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Shop Under bench storage carts

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M

Mcgyver

Ultra Member
Another project crossed off the list. My shop is split between garage and basement and most of the basement is small stuff where you sit at bench. Forever out of space, I had an idea of making small carts on casters. They sit in unused space under the bench and easily roll out for access. There is one as a file rack (with 3D printed file holders), one for a tool box (holding various unimat and watch lathe accessories) and another for boxed watch lathe stuff - the boxes that can be placed on top of the cart for easy access. My first adventure with a track saw..... everyone needs one! All from a 4x8 sheet of 3/4" oak plywood (nominally, even plywood has experienced shrinkflation. grrrrr) . The woodworking isn't aesthetically perfect, but I'm a beginner and learned a lot. They function perfectly :)

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Holy crap! You should change your avatar to Mr File.

You and I should start a dolly wheel company. I LOVE rolling storage! Yours is way better looking than mine.

I really need a 3D printer. I'm sooooo jealous!
 
Somebody's been busy. Looks great Mike, and I love that file rack. I have some underutilized space under the bench by the CNC, and a heaping pile of files that need a better way to be stored......You've just given me an idea.

Woodwork looks great too. Strong and sturdy and would look right at home in the living room too.

What tracksaw do you have? I've been thinking about buying a Makita since I'm so invested in them already, but not brand loyal to anyone just yet. I am convinced of their merits, and have been for a long time, but they ain't cheap.....Keep waiting for a cheap on to pop up on market place, but I keep missing them.
 
Dan Dubeau said:
What tracksaw do you have?
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I bought the Veritas track from Lee Valley. It has an adapter that fits any circular saw. The connection for the two halves to span 8 ft looks flimsy but actually works astonishingly well.

A machinist like you could make your own track and adapt it to your Makita handsaw.
 
Susquatch said:
I bought the Veritas track from Lee Valley. It has an adapter that fits any circular saw. The connection for the two halves to span 8 ft looks flimsy but actually works astonishingly well.

A machinist like you could make your own track and adapt it to your Makita handsaw.
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I've though about that many times, but then that takes away the fun of buying a new tool :D. I have a Makita 18v on on my Amazon wishlist, so I'm hoping Santa brings me one for Christmas this year :D.
 
I love, love, love my Makita tracksaw. I balked at the price but marvel at its accuracy every time I use it.
Great work on the roll-around carts and that awesome file storage!
 
Thanks guys,

Dan, Its a Makita 36 volt (takes two 18v batteries). imo there is no comparison to any circular saw i've used. Its not just accuracy and smoothness ...... there is a rubber strip on the guide that stops almost all tear out. If you want you can do a scoring cut first and get about zero tear out. As good or better than a table saw cut with a new blade.

The only complaint I have is inconsistency of the track width, its very consistent along each track, but there is a variance between different tracks. I bought two lengths and the joiners which turned out to be a bit useless as the track width changed slightly. There are little cam wheels you snug up against the track and they need adjustment from one track to the other. You also should buy a square when you buy the saw.....save on shipping as you'll be ordering one in a day or two anyway.

My little wood shop is the old laundry room. Washer and dryer are being moved to the second floor and wife got a quote for some built ins. Those carts were a bit of practice ...... think I'm going to do the builts in myself which will more than pay for the track saw! (I have mastered the justification of anything workshop/tool related)
 
I like your file storage idea. I was just mulling over something cruder - drilling a matrix of holes into the top of IKEA's least expensive mini bookshelf. But like you, have different size handles, so hit pause & since forgot about it. The trays are a good solution.
 
That's the one I have on my wish list. We'll see how generous Mrs Claus is feeling this year lol.

How long before you scrape those guide rails straight and true. :D

I love those home projects that justify the purchase of new tools. Wife thinks you're a hero, and you get a new tool out of it. Win win.
 
I was just looking at cabinets online last night. This drill press cabinet caught my eye.

The cabinet rolls out of the way and the drill press is mounted on a wheeled base so it can be moved around the shop. ( Not sure how safe that is?)

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Now I need a track saw. ;)
 
Nice! Verra Nice! :)

I went a bit different with the benches and tables I built when I moved in here. Was not sure if the place would be up for sale, (a family owned Farm), so built all my stuff so it could be closed in on the sides with ply, and used as crates for whatever I could stuff them with. I built the lower part of the benches with clearance to allow the use of a hydraulic pallet dolly to move it all.
 
As much as I absolutely love my workbenches, the temptation to redo them in steel rather than wood and with the ability to roll things underneath rather than stack on the shelves that are there, keeps getting more tempting. The wood eats up around 8-9 inches of vertical height because of the 2x4 cross supports for the shelves (even though I ripped them down a little for the middle shelf)...which with 1.5" steel tube, I could have as much strength with less height used. Then with rolling stuff underneath, I could be more modular and make it easier to get at a few things. Plus, what I'm storing on the right side of my bench has changed over the years and so it's a hodge podge rather than fit for design.

Threads like these just make that temptation stronger when I see such awesome work!
 
Mcgyver said:
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What's that tool in the background/ off to the right? Rounding Up Tool? Pinion Polisher?

I was pretty in to watch and clock tech, before I figured out, really, how much I DIDN'T know, for some years!

By the time I sold off most of what I had drawn together, I only kept a skeleton crew of the tools that I had bought, mainly tweezers (because once you own a pair of good ones, you will NEVER look at what they sell at the Drug Store again!), a decent Staking Tool kit, and my Marshall Peerless lathe.
I did inherit a Choronos Wheel Cutter from a friend though, too.
 
@Mcgyver When I saw your thread title it reminded me immediately of the under bench storage carts I built a few weeks ago although they are a bit different from yours. I had a disturbance in the force a couple of months ago and decided to get a bunch of stuff off the floor, leaning against a wall and off my shelves but I hadn't had the inspiration of what to do with them.

The disturbance in the force forced my hand and I built two 5' x 3' x 3" lowrider shelves on casters that slide in the 6" gap under the bottom shelf of my custom work bench. In one cart I put most of my sheet metal and in the other most of my bar stock found a home. I reclaimed shelf space and the sheet metal is no longer a hazard at the end of the bench.

No photos and the woodwork is industrial, reused pieces of shipping crates, so not nice and finished like yours but they serve the purpose.

I like what you did with your files, I've been contemplating what to do with mine not to mention thinking about going to the dark side and acquiring 3D printing capability for such things........

D :cool:
 
Mcgyver said:
Thanks guys,

trevj, yes its topping or rounding tool.
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I had one that I picked up at a Saskatchewan farm auction, of all places. Did not get a chance to find out any of the guy's history, as it was an Estate affair. That one was the typical style mounted on a base with an incredible selection of individual tooth form cutters, and was quite beyond my skills at the time.

IIRC, I used it as trade bait towards some pocket watches I was interested in, including a minute repeater movement that I may even make a case for some day, but even if not, it serves as a reminder of the craft of the makers, hiding that whole mechanism under the dial!
 
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