Drill Caddy
This drill caddy is compact, yet big enough to hold your cordless drill, an extra battery, and all the tools and fasteners you’ll need for any installation project.
by Jan Carr
Tired of rummaging around your shop to find what you need to hang a picture or put up a shelf? This drill caddy will stow your cordless drill, and neatly organize and store everything you need for any installation job. It’s compact enough to fit on a 12-in.-deep shelf, and with the handle folded down, it’s only 9-1/2-in. high.
The plastic storage box (see Sources, below) has movable compartments, and is a great way to store a full range of screws, wall anchors and picture hooks. This caddy has a “holster” for your cordless drill, and plenty of space for an extra battery, hammer, torpedo level, screwdrivers and a drill index. The magnets hold extra drivers and bits for easy access.
Building the caddy is simple, with glued and nailed butt joints. We also made it modifiable: the middle partition and the drill holster are attached with screws, so you can easily reconfigure the storage compartments if your needs change.For all your installation gear, you’ll find this caddy beats a 5-gallon bucket hands down. It’s more convenient, neater, and more compact. And it looks better, too!
Tools and Materials
To build this caddy you’ll need a tablesaw, a drill, a 2-in. hole saw or Forstner bit and a hacksaw. A bench grinder works great for rounding over the metal handle parts, but a file will also do the job. An air nailer and a miter saw are handy, but not essential.
The caddy is made from 1/2-in. Baltic birch plywood, a scrap of 1/4-in. plywood, a small strip of birch lumber, a birch dowel and common hardware items (see Cutting List and Sources, below). The materials cost about $35.
Saw Out the Parts
Cut the 1/2-in. Baltic birch parts (B through K) and the wood retainer strip (A) according to the Plywood Cutting Diagram (Fig. C) and the Cutting List.
Next, cut a 2-in. hole in the middle of the holster board (part G, Fig. A) with a hole saw or Forstner bit (see Sources, page 94). A 2-in. hole will accommodate most cordless drills, but check yours to make sure the hole is big enough.
Once the plywood parts are cut, give all the pieces a quick sanding, front and back. This caddy has a lot of inaccessible spots that are hard to sand once assembled.
Assemble the Box
Glue and nail the retainer strip (A) to the front edge of the bottom shelf (part B, Fig. A). This strip keeps the storage box from accidentally sliding out. Then glue and nail the back (C) to the bottom and add the ends (D). Cut two temporary spacer boards to position the middle shelf (E) 2-1/2 in. above the bottom shelf. Glue and nail the middle shelf into place (Photo 1).
Make the temporary spacers out of 1/4-in. material so they can be easily flipped...
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