Always measure, never assume (Systainer footprint fiasco)

[Mark37]

Well, silly me!  It seems I *assumed* the footprint of my DTS400 systainer would be the same as my RO-150 systainer when I was building my version of the systainers cabinet.

I'll be able to rout out the inside dimension of the tray, so it's not a fatal flaw.  Just aggravating.

I now see that there is a whole forum area devoted to the various systainer dimensions.....

[attachimg=1]

 

[Distinctive Interiors]

.....???.....
I'm a bit confused by your picture and statement Mark......I have both of those exact same tools and in the same systainers as you....

I've just stood them next to each other, side by side and front to back and as far as I can see, .....they have the same dimensional footprint ?!!
I store mine in Sys AZ drawers in my own home built cabinets.

Are you certain that the 2 drawers you have made are the exact same width...?

 

[jeh]

Something is amiss here.

 

[Distinctive Interiors]

Something is amiss here.

I'm glad it's not just me then..

As I said, my two identical Systainers are the same as Mark's and I cant see any discernable differences in width or depth...!

 

[Spandex]

Even more bizarrely, Tanos list the dimensions of the classic systainer as 300x400 and the dimensions of the T-Loc as 296x396... So if anything, you'd expect the opposite problem if the drawers were made too tight.

 

[semenza]

It looks like if the T-Loc was set straight on the drawer it might only be a few mm too tight. Maybe a bowed drawer side? Those appear to be some very tight tolerances on the drawers compared to Sys width.

Seth

 

[Mark37]

Thanks for the comments.  I hope I did not come off as a troll.

I like the Sysport concept and wanted to use it for the few Festools I own and also adapt other tool and supply storage to the format.  I used the 14' drawer slides as most DIY build seem to do, but beyond that, for better or worse, I worked up my own dimensions.

The RO150 case fits great.  The DTS400 case is a couple mm wider, and does not fit.  A few minutes with a router will take care of that, but I wish I had measured to begin with.

 

[Mark37]

All better now.
[attachimg=1]

 

[Packard]

I use rulers as infrequently as possible.  I will directly transfer dimensions (place the Systainer on the stock to come up with a size) or I will use a story stick. 

I figure if I measure 20 separate items, one will be wrong.  But if I transfer those same twenty dimensions, they will all be correct.

I am currently building an entryway shelf with a back to it.  I made a cardboard layout to check my size and maintain 30” passageway clearance.  And I used that cardboard to mark the size of the shelf.  And after adding the edge treatment, I directly transferred that back from the shelf to the stock.  No rulers.  Just dimensions transferred.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

I wouldn't have made them "water tight" in the first place. I typically try to give things a bit of space.
The pull-outs for my Systainers are about 1 inch wider than the boxes themselves. Then I pinned on some wooden curbs to keep them from moving around. This was to have been temporary, but I still haven't gotten around to routing the foot pockets and removing them. Maybe this fall, when I move and rearrange some stuff.

 

[Mark37]

I appreciate the tips.  This is a great forum. 

Crazyraceguy, your point is well taken.  But floor space is at a premium in my shop and I wanted to keep the cab as small as possible.
So this build (I'm actually building a pair) works for my needs, and I find the systainers go in and out without undue fussiness.

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[Peter Kelly]

The tray shelf things for Systainers can just be a piece of 3/4" plywood with a strip of wood across the front and a block at the back to keep the box in place. This way, subtle variations in size won't be an issue.

[attachimg=1]

[attachimg=2]

 

[rmhinden]

Another variation on the single sheet of plywood approach.  Also gives one a little more vertical space.

Bob

[attachimg=1]

 

[luvmytoolz]

Another variation on the single sheet of plywood approach.  Also gives one a little more vertical space.

Bob

This I like, good use of limited space! I'm hanging onto a bunch of 4mm aluminium sheets to make mine from whenever I get around to it!

 

[Crazyraceguy]

Another variation on the single sheet of plywood approach.  Also gives one a little more vertical space.

Bob

[attachimg=1]

Thats's exactly what I was referring too in the comment above. I didn't have the time to do it when I was building them in the first place.  Right now, they are very similar to those that Peter Kelly showed, Oak fronts but similar none the less.
I really like keeping them in the Systainers and almost everything else is in a drawer. I have a few things that are "out" like levels, squares, clamps, and tracks.  Some of this will change when I set up at home, but it works for now.

 

[Mark37]

The tray shelf things for Systainers can just be a piece of 3/4" plywood with a strip of wood across the front and a block at the back to keep the box in place. This way, subtle variations in size won't be an issue.

The single sheet of plywood style would also have saved me a lot of time that I spent cutting and gluing the trays.