A simple toolbox and a Drill Brace test

[Axel de Pugey]

Axel, that is a unique, attractive and useful toolbox. What the Neanderthal forum needs are woodworkers who love hand tools and love to use them. Well done.

Mark, Many thanks.

It is an understatement to say that I was a bit scared all these years, to post here.
To me, SMC is the virtual mecca of handtools, so full of experts.

Your kind words are really important to me…ok, I might come back then ;-)

[Axel de Pugey]

Axel, that is a thing of great artistry. Well done. I would leave it behind in the woods within the first six trips just because I wouldn't be able to find it unless I leave it in my truck bed. So mine (less aestheticaly pleasing) is painted bright orange.

Can you post some more pics of the holes in the riser and it looks like a kind of latch please? The haft on the axe you chose is very similar to the one I had in mind to use for this project. Curious how finicky it is to carry without the box sliding off the axe.

Scott Thanks again for your support.

As I obviously decided wobble should be kept to a minimum, I did a first test with 2 pieces of pine, spread out with clamps. That allowed me to find the minimum shape and size of holes required.
In fact the holes themselves are not completely flat, I slide the axe with a bit of an angle to keep the size of the holes to a minimum. That mean the entry points and exit points of each hole are a bit in diagonal.
Of course, because of the shape of the handle’s end, there is a bit gap under the handle in the second hole. I could not avoid this.



I saw another idea to avoid this, but I did not want to go this route.
I might still think about this kind of design (maybe with brass) if I make a second box for my spoon carving kit, as these axes don’t have a strap hole.


For the little key, I did a flat on the side of the handle support, to be really tight.
I just did it as a dowel and shaped the head.



Things have moved a bit since then and I have a tiny wobble there but that is really nothing.

All in all, it is absolutely confortable to carry, it fits completely my expectations.
Note that I did everything I could to keep movement to a minimum, to the point that now, hygrometry is different and I have to give a good wack to the axe to pull it out, I might file a tad the second hole.

[Axel de Pugey]

BY the way, pardon me, these pictures of the final product date from last week…
I decided to follow Scott’s suggestion above about the colour, therefore the box tonight looks like this:

[lowell holmes]

If you will sand the rusty tools and coat with Johnson's wax, they will not rust. My tools used to rust, but they are not rusty any more.

[Scott Winners]

I just noticed the orange paint tonight when I showed this thread to my wife. Even your paint job is better than mine Axel, well done.

Both holes in the uprights have to be large enough to let the foot of the axe haft through, that is not avoidable.

For what it is worth I can buy cordwood from the state forest for $10 per cord, about 2 cubic meters, but it is standing timber 'on the stump' and usually at least 30 miles from my house. Or I can have green cordwood already cut to length and split dumped in my driveway for about $300 per cord. When I was a younger man with less arthritis I left many many things in the forest because they weren't colored bright orange when I was tired and ready to drive home.

On the one hand it is sad to see the beautiful wood covered with orange paint, but on the other it is good to know your grandchildren will be able to fight over that beautiful thing because you won't leave it behind in the forest after a long work day. Looks like you had to drill a hole through the axe haft to secure the axe to the tool box with your dowel, but your drilled hole is in a place where it doesn't really interfere with the use of the axe. You have earned many many points with this project, including an invitation to dinner from my wife. We look forward to meeting you in a future gentler time when you are able to travel to here.

[Axel de Pugey]

Dear Scott,

I feel extremely bad!

The orange paint job was only a joke triggered by you mentioning :

(...)If I end up making one I will paint it flourescent orange so it will be easy to spot on the forest floor.

I just used a wee bit of old photoshop as a joke, and as for painting skills, I would never achieve this result!

My hard earned walnut (I don’t know another expression for « a lot of work ») is still proudly showing its grain.


But as you mention, I do use the spray can from the picture to highlight most of my forestry tools. This is a necessity. But I can take the risk of not painting the box itself as I am only lumber jacking on the family property. Therefore if I forget the box somewhere...it should stay there until I bump into it again, hopefully!


And thanks a lot for the kind invitation, I am always keen to wander in the North American wilderness!


Thanks a lot for the warm support Scott (and I apologise for the clumsy joke)