My Minimalistic Workbench

Handmade Wood Toy Trains Designed by Norm Marshall

 For several years this was my workbench—some rickety sawhorses with some 2x4 across the top. I made a lot of toys and a few pieces of furniture using this bench.  

I had all my tools in a shed butted up against the edge of a concrete patio. When the weather cooperated, I would drag my tools out onto the patio and work in the hot Florida sun while watching the sky closely for convection storms building up off the coast. I sometimes waited too long and had to make a nad dash to get everything put away before the rains started.

I made and sold enough toys to buy a jointer, built a huge combination bunk bed and desk out in the hot Florida sun that sometimes hovered around 100F. I had to be careful about what I touched; some of the metal parts would get hot enough to burn my hand.

My power was an extension cord run in through a window. Fortunately, the house was wired for 20 amps to all the outlets. I never ran more than one tool at a time, so this wasn't a problem.

My dust collection was the wind.

Etsy Shop Banner

Norm Marshall Wooden Toy Pull Trains On My Patio Workbench

 

 

 

 

 

 

 





 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the mid-80s, I was stationed at Tyndall AFB. My workshop was on the patio behind our home. I would drag my Shopsmith out and run a power cord through the window. My workbench was made of rickety sawhorses and 2x4s. For an assembly table, I sometimes used the kids' trampoline. It wasn't the best, but it was huge and didn't need to be put away if it rained.

Dealing with the weather was a daily consideration in this setup. We lived less than a mile from the Gulf of America. Even during droughts, storms formed over the Gulf. Rain was a constant threat, so I avoided leaving things outside. Usually, I had plenty of warning, so I rarely got wet. The sun was another issue. Cast-iron tables got dangerously hot, but the Shopsmith's aluminum tables didn't.

Despite these challenges, I made many small projects in this makeshift shop, including the pull trains that became central to my banner story. My daughters each got one; the rest were given as gifts. Later, when setting up Odin's Toy Factory Etsy store, I needed a banner that reflected my work with wooden toys. Searching through photos of my past projects, I was reminded of the pull trains. Instantly, I knew they had to be featured in the banner. Today, that image still represents my Etsy shop, tying back to where it all started.

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