# Traditional German Tool Cabinet



## Waldschrat (Dec 29, 2008)

*Traditional German Tool Cabinet*

Well, Here is my first Blog. Hope you like it, here it goes…

So I was looking at some tool Cabinets and I decided it was time, after being asked by a number couple fellow woodworkers, to post some plans on building a what I consider a typical, unchanged for many years, German style Cabinetmakers' tool Cabinet.

I made some drawings and I hope they are adequate for everyone. I am not certian as to if this even interest anybody, but if there are any questions, or anyone needs some help or needs to store a certian tool, then let me know, perhaps I can add a certian detail or two.

I think it should be said, although this is not like the famous Studly tool cabinet… which houses close to 300 tools, (impressive, but I do not think that is, for my tastes a bit too compact). With this tool cabinet, the Cabinet maker (or woodworker in general) should be able to house all the hand tools he needs on a regular basis, excluding very large saws, or very large squares.

-5 Hand planes
-A Variety of Chisels
-At least 3 Saws (western or eastern)
-Screw drivers
-Bit driver and bits
-Marking Gauge
-Large and smaller Squares
-3 files or rasps (round or square)
-Pencils & Sharpeners, erasers
-Pliers
-Mitre gauge
-Hammer
-Mallet

Of course it all depends on what kind of work one is performing… but these are the standard tools of the Cabinet maker and the minimum that one should have in his cabinet at a reach.

Ok Feedback is welcome here, but since this is the pattern more or less of the Cabinet makers here tried and tested for many years (if not centuries), there is not much say, as this is more of an example… so with that being said, opinions are welcome or any cool new ideas or new takes, or if I forgot something (which can happen!)

So with out further ado, here is a section, cut towards the middle and an elevation cut somewhere around the top.

have fun!


----------



## Beginningwoodworker (May 5, 2008)

Waldschrat said:


> *Traditional German Tool Cabinet*
> 
> Well, Here is my first Blog. Hope you like it, here it goes…
> 
> ...


Looks like a good start.


----------



## IrishWoodworker (Mar 28, 2007)

Waldschrat said:


> *Traditional German Tool Cabinet*
> 
> Well, Here is my first Blog. Hope you like it, here it goes…
> 
> ...


Looks good friend! Where are you in Germany? I am stationed in Ansbach for the US Army. I am deployed right now to Iraq, but maybe when I get back we can meet up and share each others ideas.


----------



## Dennisgrosen (Nov 14, 2009)

Waldschrat said:


> *Traditional German Tool Cabinet*
> 
> Well, Here is my first Blog. Hope you like it, here it goes…
> 
> ...


shuold there have been a drawing
thank´s it just showed up

Dennis


----------



## rtb (Mar 26, 2008)

Waldschrat said:


> *Traditional German Tool Cabinet*
> 
> Well, Here is my first Blog. Hope you like it, here it goes…
> 
> ...


Please don't stop your blog Its fastenating and I for one am looking forward to seeing as you develop it. In America most woodworkers develop their ow cabinet, shelves, drawer of what ever suits them and their space best and there is no standard pattern.


----------



## Waldschrat (Dec 29, 2008)

Waldschrat said:


> *Traditional German Tool Cabinet*
> 
> Well, Here is my first Blog. Hope you like it, here it goes…
> 
> ...


I am sorry guys, I am a rookie at bloggin something… *rtb *and *3fingerpat*, do you guys mean by "following" or "not stopping" meaning I should post the steps involved? I know it may sound like a stupid question, but if thats whats required, not a problem… do I include a cut list as well? video?

I guess I should read a blog on blogging! (if one exists)

Thanks!


----------



## JohnnyW (Feb 7, 2010)

Waldschrat said:


> *Traditional German Tool Cabinet*
> 
> Well, Here is my first Blog. Hope you like it, here it goes…
> 
> ...


I am planning to make a cabinet in the next few months and my searches keep bringing me back to your project and this one (http://www.ecemmerich.com/images/290shw-gross.jpg) which is very similar. Now that you've shared these superb drawings, my mind is clear.

You should continue to write your blog. You obviously have a lot of knowledge about traditional methods and a passion for fine details, so I'm sure that anything that you can share will be appreciated.

Thanks for posting.


----------



## Dennisgrosen (Nov 14, 2009)

Waldschrat said:


> *Traditional German Tool Cabinet*
> 
> Well, Here is my first Blog. Hope you like it, here it goes…
> 
> ...


I think he already has build it

http://lumberjocks.com/projects/15888

I realy wood see it with tools inside it

Dennis


----------



## BarryW (Sep 15, 2007)

Waldschrat said:


> *Traditional German Tool Cabinet*
> 
> Well, Here is my first Blog. Hope you like it, here it goes…
> 
> ...


I envy your drawing abilities…excellent…and very complete.


----------



## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

Waldschrat said:


> *Traditional German Tool Cabinet*
> 
> Well, Here is my first Blog. Hope you like it, here it goes…
> 
> ...


Very nice


----------



## Waldschrat (Dec 29, 2008)

Waldschrat said:


> *Traditional German Tool Cabinet*
> 
> Well, Here is my first Blog. Hope you like it, here it goes…
> 
> ...


Alright first of all thanks for all the comments!

3 fingerpat… I see what you are getting at… ok I guess I will have to build another one, why not. I just thought that posting the plans under the project page was not correct, so I thought It would be better under a blog, as I had mentioned earlier, there were some requests for plans, and I though, "Why not just post some rough plans on a blog?" Thank you for answering my question.

Dennis, is right, I have already built a couple of these guys, I have one posted under my project page.

I will add some stuff in the near future, maybe this week sometime.

Thanks for reading and checking it out you all!


----------



## Waldschrat (Dec 29, 2008)

*German Tool Cabinet Tool holders*

Ok you asked for it, here it comes!

Tool holders are made so, here are a couple of closeups, I already have had these made, but I have not built them in… So this blog entry is an augmention of the plan, so you can see in wood how it should look.










They are nothing more than some hardwood, in this case Ash, strips glued together. When selecting wood for tool cabinets or anykind of cabinet where steel or iron will be in direct contact with wood, the Cabinetmaker must always think so that he uses a wood that does not react with the steel. Woods like Oak, Cherry, Walnut, Chestnut, are poor choices, because they hold a large amount of Tannic Acid, which will turn black when exposed to Iron, or other ferres metals. Not only can the wood start to stain, even worse, your tools can start to be corroded. And the Cabinets job is to protect the tools not to harm them. So Maple, Ash, Beech to name a few hard woods are probably best suited. I had some Ash on hand, and just that.

The strips are around 40mm wide, 25 cm or so long and are just glued with simple old fashioned white glue (PVAC glue)










The holes are then drilled with a Forstner bit, and the slots are cut, using a table saw (using a mitre gauge), or hand saw, depending on what you are more comfortable with. With jobs like this its a good chance to break out the hand saws and do a bit of practice sawing, where no one is going to really notice excecpt yourself.

When laying out the holes and cutting the slots for the chisels, files, or screwdrivers, its best to always double check the width of your grips… "all chisels are equal but some chisels are more equal than others!"










Now the tricky part, depending on what kind of doors you want to build in, you have to think about how you would like to attach the tool holders. Keeping in mind too that the holders must leave enough clearance for the grips so they do not get in the way of closing the door.

With this plan, or the one I have drawn out, I would use wood dowels… its fast and secure. There is one thing to think about…. and thats wood movement. You all probably already know that wood moves across the grain and perpendicular to the grain, and the door is built to account for that. The tool holder on the other hand is glued lengthwise across the grain. one should not have a non moving surface (grain lengthwise) glued to wood grain when it needs to move. The accecptable limit for this is 80 mm or so.

What I am trying to say with this is that the dowels should not be more than 80 mm apart, otherwise the wood can crack or warp.


----------



## Dennisgrosen (Nov 14, 2009)

Waldschrat said:


> *German Tool Cabinet Tool holders*
> 
> Ok you asked for it, here it comes!
> 
> ...


thank´s for the advice

Dennis


----------



## pjped (Feb 25, 2011)

Waldschrat said:


> *German Tool Cabinet Tool holders*
> 
> Ok you asked for it, here it comes!
> 
> ...


Nicholas, I'm new here and I love this tool cabinet of yours. It looks very traditional and I love the classic look of the northern wood. Brilliant layout and execution.
I'm not sure of this translation but…
Viel Dank für das Teilen der Fotographien Ihrer Arbeit. Sie hat mich angespornt.

-Peter Pedisich


----------



## Waldschrat (Dec 29, 2008)

*German Tool Cabinet Doors Variant*

So someone asked about seeing tools, well the one I built is unfortunately at the moment redundant, and the shop where I work has existing cabinets. They are probably 60 years old or so, but that does not matter, this is a Traditional cabinet, and things do not change much in tradition. ;-) I would also like to mention that the pics are from 2 different cabinets.

As well I would like to cover a variant of the door design, instead of a mostly hidden endgrain hardwood munton, this version uses a rather wide bread board similiar construction. Works just as well, and as some of you may have already noticed, the doors utilize 2 boards, which is also different comparied to my design… there is really no wrong or right, just two different way of solving the same problem… I like mine better, but I am partial.










http://i542.photobucket.com/albums/gg411/Waldschrot/SDC11177.jpg


----------



## PetVet (Nov 7, 2008)

Waldschrat said:


> *German Tool Cabinet Doors Variant*
> 
> So someone asked about seeing tools, well the one I built is unfortunately at the moment redundant, and the shop where I work has existing cabinets. They are probably 60 years old or so, but that does not matter, this is a Traditional cabinet, and things do not change much in tradition. ;-) I would also like to mention that the pics are from 2 different cabinets.
> 
> ...


Nice job Nicholas. I think one of the best things I did for my shop was to build a wall tool cabinet. This will serve you well.


----------



## Dennisgrosen (Nov 14, 2009)

Waldschrat said:


> *German Tool Cabinet Doors Variant*
> 
> So someone asked about seeing tools, well the one I built is unfortunately at the moment redundant, and the shop where I work has existing cabinets. They are probably 60 years old or so, but that does not matter, this is a Traditional cabinet, and things do not change much in tradition. ;-) I would also like to mention that the pics are from 2 different cabinets.
> 
> ...


thank´s for sharing
now I under stand
your drawing

ceep them coming

Dennis


----------



## Waldschrat (Dec 29, 2008)

Waldschrat said:


> *German Tool Cabinet Doors Variant*
> 
> So someone asked about seeing tools, well the one I built is unfortunately at the moment redundant, and the shop where I work has existing cabinets. They are probably 60 years old or so, but that does not matter, this is a Traditional cabinet, and things do not change much in tradition. ;-) I would also like to mention that the pics are from 2 different cabinets.
> 
> ...


ok I will!


----------



## Dennisgrosen (Nov 14, 2009)

Waldschrat said:


> *German Tool Cabinet Doors Variant*
> 
> So someone asked about seeing tools, well the one I built is unfortunately at the moment redundant, and the shop where I work has existing cabinets. They are probably 60 years old or so, but that does not matter, this is a Traditional cabinet, and things do not change much in tradition. ;-) I would also like to mention that the pics are from 2 different cabinets.
> 
> ...


see my site there is a answer


----------



## bigike (May 25, 2009)

Waldschrat said:


> *German Tool Cabinet Doors Variant*
> 
> So someone asked about seeing tools, well the one I built is unfortunately at the moment redundant, and the shop where I work has existing cabinets. They are probably 60 years old or so, but that does not matter, this is a Traditional cabinet, and things do not change much in tradition. ;-) I would also like to mention that the pics are from 2 different cabinets.
> 
> ...


cool!


----------



## Waldschrat (Dec 29, 2008)

Waldschrat said:


> *German Tool Cabinet Doors Variant*
> 
> So someone asked about seeing tools, well the one I built is unfortunately at the moment redundant, and the shop where I work has existing cabinets. They are probably 60 years old or so, but that does not matter, this is a Traditional cabinet, and things do not change much in tradition. ;-) I would also like to mention that the pics are from 2 different cabinets.
> 
> ...


its funny how one can easily underestimate his tools! I do it all the time! man I hate that ;-)


----------

