[MikeT]

Hi New to the forum and look forward to many hours of information in the near future.  My questions is as a person that has become recently disabled, and as a result am now on a very limited income being on disability.  What are the best tools to get that would be the least expensive to start with?  I have a few basic things like hammers and drills and the like that most home owners would have, but I am now looking for something that can keep me occupied with the little time that I am able to be active each day.

Mike T

Topic

[Jonas Jensen]

#2027612

It depends on what you are aiming to build.

Hi Mike

It is a bit hard to give an exact suggestion, because it really depends a lot on what you would like to build.

In a way it also depends on your disability. e.g. if you have lost one arm it makes little sense to suggest you getting a hand plane that should be used using both hands, but a block plane would make perfectly sense.

 

Making small boxes or chests can be done with relatively few tools.  If you check out Doug Stowes’ blog: wisdomofhands.blogspot.comyou can see some examples of his work.

But to really get down to the basics, a hack saw can be used for making joinery cuts even in wood, so that is a cheap entry way to a saw.

You will probably also need a couple of chisels, say a 1/4″ and a 3/8″ or a 1/2″.

With those tools and the general home owners tools you can go a long way.

Good luck and remember to have fun while pursuing this hobby.

Brgds

Jonas

[Mike in TN]

#2027618

Hi MikeT,

We are all challenged in some way, whether it be physical, financial, or limitations of our tools. The idea, of course is to work to overcome your specific challenges. One of the great things about woodworking is that it has such a broad range that it offers something to just about anyone, including even blind woodworkers. As has been said here and in other postings, it all depends on what you would like to do. I would recommend that you start by reaching out to your local woodworking community and try to find a woodworking buddy or group. You could even post on the woodworking sites with specifics about your location and your interest in finding a buddy or group in your area.

One of the least expensive woodworking interests, and one that has advantages to folks getting started, is carving with knives, assuming that the disability doesn’t affect hand use. The knives are relatively inexpensive, are only limited by your imagination, are very portable so that they be used in lots of locations besides shops and the materials are normally inexpensive.

Other woodworking interests bring with them specific requirements of space, numbers and types of tools and the processes you would need to manage given your specific challenges. Keep us posted on your venture because I’m sure there a lot of good people that have similar interests and challenges that need our encouragement.

 

[MikeT]

#2027654

Thanks for the input!

I can do just about anything that does not require heavy lifting, just not for very long.  I have had a heart attack and 6  bypasses followed by huge complications and 2 and 1/2 months in the hospital.  So my physical endurance is ridiculously limited as compared to before the health problems.  That and now being on disability limits my financial resources to a minimal level at best. As far as interests that is just about everything except for turning bowls and plates.  I have done it and it is not something that has grabbed my interest.  I guess the thing that would be of most interest would be Historical types of work, recreating items from the early part of the U.S. history or the Middle Ages, as I used to do historical reenactment. Thanks again for the feed back

Mike T

[Mike in TN]

#2027656

Hello again Mike T,

I always recommend finding a woodworking buddy or a group and maybe you can talk them into helping out with some of the heavy and energetic parts of projects while you concentrate on joinery, decorative, or more “fiddly” parts of the work. Unfortunately a lot of historical work typically starts with a chunk of a log and that appears impractical at this point. It sounds like there is no reason why you can’t do early colonial and Elizabehtan area projects such as joint stools, boxes, lap desks and similar items. It sounds like decorative carving would be a good option.

Because of your circumstances, consider posting a list of your tool needs and a brief explanation of your situation in the tool/swap classified section of the forum. Woodworkers can sometime surprise you with their generosity.

Have fun.

[Rich]

#2027673

I had a master woodworker once tell me he loved to go to flea markets and yard sales because he could find the occasional tool treasure dirt cheap. I have also seen tool sales in the classified section of the newspaper. Sometimes people sell things at low prices because they are moving or the tool owner has “moved on”.

[Anonymous]

#2028163

You could always do the yard sale and fleamarket tool thing. Get some rusty jewels fix them up try them out, and if it isn’t what you want sell it, and use the money to buy something else to fix up. Low impact and a lot of fun.WARNING! Restoring is as addictive as wood working.

[Author]

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