Woodshop (workspace)
Woodshops are a woodworking workshop space dedicated to the processing, shaping, and assembly of wood into finished products or components. Woodshops can be found in schools, makerspaces, fab labs, flex spaces, homes,[1] garages,[2] community centers, and professional manufacturing environments. They typically include a combination of hand tools, power tools, and stationary machinery for cutting, shaping, joining, and finishing wood.[3][4][5]
Educational use
In schools, woodshop classes are part of industrial arts, technology education, or career and technical education programs, where students learn tool and material use, measurements, project planning, and craftsmanship. In fab labs and makerspaces woodshops often serve as a skill sharing environment for hobbyists and entrepreneurs.[6][7]
Safety
Woodshops pose hazards including sharp blades, airborne dust, and noise exposure. Proper training, use of personal protective equipment (PPE), and adherence to safety protocols are critical in personal, educational, and professional woodshop settings.[8][9][10]
Types of PPE
Common tools
| Common tools and machines found in a woodshop | ||
|---|---|---|
| Tool | Description | Image |
| Table saw | A stationary saw with a circular blade protruding through the surface of a table, used for ripping and cross-cutting wood with precision. | 
|
| Band saw | A saw with a long, continuous blade that runs over wheels, useful for cutting curves and irregular shapes. | 
|
| Drill press | A stationary mounted drill | 
|
| Radial arm saw | Saw mounted on a sliding horizontal arm | 
|
| Router | Handheld or table-mounted tool for hollowing out an area in wood, often used for decorative edges or joinery. | _repair_division_operates_a_router_on_a_carrier_plaque.jpg)
|
Other woodshop tools
- Screwdrivers – list of screw drives
- Wrench – list of wrenches
- Hammers – list of hammers, nail gun, staple gun, nailset, punch
- Measuring tools – speed square, ruler, calipers, tape measure, protractor, plumb bob, combination square, laser rangefinder, level
- Drills – cordless drill, hammer drill, drill bit
- Cutting tools – hand saw, bow saw, coping saw, utility knife, chisel, hand plane, jigsaw, circular saw, scroll saw, router table, miter saw, reciprocating saw, thickness planer, jointer, wood shaper, mortiser, spokeshave, drawknife
- Abrasive tools – files, rasp, sandpaper, grinding wheel, belt sander, orbital sander, hand scraper
- Holding tools – vise, clamps, pliers, bench hook, biscuit joiner, locking pliers, tool belt
- Marking tools – carpenters pencil, marking gauge, scriber, chalk line, scratch awl
- Miscellaneous – workbench, sawhorses, dust collection system, paintbrush, shop vac, air compressors, wood lathe, rotary tool[12]
Products used
Types of woodshop work
- Boat building
- Carpentry
- CNC machining
- Framing
- Furniture making – list of furniture types, cabinetry, upholstery
- Instrument making and luthier
- Intarsia
- Joinery
- Laser engraving
- Marquetry
- Model building
- Patternmaking
- Wood carving
- Wood engraving
- Wood veneer
- Woodturning
See also
Woodshop magazines
- American Woodturner Journal
- Canadian Home Workshop
- Craft (American magazine)
- Fine Woodworking
- Lesnaya Industriya
- Popular Woodworking
- Wood
External links
References
- ^ "Spacious Engineer's Eden".
- ^ "Vintage Garage: The Extended Edition".
- ^ "Beginners Woodworking Guide: How to Start Woodworking".
- ^ "Setting up a Workshop".
- ^ "My 12x13 Small Woodshop Layout (Space-Saving Ideas) | Saws on Skates®". 22 October 2019.
- ^ "(PDF) The dimension of care in American woodshop class and wood play in schools". Archived from the original on 2024-11-10. Retrieved 2025-08-17.
- ^ "Woodworking Tools Videos – College of Design Technology Services".
- ^ https://www.osha.gov/woodworking
- ^ "Woodshop Safety Tips for Students | OshaEducationCenter.com". www.oshaeducationcenter.com. Retrieved 2025-08-14.
- ^ "Wood Shop Rules".
- ^ https://awinet.org/woodworking-ppe-checklist-are-you-fully-protected/
- ^ "Top 40 Hand Tools for Every Woodworker & Carpenter". 14 April 2013.