Rob Keeble
Member
- Messages
- 12,633
- Location
- GTA Ontario Canada
For ages now i have a hankering to build a decent tool chest. This issue just keeps coming to the fore each time i set foot in my shop with tools scattered in different draws and outta site. I have come to realize just how this affects my woodworking and the fun of it.
So having accumulated a ton of pics on the subject and seeing what others have done the question arises as to where the cut off point is for what goes into the tool chest.
Were i a journeyman of years gone buy there would no doubt be a limit on what i might have put in my tool chest.
But with many of us today having DIY home tools mixed up with woodworking hand tools where and how does one determine where to draw the line and this begs the question is there a line?
When i look at the requirements and purpose for the tool chest i see them as follows:
My thoughts at present are:
Planes all of them and room for ? more and here i include items like speciality type planes such as say a shoulder plane or a router plane and cabinet scraper.
Chisels. But do i put all in and do i leave space for future for more. Right now i have no intention of buying more but i have been there before with other tools and it has not worked out that way.
Also where does one draw the line on clutter versus need.
Spoke shaves and what about expansion in this area? I currently have one decent one and two old WW2 units handed down they not bad users now so they surely must get a place based on use and sentimental value.
Hand saws, here is a category i dont have many in, would one put specialised saws in besides the general say tenon or dovetail saw. Then right now i dont own a decent panel saw so do i make space for one?
Hammer i am thinking crosspene and leave the ballpene in the draw
Mallet this is another area of question? Which mallets ...wood, rubber, deadblow?
Ruler but which size i have a set of 5 steel ones do i make allowance for each one?
Same with squares?
What about screw drivers and then what about drills. I dont use hand drills at all. But i do have two nice small 12v bosch drills that are my go to drills/drivers now.
I have a yankee screwdriver but again its more of a hand me down sentimental value item that it is a item i choose to work with. Its only flat head bits in it and i dont particularly care for the fact that i cannot feel the torque being placed on the screw when i use it. Same with the brace and its bits.
Then there are files and rasps. Rasps seem logical but ihave also used a normal file on woodworking.
So chime in if you will please, I would love to hear thoughts from other neanders on how they view this dilemma. Do you see it as a tradditionalist kind of thing where you stick to certain fundamentals or does one go free for all.
So having accumulated a ton of pics on the subject and seeing what others have done the question arises as to where the cut off point is for what goes into the tool chest.
Were i a journeyman of years gone buy there would no doubt be a limit on what i might have put in my tool chest.
But with many of us today having DIY home tools mixed up with woodworking hand tools where and how does one determine where to draw the line and this begs the question is there a line?
When i look at the requirements and purpose for the tool chest i see them as follows:
- allowing easy access and visual access
- protecting the tool and its cutting edge
- having them all available in close proximity
- making them quasi mobile so they can be moved to where the work is. (thinking here of either mobile base or even the old carry type tool chest)
- creating a dedicated location for storage that not only keeps the tool where it should be when stored but makes putting a tool back when you done with it easy as pie. This to me allows for keeping clutter off the work surface at least to some extent based on the thought that its not much effort to put it back instead of down.
My thoughts at present are:
Planes all of them and room for ? more and here i include items like speciality type planes such as say a shoulder plane or a router plane and cabinet scraper.
Chisels. But do i put all in and do i leave space for future for more. Right now i have no intention of buying more but i have been there before with other tools and it has not worked out that way.
Also where does one draw the line on clutter versus need.
Spoke shaves and what about expansion in this area? I currently have one decent one and two old WW2 units handed down they not bad users now so they surely must get a place based on use and sentimental value.
Hand saws, here is a category i dont have many in, would one put specialised saws in besides the general say tenon or dovetail saw. Then right now i dont own a decent panel saw so do i make space for one?
Hammer i am thinking crosspene and leave the ballpene in the draw
Mallet this is another area of question? Which mallets ...wood, rubber, deadblow?
Ruler but which size i have a set of 5 steel ones do i make allowance for each one?
Same with squares?
What about screw drivers and then what about drills. I dont use hand drills at all. But i do have two nice small 12v bosch drills that are my go to drills/drivers now.
I have a yankee screwdriver but again its more of a hand me down sentimental value item that it is a item i choose to work with. Its only flat head bits in it and i dont particularly care for the fact that i cannot feel the torque being placed on the screw when i use it. Same with the brace and its bits.
Then there are files and rasps. Rasps seem logical but ihave also used a normal file on woodworking.
So chime in if you will please, I would love to hear thoughts from other neanders on how they view this dilemma. Do you see it as a tradditionalist kind of thing where you stick to certain fundamentals or does one go free for all.