Tool storage and organization

Now that we've started into my 15 year old sons' project Miata, I finally took the time to blow off the dust on the Kobalt 300 piece mechanics' tool set I bought years ago but never opened.  Fabulous, but it comes with no storage/organizer.  Just boxes with the tools placed in plastic bags.  I saw Lowe's has an organization tray "kit" which is like $90.  Is that the best way to go?  I've got a 5 drawer rolling tool box from Craftsman, but don't want them just laying loose in there.  That would be too messy, and my son would just throw stuff anywhere/everywhere.

Oh, and second question.  If you were starting with that tool kit and had nothing else, what's the next thing you'd buy?  Again, this is for someone just learning to turn wrenches (and I'm not far behind him).  I have a few other assorted tools, such as a speed wrench, full set of ratcheting wrenches and a few other things.  What next if you were running to HF?  Electric impact gun?  Don't intend to travel with it, so electric would be fine for home. 

1/2" torque wrench and 1/2" breaker bar.

Organization is a very individual thing.  I have a bunch of socket holders that have vertical pegs the sockets go on, and I like it, but a deep drawer is necessary for deep sockets to fit.

Socket organizers on Amazon

I've yet to find a wrench organizer I really like, so they're just piled in.  Every so often, I'll organize them by size, which only lasts until the next project...

I like the socket organizers where they go on a post.  The size is printed at the top of the post, it's a very compact/dense way to store them, and it's easy to tell at  a glance when a socket is missing.  Search for "socket post organizer" on Amazon, there are a bunch out there now.

The magnetic socket holders at the bottom are much less dense, but they will hold sockets that don't have holes through them, like the U-joint or hex key ones.

I don't tend to use organizers for much else.  Anti-slip drawer liners means you can just lay wrenches down and they'll mostly stay in place.

I wanted to like those socket trays but they take up so much additional room in the drawer. I ended up going back to metal clip rails from Harbor Freight.  Especially after I had an epiphany and realized I could lop off any extra length of rail I didn't need. 

The "what do I buy next?" question tends to answer itself when you start doing projects. When my ex- got me back into wrenching on cars 15+ years ago, my entire mechanic's set fit in a two-drawer flip top box.  Now I have a 3 section, 24 drawer, 26" wide Craftsman box, two Gladiator cabinets, along with an attic and shed over-flowing with various tools. This was accumulated from needing to wrench on a lot of different cars from eras from before I was born to today, buying new tools as I needed them. 

First purchase to supplement a big set is always an impact swivel (the ball and socket type) and some longer extensions (preferably with knurling on them so you can use them as nut driver handles) in the sizes you have sockets. 

These days, next is usually a nice assortment of Allen and torx bit sockets.  These days they pop up everywhere. 

Next is a dead blow ball peen hammer in the 2 lb range; I like the one Mac tools sells for quality vs $. Consider the matching dead blow mallet too.

At harbor freight the double ended thin wall lug nut socket is cheap and great enough everyone should have one. 

After that it's buy as you need 

If you decide on getting another tool box or tool chest, I think the selection available from Harbor Freight these days are the best deal around.  They're surprisingly high quality and sturdy, and the price can't be beat.

When I bought my Miata it came with a quality(forget what brand) 3' prybar. I love my giant pry bar. It does a lot of things for me.

The other tool I absolutley can't live without is my HF 4.5" angle grinder. The 30$ one is actually pretty nice. I added good grease to the gearbox and installed a longer/heavier extension cord... after slicing through the original.

If you're going to spend $90 on a storage set from Lowes, just but the $100 harbor freight set in the blowmolded plastic case that fits in a Miata trunk and keeps everything organized already. 

If you don't have one already, I'd get the low profile ALUMINUM floor jack at HF. I just bought the steel low profile race jack and it weighs a ton, shoulda spent the extra few bucks on the other. 

My next purchase would be an electric impact of some sort. Honestly, my 1/4" hex impact driver is pretty great all around as long as you use a proper ratchet to break the seal on lugnuts or other overly tight things first. $60 with coupon, and useful for more than just car work. Maybe a set of torque sticks if your location stocks them, for some reaosn my local doesn't but the one 40 minutes away does. 

Magnetic LED lights too. Definitely some of those, so nice to be able to point and shoot light when working under something. 

Ian F said:

I wanted to like those socket trays but they take up so much additional room in the drawer. I ended up going back to metal clip rails from Harbor Freight.  Especially after I had an epiphany and realized I could lop off any extra length of rail I didn't need. 

It depends on whether you're working out of a toolbox in a garage, or if you just want to store stuff as compactly as possible.  In a handheld box that you'd take to the junkyard, the clips are definitely better.  If it's a box that you're leaving in the garage so that you can work out of it, the trays are super convenient because it's much faster to pull out precisely the socket that you want, no messing around with clips, etc.

stuart in mn said:

If you decide on getting another tool box or tool chest, I think the selection available from Harbor Freight these days are the best deal around.  They're surprisingly high quality and sturdy, and the price can't be beat.

In reply to codrus :

I don't think you quite understand. This is my socket drawer:

And the rest of the drawers are equally packed. Unfortunately, I don't have room in my garage for a larger box. 

If you have room can you split up metric and standard into different drawers?  Or make a divider and put and split the two.

And for wrenches you can do what this guy did...  

wood wrench racks

Or just get something like this.

My general feeling on tool needs is:

1. Wobble/swivel sockets

2. Flex-head ratcheting wrenches

3. Good cordless impact. 

After that it depends what you're doing, i guess. But without those three things you're basically still wrenching in the 20th century (i technically started in the 20th century too.. barely). 

Speaking of which, i've used some antique ratchets that had a worse 'swing arc' than a box end wrench. We have come a LONG way! 

tool organization goals

In reply to Jumper K Balls (Trent) :

I'd like something like that.  I'm pondering some sort of wall cabinet that could encroach less into my limited floor space.

This is all a very roundabout way of saying tool needs and storage can vary greatly depending on your own situation. 

Jumper K Balls (Trent) said:

tool organization goals

According to an article I read in the Rodder's Journal magazine a year or two ago, that man still owns the same car, lives in the same home, and has the same tool wall above his workbench.

tool organization goals

Nowadays when someone posts a picture like that of themselves we call them a 'social media influencer'.  

I hang a lot of stuff on the walls of my shop but none of them get used very often.