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| Peg Board in Makerspace at iHub |
The peg board is one of the attractions in Makerspace at iHub. Even among the latest technological advancements like 3D printer and Laser cutter the old hand-tools do not look out of place. Instead, the room looks vibrant with the colorful tools of different shapes and sizes displayed neatly on the whiteboard .
The idea of putting tools on a whiteboard started with a problem. The tools had to be visible, easily accessible and the placement of tools had to be flexible. Upon quick online research on how tools could be arranged we stumbled across the peg board. It was neat. It was the solution we needed. We had already made a board using plywood and nails, and such permanent tool boards are regular sightings at workshops. But a tool board that could be customized was a totally new concept. Further researching on the subject gave us insights about how it can be made and used. But we had to test it before we could be sure it was a right thing to do. So we made our prototype first.A 3mm MDF board was used to build a prototype. We drilled 5mm holes in two different ways: 2 inches apart and 1 inches apart, to see which works best. Our biggest challenge was to find the hooks to hold the tools and which can be taken out at will which makes the board so flexible. We looked for hooks in market but couldn’t get any. So we turned our making instinct ON and created our own hooks with GI wire, pliers and a bench vice.
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| MDF Board with lines at 2mm |
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| GI wire ready to be bent into hooks |
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| A removable hook made of GI wire |
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| Screwdriver holder |
We also made wooden holders for storing screwdriver. First we cut plywood into required size and drilled holes on it for holding screwdrivers. Then we bent two nails two inches apart so that they could go into the holes and hold the wood in place. Upon success we made another holder for storing files too.
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| Carpenters mounting a Peg Board with 5mm holes drilled at 2mm distance |
After learning that we could make peg boards with MDF boards and hooks with GI wires we were ready to make the real board. We asked our carpenter to build a sturdy board 6mm thick with 5mm holes 2 inches apart. They were critical of the idea because they hadn’t seen such tool board before. But we knew what we wanted to do and insisted on making the board according to our specification.When the board was completed it took us about an hour to bend the GI wires into hooks and put the tools into their places. Upon completion we really liked how the board turned out as. We still need to perfect on the hooks.This process of building reflects our culture of making at Karkhana. During the process of building the board we were consistently following the design cycle of TMPI; Think, Make, Play and Improve. This is the mantra that guides us as makers.
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| Final Peg Board |