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Went to a job shop in Ohio and saw something wild with their tool storage
I was visiting a small shop in Canton last week just to pick up some fixturing work, and I noticed they had all their end mills standing upright in a magnetic strip. Not in a cabinet, not in a rack, just stuck to a strip on the wall by the machine. The operator told me he's been doing it that way for over 10 years and never had a single one fall off or get damaged. It looked so simple and efficient, I almost laughed at how much time I spend digging through drawers. But I'm also wondering about dust and chips getting in the flutes while they're just sitting out. Anyone else do something similar or have a reason this is a bad idea long term?
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ruby_lane3d ago
The dust and chips thing would bug me too, but a guy I used to work with did the same setup and he just blew them off with an air gun before every use. He said it became a habit after the first week and took less than a second. Honestly the time savings from not digging through drawers is probably worth a little extra cleanup, especially if you're grabbing tools all day long. Having them right there on the wall by the machine sounds way better than my system of throwing end mills loose in a coffee can and digging through it like a raccoon.
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