- Messages
- 11,641
- Location
- Constantine, MI
In my last shop sheet goods were just leaned up against the wall. All well and good until I actually needed something. Getting to that one partial sheet I needed required a lot of lifting and shuffling and then putting it all back
I decided this shop would would have sheet storage that did not require all that work to get to the piece I needed. I looked at a lot of different designs. Some were more complex, some had storage space for shorts. This design, from Wood magazine, was simple, inexpensive (under $100) and has those little blocks mounted on one side. They support a sheet so you can break it down. In a one man shop with a senior citizen at the helm this is a big plus! If you place a full sheet on these blocks and lean it back against to vertical supports you can clamp a straight edge to the sheet and cut through. You do need to watch your blade depth as there is only about 1/2" clearance to the horizontal brace.
It will hold 5 full sheets of 3/4" material and a lot of small pieces. It was designed to be stored against the wall on the side of the garage door as it is only 18" wide. If you have limited space this is a good thing. Had I given it some thought I might have gone a couple of inches wider. This would give it more capacity and make it a bit less tippy. I don't think that once it is loaded it would easily tip over, but making it a bit wider wouldn't hurt.
Now I can roll the storage over to the overhead door, slide the sheets off the truck and onto the rack and move it to its storage position. When it comes time to break down the sheet I can move the rack out into the shop, slide the full sheet off one side and onto the other to make my cuts.
I decided this shop would would have sheet storage that did not require all that work to get to the piece I needed. I looked at a lot of different designs. Some were more complex, some had storage space for shorts. This design, from Wood magazine, was simple, inexpensive (under $100) and has those little blocks mounted on one side. They support a sheet so you can break it down. In a one man shop with a senior citizen at the helm this is a big plus! If you place a full sheet on these blocks and lean it back against to vertical supports you can clamp a straight edge to the sheet and cut through. You do need to watch your blade depth as there is only about 1/2" clearance to the horizontal brace.
It will hold 5 full sheets of 3/4" material and a lot of small pieces. It was designed to be stored against the wall on the side of the garage door as it is only 18" wide. If you have limited space this is a good thing. Had I given it some thought I might have gone a couple of inches wider. This would give it more capacity and make it a bit less tippy. I don't think that once it is loaded it would easily tip over, but making it a bit wider wouldn't hurt.
Now I can roll the storage over to the overhead door, slide the sheets off the truck and onto the rack and move it to its storage position. When it comes time to break down the sheet I can move the rack out into the shop, slide the full sheet off one side and onto the other to make my cuts.