Designs for portable tool case/chest/box

I like that design.  I’ve had something similar in my head except I was leaning more toward the more common wall hung style tool cabinet.

By that I mean, the doors would be straight up and down and, extend from the top to the bottom.   It would be mounted on a dolly or be built with wheels and a handle like a dolly, as you have in your pencil drawing.

I’m considering putting some small tools in the doors and, I’m wondering if the slanted doors you have in your design would be able to hold the weight.

As you mentioned, the contents need to be secure so they don’t get tossed around while moving it.

https://www.google.com/search?q=wall+hung+tool+cabinet&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=vnQ&tbo=d&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=fflb&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=oEYMUfXKC4T0qQGgroH4Bg&ved=0CAoQ_AUoAA&biw=1068&bih=558

Robin-

In case this is helpful: To design my own chest, I first measured all my tools and wrote those sizes down. I now have a mental catalog of tool space I need. For example, I have a try plane that is 3.25″ x 20.5″ x 7.5″ high, which dictates the overall length and height where I store my planes. My panel saws are 25″ in length, which may determine the length of the case. My chisels are 10.5 – 12″ in length, and the handles are generally 1.125″ thick, so I know how much height and clearance I need for the rack or drawer. Bulky things like braces and hand drills are probably the most challenging. When I draw, I sketch in the tools after I delineate the volumes so I can roughly what will be an efficient use of space. I am really good at sketching tools now. 😉

My shoe-horning method of design is fun, but I also like the idea of just building something simple, generic, (i.e.. traditional) and  figuring out all the fussy tool fitting afterwards. There is a beauty to that too.

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I have been assuming that dovetailing wider boards cross-grain can lead to joint failure. Probably not a hard and fast rule. Narrow carcase elements like rails or drawer dividers are dovetailed cross-grain, but they only have a single tail with no immediate neighbors.

There is a nice tool box (“A Remodeler’s Pine Tote) in Tolpin’s book that has 6” of cross-grained half-blind dovetails on the front and back. The book makes a point to mention that they were machined.Perhaps soft pine is more forgiving? Looks like it has held up quite nicely.

Woodworking construction seems really tricky once we go off the beaten path.

Thanks for the link Gregory.