# Wall Tool Chest (potential WIP)



## Corset (23 Feb 2012)

After having a bit of a go at banging out some wardrobes which turned out ok'ish. I got some credit from the wife.






At this point I decided to start work on a wall tool chest. I have for some time kept my tools on a wall mounted plywood box which while crude has worked well for the last couple of years. It stops me losing stuff and with the inclusion of a low voltage bulb stops the rust. However i made it to long and it hardly clears my bench and was a bit ugly. Clearly this is a slightly indulgent project and the old box would work fine however...
I would like at this point to state that i do have too many tools, i don't need half of them and clearly a more talented person would produce more and collect less, but you can't help who you are and I have always loved tool chests and tools. I therefore have ended up with lots of shiny brass and metal things. When i saw the Studley tool chest many years ago I wanted to have a go at making a slightly less impressive one. Here is my attempt. 
I am not a great photograper and as my attempts are in two hour evening chunks I have sometimes forgotton to whip out the iphone. I will post a few photos and hope people might be interested in my attempts. 
I have had to buy very little wood so far as I have had some black walnut left over form a project so I decided to make the casework from this. Clearly it was rough sawn and i thicknessed it down and jointed it make the carcass.
I decided to dovetail the joints for the carcass selecting the best board orientation and allowing for the unit to be cut in half. 
Chisels ahoy




Chopping out waste with some ground back chisels.




Using some blue tape for visual aid on the pins. Thanks for the tip whoever posted this a while back cracking.




Planing back dovetails, drive by shot of plane. I am hoping to use all the tools on the project that are going in the tools chest





Next I got frame for the front made up, i used some dominos

tightjoint






Next i picked up some idiand grey silver wood planks from a tool auction fo 20 quid. no idea what it was but i thought i would veneer with it. it turned out nice from some murky grey planks








so far so good. i have got more photos as i progress if anyone is interested?
owen


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## Corset (23 Feb 2012)

Continuing.
Veneers layed out for order




shooting veneers on ingham shooting board




Trimming veneer with mitre plane that i part made a while back it was a kind of kit with the base dovetailed together but not cleaned up. Gerd Fristche kit.




venneering in bag to plywood, cherry on the opposite side




looking ok




trimming




levelling with a toothing plane




scraping




nice backing board for the chest done with a bit of oil! nice bit of wood


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## Tomyjoiner (23 Feb 2012)

Wow thats some nice grain!


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## TheTiddles (23 Feb 2012)

...wait for it, I know the comment you're going to get!


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## alex8_en (23 Feb 2012)

Looking great so far please keep the pictures coming


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## Corset (24 Feb 2012)

Continuing
popped a rebate cutter in the router.




Cut out the rebate for the panels.





Next i cleaned up the inside of the cabinet with some scraping chiseling.





I used some spare wood from the indian grey silverwood to make some panels on the router table. I forgot to take any photos at this stage but it all was quite difficult running the panel raising cutter on the narrow panels. In the end in order to maintain safety I had to rig up a special carrier block to stop the cutter being tipped into. I wished I had just set up the spindle moulder. Teach me to be lazy! 




loose fitting




bit of oil




I then cut the back panel to size and test fitted it. I decided to loose fit it for ease of removal and space saving. I also routed out the grooves for the shelves which are to be fitted later




Next I cut out some mortice holes for the back french cleats with the domino and then cut the cleats and fitted some loose tenons with epoxy. I also had to make a slight repair.


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## Corset (24 Feb 2012)

Next I had to go through the slightly scary task of parting the box. I had thought about using a hand saw and skill. However to much work had been done to rely on my own talent. so i bolted some mdf to my sliding table. Cut through to create a zero clearance. I then remove the riving knife and bolted the box to the table with it clamped to the line of the cut with some clamps. Gingerly i pushed the box through. As i was a good distance and verything bolted down it went very easily and safely as i was at least a 1m from the balde and nothing could drop off. I screwed some plates of plywood to the top and bottop for the final legth cuts so the box would not fall apart or trap the blade.





















finish was good enought to be cleaned up with few passes of the plane









hecking the fit




The back board fitted . This will help spread the weight of the mortices and help sqare up the frame.


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## Corset (24 Feb 2012)

almost upto date now sorry its a big post!
I used some spare plys and some indian grey silverwood to make some shelves and drawer dividers. I glued it in with animal glue so i could reverse it if all went wrong.





I then seemed to have been in a photographic hole.. Jumping forward i have stuck inlay to the front to provide a little decoration. It's boxwood and crosbanded walnut. This is stuck on and scraped off to provide a good finish. I avoided the sander incase it contaminanted the lighter coloured wood.














I then fitted the hinges ( i will get some photos) this was fun as i used a chisel and a router but the router slipped. I ended up using the router plane in the end and it worked well. I bought the hinges from house of brass in nottingham and they were excellant and heavy duty and extruded (is that right?) I also managed to align all the barss screw heads which should appeal to the retentive among you. I duly waxed the tread and used a metal screw to prep the way. Boring stressful and time consuming.
I realised at this point that no matter what happened with hinges the box would sag a little. Looking at the studley tool chest a i realised 
that anti sag pins had been put in by studley. So I got some brass plate and drilled and filled out some plates by hand to make some vague diamond shapes. I felt that having a pillar drill would have been handy. I am now a lot better with the file though. 




To make the pins i got some 8mm rod and cut it long, chucked it up in a drill and sanded it to a dome shape. In order to drill the hole straight I used a dowel jig. The pin went in fine with some epoxy and i cut in the brass inlay.













So I have fitted a lock and am hoping to hang on the wall tommorrow. I will post an update. Any comments welcome
Owen


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## No skills (24 Feb 2012)

Looking like a very nice cabinet for tools, grain pattern on some of it is excellent. Look forward to the finished on the wall pictures.


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## Karl (25 Feb 2012)

Looking good Owen. Should be a nice home for those tools.


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## Tierney (25 Feb 2012)

Very nice, keep the pics coming. Nice collection of tools!

David


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## Corset (27 Feb 2012)

I had a very successful three hours on the weekend and got the chest on the wall. It was a bit of a heave on my own however a good heave and it was up.
I started off by filing the lock escutcheon a simple diamond







I then set up a simple but sturdy frame to put the french cleat on. This took a while but i could hang and bounce on it and it would not move so i think i am safe upto 100kg.





Heaved it up.






Although its got the panels in the beading is yet to be moulded up. But i could not resist having a look.










So after the beading the next big question is do i make up the drawers for the 8 drawer holes at the bottom or do I start doing the 3D french fitting and racking that is required to fit all the tooling in? Input welcome.
Owen


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## Corset (15 Apr 2012)

Continuing the work that I have started I have had a few weeks off but over the last few days I have managed to get some output.
I decided to start the drawers next and have a go at hide veneeering. 
I have made a conscious effort on this project to try and use up old scraps and not get too obssesed with minor mistakes. Which is probably a good thing! I am keen to get this done and I think its easy on a project to get focused on the details and never finish the project. 
So i first used some scarp sycamore and thicknessed it down to around 10mm. I cut it to length and fine tuned with the shooting boards for the drawers. However i realised later on i have left no space for handles so I will have to think about that.
I whacked out some dovetail. They are not the finest but I struggle with chiseling out small tails due to lack of small chisels and patience. i think they probably reflect my skill level so I think its fair to have them as i can always redo the drawers when I get better. I think it took me around an 1hr a drawer as i tried to make one a night. I prefer to make the sides proud of the pins and plane them for a snug fit in the housing. I find that if I match the front drawer piece tightt and the pins are pround the drawer ends up sloppy. I expect that is just me being rubbish? I also make the back piece of the drawer a mm or so narrower in width than the fron to make fitting easier.
I fitted them together with hide glue which is quite quick to set in my cold garage so the focus is on. They went together saw cut to saw cut with little paring but they are a touch rustic.
After fitting them carefully ( as best as i could) I found some veneer offcuts I had bought and choose some interesting wood. After watching a clip on you tube (hand veneering one and two) very useful. I got started. I keyed the fronts with a toothing plane (very handy i seem to use it a lot. I then wetted the burr veneer, I am not sure what it is so ID would be gratefully received. After a quick practice I got cracked on.
|I cut the veneers oversize with a stanley knife and a straight edge and then wetted and iron the burrs. I then lathered the drawer fronts with glue. Hopefully the glue is the right consistancy and pressed on the veneer. I then left them for 20 mins and pressed the bubbles down again with some hot iron. I then trimmed them back with a knife and a plane and removed the excess glue. I then slotted them back in the cabinet. while they still need the cock beading/beading not sure what it will be and the base I am quite happy. A few gaps but not to bad.
I really enjoyed the veneering it was a first time for me and a lot of fun. Just the next four drawers and bases to do, then the cockbeading and then some handles. 
I would be grateful for any input that people may have about the box. Have I done this right?



wood cut to size



shooting to length



cutting tails forgot my iphone in garage for a bit



the veneer



toothing practise substrate



glue pot/baby bottle warmer thanks for that tip whome ever i saw on a site.



cutting veneer



ironing veneer /getting ready



stuck on drying



trimmed on ready to fit



FITTED, ish !


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## adidat (15 Apr 2012)

Wow that looks fantastic wish my own effort looked something like that  



>



Bit of a sneaky gloat slipping that in :lol: what is it?

Adidat


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## Corset (15 Apr 2012)

Its a gerd fritsche kit i did a while ago. The sides came ready peined but it was fun. The wood needs a bit more work but it is a fantastic plane the blade is sooo thick. It does not know the word chatter. Really getting some use out of it now.
owen


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## Corset (2 May 2012)

Continuing on with the wall chest. I have made up the bottom set of drawers. These were made in cherry as i had some scrap wood available roughly the right size. I cut the number of dovetails down to ease construction and veneered the fronts on again with the burr veneer. I fitted them to the holes and the next step is fitting the recessed drawer pulls. Its taken me some time to track down the pulls the right size as most seemed to be to big or very poor quality. Got these of ebay and they seem to have been recycled from another piece.
I have never fitted them before so any tips would be really greatfully received.  
owen


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## matmac (2 May 2012)

That is a beauty mate, fair does.


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## Unib (3 May 2012)

There's some serious tool porn to be envious of going on in these posts!! :shock: 

Very nicely done an an excellent account of the build =D>


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## Tony Spear (3 May 2012)

TheTiddles":17kjvzws said:


> ...wait for it, I know the comment you're going to get!



Something like MAJOR GLOAT ALERT? :mrgreen:


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## AndyT (3 May 2012)

Nice work indeed! I've never fitted those pulls myself, but if I was going to, I think I would:

a) press the back of one into a bit of plasticine to show how big a hollow is needed to accommodate it - then you know what your finished excavation will look like, and

b) do at least one dry run on a piece of scrap first!


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## Corset (3 May 2012)

I am not sure whether to cut a jig out and run a router to remove the bulk. Or use a drill press to remove the middle dimple. I know i will do the last few millimetres with chisel and a knife line but it feels very risky.
Owen


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## AndyT (3 May 2012)

That's why I'd do a rehearsal or two - try out one method and if it's not good enough, try another. My first thought would be to use a gouge to carve out the dimple to match the plasticine cast, then set the pull in place and knife around it, and excavate for the back plate with a little Stanley 271 - but I'm not a fan of using electric routers for this sort of thing; others are.

(And this is only from thinking about it - not direct experience!)


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## wallace (3 May 2012)

A like it alot.


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## Rob Platt (5 May 2012)

seem to remember last time i fitted something like those pulls i used either a forstner bit or possibly a kitchen hinge cutter. obviously dependant on sizes .
hth
all the best
rob


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## Corset (26 Jun 2012)

Its been a while a since I last updated and things have taken a little hiatus. I was making steady progress when i got an ear infection, dind't think too much of it. However I soon woke up deaf, dizzy and with nausea. Couldnt walk 20ft without falling over. Then just as that started to clear up I have now got bells palsy so half my face is paralysed. Brilliant! I am only 36 I am falling to pieces. Its been a bit of a knock.
On the bright side my daughter was one today.
Anyway back to the chest :? 

I tried out some sample insetting of the pulls into the drawer fronts and nothing would make a satisfactory fit without major problems so I scapped this plan.










I then decided to rethink my options and decided to resort to a simple pull. I worked out that i could have a 10mm pull if i offset the handles on each side of the chest leaves. I went for simple and as I can't turn i decied for a profiled pull. I used the domino to slot out the pull locations. 5mm slot cut. easy!








I then routed out the slots in the drawer fronts for the cock bead. I found this very stressful as i tore out the veneer and as a result had to knife out all the grooves first to avoid splitting. I then worked back with a shoulder plane to get a clean edge. At this point the dovetails were largely obscured and I must be honest I am not sure it was worth the effort as I could have jointed them more easlily without the pain. I trimmed off the waste with a saw to sped things up!








I then got to work with the ebony strips. They were variable shade of blacks so I have tinted them all. But they were a cheap ebony turning blank and some old strips that i had so i can't complain. I created a thicknessing jig by routing out a groove to plane the bandsawn strips to the right thickness (packed out with tape). I also created some narrow strips to hold the strips upright when i planed then down in th width. I then uses a cabinet scraper with a hole shape out witha drill bit and file to create the simple bead profile. Simple and effective. 




I then made a mitre jig which is a simple bit of ply. This allowed me to use my pull saw and my chisels. It worked very well and i would have liked to use the narrow edge on the back of the chisel but japanese chisels preclude this.
I was left with a somex comple mitres for the top piece of beading but they turned out ok and perfection can be next time. :lol: 




















All the beads were stuck on with hide glue which was handy I needed to reverse a few bits later on. I started on trim glue by titebond but we didn't get on.
Finally I started making the handles. i routed out the srips with a plough plane (a record 50c, not sure if i had all that set up right) and then tweaked with the lovely veritas router plane and side rebate planes. I then profiled them with old moulding planes. Which are brilliant for thsi sort of thing. Chopped to length with the mitre saw, old style. Excuse the mess i was on a mission to get it done.


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## Corset (29 Jun 2012)

After a slightly less than great week I managed to get a few hours in the garage and moved things on a bit. I got the handles fixed in and planed the dawers to a reasonable fit. I will final tweak them in a couple of days.
I then made up some drawers slips from some scrap maple and glued and pined them in place.
Next step cut the ply for the bottom, fit some stops and then on to the complex bit. Bit sick of the time spent on them :?









Rough shot of them in place. I think they will be servicable with some wax and a buff!


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## condeesteso (29 Jun 2012)

There's such a lot here. An amazing cabinet, tools to drool over. Some very neat processes... and a few tricks (I like Andy's plasticine one, for example).
I feel it was bold to split the halves with the Tsaw (not even half as bold as contemplating a handsaw though). I have seen it done with a bandsaw which can offer a far thinner kerf. The tablesaw will be easier but I felt it a shame you might have lost almost 3mm of matched stock in the process. Still amazing though - a piece of very fine furniture that any home would be embarrassed to accommodate, let alone a workshop.
Well done for making it, but then taking so many pics along the way. A versatile achievement indeed.


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## Corset (29 Jun 2012)

Cheers, I feel i have started on a monster and I need to keep the motivation going. I have a plan for the inside in my mind and i think its going to be fun and games. I realised when i did the drawers that i had only done the simple bits so far. :shock: 
Owen


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## wobblycogs (7 Jul 2012)

I've not had a look in the projects section for a while so it was a pleasure to come across this build. It's clearly been a lot of work but I think the end result is more than worth it.


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## adzeman (7 Jul 2012)

I dont know what to say, this quality of craftmanship makes any comment I could make superfluous. What makes it worse is I am in the process of making a wall tool box myself which is about 75% complete. I have taken a few pic's with the intention of putting them on a post and then, see this marvellous piece of work, nay art, against my ulitarian effort (I did use an nice piece of oak thoough) posting.php?mode=reply&f=15&t=58767#


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## Corset (8 Jul 2012)

I think my photographs are hiding the mistakes well.  
Get the pictures up! the work that people produce is on the whole what interest me most. I have nothing but respect for what other people do and as such i find it hard to see anything negative in others effort. I think if you make the effort to produce something of your own when we live in a world thats easier (and often cheaper) to buy something then respect is due.
I think tool boxes etc are a form of art in themselves regardless of their complexity.
Owen


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## Corset (13 Aug 2012)

After an olympic sized break I have been back on with the project. First steps were veneering the back panel for the 1st tool bank.
veneers




glued and in the bag etc








cut to size and rough fitting




I then built a box the same size to try out a few layouts.




cut some wedges on the mitre saw as a test.




Using a combination of wedges and magnets we have some holders




I then made some nicer wedges out of some browny mahogany type wood, unknown. These were matched to width for the planes.


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## Corset (13 Aug 2012)

Leveled the wedges off in the drillpress with the digital protractor and cut out some strips for the greenheart (thanks for the id folks) wear strips and holes drilled for the magnets. I held them in place with the lee valley magnet holders which are great.








mock up








I was going to screw in the wedges but changed my mind. Then I found the magnets were not quite holding the slipping so I spend a lot of time fiddling with shapes involving the rasps and bandsaw to make some holders.




So far some planes fitted and hammer. 




close up of screwdriver hidden








so far i have fitted three planes, hammers, a screwdriver and bits, side rebate plane. Next job will be the block planes, one more plane and some pincers. 
When i started with this i had visions of a studley level of ingenuity however reality has sunk in and it is very difficult to easily build something in 3d and have all bits accessable. I have already had to move and adjust things due to collisions. I have screwed things in so at a later date I can upgrade the fittings. In adition I have accepted that some items will have to be pulled out to get to others but i have applied logic. I have placed the pincers behind the hammer, chances are if i have miss nailed something i will need pincers, therefore the hammer will apready be out.
The side rebate is hard to access but i rarely use it. The main planes can be accessed without difficulty. 
I think I have wasted about 10hours on duff layouts just for these few items. Hope you are enjying the snail like progress.
owen


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## No skills (14 Aug 2012)

Slow is my middle name so I wouldnt worry about your progress. I like the offset handles on the drawers, makes you realise how tight everything is/will be. You are quite correct about storing things in a compact space v's actually using them, a difficult task indeed. I have been considering a swing out saw till and chisel rack for my own future chest (ie probably never :lol: ) to give compact storage but allow access, having lighter tools/objects on moveable sections should put less stress on the hinged parts.


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## Corset (14 Aug 2012)

Interesting. I have plan for a tilting chisel rack and was considering how to approach the saws or even to fit them in. I would be interested in other ideas as their is less out there on the web to copy or get inspired from than you think. I guess not everybody is willing to waste this much time :lol: 
owen


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## No skills (14 Aug 2012)

The only other thing that had come to mind is some variation of the moveable tills in the tool chests that Chris Schwarz is popularising, having three verticle 'drawers' that can be pulled out one at a time - each drawer (more like a rack ) having small/medium sized tools mounted on it (possably on both sides). This would allow tools to be crammed into a small space but with good visability and accessability once the drawer/rack is pulled out (on full extension runners).

Anyways enough rubbish from me.


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## Corset (18 Oct 2012)

After a brief pause due to work and a quick table the wife made me knock out




I have got back to my tool chest. After much pondering I decided to make a tilting chisel rack to allow easy access to stuff behind and ease of use.
I wanted to see the chisel blades and have them held firm so i decided to make use of some rare earth magnets.
I started by hammer veneering a back panel.








I then made some racks to mount the chisels in 




Fitted the knife hinge




made a seperator for the chisels.




then I inserted magnets and glued it together. I then realised this was rubbish and was never going to work!! The rack flopped forward at a silly pace it was wobbly and rubbish.  




8 hours down the drain.
I rethought the options and decided that the rack was ok, but the hinge needed friction. I then did some research on torsion hinges and decided on some by sugasune. Very stiff but allowed positioning of the rack as needed with the chisels in. I then routed out the chisel partions, routed out the magnet strip, fitted a strip to hold the magnets, glued the rack back together. Routed the torsion hinges. and fitted them.
I then felt the hinge would exert too much pressure on the wood so i tapped out some aluminium strips to fit the hinge through too to allow the pressure to be spread. 
















I then decorated the retaining strip with some veneer and fitted two racks of chisel.








Clearly I have missed a few photos but I hope you get the idea. It seems to work well 
I have left enough space for a set of rasps and misc tools and the back panel will house my big rasps and paring chisels. To follow soon. Any comments welcome!
Owen


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## No skills (22 Oct 2012)

A reefkeeper?


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## Corset (25 Oct 2012)

I have only just worked out what you meant. :lol: 
My wife is the fishkeeper, we used to have seahorse but we now have a few shrimps and some clown fishes and a couple of snails. Since having two kids it seems a bit harder to find the time.
Owen


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## No skills (25 Oct 2012)

Corset":ude5t95s said:


> I have only just worked out what you meant. :lol:
> My wife is the fishkeeper, we used to have seahorse but we now have a few shrimps and some clown fishes and a couple of snails. Since having two kids it seems a bit harder to find the time.
> Owen



 

Very true, had to give up on mine.


Chisel rack turned out ok in the end.


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## Corset (20 Dec 2012)

After a bit of hiatus building some bird boxes and a toy chest for the son. I have managed to squeeze in some work on the chest.
Not a massive amount of work but fiddly as the handles of the planes are very close tolerance.
I started with the jointer plane as i had allowed for that to fit in gap below the hammer on the other half of the chest when closed. this would allow me to store some long tools and i have currently stuffed this with some spare tools. Then i added the carcass saw with space for the dovetail saw.
I then rustled up some dividers from some sapele off cuts i had and template cut them with the router, then using a combination of magnets and stops of wood fitted the tools in place. Took a long time but looks straightforward.
The fittings a bit ugly so i have a few bits of trim to stick on to cover the magnets and screws etc.
I have fitted an enclosure heater with safe touch closure to prevent rust on the tools. This will be hidded by a brass grill but i am not sure if i have been to clever and i would have been better with a low voltage light bulb, i am not sure this will stop the problem in the summer? Peoples thoughts on this would be appreciated as i have never used a heater before and one of the primary purpose of the chest is to hold back the rust.
Hope people are enjoying the slow progress. 
Next fitting the some more planes and the long rasps, paring chisels and measuring tools.
all tools in





close up




showing some storage behind the planes


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## Corset (18 Mar 2013)

Its been a brief hiatus while i have completed some diy type tasks around the house however i have progressed a bit further.
I have fitted a few new planes with the usual combination of magnets and stops. While not oiled yet you get the general picture.












So after rehandling a few chisels and rasps of which i ama big fan i desecided to embark on the 3d bit.




i had a racking plan!




copied off a wrench rack i own.
I then had to work out the 3d space left or come up with a cunning plan.
At work i found some celotex perfect
cut to size




press hard into space
leaves dents!




cut out dents front and back et voila!












fold front door into rear




i now have a template to lay out all my rasps and chisels for their lift up rack!


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## stoatyboy (19 Mar 2013)

Ten out of ten to you buddy - both for sticking at the project and for posting so much interesting pictures - loving it

looks fabulous well done


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## Corset (1 Jan 2015)

I note from last post thats its been over a year and a half since i last posted. It appears with my garden overhaul and general diy jobs round the house the chest has not been worked upon. It has however been in regular use.
I have been fiddling with producing a chisel/rasp rack to the style that suits. I attempted a bit of metalworking so those whom are familiar with these dark arts should prepare to look away with horror...
My basic design was to produce a rack that could be moved out of the way and yet still allow easy access. Originally this was was going to be wood but i felt the rasps would errode this too quickly. I then tried an aluminium design that was part wood. But it loooked so wrong i started again.




I then came to the conclusion that a combination of brass and magnets would do the trick. I laid out the rasps etc on my foam to get a negative imprint 



I then had a go with brass which resulted in the finalish design. However metalworking is quite slow and exacting so it seems to have taken a while to get there.



tapping and sizing






A bit of hand filing followed, polishing adjusting. i lost track of how many hours



each magnet was adjusted to fit note shocking accuracy of my milling and grinding




At this point i was going to make some hinges. However i totted up the time spent so far and decided life is to short. I bought these hinges which might have been used to hand a car door or something hefty. I felt the lipping would stop droop when fitted. I cut the long ones the wrong length so ending up using a shorter pair i had as spare.



testing fit to align in cabinet. I then used the wood to as a jig to fit the rack hinge accurately



After a bit of fun and games here it is fitted. I have a bit of trimming to do and the not brass machine screws need replacement with some brass ones and a few bits of polishing to complete.. However i am broadly happy and next job racking in the measuring tools. And moving the scrub plane 5cm to ensure a clean fitt



open




I look at it here and it looks pretty simple but i think about 40hours has gone into maybe more.quite worrying.........


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## paul-c (2 Jan 2015)

great toolcabinet - thanks for sharing this
cheers paul-c


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## Water-Mark (3 Jan 2015)

Thats quite stunning.
I am rather partial to some good storage solutions.


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## markblue777 (8 Jan 2015)

Woow Owen, just woow. Some great work there. Love the grain on that wood and like the tool chest as a whole. I especially like the little touch of the fold out rack. 

When I get the my own dedicated workshop I will be making something like this for sure.
Cheers
Mark


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## tobytools (8 Jan 2015)

I missed this post some how...... 
Wow, has to be one of the nicest cabinet and tool selections I've seen. I really love the rasp rack that swings out genius 

Keep it comming 

TT


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## paulrockliffe (8 Jan 2015)

Wow! That looks pretty amazing!

Any idea how many hours the whole thing has consumed?


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## Corset (9 Jan 2015)

not sure how many hours have gone into it but its in the hundreds.
Its interesting as i have worked with it as i have been able to take my time in terms of what needs to go where and how.
When i get the marking and measuring section fitted the chest will be close to fully fitted and then it will just be a case of tweaking for the odd new item.
While i clearly have too many tools i find the wall chest means i tend to use them all more as everything is at hand. Plus i tend to tidy up at the end of the day.
I know that traditional tool chests are popular at present but they didnt work out for me, i was either tripping over it, put something on top of it when i needed to get it in or sitting on it being lazy.
In a small workshop it makes a lot of sense.


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## Corset (29 Mar 2015)

Its been a while and in between building a few things for the house, such as a shoe chest, its been hard to justify working on a project which is not entirely practical however i managed to sneak a few hours in and have begun installing the measuring/marking section. 
I kept it simple and produced a simple dovetailed box and tilled it with some tools. 
I had to hinge the storage for the combination square so its easy to access and as it does not quite have enough room to slide in gently. Its not as finessed as i would like but at the end of the day the tools were getting damaged lying around while i did it in drawers. 
Its obvisually hinged and i need to make a bracket to hold it up and allow easy access to the area behind. Which is fairly substantial thank goodness. 



 
empty unit 


 
fitting top hinge section 


 


 
test fitting tools 



 
i am really messy!!! 


 
pre cutting hinge mortice for the bracket to avoid mess later on/ 


 


 
fitted 


 
lifted up 


 


 
close up of fit of combination square hinge 
any comments welcome


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## tobytools (29 Mar 2015)

speechless....
TT


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## Berncarpenter (29 Mar 2015)

Just read your post from start to finish and loved every bit of it. Amazing design work , craftsmanship and tools :mrgreen:

Cheers Bern


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## Corset (9 Dec 2015)

It seems like a long time since i posted and while it hasn't been a complete halt, i have slowed a bit. I bought the book on studleys tool chest and it psyched me out. I realised how far away from that i was, it was a bit depressing. However after reading through the book a bit more it became apparent that the tool chest was bulit more for appearance than pure practicality . While my tool chest is less a thing of beauty i am happy with the layout. So proceed i did!
I have always felt i should make some brace bits storage and lets face it they look cool.
So starting with some bits of walnut i drilled out the holes to hold the top of the bits. I used the next size bit for the bit before if that makes sense and it allowed it to wiggle enough to pop it in and out easily.
I place a base piece that i hollowed the tangs of the bits for to stop the rocking when it opened. I had a bit of adjustment to get enough clearance to hold the bits tight and allow easy in out access































I was pretty happy with how i mounted in.




I then decided i had a bit of space for the router plane in the top left and made it out of some offcuts of ebony.
I also got my coping saw to sit perfectly on the rear of the rasp and chisel rack










Front storage back in with a marking knife. This was a bit cluttered so i trimmed out the magnetic strips which had the centre finder and angle finder on it. When this sort of thing occurs its just so impressive that studley seemed to get it right first time. I have had to take out, take in bits 20-30 times to get it right.


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## Corset (9 Dec 2015)

At this point i realised that i could fit in a section that would fold down to hold the dividers and other handy measuring devices. I tried out a few failed designs, some of which stressed out the fold down panel enough to break the wood. I therefore had to fabricate some hinges form some brass stock, silver steel etc. About 6 hours of faffing later you can see the results.







I also managed to knock in an ebony bracket to hold the sliding bevel.




I then cleaned up the measuring section and a slightly indulgant combination square got squeezed in. I also managed to make some ruler holders that allow easy access but are firmly held with a magnet. 
You can just see a little stanley no1 replica that i picked up from woodworkers workshop, a lovely plane and i cannot understand why people dismiss it as a toy. It allows more force in a small area than a block plane (for me anyway) and i can see why they are well used. plus they look cool!









I am using it quite a bit to make some christmans gift boxes, and some furniture for the house and it is surprisingly easy to work from, plus i tend to put everything back everytime which means i havn't lost anything for a while. I am very happy but a long way to go!
Hope the update is of interest!


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## Westwood (9 Dec 2015)

Lovely workmanship - well done


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## Water-Mark (9 Dec 2015)

Thats outstanding.

Must be some weight it that now


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## n0legs (9 Dec 2015)

Very nice, very very nice =D>


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## No skills (9 Dec 2015)

Blast from the past, I had forgotten about this project..

It's useable artwork, no more no less.


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## mickthetree (10 Dec 2015)

Stunning!! Only just happened across this post. Superb work.


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## Wildman (10 Dec 2015)

some really neat tool storage ideas there thanks.


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## IHc1vtr+ (10 Dec 2015)

Now that is awesome, i am lost for any more words!!


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## rafezetter (12 Dec 2015)

I've only just come across this post too - really really impressive design and execution there. 

That veneer shooting board was interesting as well.

Without being morbid, down the line I'll bet a well heeled hobbyist would pay a good chunk of money for that as a complete item.


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## Biliphuster (17 Dec 2015)

Fantastic work, very impressive.

Clever that you put the heavy lanes on the foldout side near the hinges, has the chest sagged at all? do you leave it closed when not in use?


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## Corset (19 Dec 2015)

I leave the chest closed when not in use so the sagging seems minimal. However the door has 3mm gap at the bottom which is probably due to the weight. However it all basically seems to be ok.
I suspect if someone ever flogged it would they strip out the tools and sell them separately, I suspect it's probably worth more that way. Hopefully that won't be required any time soon.
Owen


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## brianhabby (25 Dec 2015)

What a fantastic piece of work, you should be very proud. I have not been watching the projects section for a while so have only just seen this thread. I am in the process of building a wall hanging tool chest in my tiny (12'x10') workshop but it just does not compare to what you have achieved.

regards 

Brian


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## Brian18741 (7 Jan 2016)

I'm a little late to the party but wow, this is outstanding!


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## Wizard9999 (8 Jan 2016)

Just read from start to finish, WOW!


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## Dovetaildave (22 Jan 2016)

> I'm a little late to the party but wow, this is outstanding!



Party...Party....I'm a mate of John's, yeah John.... can I come in ? I've got this






Is there room in the *fantastic* (_I really mean it ..hic_) cabinet for one of these er _tools_?





On a slightly more serious note though.... I've made a few tool cabinets in recent years from cheap plywood and have struggled with spacial planning of it, more than the actual (cruder) fitting out and they are only two layers deep in places, ('cept 3 layers for drill bits on 3 loose blocks on one deep shelf, I know.... how many ways are there to drill a hole with a wheelbrace, ask Alf eh?). I think the hinged (from top) flap holding the planes was my worst decision as its soooo heavy can hardly lift it to access the smaller saws.

How did you decide the size of the case itself.....did you pile the tools up and calculate the volume thus finding the case size, or the reverse?
Wheelbraces and egg beaters, speciality planes, woodies, striking impliments, would a second door be an option for future expansion ? Hung from an additional side, opening out to the right.
The drawers, are they going to be fitted out as well ?, maybe one with a tiny cute widthways sliding tray? 

Read a great article in Finewoodworking ....or was it in Popularwoodworking?....showing "French fitting" that maybe of interest to you.

Looking great and hope you're well, looking forward to reading your next upload....may it be soon =P~ 

*Vicariously* yours,
Dave


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## Corset (5 Feb 2016)

Thanks for the kind comments, I have been doing a lot of trial and error fitting to get it right although I did measure the jointer plane as my max measurement. Drawers will be French fitted when I get time. However for a man doing this properly check this out.
http://donsbarn.com/portrait-of-a-man-who-must-not-sleep/


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## Alexam (6 Feb 2016)

Unique and quite outstanding. No excuse now for an untidy bench. Well done.


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## Graham Orm (6 Feb 2016)

Wow that's stunning. Move over Studley!


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