Starting woodworking can be confusing.
You watch a few videos, look at a few woodworking websites and suddenly it seems as though you need a workshop full of machinery before you can make anything.
A table saw. A planer. A thicknesser. A jointer. A router. A bandsaw. A dozen hand planes. A sharpening system. A dust extractor. A huge workbench.
Before you've even cut your first piece of timber, you've spent thousands.
The reality is very different.
You don't need a fully equipped workshop to start woodworking. You need a way of holding your work securely, a few reliable tools and a project that's appropriate for your current abilities.
The rest can come later.
One of the best ways to build a workshop is to buy tools because you have a job for them, rather than because you think you're supposed to own them.
Start With What You Want to Make
The first question shouldn't be: “What woodworking tools do I need?”
It should be: “What do I want to make?”
Those two questions lead to very different answers.
A simple shelf doesn't need the same equipment as a fitted kitchen. Small boxes made from prepared timber don't require a thicknesser. If you want to restore furniture, you may get more use from hand planes and chisels than from a table saw. Outdoor furniture brings different requirements again.
Your first projects should determine your first tools. Not the other way around.
The Basic Workshop
You can start with surprisingly little:
- Something stable to work on
- A way of holding the work securely
- A saw
- A drill/driver
- A few basic hand tools
- Measuring and marking tools
- Sandpaper or another way of preparing surfaces
That's enough to start making simple projects.
You don't need ten different saws, six planes or a workshop full of machines. You need a small collection of tools you're comfortable using.
Choose suitable eye, hearing and respiratory protection for the work you're doing, and learn how to use each tool safely before starting.
Your First Workbench Doesn't Have to Be Huge
A full-size traditional workbench is wonderful to work at. But it isn't essential.
A Workmate-style folding bench can be a practical option, particularly if you need to pack everything away afterwards.
You may already have something simpler. If you've got a reasonably solid, flat surface in a shed, garage or workshop, you may not need another large bench at all.
A portable workholding system such as the HDS Portable Workbench offers another approach: making an existing suitable surface into a more capable material-clamping workstation.
You're not necessarily buying another piece of furniture. You're making better use of space you already have.
The important thing is stability. If the bench moves every time you saw or plane, woodworking becomes frustrating very quickly.
Your first workbench doesn't need to be beautiful. It needs to stay put.
Clamps, dogs, a vice or another suitable way of securing the workpiece make a real difference. In many cases, good workholding matters more than a huge work surface.
Buy a Good Tape Measure, But Don't Stop There
Measuring and marking tools aren't the most exciting things to buy, but they're among the most important.
A sensible starting collection might include:
- Tape measure
- Combination square
- Pencil
- Marking knife
- Straightedge
- Small spirit level, where the project calls for it
You don't need an expensive collection of specialist equipment. But you do need tools you can trust.
A square that isn't square can cause more problems than an expensive saw ever will. Accuracy starts with measuring and marking.
Your First Saw
You don't need a wall covered in handsaws. A good general-purpose handsaw can take you surprisingly far.
If you're using sheet materials, a circular saw can also be useful. Combined with a securely fixed straightedge guide and suitable workpiece support, it can make accurate cuts without a table saw.
That's particularly useful in a small workshop.
If you later discover you regularly need repeatable cuts that your current setup struggles with, consider your next tool then. There's no reason to buy a table saw before you know you need it.
A Drill/Driver Is Probably More Useful Than You Think
For practical woodworking projects, a cordless drill/driver is likely to become one of your most frequently used tools.
It can drill, drive screws, countersink holes and help assemble projects.
You don't necessarily need the most powerful model. Reliability and a good selection of suitable drill bits and driver bits matter more than enormous amounts of power.
Don't forget the bits. A modest drill with good bits is often more useful than an expensive drill with poor ones.
Buy Clamps as You Need Them
You see somebody's workshop with twenty clamps hanging neatly on the wall and assume you need the same collection.
You don't.
Start with a few useful clamps. As you build projects, you'll discover the types and sizes you actually need.
- Quick clamps are useful for temporary positioning.
- Bar clamps suit larger assemblies.
- F-style clamps are versatile.
- Small clamps are useful for jigs and smaller components.
Your collection can grow naturally. You'll know why you're buying each new clamp, rather than buying an entire set and hoping it proves useful.
Don't Buy Every Hand Plane
There are dozens of plane types and sizes. You don't need all of them.
A general-purpose No. 5 jack plane can remove material, flatten boards, straighten edges and prepare timber, with the appropriate setup and technique.
A No. 4 smoothing plane can come later if you want to concentrate on fine surface preparation. A block plane is useful for smaller work and trimming.
The same principle applies to chisels. A small selection of useful sizes will get you started.
Learn to sharpen them too. More tools won't solve the problem of a blunt edge.
You Don't Need a Jointer
A jointer is useful. But it isn't essential.
As we discussed in Do You Really Need a Jointer? 5 Ways to Get Straight Edges Without One, alternatives include:
- A hand plane
- A table saw with a properly designed jointing jig
- A router and straightedge
- A circular saw and guide
- A shooting board for suitable smaller work
These methods need different setups and suit different jobs. A straight reference surface alone isn't a safe table-saw jointing jig. The timber must be properly secured in a suitable jig, with the setup compatible with the saw's guarding and manufacturer's instructions.
If you're new to woodworking, don't improvise a table-saw setup from a brief description. Start with a method you understand and can use safely.
The important lesson is simple: don't buy a large machine because you think a woodworker is supposed to own one. Buy it when the work justifies it.
Don't Buy a Thicknesser Until You Need One
A thicknesser is useful when you're processing rough-sawn timber, alongside a suitable method of creating a flat reference face.
But if you're buying prepared timber, you may barely use one.
Buying rough timber and machining it yourself can save money over time, but it also requires space, extraction, time, additional equipment and the ability to process it safely.
For someone starting out, prepared timber is a perfectly sensible choice. You can move into timber preparation later.
Buy Timber That Makes Your Life Easier
The cheapest timber isn't always the most economical.
Very rough, twisted or wet timber can turn a simple project into a battle. For your first projects, there's nothing wrong with buying timber that's suitably dry, reasonably straight and prepared.
You're trying to learn woodworking, not operate a timber mill at the same time.
As your skills develop, you can start buying rough-sawn timber and learning how to prepare it.
Second-Hand Tools Can Be a Great Starting Point
You don't need to buy everything new. Older planes, chisels, squares, handsaws and clamps can be good purchases at reasonable prices.
But there's a difference between buying an old tool and buying a problem.
A little surface rust isn't necessarily an issue. A broken casting, badly damaged sole or missing major components may be a different story.
Second-hand machinery can also represent good value. Check its condition, guards and safety features, and make sure you understand what you're buying. If you're unsure, get help from someone competent before buying or using it.
Borrow Before You Buy
If a project requires a tool you don't normally use, consider borrowing it, with permission and proper instruction.
Perhaps a friend has a router. Perhaps you can arrange access to a thicknesser. Perhaps hiring makes more sense.
There's nothing wrong with using a tool and discovering you don't need to own one.
You might think: “I use this once every six months. I don't need it taking up space.”
Or: “I use this constantly. I should buy one.”
Either way, you've learned something before spending the money.
Tool Hire Can Make Sense
For a specialist tool needed on a single project, hiring can make more sense than buying.
The calculation isn't simply purchase price versus hire price. Consider storage, maintenance, extraction, accessories and how often you'll actually use it.
A £500 machine used twice a year isn't necessarily better value than hiring when you need it.
Make Your Own Jigs
One of the great things about woodworking is that suitable scrap timber can become useful workshop equipment.
A piece of plywood can become a straightedge guide, shooting board, crosscut guide, drilling jig, router template or clamping fixture.
A well-designed jig can help you get the job done with equipment you already own, rather than buying a specialist tool.
Making jigs is woodworking too. You'll learn about accuracy, workholding and repeatability while making something useful.
Use sound designs, check clearances and make sure the jig holds the work securely. A jig should make an operation more controlled, not introduce a new risk.
Use the Tools You Have More Creatively
Don't immediately ask: “What tool do I need to do this job?”
Ask: “What tools do I already have that could do this job safely?”
A circular saw and guide can handle sheet-material cuts. A router can perform several operations with the right jig. A hand plane can straighten an edge. Clamps and plywood can become a useful fixture.
The more you work with your tools, the more possibilities you'll see.
Don't Forget Dust Extraction
You don't need an elaborate dust collection system on day one. But you do need to take wood dust seriously.
For portable power tools, a suitable extractor with appropriate fine-dust filtration can be a sensible starting point. Not every household or shop vacuum is suitable for hazardous wood dust.
Capture dust at the source, follow the tool and extractor instructions, and use suitable respiratory protection where needed.
As your workshop grows, you may add a cyclone separator, dedicated extraction or more permanent ducting. Air filtration can supplement source extraction, not replace it.
Hand tools generally create less airborne dust than machines, but sanding and other dusty work still need attention. A thicknesser brings different extraction requirements again.
Let the work determine the system, without treating dust control as an optional extra.
Your First Workshop Doesn't Have to Look Like a Workshop
You might have a shed, half a garage, a corner of another workshop or a portable setup that gets packed away.
That's okay. You can still make things.
A small workspace can be capable if it's organised well. Every tool has to earn its place.
A folding bench can be packed away. A portable workholding system can make use of a surface you already have. The aim isn't to fill the workshop. It's to make the space more useful.
Choose a space suitable for the work, with safe access, ventilation and dust control. A spare room won't suit every operation.
A Sensible Starting Tool List
If you're starting from scratch, here's a deliberately simple starting point. Choose from it to suit your first project rather than buying everything at once.
Workholding
- A stable work surface
- A compact or portable workbench, if required
- A few useful clamps
Measuring and Marking
- Tape measure
- Combination square
- Pencil
- Marking knife
- Straightedge
Cutting
- General-purpose handsaw
- Or a circular saw and straightedge guide
Drilling and Assembly
- Cordless drill/driver
- Good drill bits
- Driver bits
Hand Tools
- A few useful chisels
- No. 5 jack plane, if your projects call for one
- Block plane, where useful
- A suitable way to sharpen your edged tools
Finishing
- Sandpaper
- Sanding block
Add suitable protective equipment and dust control for the work you're planning. Other tools can follow as your projects demand them.
What Should You Buy Next?
Once you've made a few projects, you'll find yourself saying: “I wish I had a better way of doing this.”
That's when to consider the next tool.
Regular crosscuts might justify a mitre saw. Processing rough timber every week might justify a thicknesser. Repetitive components could make a table saw useful. More joinery might call for another chisel or a router.
The work creates the need. That's better than buying tools first and trying to find things to do with them.
The Tools You Don't Buy Are Important Too
You might discover a circular saw and guide handle everything you do. Hand planes might be adequate for the timber you prepare. You might rarely need a router.
Or one particular machine might save you hours every week.
All of those are useful discoveries.
A workshop shouldn't be a collection of tools you've been told you need. It should be a collection that earns its place.
Build Your Skills Alongside Your Tools
Buying better tools doesn't automatically make you a better woodworker.
A beginner with a basic saw, square and plane can learn a huge amount by making projects: how timber behaves, how to read grain, measure accurately, cut cleanly, sharpen, correct mistakes, assemble and work safely.
Those skills stay with you.
As they improve, you'll understand which tools genuinely make your work easier. Buying equipment becomes much more straightforward then.
Final Thoughts
You don't need a complete workshop to become a woodworker. You need somewhere stable and suitable to work, a few useful tools and something you want to make.
Start small. Buy good basic tools where it matters. Consider second-hand equipment. Borrow or hire specialist tools when appropriate. Make useful jigs and learn to use what you have safely.
Most importantly, let your projects tell you what to buy next.
A Workmate-style bench might be exactly what you need. If you want to make better use of an existing suitable flat surface, the HDS Portable Workbench is another practical workholding option.
A workshop doesn't have to be built in one weekend. In fact, it probably shouldn't be.
Build it gradually, one useful tool at a time, and you'll end up with more than a workshop full of equipment.
You'll have a workshop designed around the way you actually work.