Table Saw Bench Saw Blade Storage

I needed a better way to store my table saw blades than just tossed on a shelf. I didn't want to take up any more room than necessary and I wanted it near the saw for easy access. I came up with a way to quickly and cheaply build it into my table saw work bench.

(1) 2''x 4'' 36'' inches long total for the side and back rails.

(5) 11 1/2'' by 11'' x 3/8 inch boards.

Some 2 1/2 '' screws

Hot glue stick

(5) lock washer slightly smaller than the diameter of your table saw arbor

Table saw

Dado blade ( could do with regular blade and do multiple passes )

Screw driver or screw gun

Drill

Measuring tape

Safety googles

Hot glue gun

Square

Jig Saw

Drill bits

Hand saw or chop saw

Since I have a table saw that uses 10 inch blades I needed sliding trays larger than the blade plus a little additional length to go through the front of the bench.

For the trays I went with 11' wide by 11 1/2 " deep by 3/8" thick wood. I needed something thick enough to support the blade and thin enough to fit as many as I could.

For the rails I went with a standard 2" x 4" x 36 inches long. This will later but cut into 3 pieces after the dado grooves.

(2) Side rails at 9 1/2 inches each.

(1) Back rail at 14 inches.

For the hole in the front of the workbench it needs to be slightly wider than the trays. The opening is 11 3/8" wide x 2 3/4 " tall.

For cutting the rails I left the 2 x 4 at it's 36 inch length and cut the Dado slot across the whole board at once. I did this to ensure the slots would all line up and it's just easier to do it this way and then cut it to length later.

For the Dado Set up I just used the two main Dado blades which would create a channel 1/4 inch wide. I set the blade at 1/4 inch high for the depth of the groove I needed for each tray.

My first pass will be the for the top of the board and I made it 1/4 inch in.

From there I would move the table saw fence over 1/2 an inch and do the next pass.

Repeat until out of board to cut grooves into, for me this left a slightly wider last rail on the bottom which is OK.

Once done with the grooves cut the rails into the right size pieces.

(2) side rails at 9 1/2 inches.

(1) Back rail at 14 inches.

*** Cut the side rails first. Insert a tray into the side rails and then put the back rail in place. You can make it slightly longer or shorter to better work with the tray width and depth of your rail cuts. Yours might need to be slightly longer or shorter than the 14 inches.

Having the rails square is key here otherwise your trays will fall out or bind from being too tight.

I put the tray into the slots, clamped it, squared it and the drilled pilot holes for the screws that go from the back rail into the side rails.

After I figured out about where on the front of the bench to put the hole I measured out and marked where the hole would need to go. The hole is this case will be 11 3/8 wide by 2 3/4 inches tall.

I used a wood spade or paddle bit to drill starter holes in the 4 corners of the cutout so I could start the jig saw cut. Take your time making the cut with the jig saw. I rushed a bit on this part and it looks a bit sloppy because of it. But I could go back and router the front or sand it later if it really bugs me.

Put the rails behind the cut out you made and be sure there is enough room to slide the trays in.

I put 4 screws through the top of the shelf down into the rails to hold it in place.

To better hold the saw blade onto the trays I glued a lock washer slightly smaller than the hole in the blade to the tray. I put the locking part of the washer to the back. This allows the blade to smoothly glide over the front of the washer when I put it away and the raised part of the washer in the back helps keep the blade from sliding out the front.

Here in the pics it has the 5 trays inserted into the table.

I considered making the trays a little longer so I could allow for a tab with the tooth count on it. This would make grabbing the tray easier to slide out. But I think I would bump into the tabs more than it would be worth the convenience of the tab. I might glue a small cloth loop on each tab as a way to grab them later. depends on how often I need to swap blades vs the effort of making them.