Stylish DIY Garden Tool Rack Made from Scrap Wood

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Apr 082018
 

This weekend I built a spiffy… DIY Garden Tool Rack out of scrap wood.

It was an unexpected project that started because I wanted to make something else altogether but couldn’t get to my drill press due to all of the garden tools being stacked in front of it.

It’s pretty simple. Designed to be columns of tools. The columns are spaced to allow for large items such as pickaxes and tall items such as hoes. The design is not optimal for rakes and shovels…but that’s another project. It needed to be on wheels (casters) and be able to easily hold 500lbs AND needed to be small enough to not increase the footprint the tools are already taking up.

Here’s what I came up with:

DIY - Garden Tool Rack

— Click to see full-size pic —

I really rushed this project trying to get it done in a weekend and honestly, it suffered because of my lack of time. I was painting in 40-degree weather, and applying topcoats over paint that wasn’t completely dry.  Even stenciled over wood that was not yet clear coated.

While it came out OK, it could have been better if I was able to take my time. I was hell-bent on getting it complete in the single weekend so I could move on to projects I actually wanted to work on. I definitely have ideas of how I can do it better next time and there will be a version two eventually. this one is good enough for what I need right now.

Materials: Made completely from 2×4 and 2×3 cut offs and some scraps of 3/4″ oak plywood. 2 of the 2x4s were actually rescued from the outside burn pile, lol.

If anyone wants to copy the design let me know I can provide drawings and stencils. Here are some shots of the assembly. you can probably get everything you need from the pics.

Experimenting with the finish on custom tool handles.

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Apr 012018
 

With all of the old hammers and hatchets, I have in progress, I have been making handles when I have time. It’s a fun and satisfying project but also a long slow process. Each handle takes about 2-3 weeks to finish. It’s not that they actually take weeks to make, its that I can only dedicate a couple of hours here and there.

This weekend we have two nice days back to back and I was able to get a little time to apply some stain. I saw some pictures of an ax handle finished with colored stain and really wanted to give it a try.

Because I was fooling around a little too much I ended up with glue from electrical tape on the unfinished wood of two handles. It looked pretty bad and I couldn’t get it off without taking off the stain. …and generally making a heck of a mess. So I got this idea, what if I hide it under some fake age… I could just rub charcoal over the area making a cool looking smudge and the ugly tape would be hard to see.

Well, it didn’t work like I expected, but I’d say I accidentally discovered a nice way to really make the grain POP. I’m going to try some other materials and see if I can get some other interesting effects.

Anyhow without further ado here are a couple of items I worked on this weekend showing off their charcoal rubbed goodness.

First a nice old Blacksmithing hammer.
A 24 oz. Plumb Ball Pein Hammer, with a stout, squared off handle.

Plumb 24oz Ball Pein with Green Handle

Plumb 24oz Ball Pein with Green Handle

Next up is a simple and well worn half hatchet. It had a little bend in the bit but since it’s the older style eye, it seemed worthwhile to restore and put back into use.

Craftsman 15 oz.  Carpenters Half hatchet with a contoured rounded handle. 

Craftsman 15 oz. Half-Hatchet w/Green Handle

Craftsman 15 oz. Half-Hatchet w/Green Handle

Craftsman 15 oz. Half-Hatchet w/Green Handle

Craftsman 15 oz. Half-Hatchet w/Green Handle

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