Toolboxes ReVisited

[leehljp]

I again am having a tool box quandary. But this time it is with primarily with cordless battery powered tools. I have about 30 of Ryobi's 18V tools and 15 batteries of 2, 4 and 6 Ah. I am helping with the building of a church by licensed but volunteer labor. I am treated as the "general contractor" so I have to be there when ever a worker is there. The church people don't know enough technical terms or have enough experience to do any work other than hand off a 2x4 or hand a tool that is being asked for.

With that said, I use my tools and keep them in the trunk or back seat of my car when I go there. THAT brings me to the subject of this thread:

HOW DO I KEEP RELATED TOOLS and their accessories TOGETHER FOR EASY ACCESS?

Originally, I had two large tool boxes on stands for most of my hand tools. That proved futile for me because 80%+ of the work that I do is NOT in my shop. I.E. it is in the house, my three girls houses (3 states), or in helping neighbors across town. Solution was several open top tool boxes and a couple of closed top metal tool boxes for wrenches and sockets.

NOW, I have problems finding all the battery tools. I "think" I have that solution in mind - Tool BAGS of small to medium size.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B4W5P3F8...t_details&th=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

These are two of 6 bags I have purchased.

1. For one bag, I have my 18V: sawzall, jigsaw, Multitool with cutting blades. Also, all of the blades for each one are inside the case. A BIG plus. I hate having to find the usable-consumables that go with every tool.
2. Another bag has my 18V: hot melt glue gun, soldering iron, and (corded) plastic welder plus all the accessories for all of these.
IN addition I have clear heavy duty plastic pouches for the accessories such as solder and tips; plastic welder supplies; glue sticks. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09GFKH8HZ...roduct_details
3. Another bag has my two 18V grinders, one large and one mini (cut-off tool). The mini is absolutely the most handy and used. https://www.homedepot.com/p/RYOBI-ON...S02B/313438685 I was surprised to see the cost on this one as I got a "two tool" combo with this tool last spring at only $20 more.
4. Another bag for drill driver and Impact driver, plus a set of HF 29 piece drill bits, set of ID bits of all kinds.
5. A fifth bag has a relative new tool for me: Ryobi's 18V Rotary Hammer. WOW does this beat the hammer drills to pieces. No comparison. I bought a set of concrete drills and chisels in a boxed set. These are in the same case.

(I have a 6 battery holder charger from Ryobi. It only charges one at a time and them moves to the next one to charge. With all the batteries I have, I am not without battery power.)

Rotary Hammer: I have needed one of these for several years now to do some work on our car port. Working on the church that I am assisting in building, we needed to anchor 4 large columns. Three of us had hammer drills and even with new bits we could not seem get more than 1 to 1 1/2 into the concrete. Then I bought the hammer drill last month. WOW, 3 inches in all the way around each column. BTW, I was there when they poured the concrete for the portico, which was poured separately from the building's foundation. The portico concrete was poured using the extra hard blend, since it will be open to the elements. It IS hard, but the rotary hammer did its job. It is NOT as strong as a Milwaukee or DeWalt corded but for me, it works beyond what I can do.


As some of you may remember, I have had trouble trying to find what tool setup works for me. If one does most of their work in their shop, it is a no brainer. However if one does most of their work OUTSIDE of their shop, finding the best setup requires different tool boxes. Below is a link in which Chris - Twistsol mentions in post # 5.

https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...and-tool-boxes

I will followup this with a post in a month or two discussing how well the "bags" work for me.

[capncarl]

Have you looked at any of the “sustainer” type boxes? Not a lot of different in the functionality of the same amount of bags but it could be easier to transport from your car to the site with a hand truck since they are designed to stack and lock together.

[dbhost]

I've used the big mouth tool bags. Harbor Freight has so.e really nice ones on the cheap... lots if organization options etc...

I started doing this with my original Corded stuff back when Ryobi included a bag with the tool... Wish they still did that.

[leehljp]

Have you looked at any of the “sustainer” type boxes? Not a lot of different in the functionality of the same amount of bags but it could be easier to transport from your car to the site with a hand truck since they are designed to stack and lock together.

Yes I have. I don't like boxes for two basic reasons: 1. I always need the one or two on the bottom when there are 5 or 6 stacked in storage; 2. I don't like boxes except for the ones that a tool comes in. Storage / Tool Boxes seem to be 1/4 inch to short or too narrow for the tool I want to put in it. I have the Systainer boxes for my two Festool tools, and keep the containers that other tools come in, but for my Ryobi 18V tools, they are all sizes and most don't come in storage boxes.

The advantage of bags is that they are flexible and give where that extra 1/4 inch is needed for the elongated tool without having to put it in crossways, and I can also fit a couple of other shorter related tools together such as the Sawzall, jigsaw and Multi-tool, all laying down.

I also do not like those with wheels: too heavy to lift and put into the trunk or back of a pickup. I had a couple of containers 6 or 7 years ago with wheels. After putting tools in them, I couldn't lift them easily into the truck that I had then. I "could," but I preferred the feelings in my arms that said "Thank you for not having to lift the 75 to 80 pound tool box inside a 3 ft high truck bed!

I will note that Ryobi is coming out with their own Systainer type of containers and I have looked at them, but for me and the way I work, rigid containers are too limiting to me. I have made my own containers a couple of times and found that I prefer flexibility in small containers. Once they get to big, they become difficult to lift if full.\

In this past year, I have decided I don't need to keep lifting things above 50 lbs and I have let my family know that too!

[mpc]

If I read the original post correctly... you need a way to carry a fair number of tools in a small space so they can be stuffed into a car. But when at home, the tools will stay in these cases - not unpacked into more open/accessible shop storage space? Always working out of a deep tote bag would drive me nuts. My shop storage is a bunch of wall mounted cabinets for generic items like safety gear, glue, hardware, and specific wall mounted cabinets for the portable power tools (drills, circ saw, etc.) that are mostly cordless now. Roll-around carts hold my benchtop tools like the Ridgid sander, drill press, etc. Each roll-around has drawers for the supplies for that tool or similar tools - each cabinet has a "theme" such as my drilling cabinet, my sanding sanding cabinet, my sharpening cabinet, etc. That works great inside the shop. To carry tools outside the shop - including cordless drills, batteries, and their chargers - requires a packing effort. That's not a frequent need for me however so my solution, that works well for me, doesn't work for the OP's needs.

I use both Ryobi and Ridgid cordless tools in my shop; many of the Ridgid tools came with heavy duty tote bags which I don't use for tool storage. Some have interior and/or exterior pockets for smaller items. I store the bags flattened out on a high shelf, out of the way. But if I need to haul stuff elsewhere - such as to somebody's house - I grab one or two and load 'em up. I'm pretty disciplined about unpacking stuff and putting things away before I start some other project so this works okay for me. They carry quite a bit... but access is a nuisance as stuff is "deep in a hole" and piled atop one another. So I only use these on the not frequent occasions when I must carry tools well away from my shop. I see similar bags listed on Craigslist all the time.

As for small hand tools - screwdrivers, socket wrenches, etc. - I have a couple of HF's inexpensive tool kits in plastic boxes. This one: HF 130 piece tool kit in small plastic suitcase which goes on sale frequently. The cost isn't much more than a tote bag! I usually keep one in my car; I have another that I can grab for simple inside-the-house jobs that lives inside the house. For big house jobs I may need more substantial tools which means a hike to the shop and a Ridgid bag gets put to use. The HF kits are handy though as they are always at the ready and are a lot quicker to grab compared to collecting & packing my "good" hand tools. I don't use the HF kits for serious work on my cars though; I use my quality tools for that - better fit and higher strength - as my car work gets done inside the shop.

For a solution that works inside the shop and outside the shop... make a shelf unit that holds somewhat shallow boxes treated as drawers without guides - say 6 and 8 inches deep. The length and width of the boxes should be standardized so they stack well. I would make them about 12 by 14 inches; so two side-by-side can sit on a shelf; the tools you need to carry will dictate the size. A tool plus its accessories fit into one drawer. Slide the drawer into the shelf unit for in-shop storage, take the drawer to the car or job site as necessary. Put a rabbet around the outside edge of the top and inside edge of the bottom so the drawers interlock for stacking on hand trucks or in the car. A box or two that is twice as wide for really big tools (Sawzalls?) with a a notched rabbet along the top will support two standard sized boxes side-by-side. Handles drilled/routed into the front and back, or into the sides, make them easy to carry and can be used for bungee cords. A roll-around work table can be sized to hold a short stack of boxes/drawers too providing on-site organization; an HF "movers dolly" makes a stack of them portable too. Too bad plywood is so bloody expensive these days... Some plastic "milk crates" sold at Target and other discount stores work well for hauling larger things in cars. And they can be hosed off after a trip to a dusty worksite. Find the heavier duty examples. Some stack well too for hand truck use. But nothing will be as densely packed (space efficient) as tote bags... the trade is "carry tools in a compact/dense package" versus "have ready access to the tools and supplies." A bunch of shallow tote bags sounds like a reasonable solution.

mpc

edit: while I typed this the thread picked up a couple more replies... including one that said lee had already tried something similar to my suggestion. And I too don't care for Systainers or other dedicated tool storage cases for frequently used tools. That container takes a more storage space in my shop compared to the tool and its accessories, sometimes a lot more space... but the real annoyance is that to use the tool I need to find a large empty surface to put the box onto to open it and then fish out the tool. Systainers and similar storage box systems are great for contractors, plumbers, and other trades folks that always work remotely.

[leehljp]

Each of us has our own way that works best for what we do. I tried the wall hanging of tools for a while and that doesn't work well for me. ;-) I have tried numerous methods and have just come to the conclusion that I am always going to be disorganized! I do much better in disorganization that I do in "organization". As to bags (with solid bottoms) I am working to see if I put similar working battery powered tools in the same bag along with nothing more than the blades or bits or related items - will this work for me.

[dbhost]

leehljp This dovetails really nicely into my recent acquisitions of the One+ cordless tools. Obviously the chani saw won't fit in any reasonble bag, but I am seriously considering taking my One+ goodies to HF and sizing up proper bags. My corded stuff came with bags except for my Ryobi Jig saw which I happened to have a bag sized perfectly for it, and my Ryobi orbital sander, which I reused the Skil bag, and then had to replace that when it wore out with one from HF the same size...

My service bags I use for Telecom / ethernet runs are from HF and absolutely fantastic. As in couldn't possibly ask for a better bag...

[leehljp]

I will check HF this week for their tool bags. I need a couple more, or 3.

18V Sanders, I have two, I need a small bag for them too!

[dbhost]

I looked at their website. It looks like the smaller individual tool size bags are on clearance. Might wanna hurry! HF is changing up their offerings, not entirely for the good either. The value proposition they were just 2 years ago seems to be greatly diminished...

[leehljp]

I FOUND MY ORGANIZATIONAL STYLE for tools, Or what works for me!

As mentioned above, Open top tool boxes don't work well for me as they just automatically catch everything. I have 3 open top tool boxes and they are mostly repetitive tools of each other and they all have screws, parts and whatever that I throw in it at the end of a task.

By having several zip close top BAGS, I have grouped basic tools together for a given need:
18 inch bag: jig saw, sawzall/recip, multi-tool and related blades
16 inch: two hot melt glue guns and sticks, solder iron, solder, mini-torch. (Hot melt gun - 1 large stick 18V, one small stick corded); Soldering irons (2) 18V and corded; different size and color sticks; different size solder. Also - I have a plastic welding iron somewhere and when I find it, it will go into this bag.
16 inch: two different 18V grinders (large and small) plus numerous grinder/cutoff disks.
14 inch: two different 18V sanders (corner sander and ROS.

I am still figuring out my larger tools but think I have those figured out with two 16" x 22" open top hard container for drills, drivers, other larger tools as needed to carry to a job.

TODAY - I needed to work on the ice maker in our 17 year old LG refrigerator. The auger in it that delivers whole ice cubes or crushes the cubes had quit working properly some months ago. After tinkering with it a couple of times, I discovered the problem a few days ago - a metal bow tie shaped plate rotated freely on the shaft instead of turning with the delivery tube, basically preventing ice from getting into the delivery tube. The plastic delivery tube hand an indention for the metal plate bow tie to fit into. I took the complete container out and worked on it.

My FIX: I got the bag with the solder/hot melt items. EASY To Fine All the tools and supporting items. I used the 18V hot melt glue gun and used that to glue the bow tie plate back in place. After installing the ice maker back into the Fridge, I filled the ice container half full of cubes and gave it a try. It worked immediately. First time to correctly work in 6 months.

Of course, my small open top bag with screw drivers, pliers, tape and etc - helped by having the small hand tool needs at hand.

It sure is nice to have ALL the tools needed and the attachments or related resources in one place!


EDIT IN: it wasn't that simple. It was the bow tie plate, But it required some other alignments that did not seem obvious at the beginning. Of course the rear engagement gears needed alignment but the lever that causes the ice to "crush" was the persnickety one. Once I saw that (well hidden), It started working. I just hope it keeps working. $246 for a new ice tray.