Tech Shop Portland

For anybody who likes to make things, Tech Shop Portland is like Disneyland! Every big machine tool or piece fabricating equipment you ever wanted is right here in one place, set up and ready to go! Walk right in and build yourself the next world beating slankerator!

Okay, that's a little over the top. The place isn't even officially open yet, and they don't have every machine tool ever built, but they do have a good assortment, and they are getting more all the time.

Lunch 2.0 was held at Tech Shop Portland yesterday so I went to see what's going on. Denney Cole is the prime instigator of this venture. He was using the Tech Shop down in Menlo Park, and decided we needed one up here. They have a good size warehouse that they are quickly filling with machine tools of various kinds. Conventional metal and wood working tools, sewing machines, soldering irons & oscilloscopes, computers and welding equipment. Anything you could possibly need in order to build whatever you want. They have some computer controlled equipment like a CNC lathe, an X-Y-Z wood router, and a plasma cutter, with more on the way. Denney also recently got a line on a bunch of machine tools in a shop on the East side that he is thinking of moving.

The whole thing is run like a health club. You pay a monthly membership fee and you get unlimited use of the facilities. They are planning on having card-key access 24 hours a day, though the equipment hasn't been installed yet. They have only been there a month and they are still working on the place. Even the office space up front is not quite finished.

If you join now you might be able to score a deal on the rates. Also, they are looking for a few volunteers to man the front desk, etc. You get free membership in compensation. It would be the equivalent of working for peanuts, but they might have free coffee. If that's the case I might sign up myself.

Denney himself is working on a six wheeled robot. First application is as a base for T-shirt Gatling gun that is planned for the Beaver games.

Update January 2017 replaced missing pictures.