Shop organization

aliva said:
On my bolt bin I made labels with the Brother P Touch system. It also allows you to attach a picture to the label.
now I'm sure everyone knows how to read but adding a picture of the item in the bin whether it be a bolt, cotter pin, snap ring etc., actually speeds up the process of looking for a particular item. Try it you'd be amazed. I think the brain can process a graphic faster that the written word at least mine can.
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This is really good advice. I'm very visual so that will likely help.
I'm also inclined to keep associated things together; 3/8 nuts alongside 3/8 bolts as an example.
 
gr8legs said:
Something I feel is equally important to organized storage is an inventory listing of what there is and more importantly WHERE it is. I may buy a box of 100 whatzits and only 75 will fit into the bin space - so I put the rest someplace "where I will remember where it is when the bin is empty".

So some time later I use the last of an item in a drawer or bin and buy some more, then (at least an hour after making the purchase) rustling around in a dark place find another box/bag/carton of whatever it was I just purchased. Of course I don't remember stashing the overstock away - or I do remember the stashing but not the location.

Starting with a set of virgin empty bins is the ideal time to also start an inventory - maybe just a simple spread sheet or notepad giving part description and all locations where they ended up. I wish I had done that as my parts and hardware supply has blossomed into an almost untameable menagerie.

With the bin boxes you have you can organize the layout and put similar stuff together instead of a little here, a little there.

Good luck

Stu
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I'm definitely in the building up stock situation which is a good thing so the inventory idea is well taken. Also trying to deal with a bins of misc fasteners and other flotsam and jetsam left by the previous owner and sorting that mess into some sort of order. I do struggle with what to do with six pieces of X and 3 pieces of Y.
I am inclined to group like with like when there are small quantities.
 
I used to have these on a wall but actually moved away from that to stacking them on shelves. I agree that they are slightly easier to get at the contents when on the wall. However my wall real-estate is more limited than my shelf space.
 
David,
I like it.
Has anyone seen the Youtube channel, Finno Ugric Machining? This guy has a hardware store of bins in his shop. I am so jealous.
 
aliva said:
On my bolt bin I made labels with the Brother P Touch system. It also allows you to attach a picture to the label.
now I'm sure everyone knows how to read but adding a picture of the item in the bin whether it be a bolt, cotter pin, snap ring etc., actually speeds up the process of looking for a particular item. Try it you'd be amazed. I think the brain can process a graphic faster that the written word at least mine can.
Click to expand...


I set up a grid layout for some Avery labels on Autocad 12 light a few years ago. I downloaded cad files from McMaster-Carr for pictures and used an Autocad font to describe the fastener. It was very time consuming but the results were very rewarding.
 
Janderso said:
David,
I like it.
Has anyone seen the Youtube channel, Finno Ugric Machining? This guy has a hardware store of bins in his shop. I am so jealous.
Click to expand...
I thought the same thing the first time I saw his shop. A wall of bins!
 
In my limited workshop space I have even more limited storages pace, so I tend not to put in a stock of bolts, nuts, clips, pins etc. When I have a project I buy the parts I need, and often just a few more, this way I slowly build up a supply of commonly used items, hopefully without, becoming inundated with stuff that I might need one day.

Also I'm planning on becoming a "Grey Nomad" Aussie term for older retired people who who travel around the country in a caravan, or motorhome. Heading north where it's warmer for the winter, and south where it's cooler in the summer/ Some people sell their home to finance this adventure and others don't. We are in the latter group as I need to have a home base where my lathe and other tools live while I'm on the road.
 
+1 on the organization work. It's a pain in the butt at the time, but has saved me time in the long run. Went from this:

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To this:

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Everything is labeled with one of the Brother label makers. So nice when trying to find something though it doesn't prevent me from screwing things up.


Bruce
 
On a farm just south of Fowler, Colorado (east of Pueblo) is a caster mounted rack made of 1/4" angle iron with the front tilted back supporting at least 6 rows of 3 pound coffee cans with at least 10 cans in each row, all with the open ends tilted up. One of the better storage ideas I've seen. I liked it so well that I have a 25 can storage area built into a slightly offset wall in my shop.
Have a good day
Ray
 
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