How do I make a super cheap paint rack?

[Madog Barfog]

I saw a paint booth pic on Imgur and it inspired me. I've been wanting paint racks for a while. Couple hundred paints in 4 drawers suck. 

 

Design goals: upright paint racks that hold paints in one layer. No labels required; paint positions will change as I add/remove triads and mix in some VMC bottles. Must hold RMS and Vallejo bottles (they're essentially the same size). Cheap - I have a $25 Christmas gift to work with. Quality isn't an issue, I'm fine using lauan (spelling?) floor covering, scraps, etc. Must hold 200 bottles and be expandable (I'm thinking of a couple of racks or more). I'll be using these on my paint table, so don't want them to take a lot of room.  Top up storage is fine, as long as I can see what's in the bottles. I often put a drop of paint on top of the cap anyway.

 

Potentially useful tools I have:

cheap table saw

drill press

Dremel with router attachment (I've never used the attachment)

basic hand tools

wood glue 

 

I'm fine with them looking super cheap - exposed screws, glue seams, etc. Functionality is far more importance than quality looks.

 

I'm sure this has been done before, so you are welcome to link to your own projects/YouTube videos/whatever.

[Al Capwn]

I posted a paint rack that I ended up making in one of the threads here (pa-chow: http://forum.reapermini.com/index.php?/topic/82762-welcome-to-the-workshop-picture-intense/) You have a few different options, design-wise.

 

The first rack I made was using a drill press and a forstner bit; the forstner bit will allow you to cut the perfect circles with the flat bottoms needed. I believe the one I used was a 1" bit - but I can double-check. I recycled a 2x6 pine board that I had, so really inexpensive.

 

The second storage unit I made, I decided on a smaller "bookshelf" style design; so more vertical storage. You can cut rabbets/dados on a table saw relatively easily. You could use plywood or solid wood, both would be fine. You shouldn't need any nails or screws - wood glue should be plenty strong provided you have a good glue surface (not end-grain).

Edited December 26, 2018 by Al Capwn

[Gadgetman!]

Lauan is a type of wood, so that's OK. 

How thick are the scraps? 

Do you want to store the bottles standing or laying on their side(presenting either cork or bottom out) ?  

 

How are your carpentry skills from 1 to 10?

(1 = Hammer good!, 10 = can make dovetails while blindfolded)

 

For horisontal storage of bottles, cut long strips about 3/4" wide, then use the router atachment and make cutouts so that they get a profile like this;

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(Sorry about bad ascii art... )

Cut a pair of 3" wide strips to use as sides.

The curvy strips goes between them, one near the back, the next about 1" from the front and a 1/8" or so higher, Add the next pair of strips above those so that there's room between them to slip in a bottle.

 

For bonus XP in carpentry(cabinet making, actually) put in a backboard of something thin such as 1/8" MDF, or just cardstock.

 

For double bonus xp, make curved slots on both edges of the strips so that you waste less room.

 

 

 

[Grumpy Cave Bear]

Some time back, I made stadium-style bottle racks for my paints out of foam core board, with just an X-Acto knife and a straight-edge.  They came out pretty nice:

 

http://forum.reapermini.com/index.php?/topic/69656-gcb-tries-foam-core-joinery/&tab=comments#comment-1396487

 

I don’t see why that same material couldn’t be used for making a vertical rack, also.  The total cost for one rack was about $5.00 (Edit: $7.50), as I got the foam core board on sale at $1.50 each, and already had the tools and other materials.

 

I’m still using them today — though they are full up now.  Maybe I should consider adding a desk rack, too?

Edited December 26, 2018 by Grumpy Cave Bear

[Madog Barfog]

Thanks for the answers so far. I went looking for a picture to better show what I want. It was much harder than I thought it would be to find one.

 

https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YVOOeP5iMs4/UEgoBYgdwTI/AAAAAAAALQ8/j2XMCjugg1o/s1600/P1060536.JPG

 

I really like the slanted shelf idea as the best way to save space. Grumpy Cave Bear, I like your stadium-style setup, but don't have that much horizontal space. 

 

Im also looking to avoid holes - I d rather be able to slide the bottles around, and I think,they use too much lengthwise space. Plus, I'd have to drill a couple hundred of them. :o  I'd rather not make swoopy parts either and just keep everything straight.

 

I am understanding these things will probably be larger than I thought. 

 

Gadgetman!, the only lauan I've seen is probably 1/4". I do have some 1x4 scraps. My carpentry skills are maybe a 4. I've used a table saw a few times and even done some wood burning (not really carpentry, I know, but still artistic work with wood).  I want the bottle tops to show, not the bottoms. That will also make them more stable.

[Grumpy Cave Bear]

The slanted shelf arrangement is just the stadium arrangement, tilted forward with the back corner cut off!  What you would be doing is building something like a set of stairs, and adding two rectangles on either side to make it stand upright.

 

...Now I want to build one, too!

[starwarsgeek]

I used a sheet of Lexan from Lowes to build a wall mounted paint rack a few years back. This is an older pic and it's been expanded twice since this...

[IgwanaRob]

PVC pipe: about $2 for a 10' length. Cut 2 - 21/2 inches pieces, glue together, enjoy :-)

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmxzSCfaVyE&t=380s

 

Here's mine (added more paints to the left drawer since this pic):

 

 

[kristof65]

Here's yet another option:

http://madincrafts.com/craft-room-organization-pvc-and-wire/

This uses inexpensive wire grid used for those storage cubes and PVC pipe pieces.   My personal paint rack is a variant of this, but I 3d printed my standoffs. 

[Madog Barfog]

Hmmm, I hadn't considered PVC pipes. They don't allow the "sliding" I wanted, but I'm not married to that idea and it seems quite simple to build, is inexpensive, and is even easily expandable. 

 

I'm curious, though, no primer for the PVC cement? I remember using it before for some plumbing project.

 

I wonder, would hot glue work? A cheap glue gun is only a couple of dollars more than the cement, and has many more uses.

[Madog Barfog]

I answered my own question. Yes, hot glue will hold PVC. It isn't as strong as PVC cement, but should work for the light load I'll be putting on the paint rack, and no need for any cement primer. 

[IgwanaRob]

37 minutes ago, Madog Barfog said:

I answered my own question. Yes, hot glue will hold PVC. It isn't as strong as PVC cement, but should work for the light load I'll be putting on the paint rack, and no need for any cement primer. 

 

If you don't have one, than yes a glue gun would probably be a great idea. It's not like you'll be picking it up and moving it constantly, and even if you were the cement wouldn't offer much over the glue in that case anyway. You'd also avoid the need for ventilation while building, and would help with adhering whatever you choose as a backing for the slots. Plus you could also change the setup and arrange the pipes in any way you want (rainbow shaped arch for sorting things by color, etc).