Drill Charging Station

I really wanted to do something about the mess that was my drills, drivers, screws, countersink bits, battery charger, spare batteries…you get the point. I had a tiny space on my wall and didn’t know if it was even possible to fit a whole station there, but I wanted to do something with all my stuff laying around, so I decided it was worth a shot.

Cutting Parts

My biggest challenge in designing the station was the small space I had to fit it in. I’ve seen a lot of nice drill charging stations on YouTube. However, a common thread most of them share is that they’re huge and can hold about a dozen drills or drivers. But if you’re not a woodworking content creator getting sent a new drill fortnightly, you may only have 2-4 drills. I can’t really see why a hobbyist woodworker would need more than that at a time anyways.

So I drew up a plan and set about executing it. I got a little carried away with curves in Sketch-Up, so I printed out a one-to-one paper template for the sides that I could tape together. I taped the sides of the cabinet together, then taped the template to that, so I could cut it out all at once. One to one paper template I set about cutting the curves on my band saw. To clean up the curves, because I don’t own a spindle sander, and the end pulley on my edge sander is too big, I used a sanding drum on my drill press. It worked well enough, even though my drill press is a little wobbly. The drum didn’t get into the tight corners, so I cleaned up the rest with a card scraper, and then hand sanded to finish it off.

Dowel Joinery

I used ¾” ply for the back of the cabinet. Yes, it seems like overkill, but I had to mount some things to the back with screws, so it seemed like the most robust option, considering. So I cut a rabbet into the back of the sides, for the back to rest in. Then, I proceeded to cut out the rest of the parts for the build.

Since this is essentially a simple cabinet with a few shelves, I chose to use dowels to join the shelves to the sides of the case. Dowels are a familiar and less expensive alternative to Dominos, and this jig from Dowelmax makes it super easy and foolproof. It’s a bit pricey for a dowel jig, but it’s just a fraction of the cost of a Domino, and the strength of the joint is comparable in my opinion. You could also use dados here, but it would be more involved because they would have to be stopped dados, and those are just annoying. Using Dowelmax jig is easy I did regret that I had dowelled the bottom shelf from the bottom to the sides, because it could have created alignment issues, but luckily the Dowelmax is super accurate and the joint came together without any problems. If I were doing it again though, I’d probably just screw the bottom up through into the sides.

I could’ve made a template for the bottom drill hanger shelf, but I kind of thought about that too late, so I just laid everything out and marked what I had to cut. I first used a forstner bit to create the inside curve, and then cut the rest out with the band saw. Off camera, I sanded everything smooth, and then I put a decent little chamfer on the top side, where the drills will hang.

Cubby Door

I wanted my battery charger mounted onto my cabinet so that it’s front and centre. Since it’s quite large, there could have been a lot of wasted space behind it, but I turned the door into a cubby and created a space to put less frequently used accessories. And that way mounting the charger to the door so that it’s easily accessible isn’t an issue.

Installing Hinges

Installing cubby door hinges A cubby door needs some hinges, so I used a hinge jig from Kreg to drill all the holes for these Blum hinges. The particular kind of hinge is important because this door has to open downwards. Therefore, the hinges need to snap closed with some force, otherwise the weight of the battery and charger will pull the door open.

Pre-Finishing

I like to pre-finish my parts before gluing them up because I find it simpler. I broke all the edges with my router and a roundover bit, gave all the parts a quick sand, and then I finished with General Finishes High Performance. I find using a water-based finish is better for lighter coloured woods so that it doesn’t yellow.

Glue Up

When finishing I had taped off some important areas where the joints met, but now that it was time to glue it up I took off that tape, threw a bunch of dowels in a little tub, and poured glue all over it to make a glue-dowel salad (trademark pending). It seems silly, but I find it’s actually quicker—each dowel gets a good coating of glue, and I’m able to pluck out one at a time, put one in each hole, and send ’em all home. Glue dowel salad I glued three shelves onto one side first, and then glued the other side onto the opposite end of those three shelves. I fit as many clamps as I could on there, and checked it for square. I mentioned before I didn’t like the way I dowelled the bottom to the case sides, and even though gluing and screwing would have been much easier, gluing this together didn’t end up being a big deal. Clamping was seeming like it was going to be too difficult, so I sent some brad nails into it to hold it together while the glue dried.

Gluing the back onto the case shouldn’t have been that big a deal, but I’m a bit inexperienced when it comes to brad nailers. Recently DEWALT had sent me their 18 gauge brad nailer, so I thought I’d have some fun with it. Much to my surprise, you don’t just point and shoot, but there’s actually a direction you should hold the gun in reference to the piece you’re trying to nail into. So half the nails I drove in blew out from the sides, and when I went to Instagram to complain about it, about half my followers told me I was doing it wrong. I used some wood filler to correct that minor setback.

Installing Bin Hooks

One of my favourite features of the cabinet are the Akro-Mils bins. They have a hook on the back that typically fits into a panel they sell. That panel is way too big for my needs so I found cleats that are meant to hang heavy picture frames. The 12” ones ended up being the perfect size. I lined them up, pre-drilled them with a self-centering bit, and screwed them into position.

The thickness of the hook itself wouldn’t fit between the cleat and the back panel, so I put a few washers between the cleat and back panel that allowed it to fit right in. Akro-Mils system for spacing panel hooks When I was installing the second row, I noticed the bin was not level. Turns out with the Akro-Mils system, they space the hooks on their panels twice as close together as I did, and that allows the bottom hook to level out the bin.

Next I wanted to attach the charger to the front cubby door. My charger has the hole spacing stamped right on the back so I could just lay out a mark where the holes were without having to use any sort of masking tape trick.

Installing Charger and Magnetic Strip

I marked, drilled, and mounted a magnetic strip so I could easily access my frequently used bits, keeping them close at hand.

I had to deal with the power cable for the charger, so I pre-drilled and used a forstner bit to make a large hole through the cubby door for the charger cable to pass through, and then another big hole for the cable to pass through the back of the cabinet. I eased the edges of that hole so it didn’t hurt the cable, and routed a little channel to allow it to sit flush with the back panel so the cabinet can be mounted to the wall without squishing the cable. And I used cable ties with a screw hole in it because it allowed me to keep the cable secure, in place, and out of my way. Cable pass-through channel I sanded down the shotty wood filler from my shotty brad nailer job, and applied another coat of finish to button that up.

Installing on the Wall

My favourite way to mount to the wall is to pre-drill and insert screws that are just poking out the back. Then, using a level, I put my piece up against the wall where I want it, and then smush the screws into the drywall, marking the locations.

I used drywall anchors because the station isn’t really that heavy, even fully loaded, and not everything has to be mounted into a stud. You can mount it to your wall any way you like. A lot of people love French cleat systems, but I just don’t use them.

At this point, I loaded up my favourite screws in the bins, hung them up, and loaded up the rest of the cabinet with my drills, drivers, and all the other accessories that will keep me way more organized.

Final Thoughts on the Design

Scott Walsh drill charging station I designed my drill charging station so that it’s pretty compact, holding only four drills and/or drivers. Each element of the design serves a purpose. The small shelf is for holding spare batteries and bit cases. Up top, the removable, stackable bins are great for your most frequently used screws. The little cubby space is for lesser used accessories. The lid closes for a spot front and center to mount your charger. And there is a small magnetic strip for your most used bits. I’m also stoked that the charging station fit the tiny wall space I hoped it would.