Synopsis: Making tools easier to access not only makes work easier but also encourages you to put them away. One great way to keep them accessible is in a rack right next to the bench. Dan Faia’s rack holds all the essential hand tools for a modern furniture maker, and he makes it with hand tools only. The joinery is traditional, strong, and straightforward. Through-dovetails join the case sides to the top, with the tails located on the sides to resist the weight pulling downward. The lower stretcher ties the case sides together with wedged through-tenons. The shelf sits in simple stopped dadoes, and the back is made of shiplapped boards, placed horizontally.

---

For the first few years in my new shop, I worked out of a tool chest. Or at least I tried. A pile of tools took over my workbench, battling with workpieces and wood shavings. I…