I arrived back in Bocas del Toro about 10 days into September and I was able to move back into the Cabana Beach Condos straight away. After spending a couple of days settling in and reconnecting with Kim and Bryan, and Jay and Danica, I contacted the proprietors of the storage area I had used to store my personal belongings, tools, and transportation in the form of my Giant, Revel, 29r bicycle. I had been formulating that idea that I wanted to build my shop. Steve and Rhonda Van Duzen are the proprietors of Flying Pirates ATV rentals and also have some warehouse space near the airport. If you ever get down here to check out the area, be sure to visit them to rent an ATV to go exploring the island. They are a supper cool couple and run a first class operation that is very ecologically responsive. Originally I had rented about 30 square feet from them to store my stuff. Now I wanted about 100 square feet of the approximately 1500 square foot bay to build the shop. The space would be shared with 3 or 4 other people that were storing stuff there and it also was where Steve stored his flying machines. He has a 2 place powered hang glider and a 2 place gyrocopter.
Steve and Rhonda Taking Off From Bluff Beach
The Flying Machine In A Somewhat Less Slender
The first thing I needed to do was build a new workbench/storage cabinet. It was to be 2' deep by 4' wide and 38” high. I first stopped by the lumber yard and purchase a sheet of ¾” plywood, a couple sheets of 1/2” plywood, a few 2” X 4” and a couple 2” X 6” X 8’ planks. And had them delivered to my new shop. I got busy laying out and cutting the cabinet panels. Next I screwed all of the pieces together using 2” X 4” corner legs as anchor points. I added hinges and a lock to the front doors. Now I could lock up my tools and supplies.
The First Workbench/Storage Cabinet Next To The Original Bench
Lots Of Secured Storage Space
Since this workbench/storage cabinet turn out so good and the fact that I had begun to aquire more tools and supplies than would fit in just one cabinet I decided to build a second one. This new one was to match the basic dimentions of the first one but in additon it would have an “Attic”. It would have space to organize and keep smaller hand tools. To accomplish this I made the back legs of the cabinet from two 2” X 6” X 6’6” stock. That would give the attic a depth of 5 inches. I wanted to make the back of this upper cabinet out of standard pegboard so that I could utilize standard pegboard clips and organizers for things like screw drivers, box wrenches, plyers, etc. However, I search every local source for pegboard and none was to be found. Instead, I had to make do with just ½” plywood. I would have to drill my own holes for mounting the clips. Sometimes you do have to make do with what you have to work with. It’s just one more thing to add to the challenge. Hey, I like lemonade! J
Second Workbench/Storage Cabinet With Attic
Lots More Securable Storage Space
Both cabinets are the same height so that they can be positioned side by side to provide for a larger work surface should it be needed. I also added adjustable feet to provide for uneven floor surfaces. These cabinets weigh a ton and making them mobile seemed like it was a must and yet I wanted them to be super stable as I was going to mount a 5” heavy vise, a drill press, and a bench grinder to the one without the attic. My solution was to design and install retractable casters to the legs. Using some 2” X 6” stock and some heavy duty hinges, I build a platform that could be folded down to provide a mounting plate for casters. In the lowered position they are held in place by hinged 2” X 4” struts. Now even with all the weight of the cabinets filled with power tools, I can roll the cabinets about and then when necessary, retract the casters to set them on their legs. When I’m done working I can lower the casters and roll them back against the wall of the shop allowing others the use of the floor space. It may look funky, but it works very well. At some point I may upgrade the casters to a little larger size to make rolling about a bit easier.
Cabinet With Casters In The Deployed Position
Cabinet Sitting On Its Legs With Casters Retracted
Next I built some extra tall saw horses so that I could work at my level. Knowing that I would likely have to either store them or move them from time to time, I made then so that with the removal of a couple of screws, they would fold up. Some time later because I was experiencing some knee and leg pain after spending 5 to 6 hours on my feet on a hard tiled floor, I built myself a shop stool. Again a little taller than your normal stool. I made it out of 1-1/2” PVC pipe and special joints for the frame and then used nylon webing for the seat cushion. Now I can get off my feet from time to time to give some relief to my aging parts. Hopefully this will insure that I can keep using those parts for years to come.
Over Height Saw Horses & Shop Stool
My original workbench/table saw/sander had out lived its usefulness with the addition of these two new workbench/storage cabinets so I took it appart and laid it outside the shop when I left for the day. As I expected, the pieces of wood were gone when I arrived back at the shop the next day. Hopefully, some local Panamanian will get some good use out of them.
Next I ordered an actual table saw from a local buying service who purchased it from David, Panama on my behalf and delivered it to me. I was surprised that it was made by Hyundai, a brand I was familiar with since I had previously owned a Hyundai Sonata before my first pilgrimage to Panama. It was the best car I had ever owned and loved it. The saw is very well made and was only $240. It has a direct drive spindle so there are no belts to slip. It will support up to a 12” blade and has easily adjustable depth of cut and blade angle. The rip fence is as accurate as any I’ve previously used. It does have 3 short comings, 2 of which I’ve been able to overcome. First, the table is a bit small, measuring only about 2’ X 2’. To solve this issue I built a bracket so that I can “hang” it from the back edge of the workbench without the attic. So that effectively gives me a much larger work surface. As I anticipate wanting to cut large sheets of plywood I had previously built a sort of conveyor table top using several ball bearing omnidirectional rollers.
Next I ordered an actual table saw from a local buying service who purchased it from David, Panama on my behalf and delivered it to me. I was surprised that it was made by Hyundai, a brand I was familiar with since I had previously owned a Hyundai Sonata before my first pilgrimage to Panama. It was the best car I had ever owned and loved it. The saw is very well made and was only $240. It has a direct drive spindle so there are no belts to slip. It will support up to a 12” blade and has easily adjustable depth of cut and blade angle. The rip fence is as accurate as any I’ve previously used. It does have 3 short comings, 2 of which I’ve been able to overcome. First, the table is a bit small, measuring only about 2’ X 2’. To solve this issue I built a bracket so that I can “hang” it from the back edge of the workbench without the attic. So that effectively gives me a much larger work surface. As I anticipate wanting to cut large sheets of plywood I had previously built a sort of conveyor table top using several ball bearing omnidirectional rollers.
Ball Bearing Roller Ball
The saw table is elevated so that it is the same height as the surface of the roller balls. The second deficiency is that the “T” bar pusher guide is not very accurate and allows for a variance of + or – 3 degrees. Making a true 90 degree cut is practically impossible. The slot that the guide rides in is a couple millimeters too wide and the bar that rides in that slot is only about 6” long. My solution is to attach a piece of 1” square aluminum tubing to the table top, aligning it precisely parallel to the saw’s blade. Next I cut a 2” X 4” to a length of 3 feet and then cut a 1” slot in that piece. This piece now fits over the square tubing and is just tight enough for it to slide back and forth that tubing. It has virtually zero “wiggle” room. To one end of this piece I attached another piece of 2” X 4” about 18” long, To insure that this juncture is maintained at precisely 90 degrees I screwed an actual framing square to this two pieces. I can now make precise 90 degree cuts. In the future should I need to make cuts of other angles it would not be too difficult to make another version of this guide that has an adjustable angle.
Precise 90 Degree Material Guide On Table Saw
Precise 90 Degree Material Guide On Table Saw * * also shown ** Material Support Rollers
The next tools I purchased were a bench grinder, a heavy 5” vice, and a nice drill press, again using Toby’s buying and delivery service. The picture below shows those new devices. In addition it shows the shelving I built and attached to the wall to store wood and other construction materials. Also shown is a suspended table which holds an oscillating fan and my lithium cell charger for my Makita cordless drill and impact driver. Two of my most prized tools.
Mounted Drill Press, Bench vise, And Bench Grinder ** also shown ** Aluminum Track For The 90 Degree Guide For Table Saw
Here it’s time to share a realization that I came to a few weeks ago. For most of my life I’ve enjoyed this sort of thing. Designing things and working with my hands. Some of my favorite TV shows were those that showed someone building things. These programs where generally on the PBS stations. Programs like “This Old House”,”Woodsmith Shop”, and my favorite, “New Yankee Workshop”. I always made the comment to myself while watching these programs; “Gee, I wish I had tools like this so that I could do some of these types of projects”. At no time in this process of creating my new life did I make the conscious decision to fulfill this long term dream. But, now, here it is. I’ve built and continue to build this dream into my new reality. It’s a concrete example of the saying: If you can dream it, you can make it happen. It’s not the first time this has happened in my life. Car racing, sailing, motorcycling, etc. It’s just the most recent. Keep on dreaming my friends!
Stay tuned. There’s more.
Stay tuned. There’s more.