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I desperately need a roll around tool cart.

Trboatworks

Diamond
Joined
Oct 23, 2010
Location
Maryland- USA
I have been turning around and stacking stuff up on the band saw table when I have need to clear the bench for big work.
That works for a while till I need the BS then I shift the crap somewhere else...

What are you guys doing for this.
I am guessing a 4" deep tray on top with a rack or two for basic hand tools plus a drawer?
I am just going to knack something together with scrap eh..
 
I have been turning around and stacking stuff up on the band saw table when I have need to clear the bench for big work.
That works for a while till I need the BS then I shift the crap somewhere else...

What are you guys doing for this.
I am guessing a 4" deep tray on top with a rack or two for basic hand tools plus a drawer?
I am just going to knack something together with scrap eh..

You only need an 1-2" lip on top 4" is too high.......I like the Strong Hold and Little Giant carts when I can find them used?
If your building your own, one thing I would add to any cart, a brace to support the flat shelf, makes a world of difference in the stiffness!

Here's some ideas;

Shop '-' Strong Hold

Shelf Trucks | Little Giant Products

welded steel carts - Google Search

Trucks & Carts | Steel Carts | Steel Stock & Utility Carts - Welded - GlobalIndustrial.com

Kevin
 
I have had the same problem for years. Last year I finally got sick of moving the crap and just started unloading it. Selling, putting things away, garbage can, scrap dumpster, anywhere appropriate. I'm still working on decluttering the shop, but at least now I can move around.

As to your cart idea, it's a good idea. But, I had 4 of them and they just got cluttered too. So, out the door they went too. Sold them to another shop.

Sorry if I didn't answer your question. But from my experience, it won't help having carts.

Sent from my rotary dial flip fone
 
A bought tool cart is fine..but we had a guy at the big shop, John Nasser he bought wood and made a number of us guys a nice tool cart. I still have mine out in my shop.

John was a submarine guy in the navy, and a few years after I met him, and still a young man got some crazy fast-growing cancer the likes of which those doctors had not seen. I think he got a high radiation dose in the Navy.

I think a tool tote is also handy.. "for this job only," so it does not get cluttered with once-in-a-lifetime use tools.


Here is a fellow selling plans..but not the cart I would choose. I would stand the top box up/open.
and not have the flat/shelf at the bottom. Just a guess about $60 for store-bought wood and wheels.
And one can buy plastic and steel carts for $100 to $200.
HANDY WORKSHOP / GARAGE CART (WOOD PLANS ONLY) | eBay
 
I have had the same problem for years. Last year I finally got sick of moving the crap and just started unloading it. Selling, putting things away, garbage can, scrap dumpster, anywhere appropriate. I'm still working on decluttering the shop, but at least now I can move around.

As to your cart idea, it's a good idea. But, I had 4 of them and they just got cluttered too. So, out the door they went too. Sold them to another shop.

Sorry if I didn't answer your question. But from my experience, it won't help having carts.

Sent from my rotary dial flip fone

I have the same problem now, I need to start thinning the herd, just have to stop buying projects!

It doesn't matter if the flat surface is mobile or not it will get filled with crap!

Kevin
 
I also have a case of "flat surfacitis". Being a job shop, I always have leftovers, special tools and jigs. I have tool carts with drawers for small tools the tops of which usually have remains of the last job. The tool carts are dedicated to the machines they serve and only move for cleaning or access to a part of the machine.

I would not encourage a bunch of mobile carts as they will quickly become mobile semi-permanent storage. They will multiply like rabbits. Soon you will have add an addition to store the carts and their stuff.

Before resorting to carts, re-access how much of the "stuff" you really need and dispose of the rest.

Tom
 
I buy cheap 4 drawer old, heavy duty, file cabinets, often for under $15 at roadsides and auctions, and screw them to dollies from HF. If you really want a tray top, get the 3 draw height, and screw a woodend tray with edges on top of it. I have a few with shallow drawers (4" - 6" depth?) and maybe a dozen of them in the same height as a typical 4 file draw stack. These are every bit as good as a flat open space, but there are multiple flat open spaces to access, depending which drawer is open.

In reality, most have become parked, wheels removed, in metal and wood shop.
But there is still one of the multiple-shallow draw hi-stacks on a dolly in my wood shop; and a 4 draw file, same in the hangar for parts and tools. There is a $5 recently acquired 3-file-draw height unit here to add to a dolly and take along to the hangar as well. It will probably get a tray top. In the hangar it's best to keep tools and parts organized & enclosed. People still "share" but are more careful where they get returned.
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To reiterate: You want the old, heavy drawer units. Modern file stacks are flimsy for tools.

DSC_0012.jpg

smt
 
https://www.homedepot.com/p/WEN-40-in-x-17-in-2-Shelf-Service-Utility-Cart-with-500-lbs-Capacity-73009/310332079?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&&mtc=Shopping-B-F_D25T-G-D25T-MULTI-Multi-NA-Feed-SMART-NA-NA-PortablePower_SmartShopping_HighOrganic&cm_mmc=Shopping-B-F_D25T-G-D25T-MULTI-Multi-NA-Feed-SMART-NA-NA-PortablePower_SmartShopping_HighOrganic-71700000081625943-58700006942154417-92700062499001868&gclid=CjwKCAjw49qKBhAoEiwAHQVTo9V6IkCMjcI3vdhgYn2AYaHTSezSgLFMcO_YJp1xwBrsSkuNthJoqhoCJDEQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

We have 20-30 of these carts around the shop, but I 100% agree that having carts doesn't cure an organizational problem. My dad was the worst as it seems like he was always building benches, carts, and shelves, while there were others full of clutter. Having carts and benches helps, but only so far as keeping jobs and projects together and mobile. The absolute best help is to gain the mentality that no matter how rushed you are, how important a task is, or how minimal it might seem, a job or project is never done until the remaining "stuff" is put away. It's no different than physically finishing a job while never doing the paperwork to bill the customer or arrange shipping.

That said, I would only have as many benches as there are workers or work spaces, and only as many carts as there are jobs in progress at a given time. Part of keeping a good work flow is being able to see when a job is paused or stalled and being able to quickly get it out of the way until the needed resources or time comes.

I can also say that the idea of "I'm not putting this away because I might use it soon," or "I'm going to keep this where I can see it so I don't loose it," are the biggest handicaps in workflow. Keeping the workflow organized and tool and material organization are separate things in my experience and one shouldn't hinder the other. If putting something away slows you down, then you need to rethink how you organize your tools and materials.
 
The absolute best help is to gain the mentality that no matter how rushed you are, how important a task is, or how minimal it might seem, a job or project is never done until the remaining "stuff" is put away. It's no different than physically finishing a job while never doing the paperwork to bill the customer or arrange shipping.


I can also say that the idea of "I'm not putting this away because I might use it soon," or "I'm going to keep this where I can see it so I don't loose it," are the biggest handicaps in workflow. Keeping the workflow organized and tool and material organization are separate things in my experience and one shouldn't hinder the other. If putting something away slows you down, then you need to rethink how you organize your tools and materials.

This is it! Do you make your bed, brush your teeth, take out the trash? Then train yourself to put your shit away in the shop!

Full disclosure: I've failed miserably at this, but am still trying
 
LOL- thanks guys.

In my defense the problem is not organization per se or cleaning up.
It is more the heat of battle when a large part is being made on the bench and tools and materials are fetched to the work and shed from it as I work.
Some are needed time and again but if I am shifting the piece or needing the table saw etc tools need shifted back from the battle front a bit.

So... I turn around and set things down on the machine tables, or the cover of the lathe, or the floor if really desperate.
Then I suddenly need the machine which has things set on it so the sundry is shifted somewhere.
In the worse case I am putting things down randomly and while I would know just where to find them in the cabinets now they are set out somewhere.....

This is typical-
Big work on the main bench:

Screen Shot 2021-10-01 at 7.09.39 PM.jpg

And crap set on the band saw:

Screen Shot 2021-10-01 at 7.10.29 PM.jpg

Till "crap I need the band saw as the table saw is covered up" so the sundry on the ripping BS is transferred to the scroll BS and so it goes...

Screen Shot 2021-10-01 at 7.10.54 PM.jpg


My dream is a roll around cart to serve as that temporary set things down catch all as well as having some key stuff I need every time I work.
Its a small dream but I gotta do something- I have been turning around and setting things on machine tables for years and that has got to stop.
The joys of a small shop eh.
 
To reiterate: You want the old, heavy drawer units. Modern file stacks are flimsy for tools.

View attachment 330502

smt

Stephen- on it.
These were bought out of a Junior college decades ago by my dad and dragged home to be used as tool cabinets.
They are the stuff- every bit as good of quality as a top line kit special built for tools.

I have them tucked under the main bench and wish I had a couple more:

Screen Shot 2021-10-01 at 7.26.31 PM.jpg

These are Remington Rand:

Screen Shot 2021-10-01 at 7.26.49 PM.jpg
 
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I have much the same problem in a super-small home shop space, with having to move stuff off of machines-as-storage-space in order to use machines as intended. If you have the room to use rolling carts, they can be a big help. I have purchased a number of tray-top and flat-top carts from Global Industrial for the shop and labs at my company, but I can't use them in my home shop at all. The flat-top units are my preference. The 28x44 carts have 400-lb load rating allegedly, which is decent.
 
I'm Bryan and I'm a tool/part/thing piler....

OK, what do I observe helps?
1. The "crap" on the bandsaw isn't crap, it's work material that will likely soon be needed. But it is homeless. Find it a home. Label this home. Make it comfortable in its home. Then you will find it at home.
2. Make racks/hangers/things that bolt/magnet/glue to the sides of machines/benches etc., and store things, in defined homes (see #1) If say the plastic chisel for cleaning muck out of t-slots hangs on the machine, it doesn't tend to wander around and get lost, nor take up space. And it's always at hand for demucking.

examples of what I mean:
LOVIMAG Swivel Swing Strong Magnetic Hooks, 60LBS Magnetic Hooks Heavy Duty for Cruise, Home, Kitchen, Workplace, Office and Garage, 67.5mm(2.66in) in Length - Pack of 8: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Grizzly had nice red versions of these, they don't list anymore, but I've had good luck with them. Cheap enough you can drill holes in them and so forth:
Amazon.com: Steelman Non-Marring Magnetic Tool/Parts Storage Trays for Rolling Toolboxes, Durable Steel, 4-Piece Set : Automotive

Put another way, add a little vertical spice to your horizontal day.
 
All the carts, racks, cabinets, drawers, cubby holes, safe deposit boxes, etc in the world won't solve this problem if you can't just put your stuff away right after you use it! And I don't think we can, not if we're caught up in "the heat of the battle". Intense focus is usually what makes us great, and who wants to break that focus to put a tool away or coil up a hose? Sometimes I don't even want to stop to piss!

The only solution is an apprentice putting away and handing you your tools, like in a surgical operating room - "plane, router, 120 grit, suction, mop my brow, shine the light, give me another pint..."
 
To echo others - go vertical. The first step is a riser on a cart, that allows you to put the small delicate items above the fray, and to work on the main level, while increasing the cubic storage without increasing the footprint.
20211002_120011-800.jpg
I stumbled onto these Basnik carts at auction and liked them so much I bought more new ones. I have all manner of carts built and bought used, these are the only ones I've liked enough to buy new. In effect these can become 'Where things get put away" and a workspace cart at the same time. This one is mostly workspace.
Note the fast food trays on the bottom shelf, they are great for gathering up a bunch of clutter and moving it, then rapidly bringing it back when the space crisis is over. Also keeps ballscrew balls from rolling away, etc.
20211002_115827-800.jpg

This one is mostly storage. Full of chick vise stuff, it stays in one spot but can be easily moved to where needed, or just to access the machine behind it.

20211002_120103-800.jpg

This one is both storage and workspace, the middle shelf is clear to receive WIP and raw material/bar stock and it is easily moved when needed to access the machine behind it for attention (cleaning or service).The rest of the stuff there is waiting for permanent space to be made somewhere, in the meantime it's not in the way and can easily be moved en masse when needed

20211002_115802-800.jpg

These carts are terrific for a place to put "in process" tools for temp storage, they combine the storage space of shelves and the utility of rolling carts. There's no wall space left here for shelves, this allows the 'shelves' to be placed where you couldn't put permanent shelves, allows you to bring the shelves to the work, and lets the rolling cart BE the 'place to put things away'.

I've also seen custom racks built for them to hold long items vertical, hooks for hose belts and cables, tubs for liquids, etc.
 
A note on rolling tool boxes - a while ago Robin Renzetti pointed out a particular unit from Harbor Freight is actually decent. Stunned and went and looked, and found he was right. MInd you, the units next to it were junk - it's a particular SKU.

Later, I found that home depot has some rolling tool boxes that are OK for the money. No match for a store-loc, nor I assume vidmar/champion/etc. But plenty stout enough, and a price one can swallow. I have at least 4 of them. But trboat may be looking for one that's quite small - global industrial listed a number of those.

Remember that with all of these metal cabinets, and I suppose plastic ones, you can attach stuff to the sides, put a pegboard on the back, and so forth.

I don't do nearly enough such organizing, but I'm *always* pleased with it in the end - may have to revise it, but it's always forward progress.
 
I just use mine for the tools I am using for the job and then put it away when done. Or sometimes for a place for the in process parts to get them off the bench where work is happening. I hate working on top of a pile of crap on the bench. But it still happens.
 








 
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