Wood Shop Organizing - It's Time

Posted by Kelly Smith Nov 15, 2007

Wood Shop Organizing - It's Time

I have a confession to make. I'm guilty of not always putting my tools back where they belong. Are you? Come on, don't be shy; you know who you are!

It's not so much that I'm a slob. I just get involved and set things down. And, when it's time to quit for the day, I tell myself that since I'll be right back at it the next day; I'll just leave them. But I don't always get back to it when planned.

DIY Project Inefficiency

Consequently, when I've got a five minute chore, I spend thirty minutes assembling my hand tools. It's a blessing that my larger power tools are easy to spot. The lathe tends not to go anywhere. Neither does my band saw. The benchtop table saw and benchtop drill press are easy enough to spot.

So a few times a year I wander around my wood shop and pick up tools, containers of screws and nails, and put them back where they're supposed to live. This time I've got a pile of lumber right in the middle of the floor. That's going to need a solution.

High Quality Hand Tools

Do you have any old, dependable tools? I ran across one as I cleaned up. A Craftsman 16 once, fiberglass handled, straight claw hammer. The amazing thing is that I bought it in 1979 when I began my four year journey in my carpenter's apprenticeship with the Carpenter's Union.

Twenty eight years. And since I spent the next fourteen years as a journeyman carpenter (acoustical ceiling mechanic and framer), that hammer saw a lot of use. And it still does. Too bad they don't make tools like that anymore.