The Framers Forum

The new framing business has been running for a month and I am very pleased with the progress so far. My workshop is kind of special and I would like to share it with you so have posted pictures at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/tenparish
I call the business 10 parish framing because that is how the local area is known. For instance we also have “10 radio” as our community radio station. The location is Somerset, a dozen miles from Taunton near Exmoor, quite rural and a bit of a pain to get any where, which is good for me.
This forum has been of immense help in getting started (and continuing). Huge thanks to everyone.

Wow! what space you have! i'm jealous.


we have a small small small workshop crammed with machinery - so small our computerised mountcutter won't fit in there.

"door leads to mountcutter room" - luxury. Post an update pic in 6 months, wonder if all that lovely flat workspace will still be visible
All the best with the business.

nice, and what a great old building too.
maybe we should start a show us yours (workshop) thread

Amongst the many things I wish I had when I started, was that sort of space, or even a quarter of it, and this forum!

'Special' is right! Good luck with everything and keep us posted, especially with pics, we love pics!

I'm well jealous, apart from the obvious damp issues, but i read that you have that in hand for art and mountboard storage. Do you need any help? Say, for 2 weeks next August?

Hi JGF's
Here are som photos of my new workshop, been open for weeks now, http://picasaweb.google.com/snichols33/Workshop#

Steve N

nice job Steve! hope it goes well
Kev & Suzi

Many thanks Kev

Steve

Fascinating to see the workshop pictures Stephen / Steve, as I'm just in the process of converting a double garage (damp in places, which I'm trying to sort). I've been wondering quite a bit about layout, even though I'm only at the re-pointing, sealing, sploshing magnolia stage at the moment! Can't wait till it's looking even a bit like these workshops!

One thing that I'm curious about is where all those fantastic acres-wide workbenches are had from! Self-made? Local joiner? Purchased? Do let me know if you have a minute.....

Thanks

Adrian

Sheets of 3/4" chip board from Jewsons!

Hi Adrian,
Thanks for the comments, once I had done the same as you, painted the place, I cleared the place and marked out on the floor with chalk where everything would go, then had a good walk around to see if it would work and holding my hands out as if carrying a sheet of glass, easier to relocate at the planning stage than when everything is made. I use as Jolly Good Framer said 3/4" 4ft x 8ft chipboard for the tops on the main benches and 3/4" ply for the bench for CMC ( for strength) and the counter top (so I could just varnish it), I tried to use full sheets where poss, the legs are 4x4 planed timber. The boxes for the mountcard are made from 3/4 ply with casters to roll in and out they can take 48" mountcard. I did all the construction myself with help from my godson ( don't know what I would have done without him)
Hope this has helped Adrian

Steve

Well impressed with the workshop, Steve!

What's the total square footage, btw (shop and engine room combined)?

Hi Moglet,
First may I say welcome back, and thanks for the kind words, ground floor is about 600 sqft and upstairs (being used as storage and office) is about 400sqft, sounds a lot but the upstairs has a kitchen area and has slopping roof ( keep hitting the old head ) will try to post some photos of upstairs soon, will let you know when.

Steve

I've said it here before but, before you start moving anything else into the workshop, carpet the floor.

Most carpet fitters will gladly let you have some used carpet - after all they'd otherwise have to pay to dump it. Don't forget that you'll be standing on the workshop floor pretty much all day and, especially if it's a concrete floor, a carpet will help a great deal.

Just make sure any joins are well stuck down so you don't trip over them.

Many thanks for the advice on workbenches Steve - time to dust off some of my old woodworking tools I guess!

Hi All

Like a few newbies, I am trying to learn from the mistakes of others and try to take onboard all your experiences for every aspect of the framing process.
On this thread there is talk about bench construction, workshop layout and materials used. My question is, do most of you based on room available, go for one huge bench for everything, split or laid out to support the various disciplines of framing? Eg - one end for the clean side of mount cutting the other for the frame chopping, frame construction and glass breaking, that is if you do not own a wall mounted board / glass cutter. I am planning a big un, a bench that is. I do have a 60" keencut so where do I position it? I have seen in a very nice studio gallery near Lichfield, a 2 tier bench with the mount cutter positioned a third of the way in. The smaller 1 third area (to the left of the cutter) was lower for artwork, mount board and frame final assembly. It looked like the 2 thirds part of the bench (to the right of the cutter) was set up for cutting and the messier part of the job.
Starting from scratch, I have the chance to benefit from all your ideas, so go on - fill your boots and have your say.
Oh, what height floor to the top of the bench are we talking, about kitchen work-top height?

Hi Deepjoy
i guess most of us have to get stuff in where it will fit

but you can see how we did it in our last three shops on our about us page -http://www.frames.uk.com/aboutus.htm

in one wehre we had the space we had 3 8xft benches in the middle, plus a mount cutting bench and a painting bench. That was ideal but ate up a lot of space.

at present we have a single L-Shaped island, carpet covered, about 12ft x 8ft which gives you three (sort of workstation) areas, wizard on its own in the window-wall, system 400 on another wall, moso on another wall - these are each opposite three sides of the bench.

Thanks Kev Frames. That's a proper framing outfit you've got there!
Are you the large chap with the goatee beard? Yes Sir I will pay whatever you want to have my artwork framed and is there anything else I can buy whilst I'm here?
I am not certain a motorbike tyre mark would look good running the length of my body..... How long do I have to run for until you set off on your bike???

Seriously great set up, I am very impressed.

Still after ideas please?

Regards
Deepjoy

I also have a 60" keencut, sunk in to the end of a 12x6' workbench with an underpinner sunk into an opposite corner, IOW the bench is the support for any frame and I don't want to see the frame that could beat it!

Lay your equipment/materials out in a logical order. Mine is laid out so I can complete a frame in one lap of the bench - including getting the materials together, bar the moulding, may have to get that from a different room, but I'll do that before saying 'go'!