Always trying to clean and organise my shop so I decided to build a larger tool wall. Having many tools and picking the ones I use most is always handy and keeping them at arm's reach. This is what I call a French Cleat Plus system, because you can make tool holders that slide or hang. I like to be able to move tools around so you can add take away or rearrange any time.
Check out the build video here
To start the wall I used 1/2" baltic Birch. I cut it to 60"x40" to fit the space I had, which was between two tool cabinets. The black will be a good contrast with the light wood.
I found the wall studs and screwed the board in with 9-2" screws.
I cut 12 boards L 28" x W 5", they were all cut all 45 degrees. To cut I kept the tablesaw fence the same and just kept flipping the boards
The layout for the boards took some time to get everything symmetrical but worth it.
I attached the boards with my nail gun using 2 inch brad nails. Each board was carefully installed using guides levels and measuring tape. This ensures a precision job.
Time to make the tool holders.
Two types are made, one that slides in the slots and will not fall out and the other can be easily put on and taken off.
Here you can see the two types of holders. Making the holders and filling the tool wall takes time but is very pleasing.
Conclusion Depending on your needs both holders will work fine, both have their pros and cons, make whatever works for you. I like them both. Making the dowels any length and size is handy and convenient to fit specific tools. See also: Small tool holder
Time to build a small tool cabinet or tool holder. Woodworkers can acquire a lot of tools and keeping them organized and close at hand can sometimes be a challenge. One solution is to build a tool holder, they are easy to build and look great in a shop.
If you want to build this attractive tool holder then you will like this article. There are many kinds of tool holders and many ways to hang tools. I like hooks and an easy way to move them around so I came up with this idea. Lattice works great for the hooks and they can also be attached to wood cases and blocks for tools as you will see later.
I made some rough lattice and tested how the hooks would work. The hooks worked out fine, and now I was ready to figure out the spacing. I was now ready to build the cabinet. The lattice, hooks and spacing The diameter of the hooks are 3.51 mm. and the spacing of the lattice is 5.49 mm. I found this worked the best but I would suggest you buy some hooks and glue a few strips together like I did and do some testing. The lattice strips are first cut to the length of the tool holder and the W:19mm D:4.2mm.
Tool holder frame
The cabinet will be 18"x30"
To build the frame I started with some spruce boards, I cut them to size, cleaned them up, and made some rabbet cuts on one side. These cuts will be for the back board.
I did not install my dado blade but ran the boards through the saw a few times to get the right cut. At times this can be done faster than changing the blade and setting up. Special attention should be made when moving the fence to make the perfect cut.
The wood looks rough but some light sanding will clean it up nice. I like to build things from scraps I find in my shop so it won't cost anything.
More dado cuts are made using my miter gauge. This is not hard to do it just take a little practice and a good eye.
The dado cuts are made slowly by moving the fence after each pass, then the last few cuts are tested each time the table saw fence is moved slightly to ensure a perfect fit.
Here you can see how it all fit together with the compartments. The cabinet it first dry fitted then glued and clamped. Remember to check for squareness when clamping. You can use a large square or a measuring tape.
Some creative clamping. Sometimes blocks are used for clamping so the clamp does not leave any marks on the wood.
Many strips are cut for the lattice. The first batch was cedar and the second set was spruce. I wanted to create a nice contrast in the wood.
I used my new wooden caliber and my dowel stop gauge to make sure the lattice was lining up and keeping square. The dowel gauge was handy because it was able to span the whole length of the tool holder. The lattice was spaced so it would fit the hangers exactly, I even made it a little bit closer so the hangers and hooks would fit very snug, this way they would not fall out when you are handling tools. I found this a problem with the peg boards.
I dry fit the lattice and used spacers and made sure everything was correct. I then took out all the pieces in the exact order and laid then on the workbench. You don't want to start glueing and find a mistake.
A small line of glue is put on each strip.
After each piece is glued and measured some weights are used for clamping. The weights do not have to sit to long, I use Titebond 2 which has a strong initial tack so a few minutes will be fine. The glue joints must not be stressed for at least 24 hours.
The tool holder on my workbench waiting for the glue to dry. The next step is to fill it with tools.
Small cases are made to fit drill bits, sanders and other tools.
After each small holder was made a couple of holes were drilled in the back to fit the hooks. They had to be marked exactly to fit in the vertical part of the lattice.
Conclusion: Making tool holders is a must for any shop. This is a great tool storage solution and is easy to build, you just need a little patience to make the lattice. The lattice and hooks make it easy to move tools around without drilling new holes. I think it looks better than a peg board, it has a clean look and is a great system for placing many different tools. Mine did not cost me a cent since I made it from scraps in my shop.
