How to get parents to let you start a woodworking business

[Brendan Plavis]

Here is my question, if you started woodworking when you were a kid, how did you convince your parents to let you start.

I am quite good with woodworking(see below for a picture of a desk I am building) And want to take it up for a hobby/business to make some money(sell coffee tables and the like.) My issue is, getting my father to agree to it(hes a cop, so hes tough to talk to.) Part of that issue is that my grandparents live with us(hopefully only temporarly.) My father allows me to use power saws and the like, no issues, as he trusts my judgement(although accidents do occur, as a few of you have found out.) My grandparents on the other hand require my grandfather to be at my side every moment(I don't use extremely dangerous tools either; I use drills, hammers, an electric mitre saw(dangerous only really if you put your hand under the sharp round thing spinning a few thousand RPMs ,) as well as a jigsaw(sure it can cut you, but, its not going to disfigure you in a hurry like a chisel or other saw.)

I have good common sense(see above for the mitre saw ideology) as well as the ability to use lumber effectively(I have 6ft of 2x4 remaining, I need to have a total of 10ft, so, I was going to rip the board(its just for a keyboard tray(mount the rails to) but my grandfather is telling me to go buy a 2x2 instead.... waste of money if you ask me, and refuses to rip it for me(I hate table saws(mainly since the one we have is my grandfather's, and it doesnt have a guard, nor a featherboard.. scares the crap out of me.)

I have always injoyed woodworking(build my first workbench(later became a lemon aid stand for a year(I got too tall for it, but I needed a table for my first business(made somewhere in the vacinity for $50 in a day, not bad for a 6year old) out of plywood at age 4-5(I forget,that was 10-11 years ago.) Now I want to take it up as a profitable hobby(I only have a summer job, so I am looking for a bit of suplimental income(people always are in need of tables and desks.) But, I am not sure how to make things work(getting the family onboard.) Since I am a minor(15) I need obvious parental consent/assistance(I dont have my license yet(heck not even my permit). I currently have the capital to make it work, somewhere between 1200-1600(I seem to have some money missing(unless my balance didnt show that a check cleared.) I am not looking to spend all of that, but, I certainly have enough money to purchase lumber to make a first product, and from there I would purchase tools(not going to purchase 2k of tools if the venture flops.)

I am guessing that if I spoke to him, my father would let me gut the shed and use that as a work space(just stores junk, and since we dont use the garage, maybe stuff like that(except gasoline) could go in there.) Would be kinda cold tho...)

With that said, I am hopping(or hoping(what ever doesnt mean to hop) that someone could perhaps suggest to me the best way to bring it up.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Here is a pic of the desk. It was done with Pine and the top is going to be melomine. It will sit flush with the top of the frame(hides the hideous sides.) Cheap desk, only cost me $40(initial lumber, and a few sanding belts(grandfather picked up the cost for the wood he made me get) Sturdy as a rock though... This pick is a little old, I did a little more sanding since then(rounded the edges a bit)

[Myk Rian]

First, does your Grandfather enjoy wood working? I used to watch mine make bowling pins on his lathe. He made them for the local bowling alley. Maybe yours would like to show you a few tips.

Just mention to your parents that you enjoy WWing, and hope to make a serious hobby of it. Tell them it keeps you at home, instead of running off and getting in trouble. What parent could say no to that?

[Rob Hough]

Put grandpa to work in your shop. I have no advice really. My parents thought I was nuts when I wanted to a guitar player in a rock band. 35yrs old and I'm still doing it though.

[Eric DeSilva]

If you want to get taken seriously, write up a business plan. Anytime you think about starting a business, it is a good idea--whether you are 15 or 50. Identify who your target customers are. Figure out a couple products that you might sell and figure out your cost to construct and the price you would sell them for. Figure out how long they will take to build. Find out if people are willing to pay what you want--maybe even talk to some potential customers. Figure out a safety plan and draft some safety rules you would follow. In effect, show him that your plan is well thought through. I think if he believes you have thought though the whole thing, he has to give you a considered response. That might not be "OK," but it might be "OK when you turn 16," or something else.

[Sandy Smith]

Brendan nice work on your table. Each time you make something you learn more and more. Is there any classes you can take at school?
I think if I were you I would try to think of something that your Dad might like to have or use.
Let him keep seeing your not willing to give up and you like working with wood. He is watching you and waiting to see if you are serious. In my life I have tried many things and gave up many. The ones I was really serious at I kept up for a long time and it showed to all I was serious.
So back to your Dad. Is there a nice cabinet he needs? An award display? A cool box for gun cleaning stuff? A nice holder for something? You get the idea. It would communicate your serious about wood and it will give you something to practice on. Pretend he is a customer and does your finished product look sellable.

Good luck. Keep up the good work.

[Greg Wease]

Brendan, is there a high school in your area that offers evening woodworking classes? Or a Community College? We are fortunate in that the middle school my son attended had a woodworking program. He was able to demonstrate the ability to produce some nice things in the school shop with supervision. That convinced me to buy a few tools for our home shop and we made a few things together--before his interests switched to other things. Perhaps you can find a way to use an existing shop to make things to sell at craft fairs. That way you could prove to your dad that a home shop might be a good investment.

[Brendan Plavis]

My highschool offers shop. Unfortunately, I have no time to take the course, as I am studying to be an engineer, so I am taking more achidemic classes.

Unfortunately, there is nothing that he uses(uses a computer, but, I dont think a wood computer would work very well....)

I may bring it up to him next time he asks me if there are any classes(at RISD) I would like to take.

While Im at it, might I ask what my initial investments should be? I currently borrow all the tools I use)

Thanks

[Bill Wyko]

If you want to make a million dollars doing fine woodworking.....start with 2 million. Good luck.

[James Carmichael]

If you want to make a million dollars doing fine woodworking.....start with 2 million. Good luck.

LOL, reminds me of the old saying "Best way to make a small fortune...start with a large one"

I figure if anyone was getting rich off of this, there would be lots more woodworkers and a lot less reality TV (does anybody watch that stuff?).

[Neil Brooks]

Hey, Brendan....

Just an "out of the box" idea:

If your parents are the obstacle ... could you get THEM to post on this forum, talking about their concerns and objections ??

Maybe we would have better luck if we knew what we were up against ?

Best of luck, either way !!

[Brendan Plavis]

Its not so much of my father an obstical.. I am just not sure how to approach em.

My grandparents are the obstical.... and its because they are afraid that I will mutilate myself with a tool...

Im going to look at the school of design, to see if they have a class, that might get the ball moving..

No one has answered though, what tools should I look into getting, within the fist couple projects?

[Tom Walz]

What about picnic tables. My dad was a doctor but he built picnic tables because he liked to.

Use 2x8’s. Find a good outdoor lumber that is readily available locally. Your frame is an A frame at either end. You put a 2x6 across the top of each A frame to support the top. You extend the bar through the middle of the A out each side and this supports your benches. You can have one board or two board benches.

This is easier than separate benches. Depending on your design they can tip over if you only have people on one side. However separate benches can tip over as well.

Use standard dimension lumber wherever possible. The lumber yard can do most of your cutting for you. You need very little so you can use hand tools. (Dad was surgeon so he was scared to death of power tools. Losing an index finger would have put him out of work.) You can drill holes and bolt though with a brace and bit.

Use stainless steel hardware. Offer zinc plated ass well but try not to sell it as stainless really is better.

Try an ad on Craigslist and eBay to figure out your price.

Sell ready to assemble kits as well. Boards with holes and a pack of hardware. Remember to give than extra 1 of washers, lock washers, bolts and nuts. It makes you look really classy.

Build maybe one kit and start selling. If they want another kit then build it. If they want it assembled then put it together.

If Dad is a police officer in this society he is strung really tight anyway. Heck of a tough job. Having relatives live with you, no matter who or how much you love them, just adds to the strain. I’d go with the advice from the guys above. Give dad a plan that is well thought out.

The table above can be easily built with hands tools. That should be a big plus with Dad. If you build one to get your costs you won’t be into it for much money.

You probably won’t make a big profit off each one because you won’t have much work in it or anything really that unique. Offer custom lengths for the big profit. See below.

Then you should have:
2x6’s for the top
2x6’s for the benches
2x6’s for the bench supports
2x6’s for the top supports

Then figure out what else you can build using just those four sizes.

Also offer custom tables. Price 12 foot lumber and other lengths as well. Maybe you can even offer a twenty foot table as a single table. Get a big depot first before you price 20 foot lumber.

That’s my suggestion. Not big money and not totally creative but a nice, straightforward project.

Good Luck,
tom

[Joe Shinall]

You started with the easy one. Would have been easy to talk my parents into letting me do it. The problem is I waited til I was married to get into WWing. Trust me, the parents/grandparents will be a breeze compared to trying to talk your future wife into it one day

[Tom Walz]

Get a hammer, a hand saw, a brace and bit and two combination (open and swivel socket) in a size to fit your bolts and nuts.

[David Prince]

Have your grandparents buy you a sawstop for their piece of mind!

But seriously, build because you enjoy it. Build anything you can get your hands on and see where that takes you. Stick to building for yourself and those close to you. If you start building for others it changes how you look at woodworking.

And, if you run into a problem with what you built, you don't want it to come back and haunt you. (Say you build a desk for someone. They put a fish aquarium on it. Their 2 year old stands by the desk to admire the fish. Somehow the desk collapses and the aquarium falls and the kid gets seriously hurt!) What kind of liability insurance do you have? Who covers the lawsuit for medical bills? If you are under 18, they could probably go after your parents)

I am not trying to scare or discourage you, but you will want to know what you are getting yourself into and know what you are doing when you put something together rather than just building for enjoyment!