The perfect shed?
Ron produces the perfected interactive pieces in a 96m² shed located at the back of his property west of Christchurch — a well-lit, well-heated, well-insulated, superbly equipped shed, which he built when he moved to the property 25 years ago. When first constructed the shed seemed overly large — Ron says that he was able to turn his truck inside it when the shed was new — but today, not so much. Sheds seem to have only one size over the long haul: too small.
One end is mainly woodworking, the other metalworking. The metalworking end has a medium-sized centre lathe, a milling machine, power hacksaw, welding table, and tube bender. Also a very large router table with a 2kW router. The opposite end has a sawbench, thicknesser, and bandsaw. In the centre are large assembly tables and a very effective wood burner. Under the many windows along the western wall is a 12m long, massively constructed wooden bench built by Ron and his wife Pam. The bench holds vices, a scroll saw, fly press, and several disc sanders. An equally long and strong bench is in the adjacent storage building. When the timber for the benches was delivered, locals thought that the Panckhursts were building another house.
Three-phase power was powering a pump on the property when they arrived and so it was reasonably inexpensive to have it taken to the shed. A large number of lighting fixtures and power outlets were also installed.