I’m a tool chest guy. At the end of the day all my tools go back in my chest to protect them and to soothe my head (I am a tidy German). When I’m working with my tools at the bench, I also like to keep them sorted – simply so I can work faster.
And that’s why I bought a Texas Heritage Woodworks Saddlebag and screwed it to the rear of my workbench. (FYI, I buy all my tools and etc. at full retail. I receive no “promotional consideration,” “affiliate monies” or “reach-arounds.”)
Like everything Jason and Sarah make, the quality is top notch. The seams are tidy, sturdy and riveted for strength. The pockets are thoughtfully designed to hold a variety of small woodworking tools.
My Saddlebag is set up to work like a traditional rack on a French workbench – it’s located opposite the face vise and slightly below the bench’s work surface. With the Saddlebag in this spot I can stick my typical small tools there while I work, and I always know where my 6” square and mechanical pencil are. (My ears are simply too big to tuck a pencil there – it would have to be the size of one of those pencils we had in kindergarten.)
The Saddlebag is also ideal for hanging inside a Dutch tool chest (check out this gallery of these chests on the Popular Woodworking blog).
I’m sure this will be on my “Anarchist’s Gift Guide” this holiday, so now you can beat the rush.
— Christopher Schwarz, christophermschwarz.com
Another reason why to keep your bench narrow. With a wider bench (mine) a rack or saddle bag is to far of a reach and not handy.
Clever! My brother will love this
I ordered one and had hoped to fit it in the front of my DTC and ordered one. Unfortunately my plane layout does not allow the larger pockets to be used so I put it on my bench in a removable storage rack similar to this. I think it will work out better as I think I can put a cleat on the fall front of the DTC and possibly move it there for transport/extended storage. I may even order a second for the fall front on the lower rolling section.
Speaking of pencils…
I do get these pencils intended for young kids learning to write: http://amzn.to/2vDumfL
They sharpen nicely, are actual wood (not that rubberized faux…whatever it is), and keep a relatively sharp line, unlike the lumber store flat pencils. A pack should last you a couple of years…or six months, if you’re like me and lose them everywhere.
there are advantages to pockets, and it looks like a great product, but this gives me a use for the 18″ long magnetic strip i bought some time ago on a whim. I’ll tack it onto the back of the bench, then i could just throw things off the back of the bench only to have them magically stick to the hidden magnet strip… I’m thinking like one of the eagles rescuing gandalf when he jumps off sarumon’s tower.
You paid actual money for that? I just cut the pockets out of my old blue jeans and screwed them to the wall. I found things with edges or points tend to snag when they are retrieved though.
I did.
Usually I grow my own cotton, harvest it and then spin it into a selvedge denim. After making my jeans, I wear them out (usually takes three years) and then cut them up and screw them to the wall.
But as I like to support people who do good work (like the people who buy my furniture and books), I opted to go that route this time.
Snort… If only more Americans thought the way you do…
I have a nail apron from THW, it is very well made and I love it but I do wish they would have opened the pockets like on these saddle bags. They would have been a bit easier to reach into. The quality… top shelf!!!
Great saddle bags ! The only thing I would do more , is work it out with your belt looped gear bag you wear ,so it can be mounted to your bench when in the shop or around your waste when at a job site . Nice workmanship ,right down to the rivets !
I don’t have a problem with affiliate sales if the review comes from a genuine place of admiration for a product and as you do, the product is paid for by you. Running a blog as exceptional as this one is hard work and affiliate sales are, for many bloggers, the only way they can earn a living making great content freely available.