Dowel and Rod Stock Storage

This isn't just Grip-All Jaws related but it can apply to any shop where you have bits of material left over. One class of material is particularly challenging to store and that is doweling, rod stock, all-thread rod, angle, "T" slot, tubing, brass or other metal rods, narrow strips of accent wood and any other narrow lengthy materials. The problem of storing these materials is that the length can vary from a few inches to several feet.

I found that heavy duty cardboard tubes can be had from reprographics stores. These are places where you would get blueprints or large format copies. Their paper comes on strong cardboard tubes and they usually have to haul these tubes to the landfill. I have always found these business to be more than glad to give you as many as you would like to take off their hands; FREE.

Below are pictures of ways I have used these tubes to hold my rod stock. These tubes come in different lengths, but the most common sizes I have found are: 11", 21", 30" and 36". They are very easily cut with a miter saw to meet your needs.

The picture above has the tubes of different lengths stacked on 20" wide shelves. The one below utilizes a section of concrete form tube (available at any building supply) cut at an angle for access to shorter items. Concrete form tubes are available in a variety of diameters and you can create your own version to meet your needs.

Here are ways to hold stock from 25" to 6’ and the most used in my shop is the picture to the right that holds items in common 3’, 4’ and 5’ stock lengths.