Festool Sysport Clone

[Matt Meiser]

Since I've recently more than doubled the size of my Systainer collection, I've decided that I don't like storing them on top of the vac. Instead of paying a lot of money for a Sysport (and I would have needed 2) here is my solution.

The carcase is 3/4" melamine which I had left over from a cabinetry project I just finished. I used Dominos (unglued) for alignment of all the box parts and held everything together with Confirmat screws. The drawer slides are from Gliderite and I definitely would use them again--including shipping a box of 10 sets was about $50, so the slides for this project were only about $25. The drawers themselves are leftover 1/2" baltic birch with leftover 1/4" melamine covered MDF for bottoms. The fronts are (you guessed it) leftover 1/2" MDF. I splurged there for a quart of color-matched paint in Festool green to make it fun. The casters I have on it for now are inexpensive ones from Harbor Freight that I had around, but I plan to replace them with some locking casters later.

Edit: I need to add that all of the ideas for this were shamelessly stolen from a thread over on the Festool Owners Group site where several members have made their own Sysports.

[Tim Thomas]

Nice! I really like the extra touch of the color matched paint. It sounds like you already had most of the materials on hand, leaving budget room to splurge on the details. How much do you think you saved by building this yourself? (I don't have any Festool stuff, but I do know that all that great quality comes with a price.)

Thanks for the tip on the drawer slides too. There is a kitchen remodel in my future and I will be needing a LOT of those things.

[Jim Kirkpatrick]

Looks great Matt! And the fact you used the Domino to construct even better. I think the almost $500 they charge for their version is ridiculous!!

[Matt Meiser]

Yep, they are $490 and I spent about $70, including enough slides and paint to build another or for some other project. I'll still probably spend a fair amount on some nice casters. I would have had to get into a second one to hold what I already have. So I saved about to $900. Oh, that and my marriage ;)

All my other tools with the exception of a couple I always use out of the shop are no longer in their cases. They waste a lot of room, its hard to tell what is in them, and the different sizes and shapes are a pain. But the systainers are easy to use and store neatly, plus it is convenient to move several of them out of the shop on top of the vac when I need them in the house or on the road. This just makes accessing them in the shop easier.

I knowingly built it with no spare capacity as I didn't want to make it any taller. It could be tipped if I tried and making it taller would have made that easier so I'm glad I didn't. I don't have any plans for more Festool stuff, but we all know how THAT goes! :p If I do get more I'll have to build another one.

[Chris Padilla]

Nice job, Matt! I do need to do something similar with my collection of F stuff/boxes....

[Al Garay]

Matt,

Can you give details about the Festool paint - what brand, color?

thanks,

Al

[Mike Spanbauer]

Nicely done! I've been contemplating a similar build, although it wasn't as fancy :P

I've about 5.5' of systainers currently, which when on top of the CT33, is taller than myself (6'3")

Plus, the accessibility ease of any container without removing the stack would be very nice indeed.

mike

[Chris Padilla]

Matt,

Can you give details about the Festool paint - what brand, color?

thanks,

Al

I'd take a piece of the green portion of the systainer to the local paint mixer and see what the comptuer can do with it.

[Matt Meiser]

I just grabbed a bunch of paint chips in the green range while at one local hardware store that carries Benjamin Moore several weeks ago and found an perfect match. Then I carried it around in my truck for a few weeks and kept forgetting to get it so I had Ace just match the color off the chip one day when I was there. Since I didn't get the exact paint I threw away the chip when I got home. Chris's way would have been easier and the latches come off easy enough.

My stack was approaching my height. My wife got me the Hose Garage for Christmas which requires you to remove the Systainers to store the hose so I started just stacking them on the floor. This was a necessity, but it was a fun project.

Now here's the gloat: My wife came out to see it tonight. She asked where I was going to put the next Systainer when I get it. Not if but when. She suggested that I build the next one, I can build all the drawers for the next one and just put the first in so that when I get more I set the drawers where needed. I like her thinking. :D:D:D

[Dave Hale]

She sounds like a keeper to me! ;)
Have to ask, though, once we've 'broken' their defenses this thoroughly, is it as much fun??
I kind of enjoy the 'prep' work to properly 'immunize' SWMBO before a major expenditure.

Nice job, BTW. Now you've got me motivated to get my 'tainers off of the CT22.
Been wanting to put the ClearVue Mini on the CT22 anyway.
Thanks, Matt, for another distraction. :)

[Doug Shepard]

Very cool. Made me think of the 70's R&B/Funk band Tower-Of-Power:cool:

[Matt Meiser]

Sorry Doug, about the only thing I remember from the 70's is Sesame Street and Kindergarten :D

[Doug Shepard]

I didnt catch them until the 80's and their live show was one of the best I've seen. Them and Robert Cray together in a very small club was almost too hot to handle. You've probably heard at least a few of them without knowing it. Their horn section has played on scads of other peoples albums. About the only tune of theirs that got them their own airplay was What Is Hip?. Looks like they're still alive and kickin.
http://www.towerofpower.com/2007/

[Joe Mioux]

When did you buy a Domino, Matt?

I thought you went the other route and purchased a DowelMax.

Anyway, the new cabinet looks very nice.

Joe

[Matt Meiser]

When did you buy a Domino, Matt?

I changed my mind (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=76581) about 2 weeks ago.

[Jim Becker]

Matt, nice job! I need to make a couple of these, too...thanks for the reminder!

[Dave Avery]

I didnt catch them until the 80's and their live show was one of the best I've seen. Them and Robert Cray together in a very small club was almost too hot to handle. You've probably heard at least a few of them without knowing it. Their horn section has played on scads of other peoples albums. About the only tune of theirs that got them their own airplay was What Is Hip?. Looks like they're still alive and kickin.
http://www.towerofpower.com/2007/


Tower of Power, along with Johnny Lang and BB King in the summer of 1997 at a seaside park on the Connecticut shore........ and Tower of Power was the best part of the show. Still can't beleive it.....
ie

[Don Bullock]

Great idea Matt. When I acquire a Festool collection like yours I'll have to make some of those. Thanks for sharing.

[John Shuk]

This would be a nice thing to see in the plans forum.

[Matt Meiser]

This would be a nice thing to see in the plans forum.

Plans? You think I've got plans? :D This is the second request, so I suppose I should pull my chicken-scratch dimension notes from the trash and put them into somethign presentable.

[John Shuk]

That would be great. I haven't taken the Fes-plunge yet but I do plan on it in the future.

[Chris Padilla]

Plans? You think I've got plans? :D This is the second request, so I suppose I should pull my chicken-scratch dimension notes from the trash and put them into somethign presentable.


Yer on deck, Mr. Meiser!!! ;)

[robert micley]

i built a rolling cabinet for my systainers.face frames on either side with plywood sides and shelves.two swinging doors on each side.5 foot tall.put my portable planer on top.i did not want workshop dust getting in.despite all my tools i still have no dust collector hooked to anything except my router table

[Chris Padilla]

Robert,

No pics...not gonna buy it! ;) hahaha

[Peter Quinn]

I only have two systainers presently but this is inspiring...I am going to make one of those and hope Santa or the FesFairy see's it and fills it for me...FesFairy if your reading this, please start with a domino, then the plunge router, then.....:):):)

[Ben Abate]

Matt, nice job you shouldn't have told us we would have been buying them up. By the way I haven't visited the Festool owners site for some time now and I have found that my old link in my favorites isn't connecting me to it. I tried to google it but still no results. Could you cut and paste the link here. I have been buying a few more pieces and wanted to visit over there.

thanks,

I might have to copy your design, it looks great.

[robert micley]

i have no ides how to use computer and camersbut i will ask my wife to do it

[Doug Shepard]

Tower of Power, along with Johnny Lang and BB King in the summer of 1997 at a seaside park on the Connecticut shore........ and Tower of Power was the best part of the show. Still can't beleive it.....
ie

Ooh -Lookee here what I found
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnwCiR9igBk
T.O.P.+Carlos Santana

[Bruce Pennell]

Matt any problem with tipping when you have a couple shelves pulled out? Your project looks great, love the paint... I need to build one for my stack some day. Kinda thinking I'll make a small MFT type table with systainer storage under both sides. Love your stacks! Bru

[Matt Meiser]

Ben, it is at festoolownersgroup.com.

[Matt Meiser]

Crude plans (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?p=787532) are now available in the plans forum. Remember that the plans forum only allows contributors to download attachments.

No tipping problems Bruce. You of course could tip it, but its not unstable as-is. I've seen an idea for a system that uses a series of screw eyes in the drawer backs and a piece of string that only allows one drawer to open. You could implement something like that if there was a concern.