Creating straightforward storage solutions in limited spaces
When I first moved into my new place and began setting up my shop in the garage, I knew right off the bat that I would need a dedicated storage space for a lot of my tools and other hardware that I use. Before creating this cabinet, my storage consisted mainly of a wire rack where I threw my tools. It was incredibly unorganized and pretty frustrating to work with. After building the nightstands and a worktable for myself, I knew that it was time to make some proper storage. Today, I'm excited to share with you how I revolutionized the storage capabilities in my workshop by building a custom cabinet. If you've ever felt the struggle of having limited space for your tools and supplies, this post is for you!
To Make or Buy... That is the Question
As happens with many of us when it comes to building out our shops, the question of whether to buy storage cabinets or build them from scratch came up. For most, I'm sure that buying a set of cabinets is the best answer to getting set up and organized quickly without too much of a headache. For me however, I found that no commercially available cabinets really fit the space that I had planned for my workshop. Plus, I was excited by the prospect of building a set of cabinets myself! So, off to the drawing board... or Fusion 360.... I went!
Starting with a Good Plan
Going old school for this one, I worked on drawing up the cabinet I envisioned for the space. Pulling inspiration from a few other makers I follow on YouTube, as well as recognizing my own storage needs, I landed on a simple structure that offered a 2 drawer, 2 cabinet design. The drawers were sized to fit most of my hardware, finishes and other smaller tools, while the lower cabinets were made to fit some larger tools such as the jig saw and cordless nail gun. The bench top is made of MDF laminated to particle board with maple trim pieces to protect the edges.
(After the build, I came back and created a model of the cabinet in Fusion 360, pictured above, for future planning purposes)
Building Commences
Armed with a simple plan and a heap of enthusiasm, I set out to bring my cabinet design to life. I began by breaking down the plywood sheets, looking to start building the overall structure of the cabinet first. In classic YouTube maker fashion, my method of assembly was pocket hole screws and glue. The face frame is made from strips of maple that I had ripped down, assembled with pocket hole screws, and attached to the cabinet box with glue and brad nails.
And before any of you run to the comments, yes I recognize that maple is overkill for a shop cabinet face frame, but my thought process was that using a hardwood for the face frame would be more durable in the long run.
Trying New Techniques
Once the base structure of the cabinet was assembled, I moved on to attaching the doors for the lower cabinets. To do this, I bought the Kreg cabinet hinge jig to help streamline the process as I planned to hang the doors using European-style cabinet hinges.
With the doors hung, I moved my way up to building out the drawers. Another new process for me, I elected to keep the drawers themselves as simple as possible. No fancy joinery methods, just... you guessed it... POCKET HOLE SCREWS! For the drawer bottoms, just a 1/4" piece of plywood, glued and brad nailed into place, was plenty for what I intended to put in these guys.
The drawer fronts were mounted using a method I've seen a few times online. By marking and drilling the holes for the pulls on the drawer fronts, those holes can be used to hold the drawer front in place while I worked to attach it from the back. Then, once the drawer front is attached, the clearance holes for the drawer pulls can be drilled through the front wall of the drawer box and the pull can be mounted!
Topping Things Off
The final construction step in this build is building and attaching a countertop. Now again, being highly influenced by other YouTubers such as Travis from Shop Nation, I elected to build a countertop that was basically just two pieces of sheet material laminated to each other. For my build, I used OSB as the foundation and topped it with a 3/4" sheet of MDF, doing my best to use as much glue as possible to secure these two together.
SAFETY NOTE: When working with these materials, use proper PPE (dust mask and safety glasses) and work in a ventilated space. Both of these guys have some nasty chemicals in them and make a mess when cut, so be sure to mask up!
Once the sheets had been glued, the last steps were to add a maple edge to the countertop (again, looking for durability... and maybe look good too) and secure it in place.
Finishing Touches
Now for finish, I sanded down all the exterior surfaces and applied a couple coats of water-based polyurethane to protect the wood as it is in a garage. I only really worried about the outer surfaces of the cabinet here since again, this is shop furniture, it doesn't have to be perfect.
Concluding
And that's that!
These cabinets have already gone a long way in helping me to organize the shop space, adding much needed storage for everything from my smaller tools to hardware and finishes.
If you're grappling with storage in your workshop, don't despair – take matters into your own hands just like I did! Building cabinets might seem like a daunting task, but the rewards are well worth the effort. Not only will you maximize your storage capabilities, but you'll also create a space that is truly your own.
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