When you start accumulating sets of pliers, you will find the need to organize them in the drawer, toolbox, or workspace. Because if you continue to shove them into the shelf or toolbox anyhow, they will occupy more space than is available. And before you know it, half of your tools will not have a space in the storage box or shelf.
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If you are the kind of a person who keeps lots of pliers on the desktop, they will clutter your workspace and you won’t have enough space to work in. And when pliers are all over the desk, they make the workspace look messy and unkempt.
So, let’s face it.
Pliers are extremely handy tools. They are the most irreplaceable hand tools but they can be difficult to organize. It doesn’t matter if you store them on the desk or inside a drawer or tool box. They will take up more space than they should if you do not take the time to organize them properly.
Here are some easy ways to organize your pliers neatly and save valuable space.
How To Organize Pliers
So, how do you organize pliers?
There are many ways you can arrange pliers to keep them safe and avoid clutter but pliers organizers do the best job.
They fit nicely into your existing tool storage solution to bring some order to how you store pliers. For instance, there are pliers organizers for toolboxes, tool drawers, desktops, etc. Pliers organizers do not limit where you can store your pliers. Instead, they give you more storage options.
In this article, I share the 5 best pliers organizing ideas you can implement with pliers organizers. But first, why should you organize pliers?
Why use pliers organizers?
These are some of the benefits you will realize when you start organizing pliers with pliers organizer accessories.
1. Save storage space
Pliers organization helps to optimize the available storage space so that more tools can fit. It is the main reason for arranging pliers because they can take up much space if stored anyhow.
2. Eliminate clutter
Pliers can clutter the workspace or tool box when you don’t organize them properly. A pliers organizer lets you arrange pliers neatly to avoid clutter. It also makes your workspace and storage look neat.
3. Easy pliers storage and access
Neatly stored tools are easy to access and store. Pliers organizers make it easier for you to pick the right pliers for the job and put them back in the right place in a fraction of the time. This increases your efficiency on the job. You don’t have to waste time digging and hunting for the right pair of pliers!
4. Pliers organizers make it easy to tell when pliers are missing
When you organize pliers and group them, you can easily tell when a set is missing. A pliers organizer allows fast visual inspection of pliers. This helps you quickly notice missing pliers.
Friends who borrow tools permanently don’t like it when you have a pliers organizer because they know you can tell when they don’t return your pliers. Tool organizers help you to track tools and prevent loss.
5. Protect pliers from damage
Pliers organizers keep pliers safe and protect them from damage. They ensure that pliers are not knocked left right and center by other tools in the storage box. This is very important for precision pliers.
For instance, vertical pliers organizers protect the blades of cutting pliers from dints and nicks by other tools. This helps to keep the cutting edges sharp for a longer time.
Moreover, delicate cutting pliers such as sprue cutters can easily get broken when tossed around in the storage box. An organizer keeps them safe.
6. Expand pliers storage options
As I mentioned, pliers organizers do not bring limitations on where you cannot store pliers. Instead, they expand the storage options. For instance, a pegboard organizer makes it possible to organize pliers neatly on a pegboard whereas a pliers block enables you to continue keeping pliers on the desktop more neatly.
5 Best Pliers Organizer Ideas
These are some of the best pliers storage ideas that most people use to keep their pliers organized in different situations.
1. Pliers Rack – Best for toolbox drawers
A pliers rack or tray set is one of the most common pliers organizers. It has slots for arranging pliers.
Pliers storage racks are either made of wire or plastic. Wire racks look like dishwasher racks with slots for inserting pliers. In fact, you can make a DIY wire rack for pliers from a dish rack.
Plastic pliers racks are similar to wire racks except that they have plastic walls to separate the pliers slots.
Pliers organizer racks are the most common way to organize pliers in a toolbox drawer. Wire racks are the best and most versatile because you can easily cut them to size to fit in your drawer or tool box. You just need to cut them to size with a bolt cutter or hack saw.
You can place pliers racks anywhere in the drawer. Personally, I prefer to place them at the back of the drawer so that pliers will stay in place when I open or shut the drawer.
You can also place the racks along the sides. Just don’t place them at the front of the drawer because the drawer wall will knock the pliers out of the holder when you shut the drawer.
Pliers organizer racks are the real space saver in the toolbox drawer. With them, two drawers of pliers can fit in one drawer and you will still have more space.
Pliers racks are a great way to optimize the small space in the tool box. Any handyman or technician with a tool cart should have them. They not only keep pliers stored in one place and readily accessible, but are also an effective way to group similar pliers together.
Types of pliers racks
There are two types of pliers racks: vertical racks and horizontal racks. The vertical racks store pliers vertically while horizontal racks organize pliers laterally.
Horizontal racks are the best for organizing pliers inside toolboxes and drawers whilst vertical pliers racks are for arranging pliers vertically on the desktop or workspace.
2. Tool Roll – Best for tool bags
When you have just a handful of pliers, a tool roll can be a good way to organize them.
A tool roll is basically a piece of leather or canvas with pouches on one side for storing tools. A good one needs to be flexible enough to roll with tools but sturdy enough to hold your tools.
Tool rolls are common for carrying long slim tools such as wrench sets and chisels but some have wide pockets that can fit pliers.
You can use a tool roll to organize a few sets of pliers for storage in the toolbox or tool bag. It is the best pliers organizer for toolbags. It allows you to wrap a handful of pliers sets together and put them neatly in the tool bag.
You can even use a tool roll to carry your pliers without putting them in the toolbox or bag. Some rolls have zippable pockets that can be great for storing small EDC pliers.
Like all other tool organizers, a tool wrap or tool roll lets you keep your pliers in one place to prevent loss. It also takes your tool organization in the tool storage box or carrier a notch higher.
A tool roll is the best pliers organizer for transporting a handful of pliers.
3. Pegboard – Best for shops
Almost every workshop has a pegboard for hanging tools. It is the best space saver in the shop or garage because it creates vertical tool storage spaces. You can use a pegboard to store and organize a variety of tools including your sets of pliers. It is the best stationary tool storage system.
If you don’t know what a pegboard is, it is a rectangular board with pre-drilled holes for fitting hooks or pegs. The holes are evenly spaced to ensure consistency and neatness when hanging tools.
Pegboards are best mounted on the wall. However, you will need to put a spacer between the board and the wall to allow the pegboard hooks to attach. And if you are hanging pegboard on drywall, you can use furring strips as spacers.
Most pegboard hooks will hold pliers securely on the board but pulling the pliers from the hook can be a pain. As such, there are specific pegboard hangers for pliers that are designed specifically for holding pliers. They have a much wider opening and won’t catch your pliers when trying to pull it out for use.
Alternatively, you can create your own pliers hanger on the pegboard using scrapwood and a dowel.
Watch this video to learn how to make an adjustable pliers hanger on a pegboard.
4. Wood Pliers Block – Best for desktop
A wood pliers block or pallet is simply a block of wood with holes drilled in it for holding pliers. It stores pliers vertically by the handles.
A wood pliers pallet is one of the best pliers organizers for the workbench. It helps keep pliers off the bench and handy for work. It is one of the best storage options for jewelry pliers set.
As you know, most of the jewelry work happens on the benchtop. This means that a lot of jewelry tools will be lying all over your workspace if you don’t have a tool organizer. A wood pliers block offers a reliable storage solution for your jewelry-making pliers. It eliminates clutter from your work area by keeping your pliers organized and easily accessible.
Not to mention, wood pliers holders keep pliers upright. This helps protect the delicate jaws and edges of jewelry pliers.
The only disadvantage of woodblock pliers organizers is that the holes might be much bigger than some plier handles. This could make it difficult for some pliers to stay upright. For this reason, a wood pliers block is more suitable for a set of pliers from the same manufacturer because such pliers usually have similar handle sizes.
Otherwise, a wood pliers block offers a safe, quick draw storage solution for small pliers on the bench. It keeps pliers handy and does not take up a ton of space in your work area. It is also easy to make at home. You only need a block of wood, drill, and auger bit or spade bit.
5. Wood Pliers Stand – Best for a worktable
A wood pliers stand is a good alternative to a wood block pliers organizer. It is another great space-saver on the work table.
However, unlike a wood block pliers holder that uses holes to stand pliers, a wooden pliers rack has dowels running across onto which you hang your pliers.
A wood pliers stand is good for organizing pliers of different sizes and handle widths. It is the perfect choice for organizing a collection of pliers with non-uniform handle grips.
Similar to a wooden block stand, a wooden plier rack stores pliers in an upright position. This means you cannot use it to organize huge pliers (above 10″) such as water pump pliers and needle nose pliers with long handles.
The rack is suitable for organizing small-size pliers such as jewelry pliers, electronic pliers, and other precision pliers.
Conclusion
And there you have it!
A pliers rack, tool roll, pegboard, wood pliers block, and wood pliers stand are the 5 most effective ways to organize pliers in the tool bag, toolbox, or work table. What makes these organizers stand out is the fact that you can build them yourself with basic tools or buy ready-made ones.
Whichever approach you choose, just know that a pliers organizer is the best way to properly manage a collection of pliers. Not only will it help to tidy up and optimize the space in your toolbox or workspace but also protect your pliers from damage. Get one today!