Drill bit drawers?

[Jaze Derr]

Ok, guys, I need some ideas.

I want to buy this (or something very much like it):


And use it for drill bit storage, as well as router bits and hole saws, etc...

I'm having a heck of a time finding good ideas on how to divide up the drawers for drill bit storage. I'm not a machinist, so I don't have loads of drill bits, but I do have quite a few sets in those blasted blow-molded cases (I hate those things). I just want to consolidate all my drill bits together by size.

Ideas for cheap and easy drill bit compartments? There won't be enough room to stand the bits up on end, and I don't want to drill a hole in a block of wood for each bit...

I'm stumped. You'd think finding an organizer for a shallow drawer would be easy? I've spent HOURS searching and just can't find what I want.

[Keith Westfall]

Do you have things like Dollar Stores near you?

Go and find drawer organizers - usually is quite a selection of different ones....

[John Coloccia]

I hate to invoke Ikea, but my wife has a couple of these. One is for her art stuff, and the other is for her arsenal of makeup/hair/whatever junk.
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40107872

For some time, I had hoped to steal one for my drills but never managed to pull it off

As far as dividing it up, it can be as simple as a thin piece of masonite with a drop of hot glue to stick it to the drawers. You can line it with felt, or some of that anti-corrosion foam from Sears.

Now, with all that said I think there's a better way. After years of struggling with tons of bits, organizational problems, etc, I noticed that there was a handful of sizes I use all the time. There's one or two I use for pilot holes. There's another I use for installing some special pieces of hardware that I use. There's the occasional forstener I use for very specific things. Other than that, the rest of my bits are used very infrequently.

So, I have a small parts bin (the kind with the sliding drawers), and I have a few drawers that contain those specific bits that I use every day. The rest of the bits sit in their cases, and I only need to access them rarely. I find this to be a MUCH simpler and efficient system than taking up space with cabinets and complex organizational schemes. I buy those specific bits several at a time, and don't even bother sharpening them. When one goes dull, it goes in the trash and I grab a new one.

It's quite liberating, actually, to just have the things at hand that you actually use. Everything else can live under a bench, on a shelf, or wherever.

[Greg Portland]

I have my drill bits in containers similar to these. The containers sit flat in the drawers and can be pulled out for various projects (or opened in place). I'm not sure if you can buy just the cases, my bits came with the case.

[Tom Hargrove]

Over the years, I have collected a sizeable collection of drill bits, and driver bits. When I am doing carpentry work outside my shop, I favor the small accessory storage boxes made by DeWalt. (I can't find a web link, but they are available at the big box home stores that carry DeWalt for about $6 or $7). I keep a couple loaded with drill bits, driver bits, bit holders, extensions and so on that I can carry with me. Everything else stays in the original bit organizers or bins in two cabinet drawers.

However, in my shop, like John, I find that I use the same small selection of bits and drivers over and over again. I keep these "favorites" in a small metal box that stays on or near my bench or assembly table. They are not neatly organized, but with only a small assortment to go through, I find what I want quickly.

If I were going to spend the time (and money) to get really organized, I would probably buy the Ikea cabinet.

[Dan Hintz]

Two words... floral foam.

Dirt cheap, easily replaced, and you don't have to drill a hole for each size bit... the foam is stiff enough to hold a bit at any angle and conform to the shank, yet soft enough to allow digging a hole in it by pushing the shank into it.

[Robert Reece]

One day I was looking at this container that my kids had to store some little parts for some toy or another. The container was made out of wood, about 1/4" thick, and it was a small tray that was about 9" long and 2" wide and maybe 2" deep. The sides were box jointed and it had a thin plastic top that was simply captured in a groove near the top edge of the long sides. I realized it was the best and cheapest way to store things in a drawer (especially after pricing the Festool systainer plastic trays).

I suspect you could build a lot of these things in short order, especially if you dispense with the box joints. I suspect gluing the ends and shooting a couple of little finish nails will make most of them last a long time.

The cost is also good since you probably have scrap laying around.
Just be careful working with the small parts.
I'd also build various boxes on a 1-2-3 dimension. smallest one would be 3"x3", then 6x3, 9x3, 6x9, 6x6, etc.

This is at least what I plan on doing when I build a big set of drawers for all the little stuff that drives me crazy.

[Bob Riefer]

That floral foam idea above is gold, thanks for that tip!

[Steve Friedman]

Lee Valley just brought these back:

http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/pag...326,43330&ap=1

[Rob Cunningham]

I store my drills in a drill index. They are available for fraction, number and letter drills.
http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/N2DRVS...00000157236084

[Kevin Groenke]

A bit set I got at Woodcraft a few years back came in a handy compartmentalized metal box. The bits themselves are mediocre at best, but the box is nice. I've seen a very similar bit set elsewhere very recently, Menards maybe?



http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/208...Bit-Gauge.aspx

[Jaze Derr]

I hate to invoke Ikea, but my wife has a couple of these. One is for her art stuff, and the other is for her arsenal of makeup/hair/whatever junk.
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40107872

For some time, I had hoped to steal one for my drills but never managed to pull it off

Hey, thanks for the tip on that little number. Stopped by the local Ikea store today to look at it. I like! And I can buy 5 of those for one of the tool chest sets

Then, I managed to get completely lost and couldn't find the exit. IKEA WAS ABOUT TO EAT MY SOUL!!!

[Jaze Derr]

Lee Valley just brought these back:

www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=46037&cat=1,43326,43330&ap=1

I saw those in the catalog, and they were what originally got me started on this idea in the first place.

But they are a tad bit expensive for my taste.

[Jaze Derr]

A bit set I got at Woodcraft a few years back came in a handy compartmentalized metal box. The bits themselves are mediocre at best, but the box is nice. I've seen a very similar bit set elsewhere very recently, Menards maybe?



http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/208...Bit-Gauge.aspx

YES! that's exactly what I want...in a drawer without the lid, lol.
OOO, it's half off at Woodcraft through the end of the month. Hmmm....

[Dan Hintz]

Yeah, I think Woodcraft has that exact set for $40 right now...