Chisel storage

tobinsuke

tobinsuke

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I currently store my chisels in a drawer. This has served me well for a while, as I only have 8 and the entire drawer (14" deep X 15" wide X 4" tall) has been dedicated to their storage. That is, there has been enough space between them that I haven't needed a physical barrier to prevent them from knocking into each other.
My shop is small, and this is no longer a good solution (and likely never was) - that drawer space is getting more valuable as I accumulate tools. I would like to free up some of the space that I have been relying on to protect the edges. Since I use (some of) the chisels often, I do not want to store them in a roll, and I am also hesitant to give them a permanent home on my bench as that real estate is non-negotiable.
Does anyone have a good suggestion for storing these babies? My goal is to stow them safely, somewhere easily accessed, taking up as little space as possible.

Oh, I have looked into and ruled out cutlery/silverware-type trays, as I don't think this would save me much space.
Thanks,
Tobin Crooks
 
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tobinsuke said:
I currently store my chisels in a drawer. This has served me well for a while, as I only have 8 and the entire drawer (14" deep X 15" wide X 4" tall) has been dedicated to their storage. That is, there has been enough space between them that I haven't needed a physical barrier to prevent them from knocking into each other.
My shop is small, and this is no longer a good solution (and likely never was) - that drawer space is getting more valuable as I accumulate tools. I would like to free up some of the space that I have been relying on to protect the edges. Since I use (some of) the chisels often, I do not want to store them in a roll, and I am also hesitant to give them a permanent home on my bench as that real estate is non-negotiable.
Does anyone have a good suggestion for storing these babies? My goal is to stow them safely, somewhere easily accessed, taking up as little space as possible.

Oh, I have looked into and ruled out cutlery/silverware-type trays, as I don't think this would save me much space.
Thanks,
Tobin Crooks
Click to expand...

I would retrofit the back edge of the workbench to accommodate the chisels. Glue scrap blocks of wood, approximately 1/4 to 3/8" thick, to the back of the bench, flush with the top. Make the blocks a couple of inches long, and space them as needed. Across the back of these blocks attach a strip of wood of similar thickness of the blocks, also flush with the bench top, and the length of the bench. This will create rectangular, vertical slots at the back edge of the bench.

Hang the chisels in the slots. Only the handles will protrude above the bench, the chisels will not touch, and the sharp edges will be concealed. Should add less than in inch to the depth of your bench....
 
Nice idea. Thanks for posting. Unfortunately, my workbench is in a corner ( w/ back and left edges against walls). I think the handles would be in my way if they were along the right edge. But that's a cool idea.

Tobin Crooks
 
Blade down in a jar of salt water with some broken sharpening stones in the bottom!

Just kidding...
 
Can you mount a board of suitable width and thickness above your workbench where it'd basically be out of your way when you're using the bench? Drill holes in it to accommodate the individual chisels. That way they're handy but still out of the way, then all you have to do is stand up/reach up to grab one as needed.
 
Itsme, this is probably the direction I'll go. Wall space is also a little tight, but I reckon upright takes up less space than lying down.

After a quick look around... Yeah, I can make that work. There's a nice space between studs near the bench. I'll have to cut slots from the edge to the holes for a couple (the blades of 2 of them are broader than the handle), but this is the way to go. Will also be easy to alter if I acquire more chisels.

Thanks.


So ends the dullest thread ever.
 
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C'mon Sven, show us the combination lock safe where you store yours.

Sven has 90% by value of all Sweden's chisels.
 
I was inspired by your discussion of where to put your chisels (and other tools) and decided to try something myself.

This is what I made out of a beech shelf and a piece of walnut veneer that were left over from previous projects. We normally have beech lattice in all different sizes, but I didn't have anything that really fit what I wanted to do with the spacers inside, so I just used spruce bracing material instead....

P1030250_sm.jpg P1030253_sm.jpg P1030260_sm.jpg P1030267_sm.jpg P1030273_sm.jpg
 
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Erich, that looks great! Nice. I ended up drilling holes in a piece of scrap and then cutting slots as needed for the broader chisels. I gave away a couple of hammers I don't use much anymore (don't do much metalwork these days beyond parts for jigs and some banjo ukulele hardware) to free up pegboard space, and... Presto. More functional than pretty, but it does the job.

Tobin Crooks.
 
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