Storage and organization

[rdh006]

Not sure where to post this but I'd like to hear how more experienced folks here have approached the storage and organization of parts and components.

For me, it seems to be an ever-growing mass which defies structure.

Anyone care to comment?

[drewl]

Ha, my lab is a mess right now but for parts I have a few of those plastic enclosures with the drawers and plastic bins and a bunch of the boxes that have flaps that look like bins/drawers.

[52 Bill]

I have a bunch of those grey metal shelves that are set up to hold those fold up cardboard bins. I keep larger stuff like transformers, large filter caps, etc. in those. For smaller things, a bunch of those multi-drawer units to hold resistors, caps, transistors, etc.

I really hate those small drawers, as they are too small to hold a large quantity of parts. When I was a kid, I'd buy maybe 5 resistors at a time, so a small drawer could hold a few different values of resistors. Now I order in 100 piece packs which are harder to store in those little drawers. I have an old Ohmite (I think) resistor cabinet that has 5 wide drawers and a plastic divider that separates the resistors by values. The drawers are marked in values that came with the cabinet I guess. 100 ohms, 1K, 10K, etc. I used to keep it filled and organized, but it hasn't been used in quite a few years. Too much time spent organizing parts, not enough time fixing stuff.

[tedmich]

Harbor freight 94458 storage box is $3.99 and the dividers can be moved to give a minimum of 5 or a maximum of 24 compartments. You can put 6 of them end on in a std. milk crate, 10 of them in a bigger 12 x 18 milk crate.

[Enzo]

We have discussed this before any number of times.

I have a ton of those 60-drawer bins. I use them for resistors, capacitors, semiconductors and ICs, fuses, etc etc. I have some larger plastic drawer ones for larger things like 22uf 500v caps.

But those take up a ton of space, and are 18" tall, so shelves need to be far apart. I use "coin envelopes" for much of my small parts these days. In fact I am moving all my small resistors into them and out of the 60-drawer units.
Coin Envelopes - Kraft, 3 x 4 1/2" S-14719 - Uline
They come in various sizes, I get them long enough to clear the length of a 1/2w resistor or a diode with leads straight. I line them up in a larger box, like files in a file drawer. Parts go in the envelope, and I fold the flap towards me, and on the flap I write the contents. For example:
resistor 1/4w CF 220k
Xstr MPSA06 500ma 80v TO92 NPN
Zener 1N4744 15v 1w
etc.

Storage is very compact that way, and I have the whole face of the envelope for added data, like part numbers for PV or Fender or whoever, or substitution information, or for odder parts, even the source I use for them.

That has freed up drawer space for more TO3 and TO247 transistors and what not.

I also use those folding cardboard part bins for larger things like XLR connectors, tube sockets, and so on.

[g1]

At the bottom of each thread page, there is a list of "similar threads". It is sometimes more helpful than the "search" function.
Down below on this page I see this one:
http://music-electronics-forum.com/t32576/

[gui_tarzan]

Agreed. I found a nifty tube holder when I was at a hobby shop - dime roll boxes. They're the perfect size for 9 pin tubes and cheap. I think they hold something like 100 tubes and cost around ten bucks. Like others, I have several cabinets with drawers for items I use frequently. My not-so-popular resistors are in those flat boxes with movable dividers and they work well.

[Usable Thought]

Small parts are one problem. Big tools are another, especially woodworking tools you might use for a cab or similar enclosure (or for non-audio projects). My brother just donated to me a perfectly good $250 or so drill press that someone had thrown away at the dump where he lives (a very fancy town). Drill presses are a great tool to have when you need them. Problem is, I only need something like that a couple times a year - yet it MUST live somewhere on top of my bench because it weighs about 100 pounds and with my bad back, I can't be moving it around - it has to stay put where it's usable.

Add to that an oscilloscope - yes it can be stored but still it's a big piece of equipment - plus the high-quality miter box I also got through my brother, and the bench grinder (wire wheel and grinding wheel) he also just gave me. All these tools are useful, none of them are used often, but when you need them, you need them. So it's a predicament I am trying to think how to solve. My 13' long bench is suddenly too small!

[Enzo]

Store the scope on the bench. Put a riser above the bench, and put the scope up there, along with any signal generators, bench supplies, bench meters.

Got floor space? Make a small stand for the drill press. Better yet, put the stand on casters, and roll the thing back behind the furnace when not in use.

[Usable Thought]

Thanks for the ideas! I like the idea of a separate stand with castors - floor space is tight, but anything that can be rolled allows reconfiguration of working space. I keep my soldering gear in a rolling cart, for example, and it's very handy that way. I can't do make a stand immediately for the drill press, but it's a good project for the future.

As for this -

Put a riser above the bench, and put the scope up there, along with any signal generators, bench supplies, bench meters.

- I wasn't familiar with 'riser' in this context, so I Googled for "riser workbench" and got hits such as these:

Heavy-Duty Work Bench Riser

Riser Shelves

So I guess it means a low, wide, and strong shelf set back a bit, deep enough to hold fairly big equipment. That's a possibility I hadn't thought of - I will think on it. Rather than buy one I would build my own. What would be really cool would be a riser that comes forward on little castors set into tracks - the castors would be the locking kind; this way the gear might not even have to be taken down to be used. Of course tracks might get in the way on the workbench surface. Even so I may toy with the idea to see if it could be made practical.

[Tom Phillips]

...Riser Shelves So I guess it means a low, wide, and strong shelf set back a bit, deep enough to hold fairly big equipment. That's a possibility I hadn't thought of - I will think on it. Rather than buy one I would build my own....

I installed heavy duty adjustable shelf brackets on the wall behind the bench. Pine boards make the actual shelves. The bottom shelf is ~15" deep to hold large test equipment like scopes. Above that are 11.5" deep shelves for books and infrequently used stuff. If you have a wall behind your bench that method will be a possibility. I have extra lighting installed under the bottom shelf.I used to subscribe to American Woodworker magazine and they had a series of articles called "The small shop" which featured lots of cleaver ideas people used to store their tools. You may be able to Google some similar articles.

[mhuss]

The storage medium is one thing. The 'will to maintain organization' is quite another! I have a wall full of plastic drawers (many actually labeled), and several shelves full of 'stuff.' Yesterday I was looking for a 4136 IC (an antique to be sure) and discovered all kinds of things I had forgotten I had. "Oh wow, look!" I quite like the coin envelope idea.

I waste way too much time searching due to my lack of organization, but I think I am genetically/psychologically predisposed against organization, sigh, many attempts have failed and backslid into chaos... Entropy always wins.

[g1]

One of these for the scope works great. This one was made for a CRT monitor so it can handle some weight. Probably available surplus. As well as moving back and forward, it pivots at the base so I can swing it out of the way to the side of my table/bench.

[Enzo]

yes, riser is an official term for "shelf". A shelf mounts to the wall, a riser mounts to the bench, but even that isn't set in stone. I use a commercial product, but home built is fine. Mine has punch-outs for standard dual electrical outlets along the front edge. So I have outlets every foot or so. A power strip along the rear of the bench top, another strip along the rear edge of the riser, and the outlets on the front edge of the riser, and I can plug stuff in all over.

Little reason to make a riser mobile. Mine sits 18" over my bench, and is half as deep as my bench. My work surface then extends under the riser, with my scope perched over it.

[tedmich]

This guy went the extra (OCD) mile to organize a huge collection of scavenged old parts

then sold it all for $405 on ebay