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#1 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
 

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#2 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Looks like a good start Brandon. The are interesting tool chests I'll be thinking about your project this afternoon.
Jim
 

Attachments

#3 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Interesting. I thought you were considering a wall hanging cabine?
 

Attachments

#4 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Yes, I had considered making a hanging wall cabinet, but I really don't have the space for one in my garage because there's something parked at every open space on the floor against the wall, which makes accessing a wall cabinet very difficult.
 

Attachments

#5 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
I'm glad to see someone pursuing a Dutchmen's Cabinet. This will fun to watch!
 

Attachments

#6 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Good luck with it Brandon.
I hope it works out to your liking.
 

Attachments

#7 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
I like this idea MUCH better than the original tool chest. Just seems like a box with nifty sliding tills…this on the other…this has me thinking.
 

Attachments

#8 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Sweet, are you going with the angled top too? To me, that aspect seems like a benefit and detractor all at once. Benefits seem like it will give added space inside, easier to reach in, and keep you from piling things on top of it, thus restricting access. Detractor…since it is angled, I can't pile stuff on the top. With a work area like mine, I am always looking for space to set crap down. : )

Looking forward to seeing more.
 

Attachments

#9 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Shane, yes, I'm definitely going with the angled top and to me that's one of the benefits because whatever horizontal surfaces exist in my shop get covered with clutter.
 

Attachments

#10 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
I'm really glad you're doing this. I too was intrigued by Schwarz's Dutch chest when I saw it in Highland's video and have been thinking about it a lot..

Did you consider making two chests - the smaller one with the angled top sitting on top of a chest? That would enhance portability while allowing for more shop storage.
 

Attachments

#11 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Cl810, this is a good suggestion and I actually did consider doing this. I think if my rip saw wasn't so big, I would have made a smaller chest and a mobile base for it with a drawer in it. I still may do this, but I first want to see how much I like using the tool chest before building apparatuses for it.

Also one more thing I like about the angled lid is how inviting the tool chest when it's open. It just says, "come and take a look!"
 

Attachments

#12 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
A few things I noticed.

1.Chris overstuffed his chest around the joinery saw till. This is really evident when he puts the tenon saw back.
2. The angled top makes all the tools much more visible.
3. You have to do a deep squat to get to the lower storage (on the traditional chest it's more of a light bend and you can lean on the chest wall when you do it).
4. The Panel Saw set up has to wrap around the saw plates or the saws would fall out when the lid was closed. This means that you have to factor in clearance on the side of the chest to pull out your saws.
5. The Dutch chest takes up less room and seems easier to move around.
6. The lid construction is MUCH simpler than the Anarchist's tool chest.
7. The Dutch chest has a better place for chisels than the traditional chest.
8. Leather cozy for the block plane…nice.

Overall, I think when it comes down to it tool storage is a bit like the workbench. There are a lot of forms that are trying to attempt the same goal, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. What matters is that you get one built that suits you and accomplishes the following:

1. Keeps your tools safe and sharp.
2. Organizes your tools so they can be either retrieved or returned quickly.

Thanks for sharing this, I enjoyed it. Hope you build an awesome place for your tools.
 

Attachments

#13 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Ryan, your observations are spot on. I confess that I hadn't really thought about the accessibility of the panel saws needing clearance on either side of the box. I may have to rethink their location or how they're attached.
 

Attachments

#14 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
I was actually thinking about that on my way to work and had an idea. What if you built the chest so that the back was full depth (I mean a gaping hole from the top all the way to behind the lower shelves. There would be a dividing space between this hole and the top box, still giving you a space for your you chisels/planes/whatnot, but in the back you would have a place where you could put 3 rails with 1/2" gaps in between so you could slide saw plates in there and they would hang by the handles. Then you just needs airspace above the chest to get to your saws.

This approach has drawabacks too of course (such as the possibility of chewing up your saw handles has you retrieve and, replace your tools). With some care and other dividers you could prevent this issue though.
 

Attachments

#15 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Ryan, that's an excellent suggestion. I wish I had thought of that before beginning my build. I'm already too far gone to include that.
 

Attachments

#16 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Sorry sir.

Love to see current pics though.
 

Attachments

#17 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Nice, I also think that Dutch tool chest is very attractive. Cant wait to see some progress shots.

You know I kind of like the Paul Sellers joiners chest he makes. More of a bench top version. I wouldnt mind making one of those one day.
 

Attachments

#18 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Pictures are coming. I'm basically done with the construction of the box, but still need to start work on the lid.

I just look up Seller's joiner's chest. I still need more storage and may go down that road as well.
 

Attachments

#19 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
The more I watch Schwarz's video the more critical I think RG's #3 observation is. And it's just not the squatting, but getting low enough to see what you're reaching for. If you're going to have this a long time you will find that will become a much bigger issue then it is now. If that sounds like experience talking it's really my knees squawking.

It might come down to a trade off of squatting vs additional weight from drawers.
 

Attachments

#20 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
CL810, it's a concern I agree, but here are a few thoughts: (1) I probably will store the tools I use less frequently on the bottom, or a least figure out a way so that they are oriented towards the front. (2) the shelf above it does not extend all the way to the front so I have a better line of sight toward the back of the bottom shelf. (3) I may also make a base for it at the very bottom, which would raise the current bottom shelf to be about a foot off the ground and the contents of the base would pull out of a drawer; we'll see about that one.

Good thoughts, guys.
 

Attachments

#21 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
The gears keep turning on me for this one.

Two major plus sides.

Less Material overall.
No Sliding tills means you can get away with things being a bit more out more out of square.

I'll be honest, the debate between this chest and the one I am building now would have went on for some time in my mind. I am really excited to see how yours comes out.
 

Attachments

#22 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
Earlier today I added another post to this blog and it can be found here: http://lumberjocks.com/BrandonW/blog/35391
 

Attachments

#23 ·
Design Considerations

The topic of tool chests has been quite polarizing on lumberjocks.com. The benefits, some would argue, are that they protect the tools, efficiently store them, cause one to think about what tools are absolutely necessary (i.e., getting back to the basics), and last of all, provide the woodworker with somewhere to sit. Others see tool chests as antiquated storage devices that were theft deterrents in their age and provided some mobility to those who worked on job sites, rather in their own shops or garages. They say that compared to drawers or wall cabinets tool chests are essentially difficult to use since one has to bend down to find the tools in the dark tool chest. Still others would say it's just a matter of taste or aesthetic. For me, I didn't really see much of an advantage to tool chests, especially since I was relatively new to hand tools and was still putting together a basic set of tools.

Now I have planes in tills, saws in tills, chisels and other hand tools hanging on the walls, and just a bunch of other tools sitting in a tool tote haphazardly. There's a place for everything, but my whole system just doesn't make sense. Thus, the need for better organization got me starting to think about tool chests, but also the desire to separate my finer, more used tools from the others. For instance, I have seven or eight back saws, but primarily use three of them. I own dozens of bench planes, but I usually only grab for one of about five frequently used planes. Building a tool chest will help make the whole process of which tools to use slightly more efficient. Yet what turned out to be the ultimate motivating factor was that many of my planes, sitting in their open till, were starting to show signs of rust, which makes it imperative to get them into an enclosed box of some sort.

Many people here are familiar with Chris Schwarz and his book, The Anarchist's Tool Chest, which I would crudely describe as being one part memoir, one part hand-tool apologetic, and one part tool chest design and instruction. Here's the traditional-style tool chest which he builds in that book:

Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Office equipment

[source]

I was never fully convinced that this is what I needed in my situation, especially since real estate in my one-car garage is very limited. Yet when Chris Schwarz was at the Highland Woodworking Hand Tool event back in February and he brought with him his newly crafted smaller "Dutch tool chest."

Wood Hardwood Electronic instrument Gas Audio equipment

[source]

To be honest, I don't know much about Dutch tool chests, their provenance, history, and prevalence, but in terms of style they really appealed to me. I was especially attracted the one that Schwarz brought with him to Atlanta. I've seen Schwarz' larger Dutch tool chest and liked some of the features of that one as well.

Wood Automotive design Gas Office equipment Machine

[source]

See also, the accompanying YouTube video:



What I like first and foremost about these Dutch tool chests is the accessibility of all the tools in the top section: planes, saws (big and small), and smaller hand tools. Compare this to a traditional tool chest which may hide many of those critical tools underneath sliding tills that tend to get in the way. In the Dutch tool chest, the tools that are used less frequently can be placed in the lower shelf/shelves accessible from the front. The Dutch tool chest also appeals to me aesthetically. Here's a beautiful example of an older tool chest:

Wood Rectangle Grey Drawer Material property

[source]

Here's What I'm Doing

My own design of the tool chest fits somewhere in between the smaller and larger Dutch tool chests built by Schwarz. Honestly, I don't know the exact dimensions of his tool chests, but mine will be based on need. First, I wanted to fit a few of my larger planes in there, including a jointer plane, and my larger hand saws, including my D-7 ripsaw which is about 31" long with the handle. I also liked the idea of including a smaller shelf for items that site flat such as a bow saw (for this idea I credit the Frontier Carpenter ). My tool chest doesn't need to be as small as Schwarz's because I don't lug my tools around the country, thus I'm adding some casters on the bottom to make it easier to move around in my garage. Also, unlike the Anarchist's tool chest, this one will not be a demonstration of fine joinery. I'm hoping to be done with it sooner rather than later and so I'll be using screws for most of the joints. The hardware will probably be on the cheaper side as well. Lastly, like Schwarz, I'm building it out of light, white pine in order to keep the weight and price of it fairly low.

I don't have any fancy plans for it, just some crude drawings, so I don't think I'll be posting any sketch up drawings or anything like that. I think Schwarz plans on writing an article on the Dutch tool chest in an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking, so there will be much better information contained in that, I presume.

The next blog will start walking through some of the construction. Questions and comments are welcome as always.
I am a shipwright from the Netherlands and would like to know the history of the Dutch toolbox . I have never seen a toolbox like that in the Netherlands , for me it looks like a typical shop toolbox because it's very uneconomic to trans port because of it's shape and also because the tools in the bottom part lay loose . I am retired now but during my working life I had to travel a lot and if I look at all the boxes I would be scared to travel with them , they all look so shiny , mine was scratched and battered and was litterly to hold and protect my tools !
 

Attachments

#24 ·
Building the Carcass

So I've manage to build the carcass for the tool chest. Its footprint is about 33" wide by 15" deep. In terms of height, the front of the tool chest is about 23" tall and in the back it is about 31" tall. The size is a bit bigger, at least in terms of width, than the Schwarz design, but again I designed it based on the width of my ripsaw. Here are some photos of the progress so far.

Here's the basic box without the shelves and bottom install:

Wood Hardwood Flooring Wood stain Engineering


The middle shelf, seen here, does not protrude all the way to the front of the cabinet. I designed it this way so that when I look into the bottom shelf the contents in the back would be a bit more visible from a higher angle.

Wood Shelf Floor Shelving Wood stain


And here it is with the bottom installed:

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Art Plywood


This is the glue-up of the front "door" piece (not sure what else to call this). The pieces are ship lapped.

Wood Floor Flooring Hardwood Machine


I decided to paint the whole thing a dark green. Actually the name of the color is "evergreen bough." I was debating between a green and a blue and ultimately liked this color best. Yes, I used latex and not milk paint, primarily because latex is inexpensive and easily available in whatever color I need.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Gas


I put these runners on the inside of the door in order to hold the door in place and to align it, although the locking strips (see below) must be in place to keep the door on.

Table Rectangle Wood Floor Flooring


The door stays in place with these brackets that hold piece of wood which can be slid in from the top. This keeps the whole door tight against the cabinet. The brackets are made out of jatoba so that they'll be nice and strong.

Wood Flooring Hardwood Wood stain Rectangle


This shows the locking mechanism for the door from the top of the tool chest. I used beech for the strips of wood that lock the door in place.

Building Wood Shade Wood stain Hardwood


My largest saw, sitting inside the top section of the tool chest. I'm still running through a few different ideas of where to put the larger hand saws and how to do it, and so I'm still open to suggestions at this point.

Wood Wood stain Flooring Hardwood Rectangle


Thanks for looking!
 

Attachments

#25 ·
Building the Carcass

So I've manage to build the carcass for the tool chest. Its footprint is about 33" wide by 15" deep. In terms of height, the front of the tool chest is about 23" tall and in the back it is about 31" tall. The size is a bit bigger, at least in terms of width, than the Schwarz design, but again I designed it based on the width of my ripsaw. Here are some photos of the progress so far.

Here's the basic box without the shelves and bottom install:

Wood Hardwood Flooring Wood stain Engineering


The middle shelf, seen here, does not protrude all the way to the front of the cabinet. I designed it this way so that when I look into the bottom shelf the contents in the back would be a bit more visible from a higher angle.

Wood Shelf Floor Shelving Wood stain


And here it is with the bottom installed:

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Art Plywood


This is the glue-up of the front "door" piece (not sure what else to call this). The pieces are ship lapped.

Wood Floor Flooring Hardwood Machine


I decided to paint the whole thing a dark green. Actually the name of the color is "evergreen bough." I was debating between a green and a blue and ultimately liked this color best. Yes, I used latex and not milk paint, primarily because latex is inexpensive and easily available in whatever color I need.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Gas


I put these runners on the inside of the door in order to hold the door in place and to align it, although the locking strips (see below) must be in place to keep the door on.

Table Rectangle Wood Floor Flooring


The door stays in place with these brackets that hold piece of wood which can be slid in from the top. This keeps the whole door tight against the cabinet. The brackets are made out of jatoba so that they'll be nice and strong.

Wood Flooring Hardwood Wood stain Rectangle


This shows the locking mechanism for the door from the top of the tool chest. I used beech for the strips of wood that lock the door in place.

Building Wood Shade Wood stain Hardwood


My largest saw, sitting inside the top section of the tool chest. I'm still running through a few different ideas of where to put the larger hand saws and how to do it, and so I'm still open to suggestions at this point.

Wood Wood stain Flooring Hardwood Rectangle


Thanks for looking!
Brandon, this is looking like a great piece of work! I like the different woods, and I like the paint (Surprise!) in particular. Congrats on taking the plunge in the first place, re: the dutchman. The discussion has been interesting to follow thusfar; there's quite a bit about this form I find compelling. Higher on top, smaller overall footprint, inviting are a few things in it's favor.

Keep us updated!
 

Attachments

#48 ·
The Lid, Handles, and Casters

I wanted to make the lid a breadboard to keep it nice and flat. I started with two boards of eastern white pine boards which I glued together, then added a stub tenons on each side.

Brown Wood Gas Natural material Event


And here are the end pieces with the mortises already in place. I cut the mortises on my TS.

Rectangle Wood Wall Material property Wood stain


Glued together:

Wood Table Floor Wood stain Flooring


I planed the whole thing flat then squared it up. To square it up, I planed down the protruding breadboard end pieces, then ran the opposite side through the TS.

Table Wood Hardwood Wood stain Workbench


I drilled a 3/8" hole and inserted a couple of walnut dowels on each end. I'm not sure if this was necessary, but I do like the look of the pins.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Fixture Hardwood


Cleaned up the pins with the Stanley 60 1/2 low-angle block plane.

Food Ingredient Wood Kitchen utensil Hand tool


Here's the unpainted lid attached to the top of the tool chest. The overhang is about an inch on the two sides, and I may plane down some of the width a little bit, but for now I'm leaving it the way it is.

You'll also notice that I added some casters to the bottom of the tool chest to make it a bit easier to move around. The casters are actually from a tool cart that my dad built which he used for on-site work. I'm glad I found a good use for them, plus they add a little reminder of my dad in the project as well.

Wood Flooring Floor Automotive exterior Wood stain


These spade-shaped handles I saw at Home Depot and thought they fit the style of what I was going for. I installed them at an angle because I was picking up this chest and moving it around so the handle placement was convenient, but now that the tool chest has casters, I don't think I'll be picking it up much. I may move the handles later.

Composite material Metal Natural material Font Auto part


Here's the tool chest with the painted lid, casters, and handles. I'm pretty happy with it for being such a quick and dirty construction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Flooring


So for the next installment, I'll be addressing the storage issues inside the tool chest. Thanks for looking.
 

Attachments

#49 ·
The Lid, Handles, and Casters

I wanted to make the lid a breadboard to keep it nice and flat. I started with two boards of eastern white pine boards which I glued together, then added a stub tenons on each side.

Brown Wood Gas Natural material Event


And here are the end pieces with the mortises already in place. I cut the mortises on my TS.

Rectangle Wood Wall Material property Wood stain


Glued together:

Wood Table Floor Wood stain Flooring


I planed the whole thing flat then squared it up. To square it up, I planed down the protruding breadboard end pieces, then ran the opposite side through the TS.

Table Wood Hardwood Wood stain Workbench


I drilled a 3/8" hole and inserted a couple of walnut dowels on each end. I'm not sure if this was necessary, but I do like the look of the pins.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Fixture Hardwood


Cleaned up the pins with the Stanley 60 1/2 low-angle block plane.

Food Ingredient Wood Kitchen utensil Hand tool


Here's the unpainted lid attached to the top of the tool chest. The overhang is about an inch on the two sides, and I may plane down some of the width a little bit, but for now I'm leaving it the way it is.

You'll also notice that I added some casters to the bottom of the tool chest to make it a bit easier to move around. The casters are actually from a tool cart that my dad built which he used for on-site work. I'm glad I found a good use for them, plus they add a little reminder of my dad in the project as well.

Wood Flooring Floor Automotive exterior Wood stain


These spade-shaped handles I saw at Home Depot and thought they fit the style of what I was going for. I installed them at an angle because I was picking up this chest and moving it around so the handle placement was convenient, but now that the tool chest has casters, I don't think I'll be picking it up much. I may move the handles later.

Composite material Metal Natural material Font Auto part


Here's the tool chest with the painted lid, casters, and handles. I'm pretty happy with it for being such a quick and dirty construction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Flooring


So for the next installment, I'll be addressing the storage issues inside the tool chest. Thanks for looking.
Nice job man. Coming together nicely. I love me some breadboards.
 

Attachments

#55 ·
The Lid, Handles, and Casters

I wanted to make the lid a breadboard to keep it nice and flat. I started with two boards of eastern white pine boards which I glued together, then added a stub tenons on each side.

Brown Wood Gas Natural material Event


And here are the end pieces with the mortises already in place. I cut the mortises on my TS.

Rectangle Wood Wall Material property Wood stain


Glued together:

Wood Table Floor Wood stain Flooring


I planed the whole thing flat then squared it up. To square it up, I planed down the protruding breadboard end pieces, then ran the opposite side through the TS.

Table Wood Hardwood Wood stain Workbench


I drilled a 3/8" hole and inserted a couple of walnut dowels on each end. I'm not sure if this was necessary, but I do like the look of the pins.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Fixture Hardwood


Cleaned up the pins with the Stanley 60 1/2 low-angle block plane.

Food Ingredient Wood Kitchen utensil Hand tool


Here's the unpainted lid attached to the top of the tool chest. The overhang is about an inch on the two sides, and I may plane down some of the width a little bit, but for now I'm leaving it the way it is.

You'll also notice that I added some casters to the bottom of the tool chest to make it a bit easier to move around. The casters are actually from a tool cart that my dad built which he used for on-site work. I'm glad I found a good use for them, plus they add a little reminder of my dad in the project as well.

Wood Flooring Floor Automotive exterior Wood stain


These spade-shaped handles I saw at Home Depot and thought they fit the style of what I was going for. I installed them at an angle because I was picking up this chest and moving it around so the handle placement was convenient, but now that the tool chest has casters, I don't think I'll be picking it up much. I may move the handles later.

Composite material Metal Natural material Font Auto part


Here's the tool chest with the painted lid, casters, and handles. I'm pretty happy with it for being such a quick and dirty construction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Flooring


So for the next installment, I'll be addressing the storage issues inside the tool chest. Thanks for looking.
Looking good, Brandon. After all the work doing the breadboard ends and walnut pegs for the lid, I was hoping that maybe you would find a way to show that off and not paint it. Oh well, it still looks very good. I like that you incorporated a bit of sentimental value with the casters.
 

Attachments

#69 ·
Tills and Thrills

This is where we left off last time-- a basic carcass completed but no tools inside it yet. On a side note, do you prefer to spell it carcass or carcase? I've seen it both ways.

Wood Gas Composite material Flooring Machine


So now comes the fun part: figuring out how I'm going to fit all these tools into the upper section of tool chest. At this point, I'm not really concerned with my larger hand saws, my specialty planes, mallets etc., but most of the smaller hand tools. It seems like a lot of tools, but if it's organized correctly, it shouldn't be a problem.

Tool Wood Hand tool Metalworking hand tool Antique tool


First off are the back saws (the dovetail, carcass, and tenon saws). I followed a similar design found in tool chests except I angled the top of the till to match the angle of the lid opening on the tool chest. Here are the saws in a test on the workbench:

Sewing machine Wood Door Hardwood Creative arts


And here they are in the tool chest:

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Metal Natural material


I initially was going to string a single board about two inches wide from the left side of the chest to the right that would most of my chisels, marking knifes, awls, files, rasps, and screwdrivers. The problem with this was that some tools had longer handles and others had longer business ends. This made it impossible to use a single board because some tools would bottom out on the shelf and others would hit the lid with their handles. So I decided to group similar tools together. The first of which were the chisels. What I did was make two rows for the chisels set at different heights to make them easier to access. The longer chisels are in the back. That's also a burnisher on the lower right end, but it fit nicely there.

Bottle Wood Glass bottle Drink Drinkware


Then I tackled was the marking and measuring tools. Here I have the square, the combo square, a couple of awls, a dovetail marker, a marking knife, a wheel marker, and a caliper (behind the marking knife).

Wood Kitchen utensil Gas Audio equipment Hardwood


Next up are the planes. I wanted to limit the number of planes and so I have a jointer (Bailey 7), a smoother (Sargent 409) and a Jack (either my Keen Kutter 5 or my Stanley SW 92, I can't decide). I also found a place for my Stanley 93, Stanley 60 1/2 and Stanley 9 1/2. I screwed in the dividers in place so they can easily be moved around if necessary.

Bumper Automotive exterior Automotive lighting Auto part Metal


The rasps, files, and screwdrivers were roughly the same size and thought a smaller tray would serve them well. I like the idea, but I can see a couple of drawbacks: first the tools might wear on each other, and second accessing the lower tools might be a little pain. The little tray is dovetailed and screwed in place so it's not going anywhere. It's only about 3 1/2" wide, which makes accessing tools below it easier.

Wood Office supplies Pen Art Display case


A second, larger tray sits below the smaller tray, which is meant to hold miscellaneous hand tools. Like the first tray, this too is dovetailed, but is removable in case I want to take it out of the chest.

Hand tool Wrench Wood Kitchen utensil Shelf


Wood Tool Hardwood Hand tool Rectangle


And here is what the storage set up looks like all empty:

Wood Rectangle Hardwood Plywood Flooring


And all full:

Hand tool Metalworking hand tool Tool Wood Wrench


This part was a lot of fun, trying to figure out how to fit everything in place while using the space as efficiently as possible. I'm sure others might have gone about things differently, but I'm pretty happy with the layout and hopefully this will help give someone some ideas for their own tool chest or wall cabinet.

I still need to figure out what I want to do with the larger saws. I still think its best to attach them to the lid, but as Ryan (RGTools) pointed out, the design that Chris Schwarz uses makes it necessary to have ample space on both sides of the tool chest to access the saws. I would like to be able to pull the saws out from the top, so if you have any ideas on that, I'm all ears.
 

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#70 ·
Tills and Thrills

This is where we left off last time-- a basic carcass completed but no tools inside it yet. On a side note, do you prefer to spell it carcass or carcase? I've seen it both ways.

Wood Gas Composite material Flooring Machine


So now comes the fun part: figuring out how I'm going to fit all these tools into the upper section of tool chest. At this point, I'm not really concerned with my larger hand saws, my specialty planes, mallets etc., but most of the smaller hand tools. It seems like a lot of tools, but if it's organized correctly, it shouldn't be a problem.

Tool Wood Hand tool Metalworking hand tool Antique tool


First off are the back saws (the dovetail, carcass, and tenon saws). I followed a similar design found in tool chests except I angled the top of the till to match the angle of the lid opening on the tool chest. Here are the saws in a test on the workbench:

Sewing machine Wood Door Hardwood Creative arts


And here they are in the tool chest:

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Metal Natural material


I initially was going to string a single board about two inches wide from the left side of the chest to the right that would most of my chisels, marking knifes, awls, files, rasps, and screwdrivers. The problem with this was that some tools had longer handles and others had longer business ends. This made it impossible to use a single board because some tools would bottom out on the shelf and others would hit the lid with their handles. So I decided to group similar tools together. The first of which were the chisels. What I did was make two rows for the chisels set at different heights to make them easier to access. The longer chisels are in the back. That's also a burnisher on the lower right end, but it fit nicely there.

Bottle Wood Glass bottle Drink Drinkware


Then I tackled was the marking and measuring tools. Here I have the square, the combo square, a couple of awls, a dovetail marker, a marking knife, a wheel marker, and a caliper (behind the marking knife).

Wood Kitchen utensil Gas Audio equipment Hardwood


Next up are the planes. I wanted to limit the number of planes and so I have a jointer (Bailey 7), a smoother (Sargent 409) and a Jack (either my Keen Kutter 5 or my Stanley SW 92, I can't decide). I also found a place for my Stanley 93, Stanley 60 1/2 and Stanley 9 1/2. I screwed in the dividers in place so they can easily be moved around if necessary.

Bumper Automotive exterior Automotive lighting Auto part Metal


The rasps, files, and screwdrivers were roughly the same size and thought a smaller tray would serve them well. I like the idea, but I can see a couple of drawbacks: first the tools might wear on each other, and second accessing the lower tools might be a little pain. The little tray is dovetailed and screwed in place so it's not going anywhere. It's only about 3 1/2" wide, which makes accessing tools below it easier.

Wood Office supplies Pen Art Display case


A second, larger tray sits below the smaller tray, which is meant to hold miscellaneous hand tools. Like the first tray, this too is dovetailed, but is removable in case I want to take it out of the chest.

Hand tool Wrench Wood Kitchen utensil Shelf


Wood Tool Hardwood Hand tool Rectangle


And here is what the storage set up looks like all empty:

Wood Rectangle Hardwood Plywood Flooring


And all full:

Hand tool Metalworking hand tool Tool Wood Wrench


This part was a lot of fun, trying to figure out how to fit everything in place while using the space as efficiently as possible. I'm sure others might have gone about things differently, but I'm pretty happy with the layout and hopefully this will help give someone some ideas for their own tool chest or wall cabinet.

I still need to figure out what I want to do with the larger saws. I still think its best to attach them to the lid, but as Ryan (RGTools) pointed out, the design that Chris Schwarz uses makes it necessary to have ample space on both sides of the tool chest to access the saws. I would like to be able to pull the saws out from the top, so if you have any ideas on that, I'm all ears.
You must be awesome at Tetris.
 

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