My Workshop

[Steve Sandy]

Very nice Lee,

You will need a letterbox in the door and a milk rack outside. Since I built mine I am always in there, Trouble with working from home. Still it saves a packet and at the moment you seem to have plenty of room. Did you decide against and 8′ x 4′ table smack bang in the middle of are you still under construction.
Regards
Steve

[LeeMorris]

I did consider a table in middle but it would be against my desk area. the work area is 8×2 contiboard that’s just to give me the base i will be covering it with something and maybe making it a bit wider just about to moving the socket because its to low.
I have been spending a lot of time in there even when not working on signs, its a bit of a dream really big boys den.
I currently only do signs part time, i have a full time job and also i’m a retained fire fighter so pretty busy really.

Lee

[Steve Sandy]

Things will be getting even busier for you in September. Congratulations on the expected arrival, I guess the baby will be getting a nice new sign for his/her bedroom care of daddy.

Steve

[Hugh Potter]

looks good, plenty of space,

but…. from my experience, you’ll soon fill it, with this in mind, i would line it now, before you have to move everything 6 times and cover everything in plasterboard dust etc etc.

the other thing i would seriously consider, is making your workbench the full length of the shed, and 3ft wide, maybe even 4ft wide, it’s a big portion of the floorspace, but i say this because mine is 2ft6" x 12ft, and it’s not big enough, and of course you have the under bench storage too.

with yours at 2ft wide, it’s only just big enough to put a 610 sheet of vinyl on to weed, or a 2ft wide banner, where do you put knives and other ‘clutter’ that invariably ends up on the bench??

i don’t mean to sound negative, just trying to help with the benefit of my experience, if i could do it again, the shed would be bigger, the bench bigger, and i’d buy a seperate fishing gear shed !!

[LeeMorris]

I am going to put a shelf above bench for tools etc
i haven’t lined it yet because i’m not sure what i’m going to do it with, was thinking of using timber cladding wanted to keep the look of wood.
I’m sure the bench will grow over time.
Lee

[Andy Gorman]

Looking nice, Lee. A bit like mine, only my shed’s a tip. It would be nice to clad it in timber, but remember that you want it nice and bright in there. I insulated with polystyrene and clad with hardboard painted white. Don’t forget heating – those slimline wall heaters are brilliant for sheds.

[John Wilson]

Nice shed, mine is 10x14ft and i’ve filled it with loads so far

Still to line the walls but i’ll get there with that sooner or later

Still trying to decide about my cutting table……. either 10ft x 3.5ft along the short end or something else 😮 lol

Mine was great when i first got it but like Hugh said it will soon fill up

[Hugh Potter]

this is an old thread showing how full a workshop can become, especially so when you have a good few jobs on the go at the same time, mine is a fair bit tidier now, but you get the idea !!

http://www.uksignboards.com/viewtopic.p … hop#202298

[Robert Lambie]

I honestly think your workshop looks great lee… as this is only part time at the moment and your working from home, you appear to be going about things the right way mate… well done!

Meant in a completely constructive way… some of my thoughts…

As has been said, if you don’t do it now you will never get round to it without allot of work. By that I mean…
I would put in some insulation now and sheet it with half inch MDF.
Sheeting with this means you have nice smooth walls that are going to withstand lots of bangs and bashes. It also means fixing shelves and things is a breeze because no need for load baring toggle screws or rawl plugs…
MDF is also cheap and sheeting using 8×4’s will be done in no time.
I would also put vinyl cushion flooring as it will stop any dampness or cold drafts coming through, its easy wiped and helps to prevent dust jumping onto your vinyl due to static as it spills out onto your floor.
As has been said, the “workbench”… for weeding you won’t have problems but lettering anything other than small signs is going to be a problem.
Looking at your pictures, ide do away with the small bench and put in an 8×4 ¾ inch topped bench. I would run it the “width” of the room up next to your vinyl rolls. But two feet out from the back wall running left to right. I would keep one side tight to the side wall giving you 2ft wall way all round the bench bar one edge. The underside like Hugh says can be made into shelving for things like application tape and fitting equipment. Not only will this help weeding and lettering signs and banners, you also need a workbench to cut sheet materials.

I remember a while ago someone posting on UKSB a hinged table. If space is tight I would seriously consider this… basically something like an 8×4 sheet of MDF with some gate hinges along one side fixed to the wall. When you need it you just fold it down from the wall and two legs (also on hinges flap down to support it. Something to keep in mind?

The vinyl’s were they are look great and it will work. But you may find things like a door being banged shut enough to rock and knock them off the shelf. Once one goes they all will… we had similar to this a long while back.
You will also produce loads of off-cut vinyl. A couple of bags or boxes stored under the bench also helps keep the off-cuts under control.
I don’t see a PC anywhere, so I’m assuming your using a laptop.. I would advise on using a PC/MAC to sit permanently in your workshop hooked up to the cutter etc Laptops are great and portable but I feel there is too much risk on running a business from one.

Last but not least… the water bottle on your bench. Take it out side and throw it as far into the neighbours garden as possible. You wont be needing that!

Best of luck mate and thanks for posting your pictures.
😉

[David Rowland]

umm… i see the electric socket is a little loose

[Hugh Potter]

i think it was mr normington who mentioned the hinged bench, iirc, the idea being that when flood coating, it could be tipped onto one end, upright, and the sheet held in place somehow while coated, i think !!

my bench is also hinged at the front, about 8" back on the main frame, the idea being that i can tilt the whole length of it to about 45° if i so wish, though with so much junk on it now, it’s not likely to be of any use !

[Warren Beard]

quote Robert Lambie:

Last but not least… the water bottle on your bench. Take it out side and throw it as far into the neighbours garden as possible. You wont be needing that! 😉

:lol1: :lol1: :lol1: :lol1: :lol1: :lol1:

Man that made me :lol1: At first I had no idea what he was talking about until I had a closer look at the picture.

I’m very jealous 👿

[LeeMorris]

Thanks for all the comments
The socket is loose i lost the screws but just got a couple tonight from my electrician mate.
I have got my desktop to go in there i have been sorting that out today with the wireless router.

Thanks again for all he comment

Lee

[John Wilson]

It’s just getting the time to figure out what to put where

I wish now that I’d gotten a bigger shed, I wanted to get a 12ft x 20ft one but it was just over £2k and I don’t think me neighbours would have liked it 👿

[LeeMorris]

John
I’m sure it would of cost me a bit if i hadn’t made it myself.
I think the cost was about £600 for all the wood and glass and felt and on top of that i got electrics and window lead and paint.
Could of done it cheaper if there wasn’t a wood shortage at the moment.

Lee

[Lynn Normington]

didn’t know there was a wood shortage Lee

Lynn

[LeeMorris]

Lynn all the wood is going to China along with the steel and cement
My local supplier had the last delivery of timber in January and they have their own forest somewhere abroad.

Lee

[Craig Bond]

Sorry I don’t get it.

What is wrong with the water bottle??

[Hugh Potter]

dry application !! Rob doesn’t like it wet 😮

[Craig Bond]

I thought that was the case. Sometimes you have to do it wet!! (oogle)

[Robert Lambie]

I "never" apply wet… regardless to size.
the trouble for many is that we start out applying wet and never really get away from it. i dont give my apprentices the option of wet and they pick-up dry application pretty quickly.
the only part wet application helps you with is getting the vinyl into place… from there on is where the help stops and problems start.

[John Wilson]

quote Robert Lambie:

i dont give my apprentices the option of wet

😮 😮 😮 I can see a lawsuit coming on here :lol1:

[Craig Bond]

Robert,

I hope you didn’t take offense to my comments above.

I have been in this industry for 14 years now and have always applied wet (with some exception of banner and windows – though the other week I did apply wet to a window of a car and it was a long day). Today I had a van to do – Medium – Hi roof transit. The artwork spread across the whole of the side – over the panel recesses. The whole logo was 105" x 46" in two panels.. The van was too large to get inside my industrial unit, so I had to do it outside. It was a very windy day and if I had not applied it wet the whole job would have gone belly up, it allowed me time to position the vinyl and fight the elements. The wet application, as you so rightly state, does help position the vinyl. but it is what you do afterwards when the vinyl is in position. I have never had any complaints about my work in the last 12 years (the first two were learning the ropes)
If you manage to get rid of the application fluid then all seems to be well. But in the winter I do tend to be sparse on the fluid. Just enough to play with the lettering. I still have a vast majority of my work (vans – shops etc..) that are still in existence after all this time. (except those shops which have changed hands or the vans which have been replaced by new ones)

Maybe personal preference?

Regards

Craig Bond

[Russell Spencer]

quote leemorris:

Lynn all the wood is going to China along with the steel and cement
My local supplier had the last delivery of timber in January and they have their own forest somewhere abroad.

Lee

I really cant buy in to these stories, it seems to me that everytime a supplier/stockist has to put their costs up there has to be an excuse like its not our fault, but we have to do it etc…. My local timber yard is piled high and if there was going to be a problem he would have told me by now.
I remember a really funny one about 10 years ago, the cost of computers went up instead of down, the salesman tried to tell me that there were only 3 factories in the world that manufactured silicon chips and one of them had completely burnt down and now there was a shortage. Come to think of it that was in China as well.

[Martin Pearson]

Signsurfer, that might have actually been true!!!

There are not only 3 companies in the world that make silicon chips but there are very few companies that produce the silicon wafers that chips are made from. Its a very expensive manufacturing business to start up and technology is constantly changing so they are quite often forced to make changes to keep up.

[Andy Gorman]

Yeah, but I was told the factory fire story in the eighties. That one’s been around for ages. I bet Babbage was overcharged for materials due to a fire at the brass factory!

[Robert Lambie]

quote CRAIG BOND:

Robert,

I hope you didn’t take offense to my comments above.

I have been in this industry for 14 years now and have always applied wet (with some exception of banner and windows – though the other week I did apply wet to a window of a car and it was a long day). Today I had a van to do – Medium – Hi roof transit. The artwork spread across the whole of the side – over the panel recesses. The whole logo was 105″ x 46″ in two panels.. The van was too large to get inside my industrial unit, so I had to do it outside. It was a very windy day and if I had not applied it wet the whole job would have gone belly up, it allowed me time to position the vinyl and fight the elements. The wet application, as you so rightly state, does help position the vinyl. but it is what you do afterwards when the vinyl is in position. I have never had any complaints about my work in the last 12 years (the first two were learning the ropes)
If you manage to get rid of the application fluid then all seems to be well. But in the winter I do tend to be sparse on the fluid. Just enough to play with the lettering. I still have a vast majority of my work (vans – shops etc..) that are still in existence after all this time. (except those shops which have changed hands or the vans which have been replaced by new ones)

Maybe personal preference?

Regards

Craig Bond

hi craig, no offence taken at all mate… i regularly "pull folks leg" (so to speak) when it comes to the wet/dry scenario… at the end of the day we do what best suits us to get a job done. nothing wrong in applying wet, but my opinion if you can get out the habit of wet application you will greatly speed up the work you put out. better the chance of your vinyls lasting the test of time.
as time is money you make more from the job as its done is a fraction of the time.

lots of folk say how they want to get into vehicle wrapping. my opinion is that this will never be possible if they cannot apply a metre x a metre of vinyl onto a bit of dibond DRY.
anyway… sorry lee im veering off topic mate sorry… if this discussion carries on ill split the post, not a problem.
😀