I’ve had a great time replacing Velcro cable wraps with Think Tank Red Whips in some instances, and have been building my own bungee cord cable wraps as well.
I came across a spare tool pallet for my Pelican toolbox, and it hit me – can I do something similar but with elastic bungee or shock cord? I would need evenly spaced holes, or a way to drill a grid of holes into a sheet of material. And then it hit me – what if I mate bungee cord with pegboard?!
I haven’t actually given it a try yet, but it seems like bungee cord + pegboard could work. The downside is that weaving bungee cord through every other hole front-to-back-to-front would mean a loss of some usable space. There would be an advantage, though, as longer tools could be supported by multiple rows of cord.
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But what if I need a bunch of tools from the same row? Less tension would mean looser grip, and so some tools might slip out. I suppose the cord could be terminated every could of holes with knots, and that a single line of bungee cord with extra slack could be used every few rows in case you want to secure larger items.
If one is patient enough, maybe they could mimic the Cocoon Grid-It method of inter-waving elastic bands, but with cord. Cocoon Grid-It’s are great for random storage needs, by the way, and are priced from ~$10 and up, depending on size (via Amazon).
Another idea is that a long narrow strip of pegboard could be used under shelves, and in other places you cannot really utilize other tool organizational means.
I took to the web and found that there used to be something to this effect, but perhaps better. Bunjipegs, as shown in this older product image by Lee Valley, are pegs that secure bungee cord across the front of a pegboard panel. Call them anchors, if you will.
It seems that Bunjipegs haven’t been on the market for years now, which is a shame. This looked like a great accessory to help me explore the potential of pairing bungee cord with pegboard. Maybe there’s a type of plastic rivet that could be used to similar effect? That doesn’t seem likely.
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Anyway, what do you think – would a bungee cord-equipped pegboard be a good way to store some frequently used hand tools?
P.S. Brownie points to anyone who give this a try before I have a chance to (which probably won’t be before the weekend).
fred
I wonder how long these will last in tension or if they are likely to loosen up over time. I’d hate to have that nice Stabila Level (pictured) come sliding down.
Probably 30 or 40 years ago when the pegboard craze was in full swing – I think that it was Crawford that sold holders made of lengths steel coil springs with hooks sort of “threaded” into each end. There were a few different lengths. You hooked one end into a pegboard hole – stretched the spring a bit and hooked the other end into a hole a few holes away. The spring snapped tight around the tool you wanted to mount.
Nathan
I’ve seen it done in trucks. as in attach laced pegboard on the side of a van wall or truck wall – drop and lace tools through. keeps them still.
not fully sure it was bungee cord or other – but seems reasonable. at home – probably not that useful. IE more time than worth and in the way more often that useable. for in something that’s got to move alot – great idea.
post up pics when you get done
Kurt Greiner
It looks fun to try, but I’m not sure what the advantage is over more conventional ways to hold tools and such to pegboards. When you consider the large number of hooks, brackets, shelves, baskets, magnets and probably other stuff, what does bungee cord bring to the system, other than slowing down the process of hanging stuff back up?
Stuart
Easier flexibility – the ability to secure any tool to nearly any location. It’s not terribly convenient to change pegboard configurations on the fly.
Additionally, you get lower profile storage with bungee cord. I’m looking at the side of a workstand and thinking “I could mount some tools there.” With pegboard and a traditional hook, I’d be knocking hooks off every time I pass by.
Kurt Greiner
Fair enough, it really comes down to how you work. For me, I like to know where each tool belongs so it has a hope of finding it way back to where I can find it again. Good point about the side storage.
aaronp
I’ve have these in my shop, since ’08 or ’09, and for lighter items it is far superior to the little hooks that keep flopping out of the holes no matter what I do. As near as I can tell the cord works as well as day one. There are lots of places to get new bungee, though. The key is the peg, and someone should put a free 3D model on shapeways to make your own, as they are very handy. I still have some pegs and cord leftover, so I think this might have spurred me on to use the rest somewhere useful. I can post a link to a photo if anyone’s curious about how the peg was designed.
Ted Kitch
I will second what aaronp has said. I’ve had these for over 5 years and I really like them. The bungee is great for certain items. I have pieces as small as 1.5 inches for hold downs and my longest single run is over 18 inches. I’m not a fan of wasting the cord as was done in the included picture. You can cut it to size.
I’ve used paracord with the pegs too and it works fine.
John
I think bungee cord is inherently problematic for a tool wall.
1. cord *will* stretch and loosen over time.
2. placing tool under bungee is not always a one-handed operation. I don’t like the idea of having to use both hands every time I hang up a tool (or, some tools).
3. top heavy tools (e.g. screwdrivers) may need to positioned and balanced “just so”.
I do like the idea of using bungee in some specific places, such as under counter, for tools that might otherwise take up a lot of wall space. Maybe large, but lightweight items such as a plastic layout triangle, etc.
RX9
I imagine paracord loops could also be used for heavier items with hooks in this position.
RX9
Apologies in advance:
Stuart, I hate to post something off topic in this section, but I have not seen much coverage (from any tool blogger in general, or even company press releases/advertising!) on the latest development in the cordless Outdoor Power Equipment (OPE) market – the advent of 80V systems.
As it stands thus far, there seem to be only two “players” in the 80V segment. Greenworks and Kobalt (Lowe’s house brand). After close examination though, it appears that there is really only one 80V manufacturer, as the specifications and appearance of models from both systems are pretty much identical, with the exception of color and labeling. I wonder if an issue between Greenworks and Lowe’s has lead to the latter being unable to formally promote its line (and perhaps quietly closing it out before it ever really got to launch).
All of the models appear to be using brushless motors. When combined with an 80V power cell, it appears to allow the tools to take on the characteristics of entry to intermediate level gas-powered equivalents, such as: an 18″ cutting bar for the chainsaw, a 21″ deck for the lawn mower, and a 500 cfm rating.for the blower.
The standard battery capacity appears to be 2.0Ah with a half hour charge time. Despite that quick charge time, 2.0Ah seems to be on the low end of modern cordless OPE, especially compared to Dewalt’s 6.0 Ah battery. No higher capacities are listed for Kobalt, but Greenworks curiously makes reference to a
5.0 Ah battery (360 Wh, which charges in 70 minutes) and a 6.4 Ah battery (460 Wh, which charges in 90 minutes) on the page for its 80V charger. I couldn’t find anything else on these batteries, so for now they seem to be vaporware.
Kobalt’s lineup thus far consists of a chainsaw, blower, and lawn mower.
Greenworks lineup consists of a chainsaw, blower, lawn mower, snow blower, attachment capable (split boom) trimmer, and hedge trimmer.
It’s a shame to see only one real 80V system, but I can understand why this is so.
I think the fear of committing to 80V is probably driven by manufacturers thinking it might be a little too much, especially in light of EGO’s faltering 56v line. Looking at the market failure of Dewalt’s 36v nano and Milwaukee’s M28 lines, we can see that they were far too cumbersome and expensive to be of use to any but the most demanding of tradesmen.
That said, it seems that distribution of these of these tools has barely started and promotion has been relatively weak. I would venture that if they are as successful as Ryobi and Black and Decker’s 36/40V lines have been, it might prompt other manufacturers to jump in to the 80V pool.
I personally think that as 18/20V was found to be the sweet spot for major cordless woodworking and contractor tools (drill, reciprocating saw, circular saw, impact driver, etc.), 80v could be the place where the cordless OPE market will settle, as it is just enough power to put it on parity with gas equipment. It could also be that 40V soldiers on, retaining a light power niche as 10.8/12V has done in relation to 18/20V.
Only time will tell.
Jason
I have the Greenworks 80v LeafBlower and Snow Blower. I think its just taking them longer to get the tools shipped over to the states than they expected. The Kobalt branding on Greenworks tools also happened last year with their 40v tools. It’s not the worst thing as I believe Kobalt had a much better warranty than what Greenworks was offering.
chris
I have seen this exact idea used on tool dealer trucks for overhead storage. I’m sure they must be able to order their trucks with this already installed. If you stored your tools horizontally you wouldn’t have to worry about them slipping out.
Mike
I’ve tried it to hold odd shaped and sized hand tools in my hard rolling tool case. I had about 11 different crimpers that don’t fit into any tool pallets that I’ve ever seen and I don’t like them banging around while loose in the large compartments. I knotted the ends of this bungee cord at the back of the board, then used zip ties to fasten it in between. Feed the zip tie from the back to the front, pass over the cord, then feed it back through the same hole. The heads of the ties were large enough to keep from passing through the holes and the cords didn’t slip once the ties were tightened. The cords held up fine, the pegboard did not. After a while it started warping where the tools were pressing against it and the tools didn’t stay in place.
MattP
The new comment system on mobile:
Scrooollllll scrolllllll scrolllll scrolllll
Can it use a smaller font?
Stuart
Yep – that’s on schedule for later today. I hope to cut out a lot of the long vertical spaces as well.
I’m also going to experiment with a “click to show comments” button that only appears for mobile users.
Hang Fire
Seems like just the thing for trucks and earthquake areas, but I’m happy with my pegboard hooks… once I found some pegs that had both anchors on the back!
I don’t know if they still do this, but for a while both HD and Lowe’s were only selling cheap import peg hooks with only the top anchor, they required you to use an additional plastic strap to hold them down. They were awful! I returned them and mail-ordered some ULINE’s and been happy every since. Who would have thought China could mess up something as simple as a pegboard hook?
Whatever you do on your pegboard, realize you should re-do it yearly to reflect what you use versus what you’re just storing.
Rick
In addition to cautions already expressed, I don’t think bungee cord will be sturdy enough for holding tools still when accessing them or neighboring tools. A rigid holder will provide a collar/slot/peg/pocket for a tool that will limit its floppability and keep it vertical. A bungee cord won’t, so how much time will you then spend straightening tools up — and you know you will! Also, inserting a screwdriver (& etc) as shown will catch on the center holes and eventually scar up the board. I think the individual elastic straps on the little toolboards in technicians’ tool suit-cases is about the best you’re going to get for this general idea.
crystal
I am a snapon tool dealer. Trucks come prelaced but after 10 years or so lose elasticity. Lynch display vans sells individual cords that just plug into holes so panels don’t have to be removed to relace. Hold up very well and are used in a bouncy truck and tools being removed and replaced constantly. They sell a variety of lengths but not sure if they sell to the general pubilc.
Brian
I have used this peg and elastic cord system for over 15 years. They don’t wear out and are fantastic for holding small tools on pegboard. Sadly, I have used all but four of my pegs over the years and have hoped to find more. I have had no success finding them. 3-D printing may be the answer!