Contributor
Several years ago Woodcraft had a great Pfeil chisel deal going for about 2 months. They made me buy a bunch and I wound up w about 75(!)
So, i made a tiered system that holds about 15 across and 5 rows deep, step wise each row behind is a little higher. Handle up
i put on wheeled base and keep a sheet over it.
I can take the racks off if i want-portable, like above
(Most of them i have never used)
David
Confidence: That feeling you get before fully understanding a situation (Anonymous)
Contributor
Fine Woodworking - in its latest hand tool edition - has a caddy that hangs over the edge and is secured with pegs in the front dog holes of your bench.
Member
ok this is me spitting the water I was drinking all over my monitor.Originally Posted by Jeff Heath
Sooooooooo.........I guess I better not post a picture of my chisels strewn all over my bench, then.......
Contributor
Threads like this are why I come here. A lot of great ideas and excellent work here. My compliments to all.
Member
chisel-tray.jpg
I keep seven chisels in a shallow tray that I keep in a tool well. Lid is for when they go to bed. Works for me.
Member
This links a related thread run some time ago - my focus was to get some input on the best design for a universal socket in a rack to safely hold chisels. Lots helped out by posting then too: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...ack&highlight=
I'm just starting making some racks to fit in a wall cabinet today, having spent last night measuring up the shanks of chisels. I'm hoping to come up with a single socket layout to handle all, but the realisation has dawned that it's not a simple problem to solve. Plan B is a custom socket for each chisel type, but apart from the extra labour it would impose the major requirement to always place a chisel back in exactly the right place.
Just heading out now to make some test sockets - so far it's leaning towards a conical hole with a diameter of maybe 25mm at the top, and about 13mm at the bottom in 18mm ply - with a slot through it for wider blades to slide in through. The thought is to try using one of those conical sheet metal step drills if the diameters work out. Failing that a chairmaker's conical cutter, or maybe even a DIY profile ground up from a wide spade bit. Google brings up other options - magnets for example which i'm personally not very keen on. The other basic rack type seems to be two parallel strips of wood separated by spacers to form a slot for the chisels to drop into - very universal but it doesn't separate the chsiels.
Two nice ideas from David, Derek and the guys were either a parallel parking rack to take two chisels in two holes one inside the other in a single slot, or deeper and less shallow racks one immediately below the other to deliver a similar effect. (see pics in the link) Blue Spruce offer some (expensive) ready made wooden racks.
The hard part with shooting for a universal i guess is the very wide variety of shanks found on different chisel types - even Japanese chisels with visually similar conical sockets vary quite a bit in size, while Euro pattern chisels and carving tools with cylindrical ferrules are potentially very different again. Another issue is that on narrow/light weight chisels the handle may be much heavier than the blade - meaning they may need a socket and to be supported at the highest possible point to stop them falling over...
Last edited by ian maybury; 01-22-2015 at 9:41 AM.
Member
That would be quite impressive, I think.
Member
The latest LVT woodworking newsletter has a chisel cabinet and I like the simple design and the use of magnets rather than slots to hold the chisels.
Simon
Two ideas, sort of opposite ends of the spectrum. Look up German Work Box project on the internet. There is a set of plans Popular Woodworking published in their October 2003 issue. The plan is for a tool box on casters that can be rolled anywhere the tools are needed. The top of the box is hinged on the outside corners. The two top sections fold out to either side making a top tool box twice the size of the box itself. Inside there are lots of nice drawers. I plan to use one of these for constantly used medium size tools. The top has large open space that can hold whatever you need at that time.
I also bought a Festool Storage Systainer SYS-SB. The top parts fold out to either side, providing access to a fair number of smaller tools all at once. I place it and my Festool 9 drawer Sortainer on a Festool Systainer Roller SYS-Roll, cart made to hold systainers, along with whatever other tool systainers I need. The cart has four casters and can rotate in place, very handy for moving tools between work areas or around the shop.
Last edited by Mike Holbrook; 01-23-2015 at 7:50 PM.
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You are asking, as I read it, for ideas for portable means to store chisels, something that can be easily moved around for purposes of using the chisels in various locations. I have tried several methods over the years, including rolls, boxes of various types, racks and cabinets, but they had shortcomings such as consuming workbench-top space, not being portable, and not protecting expensive chisels from dust, rust and dings. While not an original idea at all, I have settled on a couple of solutions.
The oldest tool boxes I have are of unfinished Japanese cedar and made Pre-WWII to hold precision measuring tools for the College of Artillery at the University of Tokyo. The department changed its name after the war, of course, and I picked these boxes off of a burn pile when I was a grad student there and adapted them for my chisels. What is most interesting about these boxes is their lids, which are kept flat by two cross-grain hardwood battens. These take up space inside the box, so I can't recommend them, but for some reason, the single-board lids never warp, nor have they split despite drastic changes in humidity ranging from Mojave Desert winters to Bangkok summers. All the chisels are Kiyotada.
The two green boxes are more recent. Made of Honduras Mahogany with frame and panel construction and finished with milkpaint, they are my third effort to make a better chisel box. The dividers don't look as handy as those in the older boxes, but I have found them to be more convenient and flexible, and I think they protect the chisels better. The lids never warp or bind and are absolutely stable. Most of the chisels are also Kiyotada.
Boxes have the advantage of being absolutely portable, stackable anywhere, chisels can be used right out of the box with no more setup required than opening the lid, simply closing the lids protects the tools from dust, and the box's shape helps contain vci rust preventative vapors instead of letting them flow out.
I dislike chisel rolls in the workshop, although they make sense for the jobsite when just a few chisels are needed. Cloth alone will not protect sharp edges, and wicks rust-inducing moisture. Zero protection from rust. Leather contains chemicals that promote rust. And the chisels need to be removed from the roll prior to use, even if only to check the blade's width and profile. Chisel rolls get cut up over time if used a lot, and are not economical.
For the last few years I have been using a small kiri chest of drawers for carving chisels. If works pretty well. The chisels are a mix of Kiyotada and Konobu.
Two cents, and worth every penny.
Stan
Last edited by Stanley Covington; 01-24-2015 at 12:46 AM.
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