Vlog Blog #2
Richard Spiller
May 23, 2022
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First and foremost, a God-fearing, Christ-following, liberty-loving husband, and father of four. I am also an avid woodworker. Read on below if you would like to know a little more about my journey into woodworking.
In 2006, my wife, two kids, and I moved to Birmingham, AL and bought our first house. I had a hammer, a socket set and some screwdrivers but no woodworking tools. Shortly after moving in, my brother-in-law and his family came to visit. He had the idea of building a sandbox in the backyard for our kids. Off we went to Sears to buy a circular saw and cordless drill. The next stop was Home Depot for screws, lumber, and a kit to build a pair of sawhorses. The sandbox came out great and I was hooked.
Next, I built a wall cabinet to store our excessively large and unwieldy collection of music CDs. Due to my limited abilities, my design for the cabinet was based on the size of lumber that was available to purchase. Then I designed and built a wooden playset for the kids that added on to the sandbox. Not only did the playset need to account for the existing sandbox but also the slants and slopes of a hilly backyard. The kids loved it. Envisioning exactly what the kids wanted and overcoming the challenges of the yard to create with my own hands and tools an attractive, functional, and unique playset was exciting.
In 2011, a job change meant that our growing family of now four kids was moving to Knoxville, TN. Our new house had an unfinished basement and I soon started thinking about having a shop. Over time, I added more tools and created a makeshift workspace with shower curtains to contain the dust. With space to grow into, I started adding larger tools. My first big tool was a miter saw for which my stepdad helped me build a combination miter saw station and wood storage rack. I kept adding tools and building more projects. The new backyard needed a treehouse. My youngest daughter wanted a desk, so I built one for her birthday. My project list has always grown faster than my ability to build.
In January 2019, my wife and I decided to finish our basement. The two main goals were a media den for the kids to enjoy with their friends and a dedicated wood shop for me. The finished basement includes a den, a storage room, a bathroom, and my workshop. Now I have a shop that I built in a basement that I also designed and finished myself. While I will always love that basement shop, it quickly became apparent that there just was not enough room for me, my tools, and the projects I was building for clients.
So in late 2022, I started looking for a new space for my shop. After a couple of months of looking, I discovered by accident that a small local gun store near my house was going out of business. It occurred to me that it would be a great location for my shop. I got in contact with the owner of the building and he thought it would be a great idea to have a woodshop in the space. In January 2023 I signed a lease and got to work. It took a lot longer than I had planned or hoped but the new shop turned out great. I now have plenty of room. I have even added a large CNC machine.