Organizing large numbers of blanks

[mschem]

I was just reading the recent thread in which Dario's chef's special package seems to be taking the world by storm. My Dario order from a few weeks back provided some nice variety and new woods for me. But, I'm descending that shadowy path of accumulating blanks at a faster rate than I am currently turning them.[}]

Do you folks who have large collections of blanks use any particular scheme of organizing the collection - sorting, labeling, etc.? It seems that would make it easier to focus on selecting the best blank from a smaller set (say dark figured burl) when you're turing something to fill a particular request. Or do you follow my stellar example of having to go through the entire pile each and every time? Haven't yet figured if that's because of laziness or a desire to frequently gloat over the collection[)]

 

[wdcav1952]

Hey, is there something wrong with going through the pile of blanks whispering "My Precioussssss?"

Mine are roughly organized in boxes and shelves. I try to label boxes with my more premium blanks, but am only partially successful. Choosing the blank is half the fun in my jaundiced opinion. []

 

[Old Griz]

WOOOOOOOOD PRETTTTTY.... PRETTTTY WOOOOOOD...

<b>MINE !!!!!</b>

 

[alamocdc]

Originally posted by wdcav1952
<br />Hey, is there something wrong with going through the pile of blanks whispering "My Precioussssss?"

Not that I can tell, Cav. I do it all the time. [] LOML thinks I've lost it.

mschem, unfortunately I use the same method as Cav, but probably not so organinzed. About 8 boxes, all full of blanks standing on end scattered on shelves or where ever they'll fit throughout the shop. I should probably go through and sort them and label the boxes, but who has the time? I just dig through them until I find one that sings to me for the pen I happen to be making.[]

 

[Mikey]

I only have a hundred or so blanks, so I know what they all are. (or they are labeled in white paint marker) As far as sorting, they all go in a box, end up, with the crappy stuff more on one side and the nicer figured stuff on the other. When looking at the box, I can generally see the color of the wood, then reach in to select the right blank.

 

[Dario]

I found and bought about 30 stackable plastic crate (OD are approx 6" x 6" x 8") from my Dollar store for you guessed it, dollar a piece. They work great for me. I have them stacked on a steel shelving. Neatly arranged, you can put 50 to 80 blanks on each of these.

For my personal stuff though...I have them all mixed on 4 crates [] and go through them like William...[}]

Every now and then I thin the herd and throw a piece or two on some of the Chef's special.

 

[Rifleman1776]

I use document boxes. These hold about 40 blanks each and are very sturdy. The outside is labeled and every blank is marked with the type of wood. Right now I have eight of these boxes full waiting to be made into pens.

 

[dubdrvrkev]

I keep mine (mostly) bundled in rubber bands according to species (I try to label most blanks as I get them) standing up on end. When I want to select I grab the whole bundle and pilfer from there. I have most of my blanks in one drawer.

 

[Scott]

I have blanks laying all over the place! When I clean them up I just throw them in boxes, and I have a bunch of boxes laying around. Cleaning, labeling, and organizing would take away from my turning time! [] Strangely enough, I remember most of them, where they're at, and where I got them from.

But I DON'T fondle my pen blanks! (Much) [8D]

Scott.

 

[rtparso]

Ziplock. and I make notes on the bags.

 

[lawry76]

Mine are in long, flat sweater boxes. About once a month or so, I spend part of a Saturday sorting through all of them selecting the next 20 that I want to turn. My dad was a depression child and I think I inherited some of his genes. His argument was, whenever I would tease him about being such a "saver", "Well Bob, what if they quit making them?" So I guess that's why I have blanks all over the place. I mean what if they quit making them? Where would I be?

 

[rjuhl]

I started out keeping track of my kits, blanks and finishing pens on Excel spreadsheets. I do pretty well with the finished pens (kit type, wood, date finished, who I gave it to). The kits are easy to keep track of too because there is a relatively small number of varieties. But the blanks are more difficult because of the many different types. I have a pretty good handle on what I have -- about 250 in total. Finding them however (which was the original question) is a bit of an expedition. Just because the computer says I have 5 blue and gold box elder burl blanks doesn’t mean that I can find them. I have my blanks on a shelf, duplicates rubber-banded togetther, kind of alphabetical, each one labeled. Bill B. labels all of the blanks you buy from him â€" thank you Bill â€" and I use a ‘metallic silver’ Sharpie to write on the others; it does a good job of making a easy to read label on dark wood. Like the others, I enjoy the hunt when selecting the next dozen great masterpieces, and can take an entire afternoon just chosing the blanks and deciding which end will be the top.

 

[Mudder]

I stand them on end in small boxes and put a number on the end of the blank that corresponds to the type of wood on my list.

For Example:

1) Maple
2) Maple (figured)
3) Maple (tiger)
4) Maple (burl)
5) Cedar
6) Ash
7) Maple (spalted)
8) Oak


When I get a new type of blank I just add another number.
The initial investment in time is worth it in the long run.

 

[Efletche]

Since I work Heart Center of our hospital, I take the permanent pacemaker boxes home and use them for the different woods (waste not..... They are long enough for oversized blank and I can easily put between 6 and 20 blanks in each box (depending on the blanks dimensions). The boxes are stiff enought that they also great for shipping through the mail.

 

[Ron Mc]

I like to use a cabinet with the draws separated. I have also started using large plastic containers that I purchased at the orange box store and the work great.

 

[C_Ludwigsen]

I have them stacked in places around my house, shop, workplace, bedroom, front yard, church, backyard, kids room..... When I get home, I scurry around from place to place picking up a few here, depositing them over there, twisting and turning them around in my hands - my ears always at alert for any wood scavengers that want to pilfer them from me. I usually end up sitting in a dark corner with a bunch of my favorites. If you are quiet and don't spook me you can hear me counting them... A ONE, A TWOOOOO, A THREEE AH AH AH AH AHHHHHH, A FOUR......

[]

 

[wayneis]

I have a cabnet that I made for my shop that fits under the bench that my lathe sets on. This cabnet is about 25 inches square and I have several draws. Three of them are devoted to some of my blanks. One draw for stabilized, one for not stabilized and one for acrylics. These draws are about 1 1/4 inches deep and I can place three rows from front to back with about twenty five in a row. I only keep my extra special blanks in there all the rest are in bins that I mounted to a wall. The bottom draw is about five inches deep and thats where I keep my kits. I actuall started making this for my Incra router system but changed my mind, now I need to make another, and another, and another. Storage space is always a problem for me.

Wayne

 

[woodwish]

Generally I consider myself a very organized person, to the point that most woodworkers poke fun at me about it, but all my blanks are just in drawers. Neatly stacked, but just drawers. I do try to write on them what they are if it's something different. After teaching wood shop so many years I can spot most common woods, but some of the exotics really throw me at times. Sometimes as I look for one thing I find somethign else I like better, just part of the fun I think.

I am surprised that some enterprising sole hasn't tried to sell special pen blank cabinets, but it seems the only common thread about storage for most people is that they use something leftover or surplus. We don't seem to mind spending a small fortune on tools or pen mechanisms, but won't shed a dime on anything to store them in. [] It's just a woodworkers nature I think. []