In addition to continuing to look forward to new content that will serve and engage our readership, we also want to showcase standout pieces that remain relevant from years past. In particular, articles with a club building or instruction focus continue to deliver value and convey useful information well after their publish dates.

We want to make sure that once an article falls off the front page as new content is covered it isn’t relegated to the back pages of our website.

We hope that you’ll appreciate and find value in this effort, and the first article from the GolfWRX Vault is a perfect example of a piece that not only remains relevant and engaging, but one that the author still gets questions about and routinely refers readers to.

Ryan Barath, well before his time as a full-time WRX staffer, wrote “Building golf clubs at home: The essential tips, tricks, and tools” back in October of 2016.

In the piece, Barath discusses both the elements of setting up a shop in general and what he has done in his basement workspace in particular.

A taste of the piece.

One of the most important things about building clubs is doing it properly with the right tools, and doing it safely. After setting up up multiple build shops over the years, from small hobby shops to large multi-station build shops, having the opportunity to build my own home shop from the ground up was something I always looked forward to. My shop is in my basement, and because of the limited space, it was imperative to find as many space saving-solutions as possible.

Like many people with a hobby they are passionate about, I look forward to one day having a stand-alone garage for all of my tools (and maybe a hitting net), but for now my basement gets the job done. I’m lucky to have access to a much large machine shop where I do wedge grinding, finishing and sandblasting, which are all jobs that make a lot more noise and create a lot more dust. I can’t get away with doing those things in a confined space, but we’ll touch on that later.

Although not a tool, arguably the most important piece of equipment is the workbench. Having a quality workbench is needed because of the amount of abuse that it will take over its lifespan. Also, just like a great kitchen design, you need counter space and a good workbench provides that. Dropping a clubhead (especially a driver or fairway wood with nice paint job) can be costly. The next extension of the workbench is a good vice that has been properly attached to the bench with bolts. Like I’ve said in previous articles, I believe when you do something you should take the time to do it properly. I once saw a vice screwed into a workbench with 1.25-inch screws, and as soon as someone went to use the vice it ripped out and took a club with it.

Check out the full piece here.