tool roll for chisel / gouges

[Roger Rettenmeier]

I know some shop storage has been covered on this forum for chisels. I still need to build some cabinets for my shop, and will make sure the chisels and gouges are covered. I was wondering if anyone here uses a tool roll for their chisels and gouges, and if it is homemade, or purchased? I have some tent canvas, and was thinking this might be a good use for it.

[Thomas Schneider]

I have a Sargent 1080 Multi-plane (Stanley 45 equivalent) and the blades all came in a canvas roll. The canvas definitely shows signs of wear but it works. I also have a set of Stanley's new Sweetheart chisel's and they came in a really impressive leather tool roll that looks like it would last quite a while. Whatever you choose to store them in, make sure you have caps on the ends of the chisels or they will slice through what ever material you use when you take them in and out of it! I would love to see pic's of whatever you make! Good luck!

[Michael Peet]

I bought a set of LN chisels from a fellow Creeker some years back and they arrived in a LN leather tool roll. This is how I store them but then again my tool organization is... non-existent.

Mike

[Mike Henderson]

I have mine stored in a cloth tool roll I bought from Woodcraft. Remember that the tools go in handle first, not blade first.

Mike

[Tony Wilkins]

I have the leather roll for my set of LN chisels and the canvas roll from BS for my assorted other chisels (which are mostly BS). I like them but will move them to the back of the case rack when I finish my tool chest.

[Reinis Kanders]

I read somewhere that leather is not that great as far as rust is concerned. Also in my summer place near the ocean I left some oiled chisels in canvas roll in a shed and they did get a bit rusty over the summer, but we do get a lot of salty fog there and everything rusts fast. So I only use rolls for transport. At home I am near the ocean as well, but my tools are on sunny porch and rust has been not that much of an issue, but I do always wipe tools after their use.

[Tom M King]

I bought some good leather ones off ebay that came from the UK. They were still cheaper than rolls I've seen here.

[Mike Henderson]

I read somewhere that leather is not that great as far as rust is concerned. Also in my summer place near the ocean I left some oiled chisels in canvas roll in a shed and they did get a bit rusty over the summer, but we do get a lot of salty fog there and everything rusts fast. So I only use rolls for transport. At home I am near the ocean as well, but my tools are on sunny porch and rust has been not that much of an issue, but I do always wipe tools after their use.
I think I read that it depends on how the tanning was done. One process is okay and the other causes rust. I don't remember what the two processes were.

But there's no reason to go leather unless you just like it. A cloth roll works fine. I made some of my own from drop cloth material but found that the commercial ones were better (bought at Woodcraft) - a bit stiffer material.

Mike

[I bet George Wilson would know which leather is best for tools.]

[Stew Denton]

Hi All,

I don't have a leather roll for chisels, but I do have a leather roll with auger bits in it. The roll was made from leather from an old jacket. I bought it at an auction of an old carpenter, that I believe was about 80 at the time, who was having his tool auctioned off. That was almost 40 years ago. I believe that he had kept the auger bits in that leather tool roll since the late 30s or early 40s, based on the condition, his age, and how it has aged over the past nearly 40 years that I have used them.

It must have been the right kind of leather, as alluded to above, because those bits have been in that tool roll about 75 years as best as I can guess, and they are still shiny, with virtually no rust. They don't even have a patina but are shiny steel.

Of course this country where I live is fairly dry, but I lived in central Kansas, which has moderately humidity for about 10 years.

Stew

[Malcolm Schweizer]

I have a canvas roll for my Auriou carving tools but they live in a drawer and the canvas roll is stashed away. I find them too fussy to get the tools in and out of. They are great for traveling, but really unnecessary in the shop.

As as for the comments about leather not protecting tools from rust, LN used to say this on their site. I notice they no longer do. Perhaps it inhibited sales, or perhaps they changed their mind. I would oil the leather if I stored the tools in it.

[Jim Koepke]

Many years ago my bicycle tools and later automotive tools were kept in a tool roll. It never seemed to be the best way to store tools.

Of course now they all seem to get jammed into drawers or boxes.

Good thing there isn't a law against having more stuff than can be easily organized.

jtk

[Hilton Ralphs]

I think I read that it depends on how the tanning was done. One process is okay and the other causes rust. I don't remember what the two processes were.


Vegetable tanned is the type of leather that you want for your tools. A bit thicker than the chrome/chemically tanned stuff but will not absorb rust.

The thin stuff they use on car seats and designer bags etc is the chrome tanned stuff.

Easy to remember, just think of your Mother telling you that veggies are good for you.

[Daniel Rode]

I love the idea of tool rolls but I don't really use them.

I think tool rolls work well for travel and they are nice for storing infrequently used sets of tools. My woodworking tools don't leave the shop, so I don't have any travel kits. Carpentry and other "trade" tools do travel with me on at times, but not in tool rolls.

Today I have exactly 2 tool rolls and both arrived this month. The first is a plastic roll containing a set of vintage auger bits. I'm not going to use a brace and bit regularly, so the roll is a nice way to store and protect them. The second came with the set of saw files I got from LV. I'm not going to sharpen saws daily, so it's a nice way to keep them organized and out of the way.

I like my primary chisels in a rack at my bench. My secondary set in in a rack only a couple of feet away. In the shop, a tool roll makes them unnecessarily difficult to access and put away.

[Brian Thornock]

Before we moved cross country last year, my wive made me a couple of canvas ones and they work quite well. I have two for lesser used chisels that are unrolled in a drawer, that keeps them from banging into each other and on the whole I like that setup. My regular users live on a rack on the wall.

[Jeff Ranck]

I use a tool roll for my chisels. Canvas made by my wife from a pattern in FWW (IIRC). I love it, not only that it keeps my chisels together (I don't have a tool chest yet - one day after the bench and such gets finished and I finally decide how I want to store things), but it also keeps them from banging around. Easy to grab the roll and have what I need at hand.

I like the canvas as well. I think I'd use it for any rolls that I had.

[Roger Rettenmeier]

Thanks for the replys. Sounds like a tool roll would have a place in the shop. I have to take care of some shop storage, but a couple of rolls for excess chisels and gouges would be a good thing to have.

[Mike Holbrook]

I have been attending Woodworking Classes fairly often for the last year or two. I have quite a few tools in tool rolls so that they are quicker to load up and easier to get to make a selection from at the class. I like them so much I now use them in my shop at home. I use a Festool cart to carry Festool containers that tool rolls fit into easily:


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I think I payed 15-$18 for the two Balistic/Codura nylon rolls. The grey one just arrived a couple days ago from Amazon. Amazon carries a good selection and I have Amazon Prime. I ordered it one afternoon and it arrived the next day. I am getting all my tools together for a 6 day class at Country Workshops in Asheville,NC. Most of the classes I have been taking are green wood classes which do not require many chisels so I just take my Barr Chisel set that came in a nice leather Roll.

I keep the bulk of my chisels in drawers (see picture of jewelry cabinet), sometimes I put toolss I am using in the plastic tool holder on my StoreWall. I am also building a mobile tool holder from a Popular Woodworking design for a German tool cabinet.



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Now I am searching for a roll that is large enough to carry spokeshaves. The LV offering is a little small for my needs. The turner tool rolls are just too big. If anyone finds something middle size....

[Mike Henderson]

Now I am searching for a roll that is large enough to carry spokeshaves. The LV offering is a little small for my needs. The turner tool rolls are just too big. If anyone finds something middle size....
Lee Valley makes a spokeshave holder (http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=51504&cat=1,50230,51504)roll that is excellent. You can always buy two if you have a lot of spokeshaves.

Mike

[Sam Murdoch]

For what it's worth you can make a pretty decent tool roll with a lumber yard nail apron.
Just run some stitches up the pockets to the width needed. Comes with a draw string and a fold over flap and usually is free.

[Robert Norman]

I picked up a roll on Etsy I really like. PM me for a direct link, not sure forum rules about such things. The Schwarz just did a review of some good ones from a maker here in TX, so expect a long lead time now!

My shop has no AC or heat so I wrap 'em up after a good oil wipe and put them in a mechanics tool chest. No corrosion issues, I just have to be mindful of exposed edges when handling.

[Mike Holbrook]

Mike, It says the LV roll holds shaves 12" and less:

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The shaves above are all 12" or larger. The LV shaves are 10.5". The top one is over 15" long x 2" (5" blade) and want fit in any of my tool rolls. The elastic for holding the shaves in the LV roll does not look very sturdy to me. The blade holding pockets are too small for many of the blades in my shaves...Still I may get a LV shave roll for the smaller ones, if I don't find anything that will keep them all in one roll. Some will fit in the large tool rolls in the pictures above. The problem is the blades are exposed in the center of the roll right where chisel/gouge/files have metal parts with nothing to keep them apart.

[Aaron Rappaport]

I bought a leather tool roll from - I believe - Highland Woodworking. Put the files I bought from them in it and a month later they had rusted. Usually it takes years for things to rust in my shop. I'm not willing to risk using that particular leather roll anymore! Canvas sounds appealing, but I haven't tried it. I've also heard of people using leather that's oiled up but I always thought that sounded rather - oily.

[Mike Cogswell]

Mary May, the woodcarver, pointed out how easy it is to make a good tool roll from an old pair of jeans. Denim makes a good roll. A few minutes with a sewing machine and presto! Plus, you can make it to fit whatever tools you need to accommodate.

[Tom M King]

I drug out all my chisel rolls today to compare. I had bought several different ones off ebay to compare probably six months ago, but chisels got put in them and stored. Remembering this thread, I decided to compare, and check for rust. No rust on any of the chisels. Of the different rolls, the one I liked best was a "Faithful". They go for 18 bucks and change on ebay plus 6 bucks shipping from the UK. Only 8 slots, but the leather is thick, and a set of NOS Boxwood handled Marples chisels was a perfect fit in one, as was a set of the blue plastic handled ones. Another darker colored leather one holds more chisels by facing them in both directions, but the leather is thin, and I was wishing I had ordered more of the Faithfuls. Also in there are a couple of the Bucket Boss ones that I've had for a couple of decades, but I'd be best satisfied if they were all the good leather ones.