Reddit mentions of Two Cherries 520-6020 10-Inch Brass Back Dovetail Saw

If you decide to go the hand tool route, money and space are a lot less of a concern. Rather than throw out hypotheticals, I'll give you some examples of tools you can actually buy right now:

Panel saw. Yeah, 10 bucks. It's actually a nice saw too. The only issue is the teeth cannot be sharpened - but it's 10 bucks. Use this for breaking down big stock into smaller stock

Back Saw. Also 10 bucks. Same as above. Disposable but cheap and will last a long time (it's disposable because the teeth have been hardened). This is for precision cross cuts and cutting tenons.

Dovetail/fine joinery saw. 25 bucks plus a 3 dollar xx slim double taper saw file to make it not suck.

Now for some planes. These may seem kind of pricey for "broke" status, but these aren't POS-get-you-by planes. These are lifetime tools. To get something comparable new, you are looking at 150.00 to 300.00 a piece. You can get better deals by bidding on some planes, but these are all "buy it now"

Stanley #4. Needs some love but that's a good user for 30 bucks.

Stanley #5 for 42$

Stanley #7. 90 bucks.

Pick up a 4 dollar card scraper too.

Chisels

Narex $36. Use one of these and a block of wood to make yourself a router plane also.

Combination square 10 bucks.

A cordless drill of some sort and some bits (assuming you have one already)

70 bucks in 2x12's so you can make a knock down Nicholson style workbench which doesn't need vises. When you are done working, break it down and put it in the closet.

35 bucks for a pair of holdfasts from Gramercy

30 bucks worth of F style clamps from harbor freight will get you started there.

14 bucks to get sharp (not at all ideal but completely workable on a budget)

So for 410.00 or the price of a decent sander and miter saw, you can make literally anything in a small space with a small amount of localized dust. The trade off of course it time and labor.

Down the road you are definitely want to get some better saws, maybe some specialty planes, different chisels, some better measuring/marking equipment. But this will more than get you started.

There will be people that disagree, because to some extent it is about preference, and it also depends on what, exactly you do. Having said that, I'll give you a run down of stuff I either had when I started, or use frequently, or serves multiple purposes, etc.

• Combination square for measuring and marking right angles
  
• Tape measure
  
• Typical wood saw for big, sloppy cutting
  
• Better saw for precise cutting. I like japanese ryoba or type of backsaw
  
• Basic set of wood chisels. Nothing crazy is needed to start, just know you might be sharpening more often until you get better ones
  
• Personally, it really changed my game when I got an old Stanley No. 4 hand plane off ebay and fixed it up. This you might want to wait for and it depends if you want to get into stuff where you'll use it.
  
• Drill.
  
• Electric sander. If it's to expensive to start get one of those sanding blocks where you tuck in the sand paper.
  
• Clamps. You might start with bar clamps from harbor freight. The plastic quick clamps from there will break. The bar clamps aren't too bad. If you can buy better clamps to start, definitely do it, but you can get by on those.
  
• wood glue
  
• 2 part epoxy... when my first joints didn't fit... this helped!
  
• drawer liner. I put it under stuff so it doesn't slip.
  
• hammer and mallet
  
  Other than that, it really depends on what you want to do. I left out power tools except for a drill because when I started I couldn't even afford that and used my dad's. I never like when people give starter lists that include table saws and stuff, because if I had seen that on a woodworking starter list I would have been turned away. You can start with cheap stuff and make good pieces, it just takes a little longer and a lot more elbow grease.

Idk, I wouldn't say that. I still think you can get a good deal, if you look around.

The chisels I bought off of Harbor Freight actually seem pretty good after I spent an entire afternoon tuning and sharpening them. They were complete shit out of the box though. Forget a flat back, the edge wasn't even square.

These vintage planes were relatively cheap too.

I am also considering buying this saw, as I heard it was quite good after you tune it up.

Also, I sent that piece of junk gauge back, so I didn't really lose anything.


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I was looking at the crowns on amazon.

What do you think about this one?

https://www.amazon.com/Silverline-868503-Mortice-Gauge-230mm/dp/B000LFTQ72/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1485138295&sr=8-9&keywords=Marking+gauge

EDIT : Nvm, according to UK reviews, it's crap. Ohh wow, the UK has way better choices than we do in the states...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Silverline-868503-Mortice-Gauge-230/dp/B000LFTQ72/ref=sr_1_4?s=diy&ie=UTF8&qid=1485139275&sr=1-4&keywords=Mortice+gauge