Worth the Money?

[Pappy]

With 3 tool dealers on my route getting the bit sizes is not a problem. I was thinking that the Lee Valley bit holders would give me the option of moving bits around as/when needed and only leaving small screw holes where the bits were.

[Stytooner]

Something else you can use and not have to do any drilling is use soft foam or styrofoam that you might get with a product. Just poke the bits in there. I use soft foam for all my dremel bits and router bits. I don't use this method for end mills. They all come in little containers and I keep them in larger marked boxes until I need it and then it goes into the tool holder and gets stored just like you guys are discussing. In a piece of wood with just over 3/4" holes. Ready for use quickly as I use a lot of different ones on a single part.

That foam is easy to adjust too. Just pull the bit out and poke it in somewhere else. I also throw some desiccant packs into the boxes that I get with products from time to time. Keeps the rust down.

[cabinetman]

Something else you can use and not have to do any drilling is use soft foam or styrofoam that you might get with a product. Just poke the bits in there. I use soft foam for all my dremel bits and router bits. I don't use this method for end mills. They all come in little containers and I keep them in larger marked boxes until I need it and then it goes into the tool holder and gets stored just like you guys are discussing. In a piece of wood with just over 3/4" holes. Ready for use quickly as I use a lot of different ones on a single part.

That foam is easy to adjust too. Just pull the bit out and poke it in somewhere else. I also throw some desiccant packs into the boxes that I get with products from time to time. Keeps the rust down.

Styrofoam is a good idea. Other than router bits, there are bits that are chucked for drilling. It would work good with odd type and size shanks. It would likely wear pretty quick I would think.

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[Cochese]

I have one of the Rockler units. Certainly well made, very dense material. If I needed to store my bits upside down they would be awesome. I have also done the drill in a piece of plywood, and keeping them in the case. I haven't decided which way to go with the new table, but I prepped to use more of the Rockler ones. Heating a bit up with a torch would probably loosen up the foam enough.

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[LinuxRandal]

Maybe it is just me, but when I saw those, it made me think, use a dowel, drill down, reverse the bit in the press and attach some sandpaper to it, to widen to hole (so it isn't too tight), and cut them deep enough to screw onto scrap wood.

[leehljp]

There is one slight drawback with drilling holes in wood/plywood for bits that I learned the hard way - moisture and rust on the shafts.

When I made my router center, I drilled holes very systematically and it sure looked nice and organized. However after about a year, I noticed rust on the shafts at the point that it contacted the edges of the holes. High humidity, even for short times does build up in wood and that transmits to the shafts causing rust.

I cleaned the shafts and wiped each hole with a cloth soaked with some oil. That helped considerable. I did that at least every other year.

Don, you are in an area much dryer than I was in - in Japan or over here, so it probably will not be as much of a problem with your location. Still, you should be aware of the potential and watch for it.

[LinuxRandal]

Cork may or may not be too soft, but you can obtain packages of corks from Mcmaster Carr (looked like 50 and 100 packs, depending on size), for less then those plastic ones, and they tend to help somewhat with moisture.