Best way to organize sockets??

[ColdDuckTime]

I once owned a Yugo...and I have a dirt driveway.

Why, when I was a boy, we didn't even have Yugos....or dirt.

 

[RAYJAY]

The only problem with setups like that is you are stuck to whatever sizes are listed/allowed for. Every socket organization has it's own merits, but the Ernst rails allow you to customize however you want.

i know I use both sets (sae and metric) on my mobile work bench it's handy to have all 3 drive sizes and socket sizes lined up n a row, and all the major sizes are there.

plus when the wife helps me clean up she can find where all the sockets go and I can find them the next time ........


Jeff

 

[wrenchr]

The only problem with setups like that is you are stuck to whatever sizes are listed/allowed for. Every socket organization has it's own merits, but the Ernst rails allow you to customize however you want.

Make's stealing your **** easier!! No thanks!!

 

[danski0224]

Finally got around to taking some pics. I used the Ernst socket organizers. These things are awesome as you can customize the rails to your liking. Here's my top drawer layout:

What is the depth of the top drawer?

 

[caspian65]

I haven't measured it, but would guess 6". My toolbox is the KRL1003, not sure if the newer version (KRL1023) has a different size.

 

[danski0224]

I haven't measured it, but would guess 6". My toolbox is the KRL1003, not sure if the newer version (KRL1023) has a different size.

If you get a chance to measure it, I'd appreciate it.

 

[caspian65]

Bottom of drawer to the top edge is a little over 3.5". There's a little extra clearance at the top of the drawer to the box, maybe like 1/4".

 

[MAD]

Why, when I was a boy, we didn't even have Yugos

When I was a boy we had Yugos. They were called Fiats back then.

 

[wilbilt]

When I was a boy we had Yugos. They were called Fiats back then.

Exactly. Made it easier to get parts...for a while...

Oh...BTW, did you know that they set time on #4 instead of #1?

 

[MAD]

Oh...BTW, did you know that they set time on #4 instead of #1?

I could respond to that bit of information properly if I knew how to say "Mamamia!" in Serbo-Croatian.

 

[danski0224]

Bottom of drawer to the top edge is a little over 3.5". There's a little extra clearance at the top of the drawer to the box, maybe like 1/4".

Thanks......

 

[JRGSPE73]

FYI - Sears.com has all 6 Hansen socket trays for $9.99 each. Not a bad deal.

 

[IanF]

I have everything on the metal rails/clips... they annoy me at times, but as others have said - they don't take up much room... plus, they're customizable to your set of sockets... like when you want to find a home for those 2-3 spark plug sockets... add a couple of clips (have a bunch of spare rails and clips) and yer done...

A really wanted the Hansen trays... and got a set for Christmas a couple of years ago... only to find that, 1) they take up a ton of room in my already crowded socket drawer, 2) If you have a socket they didn't think you'll have, you're SOL, and 3) my 1/4" dr Husky deep metric sockets don't fit over the posts...

So... the trays are sitting in a storage cabinet... "aging" until the appropriate time that my g/f (who gave them to me) won't mind if I sell them...

 

[Rickster]

I didn't know I had a socket organization problem until I discovered this web site!

 

[caspian65]

I'm tellin' ya guys... Ernst rails are the only way to go! You don't get tied down to arranging sockets a certain way, do them how you want!

http://www.ernstmfg.com/organizers/sockets.html

 

[-lecroix-]

I'v had the Ernst rails ... then I discovered the Hansen racks ... my Ernst are now collecting dust.

Moral of story: There is no one way of doing something that is good for everyone.

 

[Canadian Charlie]

Those Ernst rails look to save alot of space in a tool box, more than hansen trays, wish I would have found them before I got my Hansen trays

 

[84TurboBuick]

I looked at all the possible ways to organize my stuff and came up with an idea that works for me.....I made my own.

Went over to Home Depot, got some 1 x 2 finished pine and used a Forstner bit set from Porter Cable to put in the holes I needed. I used 1 x 2 for the 1/4 drive and 1 x 3 for the 3/8 and 1/2. Picked up a cheap plastic stencil and used a silver marker to lablel them. Painted the metric holders flat black and the standard flat red. Not only does it look impressive but it really lets me see if I am missing anything.

Working on getting you guys a pic if I can get the size down so they fit.

 

[george4]

I didn't know I had a socket organization problem until I discovered this web site!

Roger that. Also wrench and screwdriver organizaton problem.

 

[jeepgod]

i have the hansen trays.. and love them.. but one problem with them.. i now have to go buy a few sockets to fill up the empty posts.. man, i didn't even realize i was missing sockets until i got them trays.

 

[ni[x]it]

I love my hansens for one MAIN reason;
You dont have to tug on the sockets, holding down the surrounding ones, to
get the socket you need. You also don't have to fight putting them back on when your done with a job.

And I could never understand taking a 20 socket rail over to clutter up my
workspace, when I only need 3 to 5 common sockets.

Hansen Trays FTW.

 

[Cashed]

I love my hansens for one MAIN reason;
You dont have to tug on the sockets, holding down the surrounding ones, to
get the socket you need. You also don't have to fight putting them back on when your done with a job.

And I could never understand taking a 20 socket rail over to clutter up my
workspace, when I only need 3 to 5 common sockets.

Hansen Trays FTW.

I'm with him. Love my hansen trays.

 

[pl_silverado]

i finally broke down and bought a hansen tray for my 1/2" Snap-on Metric Impacts... filled up nicely, only missing 2 sockets.

I also picked one up for my set of 3/8" Metric/Shallow Metrics. I have two sets of them, so i put one on the hansens and left the others on the rails just so i see which ones i will reach for more often.

For my 1/4" Metric sockets, i use Mechanics Time Savers magnetic holders.

I have my 1/2" & 1/4" sockets organized the way i want them for the most part, i just can't figure out how to organize the 3/8" sockets; thats why i picked up the one hansen tray.

 

[84TurboBuick]

Finally got my pics.

Like I said I made my own holders and they really work out well for me.....

Went over to Home Depot, got some 1 x 2 finished pine and used a Forstner bit set from Porter Cable to put in the holes I needed. I used 1 x 2 for the 1/4 drive and 1 x 3 for the 3/8 and 1/2. Picked up a cheap plastic stencil and used a silver marker to lablel them. Painted the metric holders flat black and the standard flat red. Not only does it look impressive but it really lets me see if I am missing anything.

 

[pl_silverado]

^ after seeing that, i think i am going to go make my own too.

Looks great !!

 

[jimmycrackcorn]

Like the set up, how much did it cost, i had the same idea but i wanted to use HDPE same stuff they use for cutting boards. I wanted to do them like the mechanics time saver stuff.....

 

[84TurboBuick]

I think I got about $75 bucks in the whole thing....Wood, paint and the bits. The bits alone were $40 bucks so its not that bad.

One thing I didn't mention was I used 1/4 oak dowel rod to hold the sockets in place. (3/8 and 1/2 for the other sizes). I just drilled a hole in the center and glued them in place.

I must say that making them is a time consuming process and so far I've made about 25 of them. Only 50 more and I'm done!

I also measured them out to fit a Snap-On tool box so that is why they are all the same length. You could cut them to fit just about anything. I just figured if they are all the same length then I can just fill the drawer and they wont move around.

 

[wilbilt]

i have the hansen trays.. and love them.. but one problem with them.. i now have to go buy a few sockets to fill up the empty posts.. man, i didn't even realize i was missing sockets until i got them trays.

I would be missing posts using Hansen trays. I guess I have sizes they never thought of.

I have 1/4, 3/8", 1/2" and 3/4" sockets, both short and deep, on clips in the top of a 26" chest. No way it would happen using Hansen trays.

 

[Merkava_4]

I used the Ernst socket organizers.

 

[Rickster]

I was unhappy with my set-up so I tried the Harbor Freight trays. They don't fit all the sockets because I have a lot of SK and some Armstrong which are thicker than most and they got crowded out of fitting on the pegs. Also they couldn't handle my Craftsman impacts for the same reason. If you have all Craftsman chrome sockets the HF trays would probably be OK.

I picked up an 18" deep top box recently and I used some aluminum flat stock about 3-4 inches tall to make rows across the the top tray and now I have all the deep sockets in those rows. The shorts are in their trays towards the front. I keep the 1/4 inchers on socket rails in their own drawer. The oddball and specility sockets also have their own drawer.

 

[Uncle Buck]

I was unhappy with my set-up so I tried the Harbor Freight trays. They don't fit all the sockets because I have a lot of SK and some Armstrong which are thicker than most and they got crowded out of fitting on the pegs. Also they couldn't handle my Craftsman impacts for the same reason. If you have all Craftsman chrome sockets the HF trays would probably be OK.

I picked up an 18" deep top box recently and I used some aluminum flat stock about 3-4 inches tall to make rows across the the top tray and now I have all the deep sockets in those rows. The shorts are in their trays towards the front. I keep the 1/4 inchers on socket rails in their own drawer. The oddball and specility sockets also have their own drawer.

Am I understanding the picture correctly, it looks as though everything is 1/2" drive and I can see impacts mixed in but are your 1/2" drive metric sockets also mixed in there? If that picture is 100% stanadard, or metric I am shocked by the sheer volume of sockets!

I keep all of my metric stuff in a box seperate from my standard tools, I would go nuts trying to keep the two seperated in one box!

 

[Rickster]

"Am I understanding the picture correctly, it looks as though everything is 1/2" drive and I can see impacts mixed in but are your 1/2" drive metric sockets also mixed in there?"

1/2 and 3/8 drive, metric and standard (alternating rows), chromes 6 & 12 point. I go to a lot of estate sales and garage sales, anything I pick up that I don't have goes in the box, others go in the "Sale" pile.

 

[wilbilt]

I picked up an 18" deep top box recently and I used some aluminum flat stock about 3-4 inches tall to make rows across the the top tray and now I have all the deep sockets in those rows. The shorts are in their trays towards the front. I keep the 1/4 inchers on socket rails in their own drawer. The oddball and specility sockets also have their own drawer.

That looks like a good idea. Are the aluminum dividers attached to the box, or do they just "float" in there?

 

[Rickster]

I notched them to fit over the box dividers inside the box, then I cut them a bit long to flex and tension locjk into the inside top.

 

[Deafautotech]

i like that rickster's way... as for home use... but i had two wide drawers on my KRL1001 and KR1200.. for KRL1001 are full of sockets for metric and SAE but on wide drawer as left side are sae and right side are metric... i just put most useful sockets on my front end drawer so i don't need open full drawer... but when i had service cart, i just pick up what i need sockets and left my toolboxes closed for all day.. so it will have long bearing life..

 

[RJS]

I've been reading this site for a couple months and quite enjoy it, lots of good links and ideas. I made a holder for my sockets a couple weeks ago based on one someone here made out of wood. It took about $65 in alluminum and a fair amount of time, but it works pretty well for what I do and was made to fit right in the top of my box and maximize on the small space. I've got 113 sockets on it now but there's room for more. My impact sockets all came in metal boxes/trays so i store them that way and the 3/4 drive stuff has it's own drawer. Sorry about the poor pics low light/bad camera.

http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s62/cooter4458/empty.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s62/cooter4458/full.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s62/cooter4458/box.jpg

 

[Jononon]

That's really slick, RJS.
Is there a detent on the post, or are the sockets held in place by gravity ?

 

[GT crew]

I made a holder for my sockets a couple weeks ago based on one someone here made out of wood. It took about $65 in alluminum and a fair amount of time, but it works pretty well for what I do and was made to fit right in the top of my box and maximize on the small space. I've got 113 sockets on it now but there's room for more.

That is tight!

 

[Merkava_4]

RJS,

Where did you get those posts from?

How to they fasten to the aluminum plate?

We need more info.

 

[jimmycrackcorn]

RJS nice set up, tell us the details......
This is going to spawn another socket organizer idea...