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Raise a CNC’ed Makerspace ShedBuild a big, customizable, stand-alone workshop with CNC-cut trusses

f or about $1,000.

By Rick Schertle and Lendy Dunaway   Category: Computer-Controlled Cutting, Music,

Workshop  Difficulty: Difficult  View Comments

One of my big projects this year was to open a Makerspace

for kids in a low income area of San Jose, California

(washingtonmakerworkshop.org ). There was a small

garage on the property, but we needed a larger structurewhere the classes could meet. We figured a 14-by-16-foot

space (224 square feet) would be about ideal.

I researched a number of quick-build designs but didn’t

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This article

appeared in

Make: Vol. 40.

really find one to meet my needs, so I ran the idea by my

friend Lendy Dunaway, who’s involved in the Young Makers

program ( youngmakers.org) and is an expert fabricator. In

Lendy’s shop, his signature piece of equipment is an

industrial-size CNC router with a 5-by-10-foot cutting bed.

He offered to design an inexpensive structure using custom-made trusses with

very little scrap wood left over.

Here the results of our design and building process: the CNC Makerspace Shed.

The shed is big enough to seat 16 people comfortably at worktables, and it can

accommodate a huge 8-foot-high roll-up door. While we use it for a makerspace,

with a transparent roof to admit natural light, it can easily be customized into

something that works for you — and whatever your needs or weather conditions

may require.

PARTS

Lumber, 2×4 (nominal) (8)

Lumber, 2×6 (nominal) (8)

Lumber, 2×10 (nominal) (16)

OSB (oriented strand board), 23/32" (4)

OSB, 7/16" (4)Piers, concrete, 8"×8"×8" with wood block top

Joist hanger brackets, 2×6

Wood glue (1)

Wood screws or deck screws, 15/8" (25)

Lag screws, 3/8"×3" (32)

Bolts, coarse, 5/16"×3-1/2" (40)

Bolts, coarse, 5/16"×2-1/2" (16)

Nuts, coarse, 5/16" (56)Washers, 3/8" (144)

 Angle stock, steel or aluminum, 2½"×2½" or bigger, 20' total length (20)

aka angle iron

Roofing materials, wall coverings, and doors of your choice

DXF drawing osb-contours.dxf 

TOOLS

CNC router with 4'×8' bed (optional) You can also cut the trusses with handor power saws.

Hacksaw, reciprocating saw, or cutoff saw

Drill and drill bits for wood and metal

Socket set

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 Print Project

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Handheld circular saw aka Skilsaw

Leveling tools

Positive placement nail gun (optional)

Hammer

Clamps

LadderSTEPSPROJECT STEPS1. Build the trusses and brackets

2. Build the trusses and brackets (cont'd)

3. Build the floor structure

4. Lay the flooring

5. Raise the Trusses

6. Raise the Trusses (cont'd)

7. Finish the structure

8. Roof, Doors, and Windows

9. Finishing touches

Step #3: Build the floor structure

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Screw the angle brackets into the floor joists in the locations shown, using 3" lag screws

with washers. I built a little jig the width of the trusses to make sure the brackets were

the right distance apart.

Mark the 16' ridge beam to match the spacing of the angle brackets on the floor, so that

the trusses will line up correctly from the beam to the floor. Then bolt the remaining

angle brackets to the beam using 3-1/2" bolts, nuts, and a washer on each side (2

washers per bolt).

NOTE: Having a Ridge Beam that is not warped helps a lot in getting things lined up!

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Step #6: Raise the Trusses (cont'd)

Mark and drill all trusses with slightly oversize holes to line up with your bracket holes,

Now raise, hold, and bolt the trusses into place through the top brackets and bottom

brackets, using 3-1/2" bolts (or 2-1/2" bolts for the trusses at the ends of the building).

Raising the trusses requires the help of friends. You need someone in the middle

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Once all the trusses are bolted in place, install 2 sheets of OSB horizontally on the

bottom of each side. Before screwing them in, use a level to make sure the trusses are

vertical. The plywood should fit perfectly on the 16' length of the workshop.

Two additional sheets of OSB or plywood can be added to each side to fully enclose the

sides of the structure.

Step #8: Roof, Doors, and Windows

The shed is structurally complete, but it won’t keep the weather out yet.

For natural light, we put clear plastic panels on the roof. Inadvertently, though, we

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created a greenhouse that was so warm it was virtually unusable. I ended up putting in

rigid foam insulation on the sunny side. That did the trick!

The ends can be framed and finished however you wish. We put in an 8'-wide, 7-1/2'-tall

roll-up door on one side (about $500 online), and on the other side, two huge 4'- wide

by 5'-high “barn door” windows that swing open for ventilation during warm days.

Step #9: Finishing touches

The trusses provide a perfect setup for lots of built-in custom shelving. We’re also

planning on installing a storage loft on the end opposite the roll-up door. The inside is

light, airy, and a very pleasant workspace.

We added pull-down power cords and hanging work lights in the middle of the

workshop. Right now we’re using folding tables and stools but eventually we’d like to

add flexible custom worktables. Also in the works are a giant whiteboard and a large

LCD monitor for presentations.

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RICK SCHERTLE

Rick teaches middle school in San Jose, CA. He’s a contributing writer for MAKE

and leads after school making clubs with kids. He designed the compressed air

rocket for MAKE 15 and the folding-wing glider in MAKE 31. With his wife and kids,

Rick loves all things that fly. Rick is the co-founder of AirRocketWorks.com.

LENDY DUNAWAY

Lendy Dunaway is a lifelong lover of designing and

building things, and a collector of the tools, hardware,

and machines to do it with. After writing software for 20

years, he now runs a small industrial design and

fabrication company in San Jose, California, where he

hosts a Young Makers club.

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