Topic: What tools do I need??

[aaronxs400]

Hello. Im turning my old shed into a small workshop. Nothing major yet, nothing like a lathe or mill. what do you guys recommend for a small engine workshop? Anything, doesnt matter. Here are the power tools im look at for doing slight metal working
Pipe Bender
Bandsaw
Grinders (one for grinding, one for poloshing)
Dremel
Air compressor and some air tools
Small drill press
Small Mig welder.
All i really need is stuff to assemble motors, make brackets, and bed some tube for handle bars, exhaust, and random stuff. Any suggestions? anything from ring compressors on...have alot of metric tools but need more. Thanks!

[crazypj]

You always 'need' more tools
I wouldnt bother with pipe bender, cheap ones usually kink pipe unless its really thick walled ( ok for frame tube, probably)
I'd go with a larger drill press, floor mount with as many different speeds as possible and the best bearings you can get ( they all have some 'slop')
Get a Gas Mig, not the gasless type. Harbour Freight has a polisher grinder for around $70.00, less every few months when it goes on offer, just remove the grinding wheel from one end and fit another mop.
Get a good valve spring compressor and whatever flywheel/ generaor rotor pullers you need, three leg pullers are ok for gears but tend to destroy generator parts.
Check out Victor Machinery exchange in NY, they carry all sorts of interesing stuff you did'nt know you needed (until you do need it ) particularly 'odd' sized taps and dies ( 6.00x0.50mm etc)
PJ

[tsflstb]

Don't know what you've already got, but the cornerstone of a shop is a heavy duty bench and vise. 

I've got a 2' X 8' long bench made from about 300 lbs of leftover 2X4's and a couple of 3/4" pieces of MDF for the top.  You can never have to much horizontal surface when you're tearing things apart. 

I bought a 6" heavy duty vise from Harbor Freight and mounted it up.  I've used this, my 12 volt Dewalt, a file and a hammer to make a bunch of random brackets for the bike.

Instead of a drill press, I'd save up to buy a small benchtop milling machine.  You can get them for around $500 bucks and have a hell of a drill press, plus the ability to do some light machine work too.

[ProTeal55]

Gotta have a drill press.
Welder, plasma cutter are also nice to have around the shop...

[aaronxs400]

tsflstb, could you tell me what brand that mill drill press is?

[aaronxs400]

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=46199

i think the mill part is too small. i dunno what all the numbers mean

[tsflstb]

tsflstb, could you tell me what brand that mill drill press is?

It's from Harbor Freight.  I think that particular model is around $800.  Go to their site and search for "milling machine" -- they have several models.  You can get 20% off coupons on thier email list.  I'm going to get one of those eventually.

[aaronxs400]

what do you think of the one on the link i posted? to small?

[tsflstb]

I guess it depends on what you want to do.  I didn't see dimensions for the milling table, but it does look small.  If most of your parts will fit in the vise, it would probably be OK.  If you're wanting to clamp bigger parts directly to the table, you might have to get creative. 
These machines do use a standard R8 collett, so you can use a lot of standard sized tooling.  Ideally, we'd all have a big Bridgeport Series II in the garage, but I think either one of these would work if you take your time and don't overload them.