hand tool wall in progress

[Allen Jordan]

I've been working on this french cleat hand tool wall for a while now, seems like a never-ending project:



I still need to make many more tool holders, and add a second row of planes to the till. Still, it's starting to become more than a mere sheet of plywood. Next step might be a proper saw till instead of just screws in a piece of cleat stock.

[Frederick Skelly]

Allen, it sure looks like thats been well worth your effort! I like the oak back, behind the cleats. I didnt think to do that on my french cleated wall. It looks really great! How do you find your plane till to work - does it work well for you?
Fred

[Jim Matthews]

Where's all the sawdust, to hide the tools SWMBO doesn't know about?

Your shop is neat enough for surgery.

sawdust.jpg

[Allen Jordan]

Thanks guys. I like the backing behind the cleats since my drywall isn't very uniform... at least now it's somewhat flat to keep the cleats seated. The till works great so far. It sits at 10 degrees to the wall, so it's out of the way but requires some safety measures to keep the planes from falling off. I have all of the plane bottoms trapped in wood to keep them from sliding out, and most of the tops (I didn't bother on a couple that fit really well into just the bottom holders). To remove a plane, I slide it up, pull it slightly out, then down. This works pretty well, even one-handed. The till even has a hidden shelf behind it to keep extra plane parts.

Jim, I air dusted the tool wall for the picture. My shop is shamefully dirty most of the time.

[Joe A Faulkner]

Looking good. You have endless possibilities with this configuration.

[Judson Green]

Looks nice. I like the flexibility it offers you. One of my difficulties in any project is paralysis by analysis.

[Dave Anderson NH]

If you haven't already discovered it Allan you are actually involved in two hobbies. The first is shop building which uses the second (woodworking) to accomplish the first. As for finishing, a shop is NEVER finished no matter what you do. There will always be changes, adjustments, and additions caused by new tools, tool upgrades, and everything else under the sun. Enjoy your 2 hobbies.

[Tom Stenzel]

Jim, I air dusted the tool wall for the picture. My shop is shamefully dirty most of the time.

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Meticulous attention to detail was evident and when Ford handed Edison the old mortar he had used, reconstructed from scrap found on the rubbish heap, Edison commented that the whole building, and its contents, was nine-tenths perfect. Ford, nettled, asked what was wrong. “Our floor,” replied Edison, “was never as clean as that.”

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-About the move of Edison's Menlo Park lab to Greenfield Village. From Edison: The Man Who Made the Future by Ronald W. Clark 1977



-Tom

[Eric Wong]

Be careful with the sharp chisel edges exposed like that. I could see you reaching back for something and ending up with a nasty cut. I mounted my chisels with the edges up, but a mini shelf right above the edges to protect them (and my hands) from any stray contact.

[Allen Jordan]

Yeah, I don't really like the chisel holder currently. I'll make a better one someday that's more secure and has cups for the tips, or maybe an upside-down one like you described.