straight. Table saw also help a lot.
5. A couple of Clamps: Clamps is a basic tool for every woodworker. It makes the use of other tools easier. Clamps hold everything in place together for cutting, shaving and nailing as well as keep things straight where you want them while working.
6. Measuring tools: There are found many types of measuring tools you are going to find in the market. But in the beginning you need to buy a tape measure, a folding rule of 6″ and two steel rules of 6″ and 12″ along with marking tools like crayons, pencils and a knife.
7. Planer: It is used to shape, flatten or reduce the thickness of the wood.
8. Some screwdrivers: Wood screws, Sheet metal screws, Drywall screws, Machine screws you need to buy primarily to start woodworking. Picking the screw actually depends on the type of work.

Essential Power Tools Every Woodworker Needs:

• A router: It is one of the best multitaskers you need in woodshop. You can build any wooden project you want with a router and a wood pile. You can do jointing with a router, you can do flush trimming and joinery.

  A lot of people just think of the router they think of edge treatments but it can be much more useful tool that that. There are two types of router you will get in the market. But plunge router is preferable than a fixed base router.

• A good drill: You don’t need to get all different type of drills you see in the market. Drills will help you make holes in wooden materials with the right drill bit. This makes easier for you to drive nails or screws down very hard or rough wooden materials.

• A good quality circular saw: I suggest you to buy a high quality circular saw, but if you have on tight budget you can buy a medium or low quality circular saw which also work but at least put a better blade in there.

  For straight cutting the circular saws are mostly used. Rough cutting can easily be done with free hand using. If you want to work with plywood, MDF circular saw going to be your best friend.

• Jig saw: It does not really have to be a high quality jigsaw for a beginner. Jigsaw is used for cutting curves and shapes because of having narrow blade. As it travels highs and lows all along the wood, it also can be used in thick woods.
• Sander: At the last step, you will need to make your wood project more beautiful and attractive by preparing them for paint. For this, sander is needed. There are different types of sander you will find in the market such as random orbit sander, belt sander etc. Among all of the sanders I prefer random orbit sander because it allows for sanding in any direction you want.

These are the tools which I recommend for you to start woodworking as a beginner. You can step this up by upgrading the tools as you develop the skill gradually. But for now as you are just getting started these are the tools that are going to allow you to start a simple project.

You can also keep some good woodworking magazine to get help. If you shop carefully and maybe look at the market where used tools are sold, you can get all those in pretty lower price.