Short/small metal stock storage?

[Cato]

I'm after ideas and inspiration for storing the smaller metal stock. Bits of bar, hex and the like 300 mm and below in length. How do you keep yours?

For reference this is where the lathe is (courtesy of @Robotstar5 ) and I'll be avoiding the dodgy shelf above the lathe trap. The toolbox next to the lathe has all the tooling etc in it.

 

[Robotstar5]

Short lengths of 4" - 6" soil/waste pipe capped at one end and mounted under the middle shelf of the racking to the right of the lathe?.

 

[Agroshield]

Milk crate with the bottom made solid (3DP infills?). Comes ready compartmentalised. Remove a couple of dividers and it can store plate offcuts. Can be stored flat and stacked, tilted backwards on its long side or tilted on its short side. One for steel, one for ali, one for brass, one for ali's bra's.

Stand one of the grey boxes on the floor on its side and incline it backwards 10 degrees (35mm castors on the front; 25mm castors on the back). Make dividers in it.

 

[123hotchef]

that is a nice looking Boxford.
I have most of my short lengths in a Bisley drawer unit

 

[hotponyshoes]

I use Euro containers.
The supports on my metal rack are 500mm apart so a 60x40 container sits on one end nicely. Any lengths under about 600mm go in one then I stack the smaller boxes onto those with the smaller length offcuts in.

They are also available in a large range of depths so you can just swap them for a deeper one when you fill them up.

I did also have them colour coded at one stage, grey for stainless, green for alloy etc. but that's all gone to pot as I seem to come across a lot more grey containers than colour ones so I'll need to buy some more if I want to get it all reorganised.
Could also do with sorting everything by grade as I have a lot of half-full boxes with various grades of stainless etc.

Problem with the containers is the bit of metal you need is always in the one at the bottom of the stack but you can fit a lot of metal in a small space using them.

My ideal storage would be toolboxes with drawers but I don't have the floor space for enough of them to organise everything properly.

 

[gaz1]

i have mine in a pull around trolley but it also acts as a no access to lathe until moved

look up cnc tool trolley or cart the blue one

 

[8ob]

I'm after ideas and inspiration for storing the smaller metal stock. Bits of bar, hex and the like 300 mm and below in length. How do you keep yours?

For reference this is where the lathe is (courtesy of @Robotstar5 ) and I'll be avoiding the dodgy shelf above the lathe trap. The toolbox next to the lathe has all the tooling etc in it.
View attachment 458339

Open fronted steel stacking bins are good for this.I know a bloke that's got a load for sale

Bob

 

[CompoSimmonite]

I use a large metal ammo box

 

[cheb]

I use Euro containers.
The supports on my metal rack are 500mm apart so a 60x40 container sits on one end nicely. Any lengths under about 600mm go in one then I stack the smaller boxes onto those with the smaller length offcuts in.

They are also available in a large range of depths so you can just swap them for a deeper one when you fill them up.

I did also have them colour coded at one stage, grey for stainless, green for alloy etc. but that's all gone to pot as I seem to come across a lot more grey containers than colour ones so I'll need to buy some more if I want to get it all reorganised.
Could also do with sorting everything by grade as I have a lot of half-full boxes with various grades of stainless etc.

Problem with the containers is the bit of metal you need is always in the one at the bottom of the stack but you can fit a lot of metal in a small space using them.

My ideal storage would be toolboxes with drawers but I don't have the floor space for enough of them to organise everything properly.

That's what I use too.

 

[Morrisman]

I built a wooden box, with a divider in, so I can carefully and neatly stack all the different offcuts and stock in a regimental fashion.

It got abbreviated to ‘mental fashion after a while….

 

[DAPPH]

Short lengths of 4" - 6" soil/waste pipe capped at one end and mounted under the middle shelf of the racking to the right of the lathe?.

Same here , but I have 18 inch long lengths ,without end caps and laid on the shelf horizontally between two stops so I can get them stacked vertically like a honeycomb, I make use of steel pipes in these tubes and slide bars inside the pipes so the end is always able to be seized and withdrawn for use. occasionally I use a magnet to pull out steel that has gone inntoo far and for aluminium use a wire or pull the whole tube out to get at it .

 

[Gavlar]

Serious question. What's wrong with a shelf above the lathe?

 

[123hotchef]

Serious question. What's wrong with a shelf above the lathe?

I wondered the same thing

 

[dieselsamurai]

you dont want anything falling on a spinning lathe

 

[Gavlar]

Clearly not. Easily avoided however.

 

[hotponyshoes]

Because the op is talking about storage.
That normally means all the shelfs and other useful locations are full.
But they still need to hunter gather more.

So something stackable / stuffable / rammable is now required.

I was ok using cable ties to attach the offcuts back to the new lengths until I reached the first 200kg or so of magpie material....

 

[Cato]

Thanks gents, some really good suggestions.

I have Bisley drawers, and also ammo boxes so they might be the first port of call. I'm not sure where I'd get a milk crate from these days, they used to be everywhere. When I get some time though I think @Robotstar5 's waste pipe suggestion is a great idea.

 

[Cato]

Clearly not. Easily avoided however.

It is, by not putting anything there in the first place.

Stuff falls off of shelves, knocks, vibrations, poorly stacked, whatever way it does happen. It's unlikely to happen but if it did then the outcome would be poor. However if there's no shelf there then the risk (however small) is eliminated completely. There's also the risk of complacency with something like that. You get a bit too familiar and reach up to put or get something on the shelf while the lathe's running and again there's a poor outcome.

It comes in the category of completely unnecessary risk.

 

[Screwdriver]

I built a floordrawer.

Fill it up with offcuts and it is incredibly heavy because it is packed so tightly.

It works because it's a solid plywood bottom, filled with multiple tiny castors.

And it sits out of the way under a cabinet.

 

[scottmk1]

I have these stacked racks with boarding added for anything 300mm or less.