Show Us Your Hand Tool Organizers

[Mike Holbrook]

Great thread! I am especially interested as I am downsizing in anticipation of a move. I am in the process of figuring out how to get everything into a single room shop of unknown size.

Here are a few ongoing organization projects: Click to enlarge pictures...

First it is important to have good management, that is not afraid to bite you in the rear end if you start getting slack. Haka boy watches me close these days! Yes, he can use all the planes, but he chewed out the shavings you see, just to show me how easy it is to do!

Haka:Management.jpg

I am trying to figure out if I want to use this StoreWall product again. There are tons of types of hangers, cabinets...for it. I probably would not have invested in it if the wife had not bought a large quantity for her garage organization project.

StoreWall.jpg

My Festool hand truck with Festool Sortainers holds an amazing amount of gear in a very mobile unit

IMG_1023.jpg

Some of my pictures are not uploading so I will try later.

[george wilson]

I have never heard of Marsh planes. They look just like Stanleys. Can you elaborate please?

[Joe Bailey]

George

As you probably know, Stanley was the Microsoft of its day -- it eliminated its competition by buying them out.
H.C. Marsh of Rockford, IL made Bailey clones after Stanley's original patent ran out -- they were later bought out by Stanley and made Stanley-branded planes at the old Marsh facility.

Anyway, that's the story as I recall reading it some time back -- if I'm off on something, you can rest assured, I will be corrected.

[Robert Payne]

Here are some details on Marsh Bench Planes, which are now becoming quite rare:

The H.C. Marsh Tool Company was founded in Rockford, Illinois in 1888 by Horace Clarence Marsh. The company manufactured carpenter tools and was located along the Rock River where a water mill provided power for an overhead line shaft used to power machinery. Aside from making 20 bench, 14 block planes and 3 specialty planes closely mimicking the Bailey designs, Marsh also developed their own designs for picture frame vises and both straight and right-angle miter boxes. By 1908, Marsh incorporated with a capital stock of $25,000 and employed 15 people with an annual payroll of $9,000[1]. Marsh also produced a separate line of 20 bench planes that were marketed under the name Rockford. In February 1924, the H.C. Marsh Company was acquired by the Union Plane Company. In 1926, Stanley Tools acquired the Marsh plane business from Union and incorporated them into their product line. [2] The primary reason why Stanley bought the Marsh line was to procure a set of H.C. Marsh patents for Miter Vises that they released for carpenters making picture frames and similar products. [3]

Compiled by Robert Payne, Hendersonville, NC

---

[1] Cullum, Peter (March 1986), The Marsh Tool Company, M-WTCA Gristmill, pp. 16-17.

[2] West, Robert F. (December 18, 1981), Correspondence to Fred A. Curry. West was Manager of Product Research & Standards for Stanley Tools, New Britain, CT.

[3] Stanley Picture Frame Tools, Stanley Tools, New Britain, CT (link to PDF copy of catalog).

[Mike Allen1010]

Derek Cohen quote: With regard to my own humble shop fittings, they are also items I have built over the past 5 years (new shop), as the need arose and there was time. It's just cheap pine tarted up with Jarrah trimmings.

There are marking tools hanging on the wall behind the bench ...




There are also tool trays attached to the wall behind the bench (rather than attached to the bench, which stands free) ...



To the left are cabinets for spokeshaves, ploughs, braces, rasps ...

Nothing is ever this tidy!



And a bench dog to keep an eye on all ...



Regards from Perth

Derek[/QUOTE]


Derek, thanks for posting pictures of your shop – now when I dream of heaven this is what I will be picturing - the Cabinets in my kitchen don't look that good!

Your "bench dog" is absolutely adorable – Somewhere there is a woodworking calendar missing a picture.

Cheers, Mike

[Mike Allen1010]

Just looking back on this thread I have to say it's one of my top two or three all-time favorites; very inviting shops with insights to people on SMC who have become friends, lots of really cool tools, self-deprecating humor; come on - who doesn't like those things!

In the spirit of perspective for those woodworkers perhaps just getting started with hand tools etc.; it may be helpful to recognize, I'd wager many of these shops are a second or third iteration and have been evolving for longer than probably most of us would care to admit. You can have lots of fun with a very basic set of tools, limited shop space/bench/less than optimal lighting, etc.

My interest in hand tool woodworking was sparked in the late 70's early 80's by James Krenov's books when as a broke college student I needed simple, functional furniture I couldn't afford, and Krenov's books made me think maybe I don't need a bunch of power tools. Maybe I can do something with basic hand tools. I certainly "crashed and burned" pretty much every time when I was young. Even though my early projects were suitable mostly for firewood; even then I realize I was having a lot of fun.

FWIW, I believe as your experience with making hand tools work properly grows, woodworking just gets better and better. The building process becomes more fun/satisfying and your finished products projects are more likely to be something usable you can be proud of.Okay, just now reading that back I recognize it sounds awfully "preachy" and I am absolutely not remotely qualified for that,YMMV.

BTW, this thread makes me realize I wish Harold B. and Kent B. would post more often. For me, SMC is a refuge from the trying aspects of daily life and their posts always make me smile. That said, Bro's– do us a solid and throw us a bone once in a while!

Best wishes for a Great weekend to all!

Mike

[nima hadavi]

Those were some excellent thoughts Mike, I appreciate the time you took to post. Brought me some great incite into how some of these collections come to be. Here is a photo of my my very modest tool collection. I am just beginning this craft and thoroughly enjoy the feel and sounds which accompany hand tooling. Also coming from the Automotive world where I have more tools then Imaginable; I foresee no end to collecting.

[ken hatch]

Mike,

I agree every time one of these Zombie threads come up they make me realize how much we lost when the likes of Harold and David stopped posting.

As I just finished or have almost finished my latest round of trying to fit 10 lbs. of stuff into a 5 lb. shop and still have room to work project. My shop has X cubic feet of space, I have Y cubic feet of shop fixtures, tools, and work benches and for some perverse reason no matter how many times I move stuff around I always end up with about the same amount of space.

Anyway here are a few photos:



East wall sharpening station as seen from the left end of the main work bench.



North wall from the back side of work bench.



West wall from working end of main work bench.



Tool room grinding station.



Tool room Saw station.

It is easy to find yourself in a too many tool fix, tools are wonderful to play with, to hold, to own but a few years ago I realized I was spending more time chasing and fixing rust than making furniture. As The Dude would say this can't abide. I'm working hard to git rid of extra tools and the pile is slowly being reduced. The good news this being Arizona with RH's for most of the year 10% or lower I don't have to fight rust, if I did that would be all I did.

ken

[Maurice Ungaro]

A woodworking colleague who passed away six years ago started to make a beautiful display cabinet for a full set of Marsh Planes he had collected over several years, but he was never able to finish it or show it off. He did complete the back portion of the display in quilted Walnut veneer and I added vertical Walnut/Maple partitions between each plane. The base of the cabinet had a slight gap to hold the base of each plane and rare earth magnets installed before the veneer was glued in place held each plane vertically in place. I built the partitions, and name plaques and assembled the cabinet and took it to several Mid-West Tool Collectors Association meets, including the National Meeting in Lexington, KY a year after his death. It won First Place among all of the other entries at each showing. Here are a few pictures -- I plan to build a similar (but much elaborate) cabinet for my more humble collection of planes one day. His widow later sold the collection even though I offered a substantial amount for it.

Attachment 337073Attachment 337074Attachment 337075Attachment 337076

I'm sure it gave you great satisfaction to finish your friend's project. Sorry that his widow rejected your bid.....that must have stung.

[Mike Holbrook]

Preparing for a move I have several ongoing tool organization projects that may be of interest.

Here is a sawing & gluing station I am working on:

Saw:glue station.jpg

The cabinet is a bathroom cabinet I ended up with for free, after the basement build out I did. I put a Festool table top on it. The Stanley #150 miter box, on a bench hook, fits perfectly behind the door that would normally provide access to the bottom of the sink and plumbing. I placed a couple strips of wood over the top drawers that I lay 1/8" luan sheets on which prevent sawdust & dirt from falling down into the drawers. I may drill a hole to fit my Festool vac, just above the luan sheets, to suck out sawdust. The Festool top allows me to use Festool clamps to hold the miter saw in place. When I finish sawing the boards in the picture. I will remove the miter saw and use the top of the bench/cabinet for gluing up wood panels using the Festool clamps... The drawers will hold glue, clamps, finish for the projects done at this work station. I have a couple heavy duty Lee Valley folding shelf brackets that I may attach to the back of the cabinet. These could provide a place to hold the wood after it is sawn....

The miter saw handle is in a near perfect position for sawing as it is. I am thinking about adding casters that can fold up out of the way when not in use. With one of my outfeed/infeed tables, rollers on either side I hope I have a functional sawing station that can handle some of the larger pieces that are awkward on a bench, leaving the bench clear for planing and other uses.