Mobile Clamp Rack

The next set of loose junk around my garage to organize are my clamps.  In the previous shop, these filled every nook and cranny along one wall.  Those dowel holders are a very efficient way to pack as many clamps in as possible horizontally.  The professional metal brackets don’t pack quite as tight, but look nice and make the clamps easier to access.  I had bought a number of them in the past, but didn’t use very many for lack of space.  Thank goodness I never throw anything away!

My new shop has a lot of space, but not as much wall as you would think.  Windows, doors, and a lot of plumbing stuff take up much of the available wall surface.  To remedy this, I need a new wall.  A wall on wheels.  I cut down two 1/2″ sheets of plywood and screwing them down to a 2×4 frame.

The wall stands on a set of 2x4s with casters and is short enough to get under my garage door.  I can roll this anywhere in the shop now.  The frame took 4 boards, and the legs with braces another 2 for a total of 6 2x4s.  I had the casters already, but went for nicer grade plywood and ended up spending about 100 dollars to build this.

I used a few of my previous clamp holders, but ditched most of the hodge podge for the nicer looking store bought metal brackets I already had.  Everything got directly screwed to the plywood face.  This big of a blank canvas supports all sorts of solutions and lets me pack in clamps efficiently.  I even managed to get my saw/router guides and cawls onboard.  I may eventually re-organize so they are grouped more by length than type of clamp, but with everything so open it is really easy to see what is available.

 

 

Clamp Bucket

Lots of people store clamps in large racks and in rows along their wall.  I don’t have much wall space with easy access, and a big clamp rack is a no go.  I do have some buckets though!

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Good, but it kind of tips over easily and could use higher sides.  Screwing the bottom of the bucket to a scrap of spare particle board keeps it from tipping.  I used small segments of pine to create risers for the second bucket.  Cutting out the bottom of the second bucket let the clamps go all the way to the bottom.

Better, now how does that happy little clamp sit in there?  Oh look, 20 friends decided to join.  Bessey and Jorgensen and Wood River Oh My!

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A clamp bucket for less than 10 bucks.  I had a pile of 12, 18 and 24 inch clamps lying around that really needed some organization, and this has fit the bill.  It could be a little tough to find the exact length of clamp I want in the bucket without some trial an error.  That having been said, space is at such a premium in my shop, I am willing to sacrifice a little speed for space.