Keep Your Small Tools Handy With Geomag Magnets

I've been using geomag magnets in a current raspberry pi project, and incidentally found they're perfect for keeping small (metal, obviously) tools to hand in the workshop. I keep several of these magnets on my work lamp, with my most-used tiny tools stuck to them for easy access. More a lifehack than an instructable, but this has revolutionised my workbench!

Get Some Geomag

In case you haven't come across it, Geomag is a toy consisting of a set of small magnetic sticks and ballbearings, which can be used to create geometric structures. It's a great thing to re-use as it can be found cheaply at sales and on ebay and the magnets are really, really strong. Each geomag stick has a magnet at each end, connected by a metal rod and coated in plastic or metal depending on the version. My box from the depths of the workbench drawers is the yellow plastic variety.

I'm using the bare magnets themselves in a current project to semi-permanently secure flying leads to the innards of a mini flexible keyboard, to allow external buttons to mimic keypresses - a variation on this instructable - but have found it even more useful to keep small tools such as drill bits exactly where I need them.

Tool Up

I have the geomag stuck to my anglepoise lampshade holding the tools I use most frequently so I don't have to dig into parts boxes and drawers every time I need them, but any convenient metal surface would work equally well. I find myself using push pins, a rotary tool and tiny screwdrivers a lot at the moment, and these small bits are easy to misplace in the general workbench chaos otherwise.

I was already using a magnetic kitchen knife rack, which is great for the bigger tools!

And Fridge Magnets

Did I mention the magnets are really strong?

You can also make quick & easy customised fridge magnets by simply clipping a geomag stick onto your fridge and adding a bottlecap of your choice - or something more useful like a cake testing skewer. They're also strong enough to securely hold quite a few sheets of paper (recipes, kids' party invitations etc), which is very handy if your family's fridge looks anything like ours!