Notice: The main focus lies on doing it by hand. I’ll make no compromise simply because i assume that you will do it professional.
You need…
The most important equipment you need is yourself. Don’t laugh. If you are not asleep at the wheel, do other things. The whole purpose is to boil the risk of mishaps down. Believe me, it’s painful if you saw into your finger. And it takes time through the wound cures – time you better have used to practice.
First aid equipment – if adversity happens.
A quiet place of your own with daylight, electricity (with a lot of power sockets), a little radio (if you like to hear music, but no TV!), water connections and drain. On the floor don’t use carpet! Wood, tiles or PVC are useful. If it is possible, mount an annexation for natural gasoline (-city gas). If you don’t have this then you will need propane in bottles. In any case check out the local law terms (safety conditions) at your city/country and speak to your insurance, maybe you’ll need a public liability insurance, third party fire insurance or something else in this way.
Basic furnishing
These furnishings are a “must have”:
- work bench
- bench chair
- overhead channel lights
- wash-bowl
- deposit station
Expedient are also:
- hanging cabinets
- floor units
Note: the look and the name of the tools can vary from country to country.
- an empty book, call it a workshop-book. It is highly recommended! You’ll fill it with your own words and thumbsketches. Don’t use a computer, don’t use loose papers! Use a hardcover only. Never remove a page! You will love me for that after years…
- one goldsmith’s hammer
- one chasing hammer, weight: 4 oz. (110 gram)
- two locksmith’s hammers, one 10.6 oz. (300 gram) and one 17.6 oz. (500 gram)
- one blow-back proof nylon-mallet – weight: 8.8 oz. (250 gram)
- one steel bench block (80x80x30mm) with one radiused edge
- one brass bench block
- one hardwood bench block
- one hexagon anvil with holes and slots
- two adjustable saw frames, one with a 4-3/4″ (120 mm) throat depth and one with a 3″ (80 mm) throat depth
- saw blades: ten gross (10×12 dozen) – Size: 4/0; two gross (2×12 dozen) – Size: 1/0; three gross (3×12 dozen) – Size: 8/0
- three or four curved stainless steel cross-lock tweezers with fiber-grips
- one bench brush hand type e.g. German or Italian style
- one scraper hollow
- one scriber
- one oval burnisher
- one aplanatic watchmakers eye loupe (10x) – it’s always good to have both hands free
- one head loupe (lens 2x or 3x)
- one stainless steel vernier caliper min. 150 mm or a digital version
- two or three dividers, made of steel
- one magnet
- one 90 degree try square
- one stainless steel ruler 300 mm
- one jig vise miter cutter
- one parallel locking vise pliers with serrated jaws
- one cutting broach set
- three or four different tweezers, one made of brass
to be continued
Today it’s enough 
