Technical When does a Garage become a Shop............

My definition: A garage, more money goes out than comes in. A shop, more money comes in than goes out.

 

Correct Brian. If anyone's looking for me it's "Poppy's out in the shed". My wife tell people "the secret to a happy marriage is a shed".

 

When my wife's car goes in, it is a garage. That was real easy.

 

Hello,

When we started our hot rod building/drag racing endeavors, we had some ideas that might go over well with our friends. They all owned hot rods, cruisers and a couple of drag racing hot rods. We wanted to build something, but not limited by how much we could spend. In other words, a steady source of income, besides after school jobs.

So, as we started, we went to all of the local popular speed shops and saw what was offered. They gave us a hint at how retail worked and how much we charged was dependent on our tastes/profit. We had enough money to fund a 283 SBC motor in a Willys Coupe with modifications to get us into the B/Gas class. But, as we found out, money went out faster than was coming in from our afternoon part time jobs.

Not working all day on Saturday was a killer on income flowing in, but we had to be at Lion’s Dragstrip all day and into the late night. Some Saturdays, we did not see our mom other than at breakfast, then they were asleep when we got home in the late night. Our dad was already gone to work and we did not see him until Sunday.

Our build was going well, we got the speed parts necessary with a little customer discount. We had done some other engine work for our friends, so we were getting good. So, my brother got the bright idea of starting a speed shop. Why call it a speed shop? Well, we were going to sell speed products to our friends at a discount to start. Then as we got better, expand into something else. We were not in competition with the local Mailliard Speed Automotive or Reath Automotive shops. They were big time.
Garage size did not matter for us. We started with what we had and made modifications to fit our own needs first. We had already turned the backyard Rumpus Room into a lifting garage door open workspace that would fit our Willys Coupe lengthwise and still be able to lock the door. So, as we were progressing on the continued build, we were excited as it might turn into something we could do as a job. A job? A What?



My brother said that speed shop was what we would be doing, but decided to emphasize building engines as well as supplying parts to people at a discount. Those big name shops bought a ton of stuff from various speed company businesses, so they got a huge profit. We bought from the similar companies, but at a lower amount, so our discount was a lot less. So, we sold the parts to our customers at a discount they could get from us. For them, it was easier to come to us than go to the speed shops.

Jnaki

So, when we designed the business card, got the dealer’s license and got ready to do some buying, it was all above board and legal. The card showed that we were in the hot rod/drag racing industry, but was not in direct competition with the well established speed shops.

Our little backyard garage became a shop, as it grew to include more parts and little profit for us. We were not in it as a majority business practice. We were still a couple of teenagers looking for something we could possibly do after high school. Besides going to college and going down that path. It is called baby steps or these days, a “side hustle.” That sounds shady, but it certainly was fun, while it lasted.
Lion's Dragstrip Pits 1960

 

No doors on mine. Only walls are the side of the house and the storage room. The bay with the concrete floor doubles as parking and work area, the gravel floor bays are used mostly for parking but sometimes it’s a work area, too. Down here we call them both a carport. Maybe I can afford concrete for the four bay area one of these days….

 

It's whatever the owner wants to call it.

 

Yeah, mine is a barn too. I do work in the garage and barn both, it just depends what I'm working on. I think we're getting a little too hung up on names here..... Lol.

 

A shop is where you have tools and equipment and you work on cars in it. A garage is a place to store cars in when you are not using them.

 

when your "project" hasn't moved in 8 years

 

It’s a ZEN thing. What ever makes you happy.

 

In my case, the tiny attached garage became a shop when tools and workbenches made it so a car wouldn't fit anymore. A lot of my hot rod building is done in the driveway.


And, I can't build a shop out back...too many fish

 

The Chenango River

 

A shop is a place that needs swept after spending 4 hours in it. And tools need to be put away often or you will loose sight of your workbench.

 

@Moriarity , I found my intake about half way through.
What a great collection !!! Thanks for the tour

 

A gaar-age is a shop in the UK

 

I have no idea, but call the big building with all the cars and tools where I work on stuff a shop. At my house, the garage is overflow storage for crap that doesn’t fit in the house...

 

Sounds like you've been talking to my wife!

 

My garage is for disassembly and assembly. Most of the dirty work happens in the “shop”

 

My shop is a 24' deep x 30' wide garage. The insurance company and the government called it a "shop", its on a business zoned property. It also has a garage (24' x 24' with a 6' x 24' side storage) under it, a two story garage if you will.

Its a shop because I made my living out of it the past 20 years (out of the 30 I was self employed). Its a garage because when there wasn't real work occupying it, my wife's car was parked there. There was only room for one vehicle at a time. The shop has a 16' wide x 8' high garage door, and a walk in door, both facing south with an 88' x 19' cement driveway extending to the street. It had, (until I retired), (2) 220v Miller welders, a plasma cutter, a torch, a drill press, a sheet metal break (54" wide), an engine hoist, a 120 Gal, 5hp, 15cfm, 150 psi, 220v, air compressor, two 3' x 5' work benches, a tool box, jacks and jack stands, two 3' high 500lbs (each) capacity steel saw horses, and some new steel storage. I also had 48 different assorted welding gas cylinders (I was a welding supply sub dealer). Since retirement (Oct 2018), several things have left the building, but I have built a 39 Dodge pickup from the ground up, rebuilt my 48 Plymouth coupe, and I have built my 49 Dodge pickup from the ground up. Last winter was the 1st time in 20 years two cars have fit in my shop. Even though the amount of work performed this year has slowed down considerably, I probably still get more done in my shop then most I've seen post here over the last year.

The basement garage is storage. My zero turn mower is parked there, along with a few remaining auto parts. Up until a couple years ago, there was a rolling truck frame there. The bottom garage only has a 6' high 7' wide overhead door and a walk in door. It was built into the side of the hill with the garage door facing north. Since the shop is built above it, it only has a 7' ceiling height. Winter access is very bad through out the winter months, there is no driveway access to it, its 8' lower in elevation then the shop, and over 100' to the nearest street access. I suppose if I cleaned it out, maybe a car could be parked there.

Shop or garage? Yes. Both.

 

I call it my shop.....or my garage...mostly call it my garage though......regardless of what I call it, it is my happy place lol.

It is zoned commercial and I do build a lot of cars there.... however I still do most all the major fabrication at home in the driveway since my "shop" still has the 1940s fuse box..... so I limit welding and plasma work there till I can upgrade my electrical entrance.

It also occasially becomes a music venue for my group. Lol...

 

Most of my life I did creative work and repairs in the driveway.
We finally got a house with a 2 car garage that has an engine hoist built in, a welding table, and a wooden bench, plus a small service pit.
The garage now holds 3 cars 5 tool chests and enough equipment to make a shop.
Buuut The driveway has two disassembled P/Us that I'm obligated to get running.
Illness has me doing maybe an hour ( slow paced ) a day. or not.
So the shop is outside

 

Our homes basement is my shop. I have to be careful with fumes, dust and fire though. The Detached garage is for storage and I have to string a cord out from the house for light or to charge a battery.

 

If you park a car in every bay and dont have any room for equipment or work, thats a garage....if theres room for equipment and work (yes even if its jammed so tight with your hoarding that you cant reach the light switch) thats a shop

 

Garage. Parking and a little maintainance work

(work)shop, where the dirty and greasy stuff happens.

 

When you don't allow lawn and garden tools and equipment.

 

A "Garage" Is Where Automobiles And Home Plumbing Problems Are Resolved......A "Shop" Is Where Your Friends Come To Threaten To Buy Something...

 

I’m not an historian on automotive anything and how speed shops started, etc. but my first two jobs in the Bay Area SiliconValley were from guys who built a garage semiconductor thing, into a real player in the game. I didn’t start working until mid 80’s there, these two places started in the 70’s sometime. Never knew their history, I was too young to care I guess, wish I’d have dug into it some more.
Hey, no one enters into anything that they think will compete with IBM, Edlebrock, etc

 

We should all be much too busy to ponder such questions.

But...
It's not just a garage.
It's not just a shop.

It's a Fortress of Solitude!
It's an Artist's Haven!
It's a LA-BOR-A-TORY!
It's a Castle of Creation!

 

Hey B36,
My wife and I love Northern California and have gone there many times from 1966 to the last tour in 2019. I even went to college in San Jose, before the "Silicon started pouring in place." The only Silicon was in North Beach in S.F.

It was a fairly wide open area after one gets out of the city proper, anywhere in the S.F. Bay area. We even found some property to buy and build when we were in our 20s. But, it did not come about with the funding.

We watched a recent series on streaming TV. It is/was called "Halt and Catch Fire." Scoot McNairy is the main star. (main guy in the Narcos series, too.) Mackenzie Davis is the main computer person who gets the whole ball rolling in the developing Silicon Valley's early growth. You will get a kick out of their adventures.

Jnaki

We have seen the development in the computer industry and it is amazing. Although, those data typing in those specific lines are meaningless to us. But, for those that can do it, awesome. We see and use the latest stuff to make our lives easier and adds to the interests and experiences. Plus, we have to keep up with our teenage granddaughter !!! So, she is not talking to the moon. YRMV