DIY Fishing Rod/Tackle Organizer

In this instructable I will be showing you how to turn an old nightstand into a fishing rod/tackle organizer (in the cheapest way possible). I was going to add instructions on how to make your own nightstand, but it is much cheaper and easier to grab an old one from your local thrift store.

I was able to find this beauty at a local thrift store for $5. It came with a drawer but I pulled that out, and left the lower cabinet for storage. This one also came with wheels, but they aren't necessary. You can always buy some cabinet wheels from home depot for pretty cheap if you can't find one with wheels.

I was able to get 2x "Adjustable Storage Clip" bars from The Home Depot for about $20. They include 5 clips, so you will be able to have 5 poles on each side of the night stand. They are 17 inches long, however they are made of pretty thin material that can easily be cut to size if you have a nightstand with different dimensions.

Here is a link for the storage clips: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-17-in-Wall-Mounted-White-Steel-Adjustable-Spring-Storage-Clip-Bar-01147/202305506

The broom clips come with screws, so you can mount them to the night stand using a drill. I only used one on the left and right side of the nigh stand, and left the back bare, that way it can sit flush with the wall.

I used some old scrap cedar planks to make the base for the poles to sit in. I used a 2" bit and set each hole with about 1.5 inches of space in between. Don't worry if the holes aren't perfect, since you can slide the broom clips back and forth depending on where you want to place the rods. After making the holes I used a table saw to cut the plans to size.

After cutting the boards to size, you can attach them to the base of the nigh stand using some simple L-brackets. I have a link below for the ones that I used.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-1-1-2-in-Zinc-Plated-Corner-Brace-Value-Pack-20-Pack-18564/202034301

Doing the camo print is actually very easy. First, find some Rustoleum camo spray paint at your local hardware store. They run about $4 and for this project I got 4 different colors -- black, green, sand, and gray. Once you have your spray paint, you can make your camo pattern stencils. You can just take a piece of card board and have fun with a sharpie. There really is no wrong way to make the shapes.

I chose to use the green as a base coat, but that is ultimately up to you. After each color spray paint you use, allow about 20 minutes for the paint to dry so that the colors don't mix. It doesn't really matter what order you do the layers, but start with one color and hold your stencil close to the night stand, but not touching. You don't want the cardboard to smear the paint or create splotches. You also want to be kind of conservative with the spray paint so that there is no dripping. Afterwards your fishing rod organizer will look something like picture #2.

I also am the proud owner of a Tronxy X1 3D printer, so I decided to incorporate a print into the fishing rod organizer. Here is the link for the .STL file that I used: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2520541. If you choose to use this, you will need 1 x m8 nut and bold and 2x m4 nut and bolt to secure it.