portable socket organisation.

[Buickspec6231]

So, I tried searching the forums first as I am sure this has been discussed before, but I had little luck. I am looking for people's feelings on different types of socket organizers. I have some metal cases, some clip rails, and some come from craftsman plastic holders. My clip rails are a mix or craftsman and harbor freight and the metal cases are old Harbor freight (the sockets not longer come in these) and the famous old green S&K. The harbor freight rails don't even hold shallow 1/4" sockets well enough. My dilemma is that most of what I work on is no where near my tool boxes so I end up throwing a bunch of tools in a bag and marching around with it. By the time I get to whatever I am working on, the sockets always end up loose in the bag and the size I am looking for is always as elusive as Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster. I am looking for input on a cost effective and dependable form of mobile socket organization. With that said, the peg style or recessed cut out style are a no go. Are the magnetic trays strong enough to do what I ask or only strong enough to keep sockets organized when opening and closing drawers? Metal cases are my favorite, but seem too costly for now. I don't do this professionally, but I do all my own work and hate searching for or losing tools. If there is a method I may not know of, I am also open to that. Trying to not throw more money out on carp products. Thanks for your time.

Edit- A typo in the title is embarrassing and I couldn't fix it. Oh well.

 

[thepumpguysc]

Those magnetic rails from HF are great for holding sockets.. & cheap too..
There are "plastic" rail holders now instead of the metal clips.. I think you "turn" the socket to lock & unlock them from the rail..
I can see where the "pegs" would be worthless unless they were screwed down.. definatley not for travel..
The only prob. w/ the mag. rails is> they're so strong they stick to everything & ATTRACT EVERYTHING.. You defin. don't have to worry about loosing a cotter pin or clip w/ those around.. Lol

 

[SARuger]

I use the aluminum/plastic "clip" style rails from Wally World, they work very well. I suggest that you buy two for each one you need as the rails don't have enough clips for some sets, especially the 3/8" and 1/4". You can pry out the end cap and slide the clips on and off as needed. Like you, I also have to be far from my truck to make some repairs so I have a "crash bag" that I keep the usual tools in it and I can throw extra's in if I know what I'm getting into.

The WalMart rails are $5 each

 

[SARuger]

Those magnetic rails from HF are great for holding sockets.. & cheap too..
There are "plastic" rail holders now instead of the metal clips.. I think you "turn" the socket to lock & unlock them from the rail..
I can see where the "pegs" would be worthless unless they were screwed down.. definatley not for travel..
The only prob. w/ the mag. rails is> they're so strong they stick to everything & ATTRACT EVERYTHING.. You defin. don't have to worry about loosing a cotter pin or clip w/ those around.. Lol

I agree, the magnetic rails don't work for me. The metal clip rails haven't worked for the 35 years I've been a tech, not sure why anyone still makes them. The peg style works in a stationary box. I like the ones that Lowes sells, they fit in the top of a portable Craftsman "4 drawer" box perfectly and hold the sockets great even if the box gets turned over in the truck. Like the Walmart holders that I like, I always buy two of the Lowes socket holders so that I have enough clips to hold all of the sockets. The verticle socket holder from lowes is set up for 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2". The Lowes socket holder has a metal base with 4 rails and snap in clips. I own several and they work. Now if I could just find a way to organize all those 3/4" and 1" drive sockets :-/

Im OCD on how my tool boxes are organized, I guess I should post some pics so everyone can see how bad my OCD level is

 

[crane operator]

I use the metal clip rails, and yes they don't work very well, but they seem to be better than everything else I've tried. (I'm not a full time mechanic though- it just seems like it sometimes).

I don't like magnetic socket holders, we do grinding, drilling, torching, also, and you end up with little metal flakes stuck to all your sockets (I tried the lisle flat magnetic socket holders, and gave up on them). The metal flakes aren''t a big deal, unless your reinstalling a injector and your concerned about dumping metal flakes into the engine.

I like the old metal s-k sets, they don't tip over like the narrow little metal socket boxes do. You can actually buy them again, s-k is owned by ideal industries now, and they started making sets like that again, I bought one last year.

I don't like the plastic rails with the ball detents on them, I can't seem to get my sockets popped off of them, maybe they just needed broken in. I got a new set of wright impact sockets, that came with a red plastic rail with detents, and I had to use a screwdriver to pry them off.

 

[SARuger]

I use the metal clip rails, and yes they don't work very well, but they seem to be better than everything else I've tried. (I'm not a full time mechanic though- it just seems like it sometimes).

I don't like magnetic socket holders, we do grinding, drilling, torching, also, and you end up with little metal flakes stuck to all your sockets (I tried the lisle flat magnetic socket holders, and gave up on them). The metal flakes aren''t a big deal, unless your reinstalling a injector and your concerned about dumping metal flakes into the engine.

I like the old metal s-k sets, they don't tip over like the narrow little metal socket boxes do. You can actually buy them again, s-k is owned by ideal industries now, and they started making sets like that again, I bought one last year.

I don't like the plastic rails with the ball detents on them, I can't seem to get my sockets popped off of them, maybe they just needed broken in. I got a new set of wright impact sockets, that came with a red plastic rail with detents, and I had to use a screwdriver to pry them off.

Try one of the WalMart rails, they work very good and sockets will pop off without excessive effort. Some larger sockets, 13/16", 21mm or larger, do fall off inside my crash bag sometimes but those are easy to dig for. Outside of the bag, they hold the large sockets just fine. I wish I could find a new photo hosting site, photobuckets demise has left me with no way to share pics :-(

 

[Dustin Dirt]

I like the metal push on rails, and keeping your most common used ones in a metal tray with some other useful common tools. my goal is to make one trip up the machine and one trip down, but that never happens

 

[Sterff]

I use gearwrench socket rails. They are made of plastic but, they are strong and the sockets won't fall off. They cost about $4 each. Here are my 1/4" sockets...

 

[JD955SC]

Gearwrench rails are strong affordable and retain the sockets very well...try one

 

[Buickspec6231]

Thanks for replies and input everyone. Learning from other's experiences here. Well, magnetic ones have been ruled out because they will always attract the metal from grinding, drilling, and rust (I live in an area where salted roads are the norm and nothing escapes oxidation). I think I'm going to buy one of a few different types and try them out before I commit to replacing all my cheap rails. Seems like the rails are preferred for the grab and go setup I unfortunately have to deal with for now, ( 40x60 pole barn coming soon-ish hopefully). Will check locally in the next few days, maybe even load up some rails with some sockets and shake it around a bit before I commit. Seems silly as I type this to put so much effort into it, but with so many projects left lingering, time spent searching for tools is wasted time. I recently started leaving the wrenches in a slotted holder behind and have been using a set in a roll for convenience too. The journey continues....

 

[Jonas302]

Grab and go I like a multi tool set like this https://www.amazon.com/Crescent-CTK...=1505699792&sr=8-1&keywords=cresent+tool+sets you can get a lot of work done with whats in there I also like the gearwrench socket rails and gearwrench tools in general seem to be a good tool for the money

 

[SARuger]

Here are the ones I use from walmart, they are cheaper in the store, $5 each. They hold the socket great and you can easily add/remove clips by removing the end cap. I buy two rails for each one I need, they only give you a 10 or so clips per rail. They have them for 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2"
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Mechanics-Time-LAS38-3-8-Inch-Lock-A-Socket-Holder/119073550

This is what I use inside my Craftsman 4 drawer portable boxes, (I have a box for SAE and a box for MM on my service truck), they work well in the top of the box. Lowes carries these, once again, if I need one, I buy two for the extra clips.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Kobalt-Multiple-Drive-Steel-Storage-Tray/3381278

 

[PJ The Kid]

I bought a couple of these from cornwell and love them https://www.toolsource.com/socket-c-328_349_353/5-row-lockasocket-tray-p-101672.html

 

[Buickspec6231]

So, just an update. I opted for the Kobalt aluminum rails from Lowes. They are identical to many other aluminum rails including Olsa, Ares, and Neiko (All were found with Google searches). I ordered a 3 piece set of "Neiko" aluminum rails and all the clips interchange between rails and with the Kobalt. This is nice because with that style rail, additional clips can be purchased to add more to a rail or combine different sizes on one rail. much better than the metal spring style clip. I have a 17" long rail loaded up with impact sockets up to 36mm. No flex and the sockets stay on even when shaken upside down. I didn't realize how many rails I was going to need. I'm probably about halfway to replacing them all. Gotta spread the costs out over time a little. I felt guilty after looking at receipts of things to hold my tools. Thanks for the input everyone.

 

[SARuger]

I still like the cheap aluminum ones that I got at WalMart, they work pretty good. I plan on buying more for my home box.

 

[Old Doug]

I started makeing the metal boxes that have the flip over strap.I found a way to make them easy and have made several. I have some plastic magnetic tray socket holders that i would give away if some one wants them.

 

[crane operator]

I started makeing the metal boxes that have the flip over strap.I found a way to make them easy and have made several. I have some plastic magnetic tray socket holders that i would give away if some one wants them.

I would love to see pictures of how you're making those.

 

[Buickspec6231]

Also would like to see the boxes. I still prefer them over clip rails.

 

[Old Doug]

I will try and take some pictures but for now i will tell how i did it.Take the sockets and line them up on a sheet of heavy paper or poster board. Next with a thin ruler laid agins one side mark a line along the socket going past each end do the same on the other side. Then figuer how deep you want it then mark a line that far from the last one on both sides. Take and cut the paper were you made the last line leaveing it long on each end. Now bend it on each side on the inside line then lay the sockets in side it and mark were the sockets end on each end and cut the out side off and bend the ends up and cut them off were they meet the sides.Now you have a pattern to mark the sheet steel off of. I used the heavyest tin that my hand snips would cut. I made the strap that is on top from 1/8 X 1/2 . I bent it then put the sockets in the box and marked holes for 1/4 pins for hinges this takes some work in order for it to stay close and be the the wright heigth.If your like me the first one is not the best one and the more you make the better they get.

 

[92U 3406]

I bought some 3/8 drive hex bits and they came on a rail similar to the metal clip style but instead of those cheesy tin clips they were a 3/8 drive square (like from the end of a ratchet) with a detent ball. Works awesome.