I was recently faced with impending disaster when a local wildfire threatened to gobble up the north side of my hometown and destroy anything in its path. We had a couple of days on low level evacuation status, so there was time to go to the garage and decide what I could salvage of my small, efficient woodworking shop. The big machinery had to stay put, so I focused on what things to take and load into a pickup; things I would need to get started again in woodworking. I couldn’t sentimentalize over favorite tools, so here is my basic list.

I grabbed the circular saw to cut up sheet goods, a handheld electric drill plus bits, the jigsaw for cutting curves, a western tenon saw, a rayoba, dozuki and a coping saw. I packed two Porter Cable routers plus bases, bits and edge guides, and Carol Reed’s portable router table (from Router Joinery Workshop, Lark Books.) I packed the collapsible WorkMate, a bench hook, and all the marking and measuring tools and hand chisels I could get in one box. I also unscrewed from the wall the plane cabinet, holding about two dozen items, and tossed it in. If I’d had to select from it, I’d have included the reliable old jack plane, a rabbet plane and a block plane, plus one draw knife and a couple of spokeshaves. I bagged two-dozen spring clamps and four Bessey bar clamps, two large and two small handscrews, two iron holdfasts and my bench dogs. Beyond that, I was stuffing leftovers in any remaining space available, including my $40 straightedge, a set of auger gimlets, the deep-jawed cam clamps and a few favorite shop-built jigs. Then, it was into the house to track down birth certificates, passports and an extra box of checks I knew I’d stored somewhere, plus photo albums, clothing…the whole drill. The tools were first, though. I know my priorities.

By the precocious whim of Mother Nature and a shift in the wind, a few days later I had to back the pickup in and unload it all to put the tools away again. One result of this exercise is that I no longer take my little shop setup for granted, and these events spurred me to finish a project or two I had lost interest in. Another result is that it forced me to consider a starter tool kit. If someone wants to begin woodworking and practice new skills to get started, they might wonder what is really necessary to have, and what can be considered add-ons for later.

Think of it this way: the woodworker needs something to cut with, something to drill holes with, something to hold a workpiece and a dedicated place to work. The place to work can vary from a purchased workbench to the kitchen table, so that is pretty much up to the individual how permanent or temporary a workplace is set up. Many a fine piece of furniture has been constructed on a pair of sawhorses.

As for specific tools, a jigsaw is one I’d list as a priority. If you stick with woodworking, you’ll want many types of saws, but a jigsaw will get you started and is capable of curved cuts as well as straight cuts. An inexpensive electric drill is also a necessity, along with a few brad-point woodworking bits, sold in standard sets. I say inexpensive because even the cheapest $15 corded drill will work, and later when you want better tools, it can sit with a countersink bit installed in it, to use only for that purpose, saving the nuisance of bit changes.

A set of four basic bench chisels will allow you to trim oversized cuts, trim tenons, shape drilled mortises, and perform many other chores having to do with joinery. Marples brand makes a blue, plastic handled set perfectly suitable for woodworking and very reasonably priced. Purchase 1/4”, 1/2”, 3/4” and 1” sizes. A twelve-inch combination square, a reliable steel rule or tape measure, a marking knife and a level of some sort will round out the list. Besides the basics of household screwdrivers, glue and a hammer, these few add-ons could allow a beginner to complete many new woodworking projects. I’d suggest starting with a bench hook (see the previous Starting Points column: Holding The Work) and a pair of sturdy sawhorses.

Some sort of vise is valuable also, even if it is a small, clamp-on machinist’s vise with wood jaws added to pad the work. Clamps are necessary, and their purchase is endless, but for a beginner there is no real need to make a major investment in clamps. Baling twine can be looped several times around a workpiece and twisted tight with an inserted stick, tourniquet fashion. There are many ways to bring pressure to bear on an assembly without proper clamps.

One essential tool for beginners is good books. There are dozens of beginning woodworkers’ books, and I haven’t really seen a bad one. Taunton Press, however, released a new title in 2004 by Lonnie Bird that I find superior for someone just starting out. In their “Complete Illustrated Guide” series, it is called Using Woodworking Tools, and includes an introduction to wood, machinery and hand tools, sharpening, measuring and marking, and adhesives. Every page is full of color photos so a beginner can see exactly what this expert is talking about.

So there you have a few ideas for a basic starter tool kit. I hope no one loses their shop to a wildfire and has to start over, and this list is so basic that many things woodworkers “wouldn’t be without” are not included. The router, for example, or that nice Japanese dozuki handsaw. Let it be said, once you begin cutting up wood and making things with your hands, there will be plenty of tools you’ll want to buy. Some of us fondly call it the slippery slope, and there is no end to it that I can see.