Tool Cabinet
Pond Boat Program
Last Summer, the Wooden Boatshop (and the Waterfront Center) hosted a two week program for young kids, 10-15 years old, to build their own pond boats. The intent was to give the kids experience using hand tools and leave them with a boat they could sail in the bay. This was done under the capable supervision of Scott Carro, a woodworking teacher from the local Greenvale school.
Since the Boatshop, has a limited stock of hand tools, most of those used had to be bought specially for the program, and since we needed a place to store them, I designed a cabinet to hold them and display them during the sessions. Having designed it, I was invited to build it!
Mobility - the cabinet would need to be moved from a storage area to the bench area when in use, so it needed wheels. These were mounted outboard of the cabinet to give it stability. Handles were also needed to help maneuver it around so I incorporated a series of handgrip slots into the front and sides.
Stability - since the center of gravity had to stay low to prevent accidental tipping, I wanted no tools mounted to the doors, and designed the doors to open and sit flush to the sides of cabinet (maintaining the handgrip features).
Storage - the larger tools could all be hung inside the cabinet. The smaller tools, bits and blades, etc. would need to be stored in drawers, so these are incorporated into a removeable tool box with four drawers.
Planes – above the chest, a removeable plane ramp was added. This has a front lip to keep the blades from touching the baseboard.
Happily, the program went well, the kids performed admirably and ultimately sailed their boats in the bay. The tool cabinet functioned as planned and is now regularly raided by Boatshop volunteers for hand tools.
