Cleat Mounted Clamp Rack

[glenn bradley]

From Sketch Up to Dry-fit.

In SU.

Cleat Clamprack Idea final-1.skp

A picture in Adobe format for those of you without SU.

Cleat Clamprack Idea final-1.pdf

In the real world

F-Like-SU.jpg

And dry-fit and cleat tested.

G-That-works.jpg

I've got 5 more cut up. I'll glue them up and seal them and load 'em up.

[Bill Huber]

Looks like it going to work really well....

Now the question is what are the holes for in the top?

[glenn bradley]

Looks like it going to work really well....

Now the question is what are the holes for in the top?

Sorry, no really cool secret feature there. On previous versions I have found that a sheet of harboard laminated to the top allows for years of use without things getting beat up. I just happened to have some scrap pegboard lying around so I used it. Regular hardboard would be fine. All six of them are made from scrap but they could be purdied-up some if one was so inclined.

[Jon Bonham]

Sorry, no really cool secret feature there. On previous versions I have found that a sheet of harboard laminated to the top allows for years of use without things getting beat up. I just happened to have some scrap pegboard lying around so I used it. Regular hardboard would be fine. All six of them are made from scrap but they could be purdied-up some if one was so inclined.

Nice homemade racks, better than buying it. I have a totally unrelated question for you. I happened to be perusing some old posts and noticed that you purchased a Craftsman Table Saw. What was the final outcome of that? The thread just ended with you unable to mount the fence rails. I have the same saw on order and now I'm starting to fill with dread. I'm on my third delivery date, January 12th, as they keep canceling and rescheduling.

[SCOTT ANDREWS]

[ All six of them are made from scrap but they could be purdied-up some if one was so inclined. [/quote]

What?No shellac and 400 grit Glenn?Nice and simple design.The cleat system looks like it's working well for you.Nice job.

[Ed Howe]

Nice, Glenn. Simple and elegant. I like the chamfered hardboard on top. I was thinking of building the rack shown at http://woodworking.phruksawan.com/clampCabinet/ since I am severely space-constrained, though it is a bit more involved.

I got out the protractor in SU and noticed you angled the slotted piece up 2 degrees. Is that correct? It would seem to make sense to keep the clamps from sliding off if jostled. Before I realized it was angled, I was confused as to why the depth of the slotted piece, measured on the top, is 3 61/64". Doh!

Thanks for sharing!

[Jim Becker]

Excellent, Glenn!!!

[glenn bradley]

depth of the slotted piece, measured on the top, is 3 61/64".

I just like using challenging dimensions . . .. NOT. Yeah, you've got it. 2 degrees is more than adequate to keep things put. Any more and your longer clamps start trying to balance out on the front edge of the fingers of the rack.

Prior to cutting the angle I used some shop made setup blocks to assure consistency on the slots without getting that pesky accumulated error that I'm prone to.

Here I'm showing the test blank so its easier to see what happens. Butt the blank against the blade to zero out.

3-Slot-1st-pos.jpg

Clamp the blank to the fence and use the setup blocks to position the stop block.

4-Blocks-1st-pos.jpg

Remove the blocks, slide the blank over and make your first cut.

5-First-cut.jpg

Clamp the blank to the fence and use the smaller setup block to re-position the stop block.

6-First-block.jpg

Remove the block, slide the blank over and make your next cut.

7-Second-cut.jpg

We really need to allow more pictures per post . . . I thought we LIKED pictures(?).

[glenn bradley]

To continue you just . . . well . . . continue . .. a bunch.

8-Continue-cuts.jpg

To cut the back of the slots rounded and prevent the slot cutouts from becoming projectiles off the TS; I use the same setup blocks on the DP to make the back of the slots.

A-Same-blocks-DP.jpg

Then finish the cuts on the BS. There is so little material left, a handsaw would work fine.

B-Finish-cuts.jpg

A rough chamfer on the RT.

C-Chamfer.jpg

And the 2 degree angle.

D-Angle-cut.jpg

A little hand sanding, glue them up and seal them and your done.

[glenn bradley]

Nice homemade racks, better than buying it. I have a totally unrelated question for you. I happened to be perusing some old posts and noticed that you purchased a Craftsman Table Saw. What was the final outcome of that? The thread just ended with you unable to mount the fence rails. I have the same saw on order and now I'm starting to fill with dread. I'm on my third delivery date, January 12th, as they keep canceling and rescheduling.

I'll PM you Jon. All turned out wonderfully thanks to the folks at Steel City / Orion.

[glenn bradley]

Just a quick update shot of how this system is working in my particular gara- . . . er, shop. So far I've just kinda tossed stuff up there wherever seemed convenient. I have changed my mind and shifted things around a few times and it is quite easy. I'm sure I'll settle in once the opposite wall is done.

[Jim Becker]

Someday I'm going to figure out how I can get enough wall space to do a cleat system like this...

That looks GREAT Glenn!

[Gary Keedwell]

Looking good Glenn. As already mentioned in previous post, I have two walls of the cleat sysytem in my shop and think it is great. I also made a bunch of magazine racks and hang them from the cleats in my library section of shop. Those suckers are HEAVY but the cleats handle them with no problem. I love the option of moving things around at a whim and only taking a few minutes.
Gary

[John Schreiber]

Nice Rack! of course.

But a very nice procedure with the stop blocks and really well thought out. It's the thinking in advance that makes the difference and keeps the slots from flying out at you at the wrong time.

I'm really gonna set up a cleat system like that.

[glenn bradley]

Someday I'm going to figure out how I can get enough wall space to do a cleat system like this...

That looks GREAT Glenn!

Thanks everybody. Certainly not my invention, I just listened to all the good folks here and gleaned what worked for me. It's funny. It doesn't look like it but I have got about twice as much 'stuff' on that wall as I had before. The real miracle is that I can observe "the prime directive". I can walk up and grab what I'm after without having to do some sort of back-wrenching ballet to get to things. ;-)