Tap & Die and Metalworking Tool Storage.

[StephenM]

I helped a buddy go through his dad's tools and for my trouble, he gave me a bunch of stuff

Including this nice little Craftsman/Atlas drill press which just needs a little clean up and paint (and a pulley shroud if someone happens to have an extra laying around)

I'm going to have a corner of the shop dedicated to metal/plastic/antler work (I'm going to try my hand at kitless).

In poking around Google looking for ideas, I didn't see a lot of vertical (wall hung) storage. Mostly because machinists have nice machinist chests to store things in. However, I redid things a bit and have a big open area I'd like to keep open for table projects (shameless plea for compliments

I'm thinking a wall hung storage area - a piece of wood with a bevel cut into it with the taps in the bevel and their corresponding drill bits behind them. Dies will go into a piece of wood drilled with forstner bit. They'll be at a 10 or 15 degree angle to keep from falling out. All of the handles (name?) can go in routed recesses. I'll shellac all of the wood, could flock the inside of the recesses and then will make a door to cover it with a piece of clear lexan I have left over.

So my question - will this cause rust or corrosion on the tools? I plan on brass wheeling everything clean and coating it with BoShield or the like. Should I put a desiccant in there or am I over-thinking it?

Any problems with the plan or anything I'm missing?

 

[PatrickR]

Very nice table! What wood is the slab? Your plan sounds good to me. I have similar behind my metal lathe (not enclosed) for dedicated tools and project specific items that go back to storage when done. As to rust, un-heated area? I have an armoire converted to store hand tools. I keep a stereo in the bottom and leave it on, raising the temp slightly keeping condensation away. No rust. Also put an anti-rust capsule in it (lee valley has them).