A big box store
You know those plastic storage boxes that nearly all tools come in? You probably have several; I do and theyre getting out of hand. Its that time when I begin…
You know those plastic storage boxes that nearly all tools come in? You probably have several; I do and theyre getting out of hand.
Its that time when I begin the winter-spring swap. As the days get longer and the chances of snow decrease, its time to take winter-only stuff like snow shovels, big bags of salt, skis, sleds and other cold-weather gear and stow them for the season. To make storage room for all that I need to get the warm-weather stuff rakes, hoses, lawn and hedge trimmers, etc. back out. But in going up and down from the attic its clear that one thing, or rather one category of thing, stays in storage year round: those plastic storage boxes my tools came in.
A few tools I dont use often, like my recip saw, stay in their plastic cases. But thats rare; just about all my other tools were removed from their cases they day I brought them home, and the storage cases stored. The fact is, I never use those things. But theyre way too nice to toss out, and you never know when you might actually need to store a tool in one. As a result, my attic and one shelf in my shop is cluttered with brand new, unused plastic storage cases. The only thing stored in them is air and theyre taking up a lot of room.
So my idea is this: I get all my plastic storage cases together, and you get all yours together. Then we find a central location somewhere and offer them for sale. We start our own big box store, and all we sell is those boxes! I mean, I dont use them and Im guessing a lot of you dont use them, but somebody must. Why else would the toolmakers crank them out by the zillions and tout their value so much?
The way I figure it, our biggest customers wont be woodworkers, because most woodworkers use their tools way too much to bother with those boxes. Im thinking ultra heavy-duty, designer purses and handbags. Our wives will love them so much, they wont even complain anymore when we go tool shopping. I can hear it now:
Hey, look, honey! I bought you this great Milwaukee-red carryall, and it came with a free drill!
Till next time,
A.J.
A.J. Hamler is the former editor of Woodshop News and Woodcraft Magazine. He's currently a freelance woodworking writer/editor, which is another way of stating self-employed. When he's not writing or in the shop, he enjoys science fiction, gourmet cooking and Civil War reenacting, but not at the same time.